Shawn Siegele details what the 2023 in-season will look like from a tools, articles, and podcasting perspective.
With a glorious, harrowing, and occasionally desultory Week 1 mostly in the books, it’s overreaction season. Talking about Week 1 is almost as much fun as watching it play out on the gridiron (especially if you were starting players like Tua Tagovailoa, Tyler Allgeier, and Brandon Aiyuk).
During the course of Sunday morning (games start at 10 a.m. here), afternoon, and evening, I was able to make it through the majority of the contests, but I’ve got a few more to watch as I try to grind through my treadmill workout. Then it will be a day of writing and anticipation. Nothing from Week 1 carries as much intrigue as the potential Garrett Wilson eruption.
Before I begin work on those projects, I want to put together a quick blueprint for how RotoViz subscribers can think of our content during the week.
The Tools
With almost 40 tools, it can be easy to get lost, but the place to go for instant stats is the Monday Review tool. The Week 1 version is slightly different from what you’ll be seeing most of the season, but this allows you to jump right into Sunday’s action.
Many of the remaining in-season tools are powered by Sports Info Solutions, the world leader in sports charting and advanced data. These tools update on SIS’s tempo, and the wealth of charting stats allows us to bring you exciting applications like the new and improved Passing Matchup Rater.
If you’re wondering how to put this tool to use, make sure you check out the WR/CB matchups piece from Dave Caban.
Also new for 2023 is an in-season version of Blair Andrews’ The Wrong Read. Exploiting the treasure trove of data found in the Advanced Team Stats Explorer, Blair breaks down the matchups for the coming week.
* As the world’s foremost fan of The Wrong Read, this is a big deal for me, but it’s probably even bigger for readers. I’ve made Part 1 and Part 2 of Blair’s Week 1 articles free for the next couple of days. If you aren’t a subscriber yet, I think the depth and breadth of info here will blow you away.
The Articles
In addition to the must-read work from Dave and Blair, we have a dynasty treat for you in 2023. One of the most respected minds in dynasty, Curtis Patrick is back with the Dynasty Command Center, a one-stop shop for everything you need to know about (arguably) fantasy’s most fun format.
Can’t wait to get your waiver wire fix? Bjorn Yang-Vaernet authored some of our best dynasty and best ball research over the summer, and he’ll be back with his hit Waiver Wire column on Tuesdays.
It’s always exciting when authors debut on RotoViz and I find myself immediately besieged with notes from subscribers who love these new voices. Jake Boes, Mat Irby, David Phillippi, and Erik Hove have all brought their talents to the RV virtual HQ over the recent months. They’ll be joined by reader favorites like Seamus Carr, Neil Dutton, Ryan Ramsarran, Ross Durham, Stefan Lako, Justin Herrera, Michael Hitchock. From redraft to dynasty, from streaming to DFS, we’ll have the in-season landscape covered from all angles.
The Podcasts
The RotoViz Radio Network continues to grow, and our initial content each week will come on the podcasting side. Blair and Hasan Rahim bring you the Fantasy Football Report on Sunday nights. They have RotoViz alum, and one of my personal favorites, Jack Miller, as their opening night guest.
I had the pleasure of recording both a Stealing Bananas episode with Ben Gretch and a RotoViz Overtime with Colm Kelly in the wee hours of the morning.
Ben and I discussed the emotional blow of the J.K. Dobbins injury and some interesting contrasts between superstar QBs and rookie QBs struggling. (Don’t worry there were some lighter moments and decidedly optimistic takes. If one Week 1 is any indication — and it’s not always — our wild exposure to Tua Tagovailoa is going to be a huge part of winning 2023.)
The listeners want all Sam Howell all the time (or at least the right amount of Sam Howell), and Colm and I jumped in with a look at his turbulent 2023 debut. A roller coaster through three quarters, the victory closed with a whimper as Washington sat on the ball against a moribund Cardinals squad. From there, it’s a madcap gambol across the fantasy landscape, answering questions like: Are the new look Packers for real?
As we move through the week, you’ll get the Flagship show from Curtis and Dave, plus a great deal more on the RotoViz airwaves.
Good luck tonight!
Week 1 is almost debilitatingly exciting and yet emotionally fraught. Whether you put up 170 and won going away or scored 60 and lost a foundation player to injury, we can count on very different outcomes just a week from now. We’ll be there with you as you chart the course to a title.
Until then, enjoy what should be a thrilling contest between the Jets and Bills.