"Very interested to see how Wallace reacts to Brown re-signing. Seems like a slap in the face. He could straighten up or rebel. "
Chase is also the first name of the finest QB in University of Missouri history, but Mr. Wheetley wants none of that nonsense. A few months ago I used Twitter to fill three openings in my long-running dynasty league and Chase was one of the three. Since he’s now part of the new fantasy supergroup Dynasty Football Warehouse, I thought it was time for an interview.
There are a couple of firsts here, including first interviewee born in the 90s. I am so not young.
All fantasy writers name-dropped will get a link to their Twitter feed. We’ll keep with the theme of my questions/comments in Titan blue and Chase’s in not blue.
How did you get into fantasy football writing?
Eric Dickens of DLF came to me about a staff writer position a few months ago and that’s where I got started. DFW began poaching my friends one by one, and eventually I made the choice that I wanted to work to build something with my friends. I feel like I’m still a rookie and there is a lot of room to grow, but I’m only 20, so there’s no rush. [Zach note: Dude can't even buy alcohol.]
What’s DFW, your current writing home, all about?
What I love about DFW is that we’re all friends that happen to work on a website together. I didn’t know any of the owners coming in and didn’t know what to expect from them, but everyone’s personalities have meshed perfectly. We all have our own place at DFW and we all want to help each other improve. One thing that sticks out to me about DFW is the sense of humor. Double Coverage is a weekly series posted on Thursdays by Gino Cerulli and Dan Hosler that I think gives you a peek at what we are about at DFW. I’ve never seen funnier football content than Double Coverage.
How’d you get to be a New York Giants fan?
Explaining this always shows my age, but I was in seventh grade during Eli Manning’s rookie year, and he was my quarterback from day one. I’ve also always had some amount of ambivalence toward the Cowboys because every casual NFL fan I know in Arkansas claims to be a Dallas fan, so maybe it was natural to become a fan of their rival team. [Zach note: I applaud this contrarian thinking. Two Super Bowl rings in the last five years doesn't hurt either.]
Will you ever get over Dorial Green-Beckham picking my Missouri Tigers over your Arkansas Razorbacks?
I should’ve known I would get a question on Green-Beckham. I will never forget seeing him pick up the hat. As soon as I saw the green bottom of the bill I knew the dream was over. Supposedly DGB had told Arkansas coaches he was coming to Arkansas, only to change his mind at the last second. If he wanted to win SEC Championships and catch passes from a top ten draft pick he could’ve chosen Arkansas, but hey, Missouri offered all the fried sushi he could eat, so who could blame him for his decision? [Zach note: Tell me about your vast trophy collection.] The real part that hurt was when his parents did an interview trashing every other school but Missouri a couple days after his commitment. I think Green-Beckham was very classy during his recruitment, but for his parents to throw every other school under the bus was classless.
The question was, “Will I get over it?” Eventually I will. It doesn’t bother me all that much now. It only adds to what I think will become a fun rivalry game. [Zach note: I'm looking forward to taking the road trip to Arkansas. Chase promises that the BBQ is better than OK.]
To use your recent Training Camp Battles article at DFW as a springboard, which AFC training camp battle has the most potential fantasy value?
In 2012 it has to be McGahee vs. Hillman, but I tried to go a little deeper than most sites do to give you some potential fliers to take with your team. In fantasy everyone wants to get the most bang for their buck, so finding value is always key. I love finding players that will start for my team for a week or two during the dog days of bye weeks and carry me while my starter is out. The cheaper I can find this player the better, and this is the one area of your fantasy roster that it’s okay to target situation over talent.
The Buffalo slot wide receiver position is a perfect example of that. If you can land whoever wins that job, if you watch the matchups, that receiver is almost certainly going to give you a couple of good games. The receivers behind Johnson are always banged up, so you may need to keep an eye on several of them, but Gailey’s offense will put them in position to produce.
This is a first in Ask Your Fantasy Football Expert interview history. I know your first Zealots 34 season has not started yet, but how have you enjoyed/not enjoyed being in a league that I commish?
Z34 is one of the more active Zealots leagues I’ve found, and it’s full of great owners and a mediocre commissioner. [Zach note: Mediocre commish is giving me too much credit.] I enjoyed the Replacement Owners Draft although my team isn’t exactly where I want it. This is the first league I’ve ever owned Romo in and I don’t enjoy it. Having Romo as my quarterback and playing non-PPR instead of PPR are my only two complaints.
Tell me about your day job.
I’m a student at a small liberal arts college, and I’ll finish with my degree in Finance this December. After that, I’d like to work full time in sales or financial services (If any readers want to offer me a job, I’m all ears) while working on my MBA. Through school I’ve worked at retail stores, in an office, and have been a freelance writer for an addiction rehab company for the last three years or so.
The spouse question: Does your wife/gf/sig other have any issues with your obsession?
For the most part she handles my addiction very well. She doesn’t mind me disappearing for hours at a time to write or talk to the DFW gang, and she is okay with me watching all the football I can get my hands on. She’s a football fan too, and if I’m watching the Steelers play she’ll usually watch with me, but it can get a little dicey if the Steelers and Giants are playing in the same time slot.
Football or sex: which do you think of more?
Asking a 20-year-old this question is the ultimate test of libido vs. football demons, but there’s no question football wins this one. I don’t know how many hours a day I think about football, but it’s usually how I stay awake during class.
Where are you on the usual football Sunday? I assume there’s a man cave.
There is no man cave yet, but when I get out of school that’s coming. On Sundays I take over our living room and watch all three games and keep up with the story lines on Twitter. I wish I had something more impressive than that, but I don’t. The past couple of years I have stopped worrying about fantasy football and checking fantasy scores constantly on Sundays so that I can enjoy the games for what they are. This is one advantage I have found in playing in a large number of leagues.
Do you have long-term goals with your fantasy football writing?
I don’t ever expect fantasy football writing to become much more than a hobby, but I do have some long-term goals. I want to grow along with DFW and become a bigger part of the fantasy community, meeting some of the people I’ve been connected with through Twitter and fantasy football along the way.
Tell me about a hobby/interest outside of football.
Outside of football my interests consist of Razorback football and basketball and staying at the lake. My family has a place in the bustling town of Crystal Springs, Arkansas that is where I feel most at home. I spend most Saturdays during college football season at Razorback games, but most other weekends I like to spend at the lake in Crystal Springs.
How many fantasy leagues to you hope to compete in this year?
The number is around 20, and I think my brain would explode if it got any higher. I played in 13 or 14 last year and the only part that is grueling is submitting waiver claims. Waivers require a good two hours or so each week. Out of those 20, only two will be redraft, with one of those being Race to the Bottom.
How has Twitter changed the way you follow fantasy and football in general?
Twitter has changed everything for me, from how I get my news to who I interact with. I used to be a big PFT reader, but I may visit their website once or twice a week now that I use Twitter. Twitter allows you to get all your news faster, and more importantly, to see analysis and opinions from tons of sources all in one place. It has opened up a new network of people to talk about fantasy football with, and I’ve made some good friends through Twitter alone.
Which fantasy writers are on your must-read list?
I feel bad because I can’t fit everyone in, but here are a few.
Gino Cerulli and Dan Hosler- Their Double Coverage article every Thursday is the highlight of my fantasy reading week. They also write individual stuff. Dan has done some nice breakdowns (Ahmad Bradshaw vs. David Wilson was good reading) and Gino is a spreadsheet mad man. Gino is in the middle of a VBD analysis series that is required reading for dynasty owners.
Matt Waldman- His RSP and the articles he is now posting on his website help prepare me for my rookie drafts. I simply can’t do the things he does, and he breaks it down so that even I can understand and learn something from his experience.
Bryan Fontaine- His Dynasty ADP at ProFootballFocus is an extremely valuable tool for dynasty owners trying to get the best values in trades and startup drafts.
Evan Silva- I started following Evan because of PFT and am glad I started following him because of his writing over at Rotoworld. His Re-Watching series has been some of my favorite reading this offseason.
Tell me about any plugs that you’d like. Podcasts, sites that you write for, expert leagues, anything.
Dynastyfootballwarehouse.com has new articles every day, a great staff, and very big things coming in the near future. The site has only been around for a few months and the growth has been alarming. You can join the best dynasty forum out there.
We have one league open to all forum members right now, and were told recently by MyFantasyLeague that they’ve never seen one like it. DFW48 is a 48 team league with 4 copies of each player, and open auction bidding year round. There aren’t any spots open, but it’s worth taking a look at.
I want to thank Michael Bronte and Shane P. Hallam again for having me in The Arena a few weeks ago. The Big F’n Dynasty Show and Kellogg’s Komments are two of the best podcasts available, and if you haven’t found a podcast home swing by their chat rooms and try them out.
You must follow the DFW team – Gino Cerulli, Dan Hosler, Dave Cherney, Jay Myers, Dan Heins, Jeff Melbostad, and Jeff Katz.
22 of my favorite follows that I haven’t mentioned in the interview:
@JoshNorris @PacingPete @zach_law @TheFFAddict @RumfordJohnny @ZachBahner @BNQuinlan @Widereceiving @JeffHaseley @DSEmpire_Bill @coleman_ff @RotoPat @Dexters_Library @MikeClayNFL @PFF_ChadParsons @AndrewMiley @ChrisWesseling @SigmundBloom @JeneBramel @cecillammey @Fantasytaz @FantasyDouche
Thanks to Chase for answering my questions. Follow him on Twitter.
Click to read previous Ask Your Fantasy Expert interviews.
Click to read my Bleacher Report articles and Director’s Commentary.
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