The Crow's Nest

Hannah Ulm
Contributing Writer

This column is strictly a morale booster, or dream crusher, depending on your current position in your league. I’m here to tell you that your current record, whether it is 1-4 or 5-0, means nothing.

There are approximately eight weeks left of the regular fantasy season. This is enough time for anyone—even the 0 for fivers (Adam DePrimo)— to come back and make the playoffs.So if you’re feeling defeated because you drafted Dez Bryant expecting him to be an awesome sleeper and instead he sucks, don’t give up yet. Consider the last five weeks a learning experience. Recognize your strengths and weaknesses and correct them.

Important tips:

Forget about all the preseason advice the fantasy experts gave you. This season’s craziness has negated pretty much everything they advised. Alex Smith? Terrible. Ryan Matthews? Eh. Bucs players? Considerable, especially Kellen Winslow and Mike Williams.

Make sure you’re paying attention to matchups. In bye week desperation, I played QB David Garrard vs. Buffalo Defense and it worked out great. If he had been playing a stronger defense though, I definitely would have reconsidered. Knowing which defenses let up the most yards to RBs and WRs can make setting your team easier each week. Instead of agonizing over two similarly valuable players, check out who they’re playing and factor that into your decision.

Keep an eye on low-key players. Lance Moore, Danny Woodhead, Dexter McCluster, Nate Washington…all players who exploded and nobody owned them. It might be hard to predict who will be next, but doing some research can go a long way.

My most important tip this week is to stay strong. If you’ve been on a losing streak, study your opponent’s team and then tear it apart. Turn it around, create a playoff-worthy team and win!