There are three weeks remaining in the NFFC regular season, and with a 5-5 record trailing the points leader by 170, I am hopelessly eliminated. In the minefield that has been the 2007 fantasy football season, my first three selections (Joseph Addai, Larry Fitzgerald, and Randy Moss have certainly held their own). Addai ranks 4th among running backs while Fitzgerald is 7th and Moss is 1st among wide receivers. My failure in 2007 is traced directly to two players – the 49’ers quarterback/wide receiver combo of Alex Smith and Darrell Jackson.

My pre-season projection for Smith had him as the eighth best quarterback, throwing for 3400 yards and 23 touchdowns. Most of the yards and touchdowns were expected to be targeted towards Jackson, as I was looking for him to catch 90 passes for 1200 yards. When you consider that Braylon Edwards was the next highest ranked receiver my list right after Jackson, I really blew it.

However, the ultimate failure was at quarterback. I waited until the ninth round to select my first quarterback – Alex Smith. Patiently I sat watching Peyton go in round two, Brees, Brady, McNabb, and Bulger in round four, Kitna and Romo in round five, Young and Roethlisberger in round seven, Rivers and Hasselbeck in round eight, and Leinart in round nine. I was giddy being able to acquire my stud quarterback in round nine.

How did it go so wrong for Smith so quickly? Maybe it is the third offensive coordinator in his three NFL seasons. Maybe the receivers were not really as good as advertised. Maybe Alex is just not that good. Sure he got hurt, but do you remember how bad he was on the opening night of the season? It was a Monday night feature against the Cardinals. Needing only a marginally good performance from Smith and Jackson, Smith was able to pass for only 129 yards and zero touchdowns.

The lesson learned is clear. Relying on a possible ninth round bargain to be a key factor on your fantasy team is a bad idea. Every team must have a quarterback and if your quarterback stinks your team is done.

The top 36 overall teams in NFFC are guaranteed of a playoff spot. You can tell by skimming through the team rosters, there were very few that skimped on quarterback. Among the 36 teams, ten have Brady, seven have Roethlisberger, seven have Romo, three have Hasselbeck, and two have Peyton. You need a quarterback to win.

Next year, the CREATiVESPORTS-Marc team will have a quarterback in the top five rounds – no matter what!!!