Zimmerman Note (USP)

Today's assignment is to Shuffle Up all the corners, the first basemen and third basemen. The goal is to figure out how we'd draft in a fresh league starting right now. What's already happened counts as an audition, sure, but that's it.

The normal rules apply. I won't bother ranking anyone on the DL or currently in the minors; the worth on those players will widely fluctuate from format to format, and it's just about pointless to discuss them here. Plus we've established one common theme with injured players: their personal roto owners tend to expect miracles that no one else does.

I didn't bother with any of the catchers who also have corner tags; they'll stick in the catcher pool. Assume a 5x5 rotisserie and redraft league, as always. I encourage your respectful disagreement, but don't forget to construct a sound argument. Further the conversation, rotohead. Win the debate, win the rank. (And leave that "you'd never win my league" rubbish at home. I'm currently in first in both reader leagues. I'm just another educated opinion to go with yours, but I know what I'm doing. Your presence in my league wouldn't cause me to plummet 10 spots in the standings.)

Players at the same price are considered even, and don't stress over the actual dollar prices. What's important is how the players relate to one another.

Make the jump and let's figure this stuff out.

After a down year, Johnson is determined to find redemption. (USP)

Workhorse running backs may be endangered, but Chris Johnson and Trent Richardson are two rushers destined to keep the species alive. Though both are deserving of first round consideration, fanalysts Brad Evans and Brandon Funston believe there's a best horse to saddle up. Peruse. Ponder. And throw in your two cents in the comments section below. Also sign up for a Yahoo! league, cash or free, NOW!

Evans Leads: Everyone can admit last year was an abominable year for Johnson. The artist formerly known as CJ2K morphed into CJ2Lame, racking one demoralizing performance after another. Sizable holes rarely materialized. Hundred yard games were few. Touchdowns sparse. Arguably, the popular top-five pick was the biggest bust in virtual pigskin.

Don't expect a repeat.

Johnson is still relatively young (27), incredibly versatile — he grabbed 57 passes last year, the third-most among RBs — and insanely fast. Though he tended to stutter-step behind the line a season ago instead of attacking it, the former rush king is destined to again don a RB1 crown. Tennessee's offensive line, which received a much needed face-lift this past offseason with the addition of Pro Bowl guard Steve Hutchinson, should be light years better than it was a year ago. That accompanied with offensive coordinator Chris Palmer's desire to incorporate more old school Run 'n Shoot-styled plays will bolster Johnson's scoring potential greatly, especially with Kenny Britt back in the fold and rookie Kendall Wright added to the mix.

And you know CJ is hungry.

All eyes on Trent Richardson (US Presswire)

One of the many benefits you'll receive for selecting Yahoo! as your fantasy provider is round-the-clock access to the Roto Arcade Customer Care team. If you have any issues at all, day or night, just hit us up. We're here for you.

All you need to do is navigate the drop-down menus, pose your questions, wait a few seconds, and ... bam. Deadly accurate answers in your inbox.

It's really that easy.*

As is the case with all high-volume customer service operations, Roto Arcade strives to respond to users as quickly as possible. With this goal in mind, today we're rolling out a list of FAQs for Fantasy Football 2012. If you can't find your answer below, please don't hesitate to contact a team member. (Note: The live Brad Evans webcam is for platinum subscribers only).

Let's begin with a common early-round dilemma...

Comeback year for Nuke LaLoosh (USP)

It's time to forgive and forget with A.J. Burnett, gamers. Forgive the New York seasons. Forget the injuries in Florida. Forgive the wild pitches and the hit batters and the Dial 12 nightmare earlier this year. Forget the goofy looks and the weird antics.

Fantasy Baseball is all about numbers, and it doesn't matter where the stats come from. This is a guy who can help you, and he's only owned in 20 percent of Yahoo! leagues.

Burnett's latest gem came Wednesday against Cincinnati, a sharp seven-inning effort (2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K) that led to his third straight victory. Burnett has now allowed two earned runs or less in seven of his eight starts. If you rank all of the starting pitchers over the last three weeks (yes, that's a very arbitrary endpoint), Burnett comes out as the No. 5 pitcher.

Behrens says draft Peyton and he will show you the way. (USP)

The peak of draft season may be eons away, but, between now and then, several questions need answers. In this thrilling episode of The Docs, Andy Behrens and Brad Evans spill blood over an age-old fantasy dilemma: history versus upside. Read. Reflect. Then declare a winner in the comments section below.

Behrens Fires: I won't try to convince anyone that Peyton Manning doesn't present at least some level of risk in 2012. He's a guy with a new team, a new neck, a new playbook ... there's really a lot of new stuff here. But we also know that Manning's fantasy ceiling is as high as any quarterback's, and certainly much higher than any rookie.

Between 1999 and 2010, Manning never finished outside the top-six at his position in fantasy scoring, ranking in the top-three six times. He's eclipsed 4,000 passing yards in 11 different campaigns, and his lowest single-season touchdown total is 26. The Broncos will run an exceedingly Peyton-friendly offense in 2012, incorporating elements of the system he'd mastered in Indianapolis. To my eye, Denver's receiving corps appears loaded, led a pair of dynamic young 6-foot-3 wideouts (Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker) and two excellent pass-catching tight ends (Jacob Tamme and Joel Dreessen). Everyone no doubt remembers the tremendous half-season that Tamme enjoyed in 2010, with Manning as his quarterback. Let's also note that rookie third-round running back Ronnie Hillman has been described as a "PPR pimp" by no less an authority than Yahoo!'s Brad Evans. John Elway has merely referred to Hillman as "a lot like [Darren] Sproles."

So there are a few weapons at Manning's disposal. None of you should be concerned about the scheme he'll run or the quality of his teammates. If you're worried about his health, however, I get it. There's obviously an injury red flag here, and it's suppressing Peyton's price in mock drafts. I'll simply point out that the next piece of discouraging off-season news on Manning's recovery will be the first. He's been a full participant in OTAs, and his new teammates are full of sunshine. Here's Champ Bailey discussing the Broncos' offense, via the Denver Post:

Texas two-step (USP)

I had hopes for Roy Oswalt this year, fantasy hopes that is. I took a stab at him in NL Tout Wars. I selected him as a late-round flier in my hometown mixer, a 12-team league with deep benches. I was dreaming of a NL landing spot, a half season or so in the pitcher's league.

It's time to give up the ghost, time to toss the dreams in the trash. Oswalt signed on with the Rangers on Tuesday, and that just about makes him dead to me in a standard roto league.

If I were cranking out a new Shuffle Up for pitchers right now, I'd probably put a $4 or $5 tag on Oswalt. He's just another guy to me. Allow me to throw some cold water on Tuesday's news; here's why I'm not bullish at all:

Dunn, on pace for 51 homers and 120 RBIs, is definitely back in black. (USP)

During the height of the Great Depression boxer James J. Braddock, once a heavyweight title contender in 1928, had, like millions of Americans, hit rock bottom. A string of poor performances along with a devastating hand injury forced him out of the ring and into the bread lines.

Eventually, through a stroke of good fortune, he was gifted one last opportunity to regain a foothold in a sport he truly loved. Triumphantly, he seized the moment. Braddock, brought on to be a punching bag for No. 2 contender Corn Griffin, pulled off the unthinkable, knocking out the belt hopeful in the third round.

After several more wins, the Bulldog received his ultimate shot at redemption, a title fight with Max Baer. Nearly 77 years ago to the day, in a chaotic scene at Madison Square Garden, Braddock, a whopping 10-to-1 underdog, stunned the sports world by upending his junior opponent via unanimous decision.

Seven decades later, the former champ's inspirational tale was depicted in 2005's "Cinderella Man," one of the most underrated sports movies of all-time.

Statistically speaking, baseball, too, has penned several riches-to-rags-to-riches stories so far this year.

Jake Peavy, Adam Dunn, Johan Santana, Justin Morneau, Chris Capuano and Rafael Furcal, once objects of dependability, entered the season on the ropes. Previous injuries and ineptitude tarnished their reputations leading many in Fantasyland to immediately dismiss them on draft day. However, each has reversed course, returned to prominence and regained their rightful place in owners' circle of trust.

Just call 2012 the Year of the Comeback.

Still, for owners of these resurgent products, one pressing question remains: Profit or patience? Here's the Noise's take:

Time is ticking away for The Burner. (USP)

For Michael Turner, one of the most reliable, consistent rushers over the past four seasons, the sands of the hourglass are running thin.

At an age (30) when most RBs are making plans for life after football, the Burner hopes to keep bringing the heat. Coming off a season in which he accumulated 4.5 yards per carry, 1,340 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns, placing him inside the RB top-15 in per game average for the fourth-consecutive year, a sudden sharp decline doesn't appear likely on the surface. In Turner's defense, he was underused by the Chargers early in his career, which has allowed him to keep plenty of tread on the tires despite three 300-plus carry workloads since 2008. That accompanied with his incredibly thick lower-half, excellent O-line and healthy offense as a whole suggest he could handle the burden with considerable ease in 2012.

But history tells us otherwise.

As prior owners of Shaun Alexander, Larry Johnson and LaDainian Tomlinson can attest, when rushers blow out the big 3-0 candles, they most often transform into decrepit, crusty commodities. Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule (e.g. Willis McGahee in '11), but most often these elderly backs slip into a statistical abyss, rarely flashing the Pro Bowl-level skills previously exhibited, especially in revamped offenses.