Matt’s Gut Check Column
Bradshaw was a great example of a player that stood out even with bad stats against competition superior to his teammates. Photo by Ted Kerwin.
The columns below are fantasy football-related content from my long-running column The Weekly Gut Check. The links from my 2009-2011 columns that are highlighted in green are subscriber content with Footballguys.com. The rest are free to view.
2012
***Inside the Waiver Wire: Strategy and Explanation of Footballguys Weekly Reports***
Gut Check # 258 – The All-Gut Check Team – The All Hejira Squad (Waldman’s Haul)
Gut Check #257 – Rehabs and Startups: Building a Dynasty While Helping Your Re-Draft
Gut Check #256 – The Evel Knievel: Going for Legendary Status
Gut Check #255 – Three Draft Day Counterpunch Techniques
Gut Check #254 – RB Updates for Upside Down Strategy and Counterpunch
Gut Check #253 – Strange Sanctuary Series – Kellen Davis
Gut Check #252 – Strange Sanctuary Series – Randy Moss
Gut Check #251 – Strange Sanctuary Series – Marshawn Lynch
Gut Check #250 – Insanity Series (Players that will drive you mad) – Robert Meachem
Gut Check #249 – Insanity Series (Players that will drive you mad) – Coby Fleener
Gut Check #247 – Insanity Series (Players that will drive you mad) – Adrian Peterson
Marshawn Lynch. Photo by Matt McGhee.
2011
Gut Check #245 – Waldman 12/14 Below the Radar: Fantasy Football Dumpster Diving
Gut Check #244 – Waldman 12/7 Open Letter to Fantasy Football Santa
Gut Check #243 – Waldman 11/30 Patience (The story of a great football player)
Gut Check #242 – Waldman 11/23 RSP Flashback: Shane Vereen
Gut Check #241 – Waldman 11/16 Cash Three
Gut Check #240 – Waldman 11/10 Trade Conundrums
Gut Check #239 – Waldman 11/3 Put Them out of Their Misery
Gut Check #238 – Waldman 10/26 Playoff Gem Hunting
Gut Check #237 – Waldman 10/19 Fantasy Fortune Cookie
Gut Check #236 – Waldman 10/12 Fool’s Gold
Gut Check #235 – Waldman 10/5 Fantasy Finds
Gut Check #234 – Waldman 9/28 The Basics
Gut Check #233 – Waldman 9/21 Mental Notes
Gut Check #232 – Waldman 9/14 Second Thoughts
Gut Check #231 – Waldman 9/7 Fantasy Football News of the Weird Meets Nostradamus
Gut Check #230- Waldman 8/29 Inside Men (Waldman’s 20: The All-Gut Check Team)
Gut Check #229 – Waldman 8/21 Tiered Cheat Sheet
Gut Check #228 – Waldman 8/17 The Imperfect Draft
Gut Check #227 - Waldman 8/12 Leaving Limbo and Mid-round RB update
Gut Check #226 - Waldman 8/4 Upside Down Drafting
Gut Check #225 – Waldman 7/31 Dangerous Plays Series Part III: WRs.
Gut Check #224 - Waldman 7/21 Dangerous Plays Series Part II: RBs.
Gut Check #223 – Waldman 7/14 Dangerous Plays Series Part I: QB Matt Ryan.
Gut Check #222 – Waldman 7/7 A profile of wide receiver breakout candidates for the 2011 fantasy season.
Gut Check #221 – Waldman 6/30 My (poor) homage to Bill Simmons and The Wire.
David Wilson might rely too much on his superior athleticism, but there are flashes of maturity that I think he’ll continue to develop as a pro. Photo by VaMedia
2010
The Gut Check – Waldman 12/22/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 12/15/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 12/8/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 12/1/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 11/24/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 11/17/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 11/10/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 11/3/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 10/27/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 10/20/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 10/13/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 10/4/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 9/29/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 9/22/10
The Gut Check – Waldman 9/15/10
The Gut Check – Waldman – 9/8/10
Post-Mortem of a Draft – Matt Waldman (9/3/10)
Floating in Limbo: No Clarity for These Players – Matt Waldman (8/27/10)
A Quick Cheatsheet – Matt Waldman (8/17/10)
The Preseason All-Gut Check Squad – Matt Waldman (8/13/10)
Crank Scores – Matt Waldman (8/1/10)
The Upside Down Strategy – Matt Waldman (7/28/10)
Dangerous Picks Part III (WRs) – Matt Waldman (7/22/10)
Dangerous Picks Part II (RBs) – Matt Waldman (7/15/10)
Dangerous Picks Part I (QBs) – Matt Waldman (7/6/10)
Rookie Impact Series: TEs – Matt Waldman (7/6/10)
The Gut Check #193 (Rookie QBs) – Matt Waldman (6/22/10)
The Gut Check #192 – Matt Waldman (6/15/10)
The Gut Check #191 – Matt Waldman (6/7/10)
The Gut Check #190 – Matt Waldman (6/7/10)
The Gut Check #189 – Matt Waldman (5/24/10)
The Gut Check #188 – Matt Waldman (5/17/10)
The Gut Check #187 – Matt Waldman (5/11/10)
The Gut Check #186 – Matt Waldman (4/27/10)
The Match Game – Matt Waldman (4/27/10)
Ryan Williams is working his way back from a Career Near-Death Experience. See what WR Greg Childs was like before his.
2009
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 12/30/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 12/23/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 12/16/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 12/9/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 12/2/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 11/25/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 11/18/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 11/11/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 11/5/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 10/29/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 10/22/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 10/14/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 10/8/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 10/1/09
The Weekly Gut Check – Waldman 9/17/09
2009 Rookie Re-dux – Waldman 9/8/09
Bold Predictions – Waldman – 9/4/09
Fantasy Dumpster Diving – Waldman – 8/28/09
All Gut Check Team – Waldman – 8/19/09
Teasers (Anti-Sleepers) – Waldman – 8/13/09
2009 Crank Score Projections – Waldman – 8/6/09
What Makes WRs/TEs Consistent? – Waldman – 8/5/09
What Makes RBs/QBs Consistent? – Waldman – 7/20/09
Crank Scores – Waldman – 7/16/09
Crank Scores 1 – Waldman – 7/5/09
Steve McNair – Waldman – 7/5/09
The Shortcut Technique – Waldman – 7/1/09
Maximizing Sleeper RBs – Waldman – 6/14/09
The Gut Check’s Rant – Waldman – 6/14/09
Rookie Impact Series: TE – Waldman – 6/7/09
Rookie Impact Series: WR – Waldman – 6/7/09
Rookie Impact Series: RB – Waldman – 5/29/09
Rookie Impact Series: QB – Waldman – 5/29/09
Breakout Wide Receivers – Waldman – 5/15/09
RB Workloads and Rankings – Waldman – 5/4/09
Weekly Gut Check – Waldman – 4/23/09
Ryan Mathews. Photo by Garrett Johnson.
2008
Gut Check: Volume 149 – Coda – 12/25/08
Gut Check: Volume 148 – Putting It In Perspective: Part II – 12/18/08
Gut Check: Volume 147 – Putting It In Perspective: Part I – 12/11/08
Gut Check: Volume 146 – A Pre-Playoff Examination – 12/4/08
Gut Check: Volume 145 – Servings From The Buffett Table – 11/27/08
Gut Check: Volume 144 – A Pre-Turkey Smorgasbord – 11/20/08
Gut Check: Volume 143 – Wacky (But Effective) Drafting Strategies – 11/13/08
Gut Check: Volume 142 – Going For Broke – 11/6/08
Gut Check: Volume 141 – Second Reads and Route Adjustments – 10/30/08
Gut Check: Volume 140 – Fantasy Seabiscuits – 10/23/08
Gut Check: Volume 139 – Visiting The Cattery – 10/16/08
Gut Check: Volume 138 – Sending Out An S.O.S – 10/9/08
Gut Check: Volume 137 – Feel A-Daring? – 10/2/08
Gut Check: Volume 136 – Housecleaning – 9/25/08
Gut Check: Volume 135 – Underrated Stats – 9/18/08
Gut Check: Volume 134 – Triage in the Aftermath of Week One – 9/11/08
Gut Check: Volume 133 – Bold Predictions – 9/4/08
Gut Check: Volume 132 – Women Against Fantasy Sports – 8/28/08
Gut Check: Volume 131 – Preseason All-Gut Check Team – 8/21/08
Gut Check: Volume 130 – Putting Logic In The Ejector Seat – 8/14/08
Gut Check: Volume 129 – Draft Strategy (What I Really Think) – 8/7/08
Gut Check: Volume 128 – Crank Score Projections: Part 2 – 7/31/08
Gut Check: Volume 127 – Crank Score Projections – 7/24/08
Gut Check: Volume 126 – New Crank? – 7/17/08
Gut Check: Volume 125 – Crank Scores – 7/11/08
Gut Check: Volume 124 – Fantasy Football Do’s, Don’ts, and Try At Least Once – 7/3/08
Gut Check: Volume 123 – RB Workloads – 6/26/08
Gut Check: Volume 122 – Breakout Wide Receivers: A Profile – 6/19/08
Gut Check: Volume 121 – Second Half Wonders – 6/12/08
Gut Check: Volume 120 – Below The Radar Long Shots – 6/5/08
Photo of Bryce Brown by Wade Rackley.
2007
Gut Check: Volume 119 – Dear Arthur – 12/13/07
Gut Check: Volume 118 – The “In Case You Didn’t Notice” Game – 12/6/07
Gut Check: Volume 117 – 2008 Rookie Scouting Portfolio Preview – 11/29/07
Gut Check: Volume 116 – What I’m Thankful For, Football Style – 11/22/07
Gut Check: Volume 115 – Mid-Season Musings – 11/15/07
Gut Check: Volume 114 – Big Play Artists and Grinders, The Receivers – 11/8/07
Gut Check: Volume 113 – Big Play Artists and Grinders at QB and RB – 11/1/07
Gut Check: Volume 112 – WR and TE Consistency Score Ranking Splits – 10/25/07
Gut Check: Volume 111 – QB and RB Consistency Score Ranking Splits – 10/18/07
Gut Check: Volume 110 – Advice From The Substitute Teacher – 10/11/07
Gut Check: Volume 109 – Fantasy Gem Or Fool’s Gold? – 10/4/07
Gut Check: Volume 108 – Target Practice – 9/27/07
Gut Check: Volume 107 – Get It? Got It? Good! – 9/20/07
Gut Check: Volume 106 – 2007 Bold Predictions – 9/13/07
Gut Check: Volume 105 – 2007 Preseason All-Gut Check Team – 9/6/07
Gut Check: Volume 104 – Distance Scoring League Analysis – 8/30/07
Gut Check: Volume 103 – Crank Score Projections: Pt 4 – 8/27/07
Gut Check: Volume 102 – Crank Score Projections: Pt 3 – 8/20/07
Gut Check: Volume 101 – Crank Score Projections: Pt 2 – 8/10/07
Gut Check: Volume 100 – Crank Score Projections – 8/6/07
Gut Check: Volume 99 – A Projections Primer Part 4: TEs – 8/3/07
Gut Check: Volume 98 – A Projections Primer Part 3: WRs – 7/27/07
Gut Check: Volume 97 – A Projections Primer Part 2: QBs – 7/20/07
Gut Check: Volume 96 – A Projections Primer Part 1: RBs – 7/13/07
Gut Check: Volume 95 – Projecting Player Performance – 7/6/07
Gut Check: Volume 94 – Below The Radar Long Shots – 6/28/07
Gut Check: Volume 93 – RB Splits Revisited – 6/21/07
Gut Check: Volume 92 – Second Half Wonders – 6/15/07
Gut Check: Volume 91 – Applying The 3rd-Year WR Theory For 2007 – 6/8/07
Bobby Rainey. Photo by Daaka2.
2006
Gut Check: Volume 90 – Dynasty Blog Excerpts – 12/28/06
Gut Check: Volume 89 – 2007 Free Agents – 12/21/06
Gut Check: Volume 88 – If Yours Truly had $ 1 Billion Dollars – 12/14/06
Gut Check: Volume 87 – Auction Draft Strategy Follow Up – 12/7/06
Gut Check: Volume 86 – All-Time Fantasy Squad – 11/30/06
Gut Check: Volume 85 – Deep Fried Turkeys Fantasy Style – 11/23/06
Gut Check: Volume 84 – Sleeper Contests – 11/16/06
Gut Check: Volume 83 – Spotting The Weasels – 11/9/06
Gut Check: Volume 82 – Second Half Splits – 11/3/06
Gut Check: Volume 81 – Halloween Treats and the 2007 Rookie Scouting Portfolio – 10/27/06
Gut Check: Volume 80 – In-Season Crank Scores: Pt 2 – 10/19/06
Gut Check: Volume 79 – In-Season Crank Scores: Pt 1 – 10/12/06
Gut Check: Volume 78 – Fantasy Gold Or Fool’s Gold – 10/5/06
Gut Check: Volume 77 – Scoring Proficiency – 9/28/06
Gut Check: Volume 76 – Early Target Practice – 9/21/06
Gut Check: Volume 75 – The 2007 Rookie Scouting Portfolio: A Preview And A Look Back – 9/14/06
Gut Check: Volume 74 – 2006 Preseason All-Below The Radar Team – 9/7/06
Gut Check: Volume 73 – 2006 Preseason All-Gut Check Team – 8/31/06
Gut Check: Volume 72 – Bold Predictions – 8/25/06
Gut Check: Volume 71 – The Post-Mortem Of A Draft – 8/15/06
Gut Check: Volume 70 – Auction Strategies – 8/8/06
Gut Check: Volume 69 – 2006 Crank Scores Part IV – 8/4/06
Gut Check: Volume 68 – 2006 Crank Scores Part III – 7/25/06
Gut Check: Volume 67 – 2006 Crank Scores Part II – 7/18/06
Gut Check: Volume 66 – 2006 Crank Scores Part I – 7/12/06
Gut Check: Volume 65 – Workload Splits For Runners – 7/4/06
Gut Check: Volume 64 – Below The Radar: Long Shot – 6/27/06
Gut Check: Volume 63 – Pitch And Catch Combos – 6/20/06
Gut Check: Volume 62 – Applying The 3rd-Year WR Theory For 2006 – 6/13/06
Gut Check: Volume 61 – Second Half Wonders – 6/6/06
Although some of the best players are not that obvious, Peterson’s talent was. Photo by Langzi.
2005
Gut Check: Volume 60 – BTR – Redux: RBs & QBs – 12/22/05
Gut Check: Volume 59 – BTR – Redux: IDP – 12/15/05
Gut Check: Volume 58 – BTR – Redux: Receivers – 12/8/05
Gut Check: Volume 57 – David Garrard – 12/1/05
Gut Check: Volume 56 – Serving Up An RB Feast – 11/24/05
Gut Check: Volume 55 – Raiding The Infirmary – 11/17/05
Gut Check: Volume 54 – Mid-Season Crank Scores – 11/10/05
Gut Check: Volume 53 – Musings – 11/3/05
Gut Check: Volume 52 – Career Placement of NFL Running Backs – 10/27/05
Gut Check: Volume 51 – Double Takes – 10/20/05
Gut Check: Volume 50 – Looking for Inspiration from The Gumbo – 10/13/05
Gut Check: Volume 49 – Upon Further Review – 10/6/05
Gut Check: Volume 48 – Notes From The Film Room – 9/29/05
Gut Check: Volume 47 – On Target – 9/22/05
Gut Check: Volume 46 – Scouting NFL Prospects – 9/15/05
Gut Check: Volume 45 – Preparing for the FFTOC – 9/6/05
Gut Check: Volume 44 – All-Gut Check Preseason Fantasy Roster – 8/30/05
Gut Check: Volume 43 – Bold Predictions – 8/23/05
Gut Check: Volume 42 – Players On And Off The Fantasy Radar – 8/16/05
Gut Check: Volume 41 – Consistency: The Crank Sheet – 8/9/05
Gut Check: Volume 40 – Consistency: Crank Scores – 8/2/05
Gut Check: Volume 39 – Don’t Take Old Pepper? – 7/26/05
Gut Check: Volume 38 – Three-Year WR & TE Season Splits – 7/19/05
Gut Check: Volume 37 – Three-Year QB Season Splits – 7/12/05
Gut Check: Volume 36 – Three-Year RB Season Splits – 7/5/05
Gut Check: Volume 35 – Applying The 3rd-Year WR Theory For 2005 – 6/28/05
Gut Check: Volume 34 – No Love For These Back? – 6/21/05
Gut Check: Volume 33 – Below The Radar Long Shot: 2005 – 6/13/05
Gut Check: Volume 32 – Frank Gore – 6/6/05
Addai’s tough when he’s on the field, but sometimes it’s been tough to keep him there.
2004
Gut Check: Volume 31 – Year In Review – 12/30/04
Gut Check: Volume 30 – Rookie Prospects – 12/23/04
Gut Check: Volume 29 – Playoff Consistency – 12/16/04
Gut Check: Volume 28 – A Pre-Free Agency/Pre-Draft Fantasy Outlook Of Offensive Units – 12/9/04
Gut Check: Volume 27 – Random Thoughts – 12/3/04
Gut Check: Volume 26 – Shaun King – 11/26/04
Gut Check: Volume 25 – Raiding The Infirmary – 11/18/04
Gut Check: Volume 24 – RB Glut, A Look Ahead – 11/11/04
Gut Check: Volume 23 – Mid-Season Offensive Line Ratings – 11/4/04
Gut Check: Volume 22 – Rookie Keepers – 10/28/04
Gut Check: Volume 21 – WR Target Percentage – 10/21/04
Gut Check: Volume 20 – 2nd Half Differentials – 10/14/04
Gut Check: Volume 19 – 1st Qtr Stat Line – 10/7/04
Gut Check: Volume 18 – Scoring Proficiency – 9/30/04
Gut Check: Volume 17 – The Panic Button – 9/23/04
Gut Check: Volume 16 – Consistency Ratings – 9/16/04
Gut Check: Volume 15 – Bold Predictions – 9/7/04
Gut Check: Volume 14 – Applying The 3rd-Year WR Theory – 8/31/04
Gut Check: Volume 13 – Preseason All-Gut Check Offense – 8/24/04
Gut Check: Volume 12 – Knowing Your League: Part 4 – 8/17/04
Gut Check: Volume 11 – Knowing Your League: Part 3 – 8/10/04
Gut Check: Volume 10 – Knowing Your League: Part 2 – 8/3/04
Gut Check: Volume 9 – Knowing Your League: Part 1 – 7/27/04
Gut Check: Volume 8 – The “Abby Normal” Offensive Line Ratings – 7/20/04
Gut Check: Volume 7 – Under The Radar – 7/13/04
Gut Check: Volume 6 – Byron Leftwich – 7/6/04
Gut Check: Volume 5 – Quincy Wilson – 6/29/04
Gut Check: Volume 4 – Lee Suggs – 6/22/04
Gut Check: Volume 3 – Larry Fitzgerald – 6/15/04
Gut Check: Volume 2 – Brandon Lloyd – 6/10/04
Gut Check: Volume 1 – Brian Westbrook – 6/3/04
