You have lineup questions. We have answers. At least we hope. Start 'Em & Sit 'Em has helped fantasy managers for years make those pressing lineup decisions. And you know what is a good decision? Starting Patrick Mahomes. But that's too obvious, so you won't see that here. Instead here are some of the most-pressing questions. And, if you can't find a player you are looking for, please check out latest NFL Fantasy lineup rankings right here.
Welcome to Week 1 of the NFL season. You might have heard, the biggest in NFL history with a 17th game. Which means your family can also be upset with you on New Year's weekend because your championship got pushed back an extra week. Not that it matters, because New Year's Eve is sort of an overrated holiday anyway.
All that aside, we within the NFL Media group open the season with heavy hearts. We are still not past the heart-breaking loss of Chris Wesseling who passed just before the Super Bowl. Chris was one of the brightest football minds I ever had the privilege of knowing. Chris was one of the most grounded and considerate people I ever knew. And if I'm being completely honest, it was always intimidating talking football around him. Like trying to talk science with Bill Nye or something. Because you (or I) were always worried about what stupid thing was going to come flying out of your mouth. I will tell you, though. If you got that Wess approval about something you said, you certainly strutted around for the rest of the day. It was kind of like teeing off with Rory McIlroy and striping one 325 down the fairway. If you get a chance, check out some of his best work. The story of the Oilers is especially great.
We also suffered devastating news this week. Beloved co-worker Tara Deeker was also taken from us way too soon. It's not hyperbole to say she was the most beloved person in the entire NFL Media group. You might have seen some of the tributes to Deek on NFL Network during the week and it's weird because honestly, nothing is quite doing it justice. She might have barely been 5-foot tall, but she had a presence one hundred times that size. You were never in a room and wondered if Deek was there, too. She was a wave of positive energy that touched everyone she met. And I know sometimes you can read tributes like this and you might wonder if this is an exaggeration. I'm really worried that I'm not selling it hard enough.
Deek was great in big moments. Post-draft or Super Bowl celebrations. Throwing the dice at the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas. But I'm going to miss the day-to-day interactions. Although it felt like every work conversation we ever had ended with her shaking her head and saying, "Oh Rank" as she walked away. I'm going to miss that. I'll also miss getting text messages every time Bryson DeChambeau puts one in the water.
We've done a great job over the past 20 months of getting things into perspective. But before we rush to get back to normal, remember what is truly important and take nothing for granted.
Thank you for allowing me to share this with you. I am delighted to be back for one more season and I'm looking forward to a great year. As Deek told me on draft night, "You've got a quarterback now, RANK!" So let's go.
Follow Adam Rank on Twitter @adamrank.
