Halfway through the 2009 fantasy season, are you kicking yourself for letting Cedric Benson slide by round after round? Did you cast your lot with the wrong Steve Smith? Have you hurled epithets in Larry Johnson's direction that could get you suspended by the NFL?

Yes, dear reader, it's time for our semi-annual exercise in self-flagellation, when we travel back two short months to examine what could have been had we made all the right moves during our preseason draft. We call it The Perfect Draft: Midseason Review.

As with our preseason edition, we start with a few key assumptions. First, we're in a 10-team league using a standard scoring system that starts one quarterback, two running backs, three wide receivers, one tight end, one kicker and one defense/special teams.

Second, we are drafting from the middle (fifth) position in a zig-zag format, meaning Adrian Peterson and Maurice Jones-Drew were not available to us in the first round.

Third, since all drafts play out differently, we'll need a little luck along the way. And finally, our goal is nothing short of total domination and the abject humiliation of our opponents.

Now, with the fifth pick of the 2009 Fantasy Draft, we should have selected . . .

• Round 1. Chris Johnson, RB, Titans. Jaw-dropping performances in Week 2 and Week 8 give Johnson the edge over the steadier DeAngelo Williams. The lone bright spot on a miserable Tennessee team, only AP and Jones-Drew offered more first-round value.

• Round 2. Peyton Manning, QB, Colts. He has topped 300 yards in all but one game and registered fewer than two TDs just twice. Though Drew Brees and Tom Brady's overall statistics are comparable, they lack Manning's consistency. Reggie Wayne has scored in all but one game as well, and was an equally grand pick in this round.

• Round 3. Ronnie Brown, RB, Dolphins. The undisputed master of the Wildcat formation has had three multi-touchdown games and adds value as a receiver. A bona fide every-week fantasy starter, Brown excels despite sharing the load nearly equally with Ricky Williams.

• Round 4. Vincent Jackson, WR, Chargers. Second only to Wayne at the season's mid-point, Philip Rivers' favorite target has amassed 664 yards and five TDs, while generating at least 100 yards and/or a score in all but one game.

• Round 5. Thomas Jones, RB, Jets. Perennially one of the most underrated players in the business, Jones keeps churning out yards and touchdowns. A threat to score from the 1-yard line or from 71 yards out (as he did in Week 6), he wasn't the sexiest pick in this round. Just the best one.

• Round 6. DeSean Jackson, WR, Eagles. All the second-year wideout does is make big plays, scoring on receptions of 54, 57, 64 and 71 yards, a 67-yard run, and an 85-yard punt return. That's how you rack up fantasy points.

• Round 7. Matt Schaub, QB, Texans. The knock on Schaub heading into the season was that he couldn't stay healthy. So far, so good. Though he started and ended the first half of '09 on sour notes, he proved to be an elite passer in between, with more yards and TDs (and interceptions) than Manning. Losing Owen Daniels -- a better value in this round prior to his season-ending knee injury -- could signal trouble ahead.

• Round 8. Cedric Benson, RB, Bengals. Arguably the steal of the draft, Benson has found new life in Cincinnati as the undisputed workhorse of his offense. Through seven games, Benson's 720 rushing yards have already eclipsed his best season in Chicago and he has prospered even against some of the stingiest run defenses in the game.

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