Last Night was the 2013 version of our Fantasy Football Draft. Everyone was in attendance EXCEPT ZomBill who YOLOd so hard at the DeutscheBank that he couldn't make the draft. Anyway, without further adieu, here is the draft board and my breakdown:
(If it is too small to see, click the picture to zoom in)
WARNING WARNING WARNING
Everything you read below is just my unprofessional opinion and you may or may not agree with my assessment of the draft or each team. I always welcome differing opinions so if anyone wants to rank these drafts I will post it here on my blog.
Steal of the Draft #1- Trent Richardson 12th overall to Victorious Secret
Steal of the Draft #2- Darren Sproles, 30th overall to Team Ice Cream
Steal of the Draft #3- Frank Gore, 41st overall to Tahiti Loungers
Steal of the Draft #4- Jason Witten, 59th overall to Eat More Chicken
Steal of the Draft #5- Rob Gronkowski, 61st overall to Victorious Secret
Steal of the Draft #6- Antonio Brown, 68th overall to the Boston Patriots
Steal of the Draft #7- TY Hilton, 87th overall to comeback story
Steal of the Draft #8- Cecil Shorts, 95th overall the rental guys
Steal of the Draft #9- Zach Sudfeld, 151st overall to A1 Providers
Reach of the Draft #1- Eddie Lacy, 22nd overall to The Godfather
Reach of the Draft #2- Matt Ryan- 42nd overall to Boston Patriots
Reach of the Draft #3- Russell Wilson, 49th overall to Angry Pirates
Reach of the Draft #4- James Jones, 50th overall to the rental guys
Reach of the Draft #5- DeAngelo Williams- 72nd overall to Angry Pirates
Reach of the Draft #6- Andre Brown, 123rd overall to A Pinch Better
Tahiti Loungers
QB1- Drew Brees
RB1- CJ Spiller
RB2- Frank Gore
RB3- Montee Ball
RB4- Bryce Brown
RB5- Kendall Hunter
RB6- Vick Ballard
WR1- Jordy Nelson
WR2- Miles Austin
WR3- Kembrell Thompkins
WR4- Michael Floyd
WR5- Alshon Jeffery
TE1- Jimmy Graham
Defense- Tampa Bay
Kicker- Robbie Gould
The draft started with a nice surprise for me... I did NOT expect CJ Spiller to fall to me at #8 overall. I am thrilled to have him on my team. I then went against the grain and selected the Saints TE and QB combo with my next 2 picks. I couldn't pass up Graham and the MONSTER weekly advantage he brings to the table, and instead of waiting on QB like I do every year, I decided to take the stud and my #1 QB on the board, Drew Brees. These 3 guys could all very easily finish #1 in scoring at their positions.
Of course, when you select TE AND QB early, you need to expect to have to scramble to fill out the WR and RB positions. I got lucky that Frank Gore fell to me in the 4th... Gore is an interesting player to me because I used to love him, then hated him, and now I like him again. Here's why:
-Miraculously, Gore hasn't missed a game in 2 years. He's a workout machine who's determined to stay healthy
-SF has the best run-blocking Offensive Line in the NFL
-Gore quietly finished last year as the #10 RB in our league last year
All signs point to Gore having yet another 1200 yard 8 TD season which is excellent production from an RB2 drafted in the 4th round. (If Gore DOES end up going down, I was able to secure his handcuff- Kendall Hunter- late in the draft)
Once the 5th round came and I had no WRs yet I started getting slightly nervous. WR is deep this year and I like a lot of guys I knew I could get late, but I was THRILLED to land Jordy Nelson in the 5th round. To me, he is a borderline WR1 and probably fell so far from his pre-season injury which he is fully recovered from.
Again in the 6th I was happy to get Montee Ball.. it may take a couple weeks for Ball to get rolling (ha) but I expect him to be a weekly top-20 option soon. He is going to score a ton of TDs and is he learns how to pass block- watch out.
My draft was rounded out with a bunch of players I love to break out. Kembrell Thompkins is locked in as Brady's "x" receiver, the same position Brandon Lloyd played last season. Lloyd never stood out or did anything exciting and was still able to put up 74 catches for 911 yards and 4 TDs. He finished as the 22nd best WR in our league last year so no one should be surprised when/if Thompkins finishes in the top 25 WR this season.
Michael Floyd and Alshon Jeffery are both sophomore WRs who are in great situations and could easily hold WR2 value. Floyd lines up opposite Fitzgerald in Bruce Arian's offense and Jeffery lines up across from B Marsh in Trestman's high octane passing attack.
Byrce Brown could end up producing as a flex player even is Shady Mccoy stays healthy. The Eagles are going to run run run and as long as Brown stops fumbling the ball, he will be good. Plus if McCoy (concussion history) goes down, B Brown will be high end flex/rb2 weekly play.
QB Grade:A+
RB Grade: B+
WR Grade: B
TE Grade: A+
Best Picks: Spiller, Nelson, Graham
Worst Picks: Austin
Overall Rank: 1st (Haters fuel me)
Team Ice Cream
QB1- Eli Manning
QB2- Andy Dalton
RB1- Jamaal Charles
RB2- Reggie Bush
RB3- Darren Sproles
RB4- Le'Veon Bell
RB5- Bernard Pierce
RB6- Jonathan Dwyer
WR1- Pierre Garcon
WR2- Eric Decker
WR3- DeSean Jackson
WR4- Stevie Johnson
TE1- Martellus Bennett
Defense- New England
Kicker- Matt Prater
Adam is going to have a lot of trading chips this year. The only team to start the draft rb-rb-rb, adam's clear strength is at running back. There are a few teams in the league who will most definitely need some help and Adam has the resources to deal. Charles-Reggie-Sproles is just about the best 3 RB start you can have. Sproles especially is a great pick as he is low risk and a known commodity. All 3 of these guys have a good chance of finishing 2013 in the top 12.
The WR corps for Team Ice Cream is also solid. I like Garcon this year- he was a beast when healthy in 2012- so if he can play a full schedule he should be a borderline wr1/2.
Decker will be fine in Denver, Welkers presence definitely hurts a bit but Decker is still a huge target that Peyton will go to in the red zone. I liked where Adam grabbed Decker.
The Black Unicorn should have a nice season on the bears, we know he isnt anything TOO special but is a middle of the road TE.
The QB situation is where Adams team is weak. As the only "smart" person who decided to wait on QB, adam was able to load up his team on RB/WR but really made a mistake in rounds 7-8-9 when he choose to keep waiting instead of grabbing Andrew Luck. Those 3 picks- Leveon bell, Bernard Pirece, and Stevie Johnson- are all unnecessary on this team. Jenna, for the 2nd year in a row, grabbed her 2nd QB before Adam had the chance. Also, DeutscheBill got autodrafted Mike Vick a mere 3 picks before Adam was looking to choose him. He ends up with Eli Manning and Andy Dalton. That combo should be OK, but Adams looking at a big disadvantage at the highest scoring position in fantasy football.
QB Grade: D+
RB Grade: A++
WR Grade: B
TE Grade: C
Best Picks: Darren Sproles, Eric Decker
Worst Picks: Stevie Johnson, Bernard Pierce
Overall Rank: 4
Victorious Secret
QB1- Peyton Manning
QB2- Jay Cutler
RB1- Trent Richardson
RB2- Steven Ridley
RB3- Danny Woodhead
WR1- Wes Welker
WR2- Hakeem Nicks
WR3- Golden Tate
WR4- Vincent Brown
WR5- Malcolm Floyd
WR6- Percy Harvin
TE1- Rob Gronkowski
TE2- Jared Cook
Defense- Denver
Kicker- Stephen Gostkowski
Trent Richardson is a favorite player of mine and would have been my selection at #8 overall had Spiller not fallen to me. I love Richardson this year and so I love this pick. I also thought the Steven Ridley pick was solid- it may have been slightly early but when you are picking on the ends you gotta go for the guys you want. Ridley was the #14 RB in our league last year, and he's a TD machine for a high octane offense = Low risk.
At the next turn, Kait was fortunate enough to land a nice little QB-WR combo of Peyton manning and Wes Welker. Welker as we know is a ppr machine, and even if he has a "down" year in Denver, he is still worthy of this selection. Another low risk pick for Kait
The 5/6 turn was a very nice one for Kait. In what may the steal of the draft, Gronk was selected with the last pick in the 5th round. Everyone here knows the guy is a difference maker and a force... if he plays any more than 10 games this year, this pick is going to look real nice.
The one area Kait could improve is her RB depth. Woodhead is an uninspiring rb3, but with T Rich's shaky injury past Kait may need to lean on Woodhead too much. She is most definitely going to need to hit the wire or make a in-season trade to address her murky rb situation.
QB Grade: A-
RB Grade: B
WR Grade: B
TE Grade: A
Best: Richardson, Gronkowski
Worst: Denver DEF/V Brown/M Floyd - Kait should have used these spots for rb depth
Angry Pirates
QB1- Russell Wilson
RB1- Adrian Peterson
RB2- David Wilson
RB3- Deangelo Williams
RB4- Isaac Redmond
RB5- Marcel Reece
WR1- Demaryius Thomas
WR2- Dwayne Bowe
WR3- Mike Wallace
WR4- Josh Gordon
WR5- Justin Blackmon
WR6- Kendall Wright
TE1- Tyler Eifert
Defense- Pittsburgh
Kicker- Dan Bailey
For the 2nd year in a row Campbell lands AP, who he selected with the 1st overall pick. At the next turn, I LOVE the duo of David Wilson and Demaryius Thomas. Great picks. Wilson is going to explode. Campbells team was looking sexy at this point. In round 4 Campbell took Dwayne Bowe- pretty solid pick, especially as a 2nd WR. I have some minor doubts about Alex Smith being able to get him the ball, but still a solid wr2. The next pick was where the draft got ugly.
Cbell took Russel Wilson. I'm sure going into the draft the idea was to grab best avail QB at the 4/5 turn, however, it didn't work out here. With Stafford, RG3, Romo and Luck on the board, I would have forgone the QB pick and taken another positional player. Russell Wilson is the consensus #12 QB and may have arguably been avail for Campbell with his next picks. Instead Campbell locked Wilson up, and then proceeded to pick DeAngelo Williams and Mike Wallace, two guys I am down on this year.
I did like the Josh Gordon and Justin Blackmon picks, but again, I really didn't like how the middle of the draft went for Campbell. We'll see how it plays out.
QB Grade: C
RB Grade: A-
WR Grade: B+
TE Grade: C-
Best: David Wilson, Thomas, Gordon
Worst: Russ Wilson, Deangelo
Eat More Chicken
QB1- Tony Romo
QB2- Andrew Luck
RB1- Matt Forte
RB2- Lamar Miller
RB3- Michael Bush
RB4- Mike Tolbert
WR1- Dez Bryant
WR2- Andre Johnson
WR3- Anquan Boldin
WR4- Lance Moore
WR5- DeAndre Hopkins
TE1- Jason Witten
TE2- Kyle Rudolph
Defense- Seattle
Kicker- Blair Walsh
Jenna's team is about as balanced as they come. I loved the Lamar Miller pick (I had him on my radar) and the Forte-Dez start couldn't have been much better. I also really like the WR depth here- Andre Johnson is underrated as it is, plus Boldin/Moore/Hopkins provides a nice bench. The running back depth is what scares me here... just like with Kait. Forte and Miller will provide a dynamic 1-2 punch for a while but its only a matter of time before Jenna is in the market for a rb. I DO like Michael Bush, and it's important Jenna grabbed him as a handcuff, but the rb situation is going to be a headache all season here. It is worth mentioning Jason Witten was a nice steal at the end of the 4th round, even though with Gronk on the board it takes a little shine off the selection.
Just like last year, Jenna grabbed a 2nd QB before every team had their first. Last year I thought it was an awful move but this year I thought it was great. Andrew Luck fell to far and now Jenna has a nice trade chip she can use to try and get an RB. If there are any 2 teams that should be talking, its Jenna and Adam.
QB Grade: B
RB Grade: B-
WR Grade: A-
TE Grade: A-
Best: MIller, Andre, Luck
Worst: Seattle Def. Yes they are good but RBs avail would have been better.
Overall Rank: 9
A Pinch Better
QB1- Aaron Rodgers
RB1- Arian Foster
RB2- Demarco Murray
RB3- Darren McFadden
RB4- Ben Tate
RB5- Fred Jackson
RB6- Andre Brown
RB7- Knowshon Moreno
WR1- Roddy White
WR2- Marques Colston
WR3- Greg Jennings
WR4- Julien Edelman
TE1- Jermichael Finley
Defense- Baltimore
Kicker- Justin Tucker
I think Sean made a smart play by grabbing Foster at #3 overall, even with his pre-season question marks. I can very easily see Foster dominating the league once again, even if his touches are reduced. Just like me last year, Sean locked up the HOU RB by taking Ben Tate in 7th round. Yes it was a little early for tate but an absolute must for Sean at that point in the draft. At this point, since he has both guys, Sean is probably rooting for an injury to one of them so the other gets 25+ touches a game.
Sean also grabbed the injury riddled combo of DMC and Murray as his 2nd and 3rd RBs. Normally I would hate these picks but Sean took them both past their ADP so its hard to be critical. I especially like the Murray pick because I kind of think he's just had some bad luck thus far in his career. When he's healthy and playing, he truck sticks people.
The WR corps here is top heavy. I obviously LOVE Roddy White (over/under on him being on my team is 3.5 weeks) and Colston is an ideal #2 WR. I'm not a fan of Jennings or Edelman, but again the top 2 guys more than make up for the lack of depth. Roddy has never missed a game in his career so Sean did a good job locking that up.
I also thought FInley was good value for Sean. The Rodgers-Finley connection has failed miserably in the past but who knows, it could click this year.
QB Grade:A+
RB Grade: A-
WR Grade: B+
TE Grade: C
Best: Roddy, Murray, Finley
Worst: Andre Brown
The Godfather
QB1- Robert Griffin III
QB2- Carson Palmer
RB1- Eddie Lacy
RB2- Giovani Bernard
RB3- Ryan Mathews
RB4- Benjarvus Green-Ellis
RB5- Joique Bell
WR1- Calvin Johnson
WR2- Larry Fitzgerald
WR3- Ruben Randle
WR4- Darrius Heyward-Bey
WR5- Kenny Stills
TE1- Greg Olsen
Defense- Chicago
Kicker- Phil Dawson
Abe started his team with the guy I would have chosen- Megatron. Then, without a question the largest reach of the draft, Abe took Eddie Lacy in the second round, at #22 overall. There were at least 3-4 RBs I liked better, and countless number of other options outside of the RB position. In fact the more I write about it the more I hate this pick of Lacy. If he breaks out and beasts, Ill eat my words, but for now Im standing behind my thought on this being a huge reach. Even if Abe wanted Lacy badly, he would have easily been able to grab him in round 3 instead of round 2.
Abe took another rookie rb as his second rb, Gio Bernard. I like Bernard a lot, but its risky to lean on him as your 2nd RB. Mathews is also a nice candidate to be a RB2 but overall this RB crew leaves a lot to be desired.
The WR crew, however, is sick. Calvin Johnson and Larry Fitz is an amazing 1-2 combo. Points for days. Randle is a nice sleeper pick, and DHB is starting for the Colts so he is playable. Kenny Stills is raw and in a good situation, but nothing more than a lotto ticket at this point.
RG3 is most likely not going to be able to repeat his 2012 fantasy performance, but nonetheless he should be really good. Abe probably could have waited another round for QB, but if he wanted RG3 that's where he needed to take him.
QB Grade: B
RB Grade: D+
WR Grade: A
TE Grade: C
Best: Fitz, Megatron
Worst: Lacy, Olsen
the rental guys
QB1- Colin Kaepernick
RB1- Doug Martin
RB2- Maurice Jones-Drew
RB3- Shane Vereen
RB4- Christine Michael
RB5- Isiah Pead
WR1- Julio Jones
WR2- James Jones
WR3- Tavon Austin
WR4- Cecil Shorts
WR5- Denarious Moore
WR6- Cordarrelle Patterson
TE1- Jordan Cameron
Defense- NY Giants
Kicker- Sebastian Janikowski
For the 2nd straight year I really like Dan's draft. Doug Martin is a stud, and MJD falling to the end of the 2nd round is going to be a nice value pick IMO. The Jones combo at WR is real nice.. but I do have 1 problem.
Dan selected Julio Jones with his teammate Roddy White on the board. He also selected James Jones over Jordy Nelson. I would have gone the opposite way on both of these picks- especially the Packers WRs- but to each his own.
Overall the WR here are very strong. Cecil Shorts was a top 25 WR in our league with awful, awful QB play. Tavon Austin is an absolute animal and as the season progresses he should get stronger.
Kaepernick was a solid pick for Dan... he's another one of the guys Ive liked since his college days and I think he's the real deal. The RB depth is really the only question here... but with 2 studs plus a nice breakout candidate in Vereen, Dan should be OK.
QB Grade:B
RB Grade: A-
WR Grade: A
TE Grade: C
Best: MJD, Shorts
Worst: James Jones, Denarius Moore
The Crossing Guards
QB1- Cam Newton
QB2- Mike VIck
RB1- Marshawn Lynch
RB2- Mark Ingram
RB3- Bilall Powell
RB4- Roy Helu
WR1- AJ Green
WR2- Vincent Jackson
WR3- Torrey Smith
WR4- Ryan Broyles
TE1- Vernon Davis
TE2- Fred Davis
Defense- San Fran and Arizona
Kicker- Matt Bryant
DeutscheBill. YOLO. ZomBill. AutoBill. Shit happens right?
Bill unfortunately missed the draft and got auto'd. TO be honest, the team is pretty solid minus the RB depth. The WRs are really nice, and the QB/TE are great. Luckily Bill is one of the more active players on the waiver wire so I am sure the RB depth problem can be addressed if need be at some point.
QB Grade:A-
RB Grade: C-
WR Grade: A
TE Grade: B+
Best: Green, V Jax
Worst: All since it was auto'd
Comeback Story
QB1- Tom Brady
RB1- Alfred Morris
RB2- Steven Jackson
RB3- Daryl Richardson
RB4- Chris Ivory
RB5- Ronnie Hillman
RB6- Jaquizz Rogers
RB7- Daniel Thomas
WR1- Danny Amendola
WR2- TY Hilton
WR3- Emannuel Sanders
WR4- Andrew Roberts
WR5- Mohammed Sanu
TE1- Tony Gonzalez
Defense- None
Kicker- Adam Vinatieri
Another year, another draft I'm not a huge fan of for Donny. First, selecting Alfred Morris at 10th overall in a PPR league is too early. There's a good chance he would have lasted to the 2nd round anyway. Morris caught 7 passes last year... an obvious reason to knock him down in ppr leagues. The 2nd round pick of Steven Jackson was solid, another pick Im not in love with but that just my personal preference. S Jax could easily pound in 12 TDS and make this selection look nice, although it is kind of weird to own the TE and RB for the same team. (Took Gonzo in the 5th.) I guess since it's the Falcons Donny may be alright as they are a high octane offense.
The WR spot is a clear disadvantage for Donny- just like me he grabbed both QB and TE early. Tom Brady is Tom Brady and will be fine, and while Amendola stays healthy Donny has a lethal connection. If Amendola stays healthy all year, Donny will be sitting pretty, that's obviously a tough bet though. The rest of the WR all kind of suck... Hilton has nice upside but is only the 3rd WR on a balanced attack team. The pick I really liked from Donny was Daryl Richardson in the 6th round... I believe he could end up as an RB2 so to me that was one of Don's best picks.
QB Grade:A-
RB Grade: B+
WR Grade: C
TE Grade: B+
Best: Richardson, Gonzalez
Worst: Morris
A1 Providers
QB1- Matt Ryan
RB1- Ray Rice
RB2- Ahmad Bradshaw
RB3- Shonn Greene
WR1- Brandon Marshall
WR2- Victor Cruz
WR3- Steve Smith
WR4- Mike Williams
WR5- Sidney Rice
WR6- Brian Hartline
TE1- Owen Daniels
TE2- Zach Sudfeld
TE3- Heath Miller
Defense- Houston
Kicker- David Akers
Paul has a good team. That's for sure. Ray Rice at #& in a ppr league- cant go wrong there. In the 2nd Paul locked up Brandon Marshall who will be a beast per usual. After that Paul went with Cruz who of course is a threat.
I actually didn't like the Matt Ryan pick, however. At that point Paul could have easily waited on QB and grabbed a 3rd WR for his flex or another RB. I think we basically saw the best Matt Ryan could have done last year... I would be shocked if he bested his 2012 numbers and in fact I expect a slight regression.
Bradshaw is a nice rb2, but the clear weakness here is RB depth. You cant have just 3 RBs on your team with Shonn Greene as the 3rd guy and Bradshaw, whos had a million foot problems, as your 2nd. Just cant happen. If Paul had grabbed RBs instead Owen Daniels, the Houston Defense and Mike Williams I would have maybe given Paul the best draft grade, but that cannot happen when you only have 2 real RBs on your team.
The Sudfeld pick late was by far my favorite of Pauls.... Great pick.
QB Grade:B
RB Grade: C+
WR Grade: A
TE Grade: B
Best: Sudfeld
Worst: Daniels, Hou Def, Williams
Boston Patriots
QB1- Matt Stafford
RB1- Lesean McCoy
RB2- Chris Johnson
RB3- Rashad Mendenhall
RB4- Pierre Thomas
WR1- Randall Cobb
WR2- Reggie Wayne
WR3- Antonio Brown
WR4- Chris Givens
WR5- Kenny Britt
WR6- Aaron Dobson
TE1- Brandon Meyers
TE2- Antonio Gates
Defense- Cincy
Kicker- Shayne Graham
The first major surprise in the draft came at #5 overall with the selection on LeSean McCoy. Mr. B is banking on the Chip Kelly offense working and McCoy thriving in the run-heavy attack. It makes a lot of sense... my personal preference would have been to go elsewhere at RB but the case for McCoy at #5 can easily be made.
I also wasnt a huge fan of the Chris Johnson pick in the 2nd round. There were a handful of backs I would have preferred at that point... but to each his own. CJ?K could easily finish in the top 10 this year.
I thought drafting Stafford where he got him was also kind of a reach. With Luck, Romo, and Stafford on the board and just 2 other teams picking before his next pick, I guess Mr. B didnt want to wait so he took the Goergia alum. It's not that I dont think Stafford will bounce back- I do- but I dont know HOW much better he will be than Luck or Romo.
I do love the WR Mr B snagged. Cobb is my boy, and between Wayne, Brown and Givens Mr B should easily be able to fill his WR2 and flex spots.
QB Grade: B-
RB Grade: B
WR Grade: A-
TE Grade: C
Best: Cobb, Brown, Givens
Worst: CJ?K, Stafford
1. Tahiti Loungers- Able to secure the top TE and QB and I still like my RB and WR groups very much.
2. the rental guys- Explosive team with solid depth
3. A Pinch Better- Gotta love the top guys on this squad (Rodgers Foster Roddy)
4. Team Ice Cream- RB depth for the win. Really nice draft minus the QB debacle.
5. Victorious Secret- Love this team minus the lack of RB depth.
6. Comeback Story- All round solid team that will compete
7. Boston Patriots- Nice draft, just not the guys I like/prefer
8. A1 Providers- Studly WRs and Rice will carry Paul this year
9. Eat More Chicken- Top heavy team that will struggle through Bye weeks
10. Angry Pirates- Probably too low of a ranking, but after picks 1-3 I'm not impressed
11. The Godfather- Leaning on rookie rb's too heavily, health of RG3 will determine Abe's fate
12. The Crossing Guards- Autodraft = autolast. As mentioned above though I love Bills core.
Stay Tuned for Power Ranks after Week 1...