Good suggestions. So whats the good strategy?
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Start with picking QB ( how many? ) and then WR (how many?)
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Just pick from the ranking list as monkeycfa suggested?
RB first IMO, then QB, then WR.
Only way you start with a QB is if you are outside the top 3 picks and Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, or Drew Brees are still available. Once you get past the top 3 QBs, the weekly advantage you get for grabbing #4 vs. #8 QB off the board is not as big as you could get at another position.
There are 3-4 “elite” WRs (Calvin, Demariyus, Dez) that will go in the mid to late 1st round – these are guys whose production is off the charts, they get tons of targets and are in a class of their own.
Jimmy Graham is the best tight end in the game and will go in round 1, if you are drafting in the back half of round 1 or later and he is available, grab him. The next level of tight end will go a little later and includes Rob Gronkowski, Julius Thomas, Jordan Cameron…After those guys are off the board if you don’t have a tight end then don’t draft one until late.
The traditional approach would be to go something like:
RB, RB, WR, QB, WR, RB, WR, WR, TE, WR, WR, WR, RB, WR, DEF, K
If you miss out on the Elite RBs in round 1 (Jamaal Charles, Adrian Peterson, Lesean McCoy, Matt Forte), feel free to push back your RB picks (to round 2 and 3 vs. round 1 and 2) and grab an elite QB, WR, or Jimmy Graham.
Hopefully this is helpful – please note that this is not gospel, just kind of a crash course. People have tons of different opinions about this stuff and a lot of them are probably much more thoughtful than what I’ve got for you here.
edit: Sorry, one thing to add – the RB I have listed in the 4th to last round is typically the backup RB to one of your best RBs, that way you have a replacement if one of your most important pieces gets hurt (which RBs tend to do).
Who got Jamaal Charles last night? I’ll be rooting for him.
I grabbed Jamaal for $62…AP went for $65 and Shady went for $68.
Forte went for $58 which I thought was a great deal.
Preface: I am a Giants fan, but I live in a Philly suburb and listen to a ton of Philly sports talk radio.
Shady is over-valued. His numbers will drop-off significantly this year due to several factors:
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The loss of DJax leaves the Eagles with no real deep threat and will allow defenses to creep up toward the line.
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The addition of Sproles will steal carries and catches from Shady.
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Nick Foles will not have a TD:Int ratio of 27:2 again this season.
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The maturation of Zach Ertz will steal catches from Shady.
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The Eagles defense is actually worse than it was last year and def. coordinators have a better idea of how to game plan against Chip’s offense, so expect to see fewer offensive plays for the Eagles this year.
Congrats on winning this year league.
Edit: Also, whoever got Alex Smith probably got a good deal.
For the last 3 years I always do a relative value analysis for one of my leagues and we do a roast/awards ceremony for best and worst drafts. Small sample size but almost always RBs are the best value in the 1st round. However missing on your 1st rounder will kill your team (obvious) so go outside of the top 5 RBs I go with Peyton or Brees. After that its sort of a crap shoot so for your first draft just follow your cheat sheet. Dont take a KR until the last round but a top Def is worth a look at the 10th round or later. For a TE take Jimmy Graham in the 2nd or wait until round 7 or so for a mid teir guy. If you dont take Peyton or Brees wait, you could probably get Romo, Matt Ryan Andy Dalton etc in the 8th or later.
my 0.02
And Rodgers went for $45 
^ Buying high.
Insightful! 
The better websites allow you to input your league’s scoring system. This allows you to get absolute rankings because they’re ordered by how many points they’re projected to give you regardless of how (passing, catching, running, etc). You still have to use your head though because, for example, if you need to start 1 RB and 1 WR and already drafted a RB- perhaps a WR would be the better next pick despite having less projected points than an available RB.
An aside- anyone have any opinions on gronk or julius thomas? Keepers have to be in tonight and I’ve decided I’m going with one of them.
^ Gronk can’t seem to stay on the field, so I’d go with Thomas.
^For a late round pick at TE, go with Travis Kelce. He’s been lighting it up in the preseason and in Reid’s offense (and with Alex Smith’s arm) the TE is going to get a lot of use.
I lied, keepers were actually due last night and I went with gronk. My rationale was that despite all the injury concerns ppl throw at gronk, his missed games were from very srs accidents that required time to heal. He’s not just some recurrently glass man that’s constantly in and out like say amandola. Plus he’s all of NE’s offense where as DEN has a ton of mouths to feed. We shall see though. If he gives me even 12 games I’ll be happy.
Track everyone’s roster during the draft, not just your own. Most people will draft their starting lineup (other than K) before drafting backups. So if it’s the 5th round and almost everyone has drafted a QB but you haven’t, wait another round or two because it’s very unlikely you’ll lose the guy you were targeting.
Also, be the person that does draft solid backups before filling out his entire starting lineup and pay close attention to the needs of teams who will draft in the next several spots after you. For example, assume it’s the 6th round and you have your starting RB’s already but the guy drafting 2 spots after you doesn’t. If there’s a decent RB on the board and bid drop off after that, take him. Chances are you’ll get more value out him than you would a 3rd WR anyway, and you’ll weaken the other guy’s team (it’s also always fun to hear the grunt from the other guy when you take the RB he thought he was going to be lucky enough to fall to him).
You can’t win your league in the draft, but you can lose it, so don’t try to be clever in the first 3 rounds, just take the best player available and hope none of them get hurt. The guys who try to outsmart everyone in the first few rounds generally find themselves out of it by Halloween.
Rounds 4-9 are where you really build the foundation for a championship team, and the picks that are made in those rounds will tell you who the real competition is going to be. Those rounds are also where you have an opportunity to intimidate other teams. Be sure you have multiple picks ready well before your turn, and make your pick immediately when you’re on the clock. Picking very quickly accomplishes 2 things: 1) the guy after you will not be ready to pick so quickly and will likely get flustered and potentially make a bad pick (this is particularly effective if you only have 1-2 minutes per pick), and 2) everyone will assume you know your stuff, because you picked so confidently, and will start to pay attention to you when they should be concentrating on their next pick (note, this only works if you actually make a decent pick, immediately selecting a kicker in the 6th round will peg you as an idiot). Once you think people think you know your stuff, start commenting on other people’s picks. I find a 3:1 ratio of negative comments to good comments to be effective. If all you do is say a pick was risky or a stretch, people will just tune you out. If you mix in the occassional “Hey, nice pick” or “Darn, I thought I might steal him next round”, it solidifies your position of being in control.
Obviously, not everyone will fall for your tricks, and those are the people who will be your competition. Last but not least, don’t be the person in the 5th round who says “Did anyone take Peyton Manning yet?”
I think for a beginner, you’re better off focusing on your own team vs. trying to screw over your competition.
can someone sticky this
It doesn’t matter if you’re a 20 year FFL veteran, or doing your first draft. The idea is to win and you win though luck, preparation, season-long diligence, and gaining an advantage over the next guy. As a 15 year FFL veteran, I’ve found that, for the most part, cupcakes remain cupcakes no matter how many seasons they play, and champions act like champions from day one.
^ Champions also play in auction leagues, not snake drafts. Just sayin’