Flashback to the fall of 2003. My son Jackson and I enjoying a pleasant Sunday afternoon of watching our local Indianapolis Colts on the TV when he cautiously whispers to me,

"Daddy -- I thought you like the Colts?" -- "I do bud … why did you say that?"

"Wellllll … you keep cringing when Marvin Harrison scores a home run" (He was 3yrs old then so the sports lingo was still new …)

"Touchdown Jack … Touchdown. And I love it when Marvin scores, I do. But see, daddy went out on a limb last month and passed on Marvin in our fantasy football draft and then took another Colts player, Mr. Reggie Wayne over there, later in the day. Well, he's not catching as many passes and I'm beginning to wonder what I was thinking. I mean Harrison's a threat to score every time he touches the ball and my 2nd round choice of Donovan McNabb? Geez, he's off to a HORRIBLE start and ……."

It was at this time when I realized my son had fallen asleep on the couch, me in mid-sentence. I tell myself it was because he hadn't had his nap yet -- but I know its because he was bored to death with my continual second-guessing of Draft Day. So this year … the 2004 season … will be different. Why?

KNOW What You Know … Don't Assume You'll Get-By Be vigilant in your mock drafts and cheat sheet creations. No, I'm not saying to give over your whole month of August to fantasy football, but maybe catch one less re-run of CSI or any Texas Hold'Em Tournament ESPN might be showing again. Go into your draft KNOWING what players you're targeting and KNOWING which sleepers are quality choices. Live Drafts are funny things and in the heat of the moment, they can make you choose players you've never even heard of until that night.

Don't Neglect a Position -- No Matter How Deep You Think It Is All I read and heard last year was, "Gotta get a running back early and worry about wide receivers later -- there's LOTS of them." Agreed, the WR talent pool is much deeper than the running backs but you can't just assume you can pick up some WR's later on and be ok. I waited and waited to draft any wide-outs, assuming plugging one in here and there would be enough. One month later, I'm starting just one RB (after Marshall Faulk decided to take the whole month of October off) and a 3 WR starting lineup is suddenly needed to get my team points -- almost 40% of my starting lineups' points from that spot. Needless to say, an October/November swoon soon followed. Get your starting core (couple RB's, couple WR's and a QB) early and build around the whole unit, not just a stud or two.

Pick With Your Head, Not Your Heart Just like it sounds, KNOW who you want to go with when you're on the clock and the red-hot spotlight is on your decision. Picking guys from my alma mater (Purdue -- Drew Brees, Mike Alstott) and local team (Colts -- Reggie Wayne, Dallas Clark) just so you can cheer for them even harder because they're on your fantasy squad doesn't win you titles. Your wife and kids are happy as they can cheer along with you with people they recognize -- well, until they notice you in the fetal-position mumbling "why, why, why?" every Sunday evening.

Has Steve learned his lesson to avoid former Boilermakers this year?

Contract Years Are NOT Over-Rated One of these seasons, a guy going into this final year of his contract will have a down year, lose his edge or even fall-apart so his salary will be less than the year before. That was my thought on Peyton Manning in 2003 … you know how wrong that was.  Find out who has some motivation in 2004 and don't ignore them on Draft Day.