"Here are some overall, seasonlong impressions as we close up shop on an exciting 2011 fantasy football season that, you might remember, was long-threatened by a labor action. Fortunately, we got in all 17 weeks and had some thrills, chills and spills. Here are a few things I learned:

• Good quarterbacks certainly make a difference, but the importance of grabbing an elite one will almost certainly be overstated in advance of next season's fantasy drafts. The top five scorers in fantasy this year were QBs. Eight of the top 10 were QBs, as were 13 of the top 20. The twosome of Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees was excellent, and Tom Brady, Cam Newton and Matthew Stafford weren't too shabby, either. Each of those five players scored more fantasy points than any single player did last season. But you know what? Despite scoring 385 fantasy points, Rodgers did not have the best relative season of 2011. Using the principles of Value-Based Drafting, we find that Ray Rice actually had a slightly more valuable season than Rodgers, and that LeSean McCoy barely outdid Brees. I'm not diminishing how awesome it was to own the best QBs, because it was awesome, except when Rodgers sat out Week 17 (the only game any of the top five signal-callers missed). As I've contended for a couple seasons now, Rodgers and Brees regularly deserve consideration as first-round picks. But are you positive Stafford can repeat his 41 TD passes next season? How about Newton? If they don't, they'll slink back down to the great QB morass: Valuable, but not worth reaching for. I'll have way more on VBD as the offseason progresses."