Tin Roof and Fantasy Football Talk!!!

Welcome back everyone!  I know it's been a long time, but life can get in the way.  I'm a 46 year old man with a child barely under the age of 2.  I hold a full time job, so sometimes I'm a bit too tired to remember to make a blog post.  Waaaaa!  Everyone in the world feel sorry for me!! 

In all seriousness, I am an insanely lucky man.  I have a wonderful job, a wonderful wife, a wonderful child, and things are just fantastic.  No need to feel sorry for me.  I just have too much happiness sometimes to get this done.  Not that things aren't happy now.  I just have an hour or less before the NFL is on tonight.  Time enough to crank out a quality blog for your entertainment!

Since I started this blog there has been some drama going on amongst a couple of my readers.  The Reverend Jeremy Shannon berated me until I finally tried Burger Shakes.  The formerly tremendous, now simply respectable, Scott Fitzpatrick has repeatedly said that Tin Roof has fries that belong on the list.  What I didn't know was that there has been back and forth between the two readers regarding these two spots.  Who wins?  Let's get to it. 

Tin Roof

Check out that picture.  I know this is a fry blog, but check out the GIANT cup they give you for your drink.  Oddly enough my two guests needed refills.  I didn't, as I was serious about checking these fries out.  I didn't want to wash down the taste too much.  Either way, that cup alone makes Tin Roof worth checking out as a lunch spot.  

The fries are a medium length golden crinkle style cut.  On the scale of undercooked to overcooked, these fries lean more towards the undercooked side.  They are by no means undercooked though.  The outside skin has a very slight crisp mostly at the edges of the crinkles.  The inside is light and fluffy.  The taste is not overwhelming by any means, but it is not offensive either.  The only thing I have against these fries would be that they came out with pepper on them.  Of course I live a strict no spice other than salt life when it comes to fries, so this was offensive.  There was not so much pepper that I couldn't overpower it with some salt to allow me to enjoy these fries.  Just make sure if you order them that you ask for no pepper.  

What's the verdict you ask?  Fitz is the clear winner here.  The Burger Shakes fries are fine in and of themselves.  I'd eat those with no worries, but they are not as fulfilling as the fries at Tin Roof.  Both fries deserve a place on the list.  If I have a pepper shaker held to my head, I'm picking Tin Roof over Burger Shakes.  Sorry Reverend.

Completely Unrelated Fantasy Football Talk That No One Will Enjoy Besides Myself and Mike Robinson

Those who know me know that I am heavily into Fantasy Football.  This is not just a thing where I enjoy playing in a league or two every year.  This is an obsession where I am annually in a minimum of 4 leagues.  At my worst I was in 7 leagues at one time including multiple leagues composed of co-workers at the same employer.  I've been playing since 2005 thanks to the members of the Blue McDonald league.  Every year the draft for the Blue McDonald league is one of my favorite nights of the year.  Most recently I have joined a family league on my lovely wife's side of the family.  I should probably be on my best behavior there, but instead I trash talk my in laws like I don't care what they think about me.  I've second guessed my trash talk a few times in my head, but I keep going back to it.  

In my 13 glorious years of playing Fantasy Football, I have won 9 leagues and I have finished 2nd and 3rd multiple times as well.  Does all of this make me knowledgeable about Fantasy Football?  Yes.  Does this make me better than all of you who play against me?  Absolutely.  Now I've decided to share my thoughts with you all.  One reason is to entertain Mike Robinson.  Another reason is to have the extra challenge of calling my shots.  Will anyone be able to defend me?  Much like if Chris Henry was to play me one on one, I think I will still be able to come out victorious.

In my four leagues this season, I started out 1-0 in all leagues despite drafting different players for each league.  There is one rule that I follow to the letter in all of my leagues.  I cannot draft a Steeler, Raven, or Brown.  Mostly because I am a long suffering Bengals fan.  I cannot allow myself to cheer for the success of any player for those teams.  Some say, "just sit them when they play the Bengals."  Those people have never been actual fans of any team.  I can't take them seriously.  After filtering out those players, I draft the players I believe will have the best chance to have far more points than the next person at the same position that I could draft at the next round.  For example, if I have the chance to draft Joe Mixon (Bengal!!) in the 2nd round, and I expect him to average 15 points a week maybe I should take him.  If I believe I can draft Melvin Gordon in the 3rd round who could average 13 points a week, I might not take Mixon.  There may be a WR available who could average 6 points better per week than who I would draft in the 3rd round.  It's all about gaining the highest scoring potential for each position at each round.  The only other drafting rule I have is not following draft trends.  If all players in the league are drafting QB's, I wait on drafting a QB until a far later round.  That way I can take advantage of all the players not being drafted who should be high achievers.  

Draft time is over fry boy!  Thanks for sharing all that, but what about free agency?  It doesn't matter how much you prepare for Fantasy Football drafts.  You will have mistakes that happen.  You will have players get injured.  Free agency is your friend, and it sometimes take way more research than the draft itself.  This is where many championships are won.  Make sure you know the waiver wire in your leagues, and always be working to improve your team.  

This week I love the following pickups from the wires.  Remember my leagues may be different from your own, so these players may not be available for you.  Your loss for not playing with me.  

• If Andy Dalton is available in your league, pick him up.  This is before the Ravens game, but I'm hoping for continued success tonight.  He has vastly improved pass protection from his OL, and his weapons are strong at all skill positions.  He will rack up points most weeks, and he will likely not get any respect from fans until he wins a playoff game.  This could be his year.
• Robby Anderson from the New York Jets is a nice boom or bust player in my opinion.  It seems he doesn't get a ton of targets, but he tends to find the end zone an awful lot.  Worth a pick up as a 3rd WR or a flex during bye weeks. 
• If Bilal Powell wasn't drafted in your league, you better grab him.    

Good luck to all.  Next blog, I will share my trade thoughts.