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15 Things We Learned During the 2014 Fantasy Football Season

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By @nick_villano

Things We Learned During the 2014 Fantasy Football Season

Peyton Manning
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The 2014 fantasy season caused a lot of headaches. The suspensions and injuries caused everyone to scramble to find a replacement. We all spent hours on the waiver wire trying to make up for mistakes we made during the draft. Sometimes we took chances that didn't pay off, or played it safe and paid for it. Here are 15 things we learned during the 2014 fantasy football season.

15. Go For Younger Wide Receivers

15. Go For Younger Wide Receivers
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15. Go For Younger Wide Receivers

15. Go For Younger Wide Receivers
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The only wide receiver in the top 20 in points that was over 30 was Steve Smith on the Ravens, and he was 20th. He had a few good weeks earlier in the season, but he fell off towards the end. The days of Jerry Rice and Terrell Owens owning the league for a decade and a half may be over. Now we see new faces take over every week. This season, we saw the likes of Odell Beckham, Mike Evans and Kelvin Benjamin take over No. 1 receiver roles.

14. Be Wary Of Backups Becoming Starters Elsewhere

14. Be Wary Of Backups Becoming Starters Elsewhere
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14. Be Wary Of Backups Becoming Starters Elsewhere

14. Be Wary Of Backups Becoming Starters Elsewhere
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There is always a team looking to capitalize on another team's backup. Some teams think they are just in a bad situation and need a shot. They don't always work. We saw that this year with Ben Tate, who is now on his third team of the year. We also saw it with Toby Gerhart in Jacksonville. Next year, we will all be more cautious.

13. Stay Away From the Raiders

13. Stay Away From The Raiders
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13. Stay Away From the Raiders

13. Stay Away From The Raiders
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The Raiders had some of their team drafted prior to the season. None of them worked out. Darren McFadden was not good. Maurice Jones-Drew was even worse. James Jones did not impress as the top guy in Oakland.

12. Tight Ends Still Confuse Us

12. Tight Ends Still Confuse Us
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12. Tight Ends Still Confuse Us

12. Tight Ends Still Confuse Us
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Jimmy Graham was a first round pick in most leagues. He did not warrant that pick. The only tight end who did anything of real note was Rob Gronkowski. Antonio Gates, who ranked second, had 10 weeks with single digit points. Julius Thomas was seventh in the league, but he had five zeros.

11. Wide Receivers Are A Fickle Bunch

11. Wide Receivers Are A Fickle Bunch
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11. Wide Receivers Are A Fickle Bunch

11. Wide Receivers Are A Fickle Bunch
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Wide Receiver was one of the more frustrating positions. Both AJ Green and Calvin Johnson missed time with injury. Brandon Marshall tried to fight through his, but ended up being ineffective. Keenan Allen and Andre Johnson failed to break 100 points. Cordarrelle Patterson could only muster 51 points despite never being injured. All these players drove their owners nuts.

10. Quarterbacks Always Score A Ton Of Points

10. Quarterbacks Always Score A Ton Of Points
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10. Quarterbacks Always Score A Ton Of Points

10. Quarterbacks Always Score A Ton Of Points
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Despite having terrible seasons on the field, Jay Cutler, Colin Kaepernick and Joe Flacco still had stellar fantasy seasons. They all scored over 200 points despite playing below what they were expected to.

9. Draft A WR With A Great QB

9. Draft A WR With A Great QB
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9. Draft A WR With A Great QB

9. Draft A WR With A Great QB
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The top eight WRs in terms of points all had great QBs who made it through the whole season. When taking a receiver in the top four rounds, always look for one getting balls from the likes of Manning, Rodgers or another future Hall of Famer.

8. Matchups Matter

8. Matchups Matter
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8. Matchups Matter

8. Matchups Matter
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We try to ignore matchups when playing fantasy and go with our best lineup, but we should be looking more into who our stars are playing. If our top running back is facing the Lions, we may want to think twice about playing him.

7. Backup RBs Can Win You A Season

7. Backup RBs Can Win You A Season
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7. Backup RBs Can Win You A Season

7. Backup RBs Can Win You A Season
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Justin Forsett, Lamar Miller and Jeremy Hill won many fantasy leagues this season. They ranked 8th, 9th and 10th respectively on the season. CJ Anderson also came alive later in the year to replace an ineffective Montee Ball. Matt Asiata, Chris Ivory and Tre Mason also had huge weeks that won their owners important matchups.

6. Don't Rely Too Heavily On Your No. 1 Pick

6. Don't Rely Too Heavily On Your Number One Pick
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6. Don't Rely Too Heavily On Your No. 1 Pick

6. Don't Rely Too Heavily On Your Number One Pick
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The first round this year saw four players who didn't even make the top 50. That includes LeSean McCoy and Adrian Peterson, who were taken in the top three of almost every league. One needs to make sure their entire team is stacked instead of just the top two or three players.

5. Running Backs Still Run Fantasy Football

5. Running Backs Still Run Fantasy Football
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5. Running Backs Still Run Fantasy Football

5. Running Backs Still Run Fantasy Football
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While quarterbacks score the most points, running backs are the key to fantasy football dominance. While one could survive with about 20 QBs every week, there may be 5-10 who score a decent amount of points from the back field. That means they are more valuable on a week to week basis.

4. Defenses Should Be Changed Every Week

4. Defenses Should Be Changed Every Week
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4. Defenses Should Be Changed Every Week

4. Defenses Should Be Changed Every Week
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Many in fantasy drafted the Seattle Seahawks' defense very early. They repaid them by ranking ninth on the season. That included two matchups where they scored zero or less. It just makes sense to stream defense from week to week.

3. Tom Brady Is Still Really Good

3. Tom Brady Is Still Really Good
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3. Tom Brady Is Still Really Good

3. Tom Brady Is Still Really Good
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Tom Brady was ranked 12th among quarterbacks going into this season. That was an obvious oversight, as he ended the season scoring double digits in the final 11 weeks of fantasy (doesn't include week 17). He showed he is still a top flight QB in the NFL.

2. The Waiver Wire Wins Championships

2. The Waiver Wire Wins Championships
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2. The Waiver Wire Wins Championships

2. The Waiver Wire Wins Championships
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Think about all the players who didn't start the season on a roster, but swung leagues. Forsett is probably the most obvious, since he ranked sixth at the end of the season. Asiata, Isaiah Crowell, Denard Robinson and Branden Oliver also made big plays from the waiver wire.

1. Stop Drafting Trent Richardson

1. Stop Drafting Trent Richardson
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1. Stop Drafting Trent Richardson

1. Stop Drafting Trent Richardson
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Trent Richardson once again was not worth where he was drafted. In fact, he shouldn't have been drafted at all. Next year, just ignore he is even there.

Nick Villano is the New Jersey Devils writer for RantSports. He also adds to the site’s NBA, MLB and NFL content. You can follow him on Twitter or add him to your Google circle.

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