Wednesday 09/09 (/09!) Quickie: NFL Best,AP Top 25, MLB Wild Cards, Vick vs. Obama

I'm all for rankings. And I'm not even that put off by SN's "expert" list of the Top 100 players in the NFL being led by Peyton Manning.

Out of curiosity (and to lead today's SN column), I compared that list to the Top 100 of the "Average Draft Position" of the aggregation of fantasy drafts out there.

It was startling to see that Maurice Jones-Drew -- who ranks No. 2 on the ADP list -- doesn't even make the experts' Top 100. Matt Forte -- a consensus Top 5 fantasy talent -- isn't there, either.

Now, I know it's apples and oranges -- and the expert list isn't exactly the most quantitatively rigorous bunch -- but that kind of gap DOES seem a little out of whack.

Someone is wrong, and I suspect it is not the collective wisdom of the hundreds of thousands of fans who pay pretty close attention to this -- and bet their NFL cred on it.

Meanwhile:

*My aggravation with the AP Top 25 can be summed up in a pretty simple analysis: Why does Alabama beating now-No. 14 VA Tech on a neutral field put Bama at No. 4, but BYU beating now-No. 13 Oklahoma on a neutral (to hostile) field put BYU at No. 9?

Should BYU be No. 1? Maybe -- I put them there this week, likely to be KO'ed next week, but there this week nevertheless.

Should Florida be No. 1? Why: Because they were preseason No. 1 and inertia rules? They crushed Charleston Southern; they are -- in all likelihood -- the best team in the country. But they did nothing last Saturday to prove that... at least not in the same way a team like BYU or Alabama or Oklahoma State did.

*Lost in the focus on the Rangers trying valiantly to outrace the Red Sox to the AL Wild Card -- which would be staggering, if they pulled it off -- can we at least take a second to lament the end of the Rays' run as contenders this year? Their success is so good for baseball -- sorry to see it end. The good news is that they will be back in it next year -- and that the Rays have a new culture where not making the playoffs is a disappointment.

*Michael Vick is no Barack Obama, when it comes to talking with students. Although they both talked about the same subject, roughly: Personal resposibility.

Hey: The NFL season starts tomorrow. Get ready.

Complete SN column here. More later.

-- D.S.