"Make Football Great Again" draft

Fantasy Draft Talk
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My “Make Football Great Again” rookie draft started today. It is dynasty superflex and half PPR. I had the first pick in a 12 team league. It’s a slow draft, which means players can take 24 hours to make a pick. It’s 4 rounds.

Here are the picks made so far (FP superflex rookie rankings shown in parens):

1.1. RB Bijan Robinson (1): This was my pick, and I consider this too obvious to even comment.

1.2. QB Anthony Richardson (2): High upside, low downside pick. I think it’s too early. If he busts, you’ll be drafting 2nd next year too. On the other hand, if he hits, he’s superflex gold.

1.3. RB Jahmyr Gibbs (5): This would have been my 2nd pick. Gibbs is pretty darned close to Bijan, but with a different style. Bijan is the shifty RB type, who can leave you shoeless in the middle of the field, whereas Gibbs is the kind of RB who gets a hole and flies past you. Bijan doesn’t have great open field speed, but he can fake out even the shiftiest DB, whereas Gibbs just runs past them. If some Detroit fan took Gibbs with the first pick, I’d just tip my hat to him.

1.4. QB CJ Stroud (3): First ECR steal of the draft. given the choice between Richardson or Stroud, I’d have taken Stroud. He just impressed me more in college. Also, Richardson is a freak athlete, whereas Stroud is a perfectly dimensioned QB who just took the national champion Georgia defense to the brink of elimination in the playoffs last year (only losing by a silly missed short field goal).

1.5. QB Bryce Young (4): Although this is technically an ECR steal, I consider it a perfect placement. He is easily one of the top 3 QB’s in the draft. His size issues still lurk, so he should be the last of the three, even if he has a good head for the game.

1.6. TE Dalton Kincaid (10): This is a reach, but I approve. Best TE in the draft, with good things coming out of training camp. When you take the best player at a position in the 1st round, it’s hard to argue.

1.7. WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba (6): While this is a slight steal, it’s one with a caveat: Don’t expect big things this year. JSN still has two solid WR’s ahead of him on the depth chart (DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett). This is a long term play with good upside.

That’s where we left off today. I’ll post tomorrow’s picks then!

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Congratulations on your next 10 Championships!

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While I appreciate your confidence in me, I highly suspect Bijan won’t be around in 10 years, or at least not in an exceptional capacity.

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In 20 years, the position will no longer be known as “RB”; it will be “BR.”

“Who is your team starting at Bijan Robinson this year?”

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Continuing with today’s draft action, here are the picks made so far (FP superflex rookie rankings shown in parens):

1.8. WR Jordan Addison (7): Another good pick, as long as he doesn’t turn into another Henry Ruggs. Awesome situation starting opposite Justin Jefferson.
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1.9. WR Quentin Johnston (8): While Addison has the better situation, I’m not sure it isn’t Johnston that has the brighter future. Regardless, well-played.

1.10. WR Zay Flowers (9): ECR likes this pick, but I don’t. No matter how speedy a small receiver is, their upside is limited. There will be no Jefferson/Chase comparisons made, nor stats challenged. He may have an occasional blowup week, but that won’t win you a championship.

1.11. RB De’Von Achane (14): I think it was Pat Fitzmaurice who compared Achane to Warrick Dunn. I’ve seen too many speedy waterbug RB’s spend their careers as special teams fodder. Maybe Achane is different, but I’m not ready to blow a 1st round pick on him. Even by ECR standards, this was a reach.

1.12. RB Kendre Miller (13); A small reach, but one I endorse. Miller will get his chance to shine during Alvin Kamara’s suspension. Admittedly, Jamaal Williams will own the starting role for those 3 games, but Miller could see more reps in the future. And let’s be honest: Kamara is starting to slow down.

2.1. TE Sam LaPorta (16): I took the BPA with my first pick. In the second round, I was drafting for need, and my team’s main needs were QB and TE. The only QB at this ECR level is Will Levis, and I don’t want any part of another Tennessee QB (I’m still sitting on shares of Malik Willis from last year), especially one with as many fleas as Levis has. If I was just drafting BPA here, I might consider WR Jonathan Mingo, but that is more for his situation (have you seen Carolina’s WR corps? Ugly!) than any great talent, although he did show flashes in college. That leaves my team’s TE need, and LaPorta is a screaming buy in Detroit, where he’s been instantly inserted as the team’s starting TE.

2.2. WR Jonathan Mingo (17): This pick made me feel better for considering him, even if it is a slight ECR reach.

2.3. RB Zach Charbonnet (11): This is an ECR steal. I’m not as excited about him as some experts, mainly because Kenny Walker is not going anywhere.

2.4. RB Roschon Johnson (19): This one is a reach because he spent his college career as a backup to Bijan, so we aren’t completely sure what Roschon is. There is potential upside here, and that is what you want in a second round pick. In Chicago, he is only behind D’onta Foreman and Khalil Herbert, so there is daylight to a starting job, if Roschon can find it.

That’s it for Saturday, so far. Any more today will get included in Sunday’s picks.

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This is every pick from the last 2 days. This draft has hit a road bump:

2.5. WR Rashee Rice (26): This is a HUGE reach! Just because he’s a Chief doesn’t make him good. Also, there are plenty of target hogs in that offense. Don’t expect much from a rookie. Remember Tyreek Hill’s first year with the Chiefs? 61 catches, 593 yards, 6 td’s (and 3 rushing td’s). Rice is no Hill.

2.6. QB Will Levis (12): This is an ECR bargain, but even for superflex I’m not sold he will amount to anything. Personally, I’d rather take a later round shot at QB. Levis just screams bust to me.

2.7. RB Tyjae Spears (23): A slight reach, but I appreciate the upside here. With Derrick Henry getting older, Spears could step up int9 an expanded role, if he can live up to his upside.

2.8. RB Tank Bigsby (21): Bigsby will likely see more playing time, as the Jags are looking to reduce Etienne’s workload. Early word out of training camp is Bigsby could assume the short yardage role. Goal line monster?

2.9. TE Michael Mayer (17): STEAL! Of all the TE’s in the draft, Mayer is one of the top 3, in my opinion. Along with the other two, these TE’s represent potential first year breakouts, because their situations are open to them having success.

2.10. WR Jayden Reed (20): Another steal. Green Bay’s WR corps grows thin after Christian Watson. He seems to be settling into the slot role for the Packers.

That’s it for Sunday/Monday so far. Hopefully the draft progresses Tuesday.

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We had a little progress on Tuesday’s draft. Apparently, somebody was trying to work a trade for their late 2nd round pick, which is why everything was getting delayed.

2.11. WR Marvin Mims (15): An excellent pick here, although I’m leery of the Broncos this year. While Sean Peyton is great, I’m not sold that Russell Wilson hasn’t lost it. Two years ago, Wilson was bad for the Seahawks, and last year seems to cement that. Mims might have long term potential though.

2.12. RB Chase Brown (25): Brown should be a waiver wire pickup, not a late 2nd round pick. I don’t see the ECR love for him.

3.1. WR Jalin Hyatt (27): Back to my pick again, and I was shocked to see Hyatt still available. I know WR’s aren’t an area of need for me, but this was too good to refuse. While there was originally some talk that Hyatt might be red-shirted this season, he’s done so well in training camp that he’s jumped to 2nd string. With the starting WR’s being Isaiah Hodgins, Darius Slayton, and Parris Campbell, there isn’t much stopping Hyatt from staking out a starting position. And this was just after hearing Boggs and Fitz sing his praises in the dynasty podcast!

3.2. WR Josh Downs (24): This is a good pick in a bad situation. The Colts will likely rely on the run with rookie Anthony Richardson. How many opportunities will Colts receivers get? Or even worse, what happens if Jonathan Taylor leaves or gets traded? This offense could quickly turn into a monster dumpster fire. That said, Downs does have potential as a slot WR.

That’s it for Tuesday. My next pick is at 3.4, so stay tuned! I have some excellent options lined up, but my big surprise will be at 4.1!

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Here is the draft up to Wednesday’s picks:

3.3. RB Zach Evans (29): My gut feeling isn’t good on this one. Evans feels like a career journeyman just starting.

3.4. TE Luke Musgrave (30): This was a pick I traded for before the draft. I was pleasantly surprised to see Musgrave here, as he was only a smidge below the top 3 TE’s I rated in this draft. Latest news: “Packers’ head coach Matt LaFleur shared in an interview that TE Luke Musgrave is “the biggest fast guy I’ve ever seen.”” Musgrave is already at the top of the Packers depth chart, so Musgrave is at least an opportunity waiting to happen. At 6’6", 253 pounds, and running a 4.6, he has all the physical tools. With TE being an area of need for me, adding Musgrave to Sam LaPorta just improve my chances to hit a good TE. At the least, I should be able to stream TE’s.

3.5. RB Israel Abanikanda (32): This guy is tempting, checking all the physical boxes, and even having a decent last season in college. But he just looks buried in the Jets RB room. nobody is topping Breece Hall, and even Michael Carter looked better coming out of college. “A-bank” is really gonna have to step up his game to get playing time in this situation.

3.6. QB Hendon Hooker (22): Arguably, this is a huge steal. However, he still hasn’t returned to practice from rehabbing his ACL, and there is no target on when this could happen, as the Li0ns don’t seem in a hurry to get him back yet. That said, I do like his potential, although he is an older rookie (25).

3.7. WR Cedric Tillman (28): Another well-placed pick, but Tillman is more of an investment for next year, barring injuries to Cleveland’s starting 3 WR’s. Even then, Tillman is on a run-first team, so you have to wonder how good the situation here is even if he makes it to #3?

That’s all for Wednesday! See you for Thursday’s picks.

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Thursday was a light day of drafting for MFGA:

3.8. WR Tank Dell (32): CJ Stroud likes Dell, but Dell is super thin by NFL standards (165 pounds). Dell is a slot WR for that reason, but maybe a darned good one. We’ll find out.

3.9. RB Deuce Vaughn (42): This is an RB? 5’5", 179 pounds? Aside from the reaching nature of this pick, it is a good position to be subbing for Tony Pollard. But I don’t see this guy ever evolving into much more than spot duty relief. Even if Pollard got hurt, the Cowboys would be calling Leonard Fournette before relying on Vaughn for any amount of time.

3.10. RB DeWayne McBride (33): The phrase “intriguing prospect” is how I’d describe any of Alexander Mattison’s backups in Minnesota. Will McBride rise to the top there? Possibly. Will he excel if he does? Maybe. This is a lottery ticket pick.

So much for Thursday. See you tomorrow with Friday’s picks.

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Friday was a slightly heavier day of drafting for the MFGA league:

3.11. RB Evan Hull (39): This one could be a steal if Jonathan Taylor isn’t with the Colts this year. Even if Taylor is there, it’s possible (albeit a longshot) that Hull could turn into something more in the long run. Worst case, Hull is good taxi squad bait for now.

3.12. TE Benton Strange (65): I can hear Chris Berman now, calling him Benton “Doctor” Strange! Seriously though, Strange could have been picked up as a free agent after the draft. This was a deep reach.

4.1. WR Puka Nicua (34): After Cooper Kupp, the Rams WR corps is a barren wasteland. Add in the fact that Puka has some talent and size (6’2", 205 pounds), and Puka could see the starting lineup as early as this year.

4.2. RB Eric Gray (35): Gray is looking like he could be the Giants punt returner. But with Saquon’s injury history, opportunity could open up for the rookie. If Saquon leaves next year, that’s another opportunity.

4.3. WR Kayshon Boutte (37): Boutte shows strong signs of hit-or-miss. But as with any Belichick WR draft pick, approach with extreme caution.

4.4. WR Michael Wilson (36): He was a coin toss before the NFL draft, and now he’s on a bad team with questionable QB play. Not a lot of upside here.

4.5. TE Darnell Washington (46): Come back next year, maybe. Taxi squad fodder.

4.6. QB Stetson Bennett (57): Damn you! This was gonna be my first post-draft waiver pickup! Hat tip to you on this one.
HatTip

4.7. RB Sean Tucker (40): Buried on the Tampa depth chart from the word go, with “undisclosed medical problems”. He was a UDFA, so he may not even be on the team week 1.

That’s it for today. Hopefully we will finish it up on Saturday.

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A few thoughts here. First, a general one: all teams that are struggling in that league right now have been neglecting the QB position for too long. In SFLEX, QB should be an absolute priority. I wouldn’t have blamed you if you had selected Richardson over Bijan. Not saying you should have, but especially in rebuild phases, QB should always be a priority.

As for RIchardson vs. Stroud - Stroud will probably be the better NFL QB, but Richardson could become an absolute fantasy monster. No guarantee, of course, but no rookie QB ever comes with one.

I don’t. The owner has Kyle Pitts, but is thin on WR. Yes, you should draft for value and trade for needs. But drafting JSN here would have been a value pick AND have filled a need.

You should rarely expect big things of rookie WRs, and never of rookie TEs. That’s why the league has a TAXI squad, that allows to stash players for up to 2 years. :wink:

Thanks. I have a lot of shares in Johnston right now. JSN is the most talented WR of this year’s class. But he will experience a QB and a head coach change during his rookie contract, which puts some question marks above his head. Addison will be the 1b to Jefferson, which isn’t a bad thing. But they will also see a QB change sooner rather than later.

In terms of talent, it’s JSN > JA > QJ… In terms of landing spots, I see QJ ahead of the rest. He’ll be tied to a great QB for a long time. Now, if the Chargers staff manages to teach him how to utilize his massive frame in contested catches… yeah, that would be great, mmkay? (Bill Lumbergh voice here).

Had to make this pick for my buddy, who’s on a cruise ship right now. He asked for an RB, and Miller is my #3 this year, ahead of Achane and Charbonnet,

That’s what I thought during the NFL draft. :sweat_smile:

Guy’s short of an ACL and cartilage. To me, that NFL pick screamed "we’ll address finding a successor for Henry next year’.

Yeah, I certainly wasn’t unhappy to find these 2 still on the board when my consecutive 2nd round picks came up. :star_struck:

He’ll have a small chance in case Akers manages to navigate his way back into McVay’s dog house. Other than that, I agree.

I still don’t like your trade, but this pick certainly made it a little better.

I should really have taken Stetson Bennett here. That was my plan all along, but then I watched some tape of the late round RBs and… well, I have a soft spot for gadgety players and kinda fell in love with this little pinball making college defenders look stupid. Won’t happen in the NFL, though. Not happy with my choice.

No, he wasn’t. I’d have taken him at 4.09. Still angry with myself I didn’t take him in the 3rd round. Stafford is on his last legs, and Bennett could well become the next Brock Purdy.

And in case you wonder why I picked Trey Palmer at 4.09: I simply didn’t see Tucker Kraft was still on the board. :flushed:

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It’s all good. I’m going to wait for the last two picks before posting my last update.

As for Stetson Bennett, this is clearly a case where the fantasy community has surpassed the so-called “experts”. ECR definitely failed here!

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ECR is a concept destined to fail. Pooling the results of as many analysts as possible will never generate the best possible projections. The more analysts you include, the more clueless guys you add, who will just copy&paste last year’s results, add a few random deviations and sell that as “analytics”.

There are a few good guys out there, including FantasyPro’s Mike Maher, Pat Fitzmaurice and, to an extent, Andrew Erickson. I’d rather follow them than a pool that includes analysts who haven’t updated their rankings since June.

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After last night, I’m a little happier with my random selection now. Boy, did Vaughn look good last night! Sure, that was not the Jags’ first defense he made look stupid there. Still, at his first opportunity, he showed in the NFL what he did show in college.

If any of you guys ever played the Blood Bowl video game: Vaughn reminds me of a Skink. And I LOVED the Lizardmen in Blood Bowl. :joy:

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The MFGA draft was finished today. Here are the last few picks:

4.8. TE Luke Schoonmaker (38): Is Schoonmaker another Dalton Schultz? That’s Derek Brown’s player comp. If so, Dallas is the perfect place for him. Schoonmaker doesn’t have elite upside, but he could be an efficient TE in another year or so.

4.9. WR Trey Palmer (54): This WR pick went deep into the reaches. But he has speed, so he’s worth a taxi squad seat. In Tampa Bay, the WR corps is getting long in the tooth, so if Palmer is ever going to shine, this is a good place for him to do it, although maybe after they get a real QB?

4.10. TE Tucker Kraft (50): “Love” the player, not so much the situation in Green Bay (pun intended). Seriously though, while Kraft would be an excellent rookie TE anywhere else, in Green Bay, he was drafted behind Luke Musgrave, also an excellent rookie TE, who has shined in training camp. Both Musgrave and Kraft will dominate the Green Bay TE position for years to come. This is an excellent taxi squad stash.

4.11. RB Deneric Prince (76): HUGE reach! But I guess “buried on a KC depth chart” carries value?

4.12. WR Justin Shorter (66): He’s 6’4". He’s in Buffalo, where they don’t normally have guys that big, if you don’t count their TE’s Dawson Knox and Dalton Kincaid. Expect Shorter (ironically named) to ride a fantasy taxi squad for as long as possible, and then be cut and replaced by somebody better.

That’s it guys! Good draft overall.

Here once again are my picks (this time shown with ADP in parentheses):

1.1. RB Bijan Robinson (1.0)
2.1. TE Sam LaPorta (19.5)
3.1. WR Jalin Hyatt (24.5)
3.4. TE Luke Musgrave (27.0)
4.1. WR Puka Nacua (48.0)

Bijan speaks for himself. I reached a little for my TE’s, but I needed a TE badly, as my best TE was Robert Tonyan. The WR picks were for solid talent in good situations.

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I don’t typically think in dynasty terms, but I’d say you did well.

I mean, any draft starting with Bijan isn’t going to be BAD, but Hyatt was probly a solid investment, and Musgrave may turn out better than LaPorta (at least in the short term, but like I said, I don’t worry about dynasty values so much).

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