2014 Keeper Analysis: Western Conference

Here we are, with another edition of “rank the keepers!” As always, we separate out keepers into gold/silver/bronze status and as you’ll see, we’ve got quite a few team ranking changes in there, and lots of new faces. The keeper spreadsheet reveals all and here are the 2013 West and East grades.

Knights Who Say Ni
Another Bad Creation +2(15): Aaron Rodgers (3) Marshawn Lynch (3) Reggie Bush (2) Joique Bell (1) Andre Johnson (3) Vincent Jackson (3)
Jedi Knights -1(13): Peyton Manning (3) Alfred Morris (2) Wes Welker (2 Marques Colston (2) Emmanuel Sanders (2) Jason Witten (2)
Original Salt +1(10): Matt Forte (3) Steven Jackson (1) Bernard Pierce (1) Roddy White (2) Jordan Cameron (2) Terrance Williams (1)
P Funk All Stars +3(8): Joe Flacco (1) Ryan Mathews (2) DeSean Jackson (2) Michael Floyd (2) Tavon Austin (1) Bengals (0)


Another Bad Creation went 5-8 last season but had a great keeper core. This year, they return with an even stronger group, at least on paper. Aaron Rodgers and Marshawn Lynch are franchise players at their respective positions, and Andre Johnson and Vincent Jackson are old but still very productive. Both of them could be headed for greener pastures soon, but their performance still gets them to near the top ten at receiver. The only question here is if Joique Bell might supplant Reggie Bush sometime in the Lions’ backfield, but it seems like a straight time share. Rodgers must stay healthy this year though, to give Oliver a shot at the division -- and the Super Bowl, which ABC was at two years ago.

Jedi Knights have been tops here in the recent past and even though they lost a point in the rankings, Peyton Manning can carry this team far. The only new face is Emmanuel Sanders, taking over for Steve Smith, and he should be a decent starter. Despite only one gold caliber player on this core, that one franchise player can throw up 40+ points a week! This veteran heavy group is built to win now and is a solid all-around.

For awhile last year, it looked like Jordan Cameron was going to become a franchise caliber tight end. He cooled off dramatically, but he gives Original Salt (formerly Rhythm Drive) a top option at a position of need. This team is built around Matt Forte the hopeful return of Roddy White. Steven Jackson and Bernard Pierce are mediocre RB options, but hopes are high for new keeper Terrance Williams. We love the move Reno pulled off in deciding to kick Philip Rivers to the curb, even after a great season, realizing that only he was only one of two teams that wasn’t already keeping a quarterback. He'll have his choice of the non-keepers and an extra slot for a position player!

P Funk All Stars surprised all the pundits by throwing up a 8-5 season and making the playoffs. This after we mocked them for keeping two mediocre quarterbacks as their keepers. This year, they dumped Sam Bradford but kept Joe Flacco, still a borderline fantasy starter. And then there’s potential rookie bust Tavon Austin, who only had three double digit scoring games last season. Oh right, and Paolo kept Bengals defense, a very strange move (last year he kept 49ers). The good news is that Ryan Mathews, new trade acquisition DeSean Jackson, and the emerging Michael Floyd are all nice pieces. Can P Funk keep winning despite a keeper core that consistently scores increduously low?

Hoke-A-Mania
MoRRie’s Pogiboys +5(15): Tom Brady (2) Eddie Lacy (3) Trent Richardson (0) Calvin Johnson (3) Michael Crabtree (2) Percy Harvin (2)
Team Cameltoe +3(13): Russell Wilson (2) Doug Martin (2) Julio Jones (3) Jordy Nelson (3) Riley Cooper (1) Jordan Reed (2)
Hungry Ourorboros +0(11): Matt Ryan (2) Ray Rice 2 Giovani Bernard (2) Victor Cruz (2) Eric Decker (1) Dennis Pitta (2)
Ann Arbor Bamfers -2(10): Colin Kaepernick (2) Nick Foles (2) Frank Gore (2) CJ Spiller (2) Fred Jackson (1) Kendall Wright (2)

It’s hard for a keeper player to earn a zero score. We gave one out to Bengals defense on principle, as no defenses should ever be kept. Kickers would get a zero too. The only position players to receive a zero last year were Willis McGahee, who didn’t have a NFL team at the time, and Michael Crabtree, who was effectively out for the season. So here comes Trent Richardson, Mr. Dud, who we think deserves a zero until he proves otherwise. Even with that fat zero, Pogiboys is stacked and looking to avenge a Super Bowl loss. The trade for Tom Brady gave them a borderline franchise QB. Rookie Eddie Lacy -- the only lasting haul from Pogiboys' three top ten picks last season -- emerged as a borderline franchise piece, and of course there’s still Calvin Johnson, the best WR in the game. If Crabtree and Percy Harvin can manage to stay even semi-healthy, this keeper core is one of the best in the league. Even with Trent Zero Richardson.

After last season’s epic off-season rebuild, Cameltoe was still looking a little shaky and they went 2-11 to add insult to injury. As it turned out, Daryl Richardson was a bust, Bears defense wasn’t even kept, but at least Jordy Nelson returned from injury to become gold status. This year, Felipe worked the trade market again and landed Doug Martin and Jordan Reed. Of course, they could have had this year’s #1 overall selection if they hadn’t moved a boatload of picks for Russell Wilson, who is grading out to likely be a middle of the road QB option. Still, we love Cameltoe’s aggressiveness, and we hope the fantasy gods reward this team in the future. As it stands, their keeper core is a vast improvement over two years ago.

Hungry Ouroboros entered Maize and Blue after inheriting a championship team starring Drew Brees, but quickly blew that squad up. Two years later, they are still trying to find that elusive core that will enable them to return to the playoffs. Rookie find Giovani Bernard is looking promising, and the trade for Ray Rice should give this team an upgrade from their former top back, Darren Sproles. Victor Cruz is looking for a bounce back year, while Eric Decker will likely suffer greatly away from Peyton. Jon waited on the injured Dennis Pitta all last year, and he’ll replace Antonio Gates as the TE keeper. Matt Ryan is what he is, and this team is sorely lacking a franchise caliber talent.

Having two keeper slots dedicated to QBs has to hurt doesn’t it? Last year, Bamfers kept Eli Manning and Colin Kaepernick, and this year they’ll replace Eli with Nick Foles. We’re not saying Foles isn’t good, but it probably behooves Randy to start looking for trade partners soon, as both quarterbacks are ranked about the same. Frank Gore continues to make his mark, but C.J. Spiller tanked hard last year. Fred Jackson is around, but once again, four keeper slots dedicated for two overlapping positions probably isn’t efficient. Then again, what do we know, Ann Arbor Bamfers snuck into the playoffs last year (albeit on a 6-7 record). New keeper Kendall Wright doesn’t score touchdowns but had 90+ receptions and he’ll likely be much more valuable once our new PPR rules kick in. The Bamfers had the best keeper core in Hoke-A-Mania at the beginning of last season, but now they’re last… How fast things change!