I'm participating in a FanEx Experts League draft. Ian's in one as well, the results of which he posted last week. Mine is into the 15th round, and he and I had similar draft positions (him 9th, me 8th). So interesting, I think, to see how our teams are turning out.
This is the Fanex League.. It includes three wide receivers, a flex and PPR scoring.
Ian and I agree that in this kind of league, having a couple of kick-ass wide receivers is critical. Had I been picking in the top 5, I'd probably have selected a running back, but with the 8th pick it was (I thought) an easy call to opt for the No. 1 wide receiver over the No. 7 running back. I debated a while between Davante Adams and Tyreek Hill, ultimately deciding on Adams. So I was pretty pleased to get Hill with my next pick at 2.05. Unexpected.
The problem with going this route in a draft is you're playing catchup at running back the rest of the way. When my 3rd-round pick came up, 19 running backs were off the board. I was considering Chase Edmonds or Josh Jacobs, and I don't believe there was a viable 3rd choice (I'm interested in Mike Davis, but thought I might be able to get him a round or two later). Maybe I could have gotten Edmonds a round later. Regardless, I had to go running back, and I personally like Edmonds more than Jacobs in PPR, for his role as a pass catcher, with the Raiders for some reason don't like Jacobs in. I picked Edmonds; whether or not I chose right, we'll see.
Ordinarily I wouldn't take a quarterback in Round 4, but I thought Josh Allen was too good to pass up. He went a round earlier in Ian's draft. I was thrilled to get Darrell Henderson at 5.08. He might be better than Edmonds. In Round 6 I went back to the WR pool with Brandon Aiyuk. In retrospect I could have maybe gone with Javonte Williams here, who I think will play in a busy committee with Melvin Gordon, my next pick. Gordon is a capable pass catcher, so he should be fine in PPR should I need him.
My next pick was another Bronco, Noah Fant, followed by the running back we're leaning will start in Detroit, Jamaal Williams. Straight off our board I could have taken him a couple of rounds earlier, but nobody else likes the guy. I should mention this selection occurred before Williams went out and averaged a yard per carry in Detroit's first exhibition, but whatever. He's healthy, he's getting half the work in Detroit, and a potential starting, pass-catching running back in the 9th round works for me.
From that point on it's been best available pass catchers, a backup QB with upside (Trevor Lawrence), and then a desperation running back choice who apparently is the heavy favorite to be the No. 2 for the Chargers, according to every camp report. The rest of the way I'll be looking at defense, kicker and backup running backs with a chance to do something.
In the table, my picks are in bold. Feel free to let me know where you think I messed up.
FANEX DRAFT | |||
---|---|---|---|
Pk | Pos | Tm | Player |
1.01 | RB | CAR | Christian McCaffrey |
1.02 | RB | NOS | Alvin Kamara |
1.03 | RB | MIN | Dalvin Cook |
1.04 | RB | TEN | Derrick Henry |
1.05 | TE | KCC | Travis Kelce |
1.06 | RB | DAL | Ezekiel Elliott |
1.07 | RB | GBP | Aaron Jones |
1.08 | WR | GBP | Davante Adams |
1.09 | RB | PIT | Najee Harris |
1.10 | RB | NYG | Saquon Barkley |
1.11 | RB | CLE | Nick Chubb |
1.12 | RB | IND | Jonathan Taylor |
2.01 | RB | LAC | Austin Ekeler |
2.02 | WR | BUF | Stefon Diggs |
2.03 | WR | SEA | DK Metcalf |
2.04 | RB | CHI | David Montgomery |
2.05 | WR | KCC | Tyreek Hill |
2.06 | WR | ARI | DeAndre Hopkins |
2.07 | WR | ATL | Calvin Ridley |
2.08 | WR | LAC | Keenan Allen |
2.09 | RB | WAS | Antonio Gibson |
2.10 | RB | CIN | Joe Mixon |
2.11 | WR | TEN | A.J. Brown |
2.12 | RB | KCC | Clyde Edwards-Helaire |
3.01 | RB | SEA | Chris Carson |
3.02 | RB | DET | D'Andre Swift |
3.03 | WR | MIN | Justin Jefferson |
3.04 | QB | KCC | Patrick Mahomes |
3.05 | WR | DAL | CeeDee Lamb |
3.06 | RB | BAL | J.K. Dobbins |
3.07 | RB | PHI | Miles Sanders |
3.08 | RB | ARI | Chase Edmonds |
3.09 | TE | LVR | Darren Waller |
3.10 | WR | TBB | Mike Evans |
3.11 | RB | LVR | Josh Jacobs |
3.12 | WR | CHI | Allen Robinson |
4.01 | WR | DAL | Amari Cooper |
4.02 | WR | WAS | Terry McLaurin |
4.03 | TE | SFO | George Kittle |
4.04 | RB | HOU | David Johnson |
4.05 | QB | BUF | Josh Allen |
4.06 | WR | LAR | Robert Woods |
4.07 | WR | TBB | Chris Godwin |
4.08 | RB | MIA | Myles Gaskin |
4.09 | TE | ATL | Kyle Pitts |
4.10 | WR | CAR | DJ Moore |
4.11 | WR | LAR | Cooper Kupp |
4.12 | QB | BAL | Lamar Jackson |
5.01 | TE | BAL | Mark Andrews |
5.02 | QB | ARI | Kyler Murray |
5.03 | WR | SEA | Tyler Lockett |
5.04 | WR | PIT | Diontae Johnson |
5.05 | RB | ATL | Mike Davis |
5.06 | WR | CIN | Tee Higgins |
5.07 | RB | JAC | Travis Etienne |
5.08 | RB | LAR | Darrell Henderson |
5.09 | WR | NOS | Michael Thomas |
5.10 | QB | DAL | Dak Prescott |
5.11 | WR | TEN | Julio Jones |
5.12 | QB | LAC | Justin Herbert |
6.01 | WR | NYG | Kenny Golladay |
6.02 | QB | GBP | Aaron Rodgers |
6.03 | RB | CLE | Kareem Hunt |
6.04 | WR | MIN | Adam Thielen |
6.05 | WR | SFO | Brandon Aiyuk |
6.06 | WR | PIT | Chase Claypool |
6.07 | QB | TBB | Tom Brady |
6.08 | WR | CLE | Odell Beckham |
6.09 | WR | CIN | Ja'Marr Chase |
6.10 | RB | DEN | Javonte Williams |
6.11 | TE | DET | T.J. Hockenson |
6.12 | WR | CIN | Tyler Boyd |
7.01 | RB | NYJ | Michael Carter |
7.02 | WR | DEN | Jerry Jeudy |
7.03 | QB | SEA | Russell Wilson |
7.04 | RB | JAC | James Robinson |
7.05 | WR | PIT | JuJu Smith-Schuster |
7.06 | RB | NEP | Damien Harris |
7.07 | QB | TEN | Ryan Tannehill |
7.08 | RB | DEN | Melvin Gordon |
7.09 | WR | KCC | Mecole Hardman |
7.10 | RB | SFO | Raheem Mostert |
7.11 | TE | WAS | Logan Thomas |
7.12 | TE | GBP | Robert Tonyan |
8.01 | WR | HOU | Brandin Cooks |
8.02 | WR | DEN | Courtland Sutton |
8.03 | WR | CLE | Jarvis Landry |
8.04 | WR | MIA | DeVante Parker |
8.05 | TE | DEN | Noah Fant |
8.06 | RB | TBB | Ronald Jones |
8.07 | RB | SFO | Trey Sermon |
8.08 | RB | TBB | Leonard Fournette |
8.09 | WR | TBB | Antonio Brown |
8.10 | TE | PHI | Dallas Goedert |
8.11 | RB | BUF | Zack Moss |
8.12 | WR | CAR | Robby Anderson |
9.01 | WR | LAC | Mike Williams |
9.02 | RB | HOU | Phillip Lindsay |
9.03 | WR | PHI | DeVonta Smith |
9.04 | WR | CHI | Darnell Mooney |
9.05 | WR | JAC | Laviska Shenault |
9.06 | WR | MIA | Jaylen Waddle |
9.07 | WR | ATL | Russell Gage |
9.08 | RB | DET | Jamaal Williams |
9.09 | RB | WAS | J.D. McKissic |
9.10 | WR | JAC | Marvin Jones |
9.11 | RB | GBP | AJ Dillon |
9.12 | RB | ARI | James Conner |
10.01 | TE | MIA | Mike Gesicki |
10.02 | WR | LVR | Henry Ruggs |
10.03 | RB | IND | Nyheim Hines |
10.04 | RB | LAR | Xavier Jones |
10.05 | WR | DAL | Michael Gallup |
10.06 | WR | JAC | D.J. Chark |
10.07 | TE | LAR | Tyler Higbee |
10.08 | WR | SFO | Deebo Samuel |
10.09 | QB | ATL | Matt Ryan |
10.10 | WR | WAS | Curtis Samuel |
10.11 | WR | NYJ | Corey Davis |
10.12 | WR | MIA | Will Fuller |
11.01 | TE | NYG | Evan Engram |
11.02 | WR | BAL | Rashod Bateman |
11.03 | RB | LVR | Kenyan Drake |
11.04 | TE | NEP | Jonnu Smith |
11.05 | QB | MIN | Kirk Cousins |
11.06 | TE | TBB | Rob Gronkowski |
11.07 | TE | DAL | Blake Jarwin |
11.08 | TE | MIN | Irv Smith |
11.09 | RB | NEP | Rhamondre Stevenson |
11.10 | RB | NEP | James White |
11.11 | QB | LAR | Matthew Stafford |
11.12 | TE | PHI | Zach Ertz |
12.01 | WR | BUF | Emmanuel Sanders |
12.02 | TE | LAC | Jared Cook |
12.03 | TE | PIT | Eric Ebron |
12.04 | QB | PHI | Jalen Hurts |
12.05 | WR | NOS | Marquez Callaway |
12.06 | RB | BUF | Devin Singletary |
12.07 | RB | DAL | Tony Pollard |
12.08 | RB | BAL | Gus Edwards |
12.09 | RB | PHI | Boston Scott |
12.10 | QB | CIN | Joe Burrow |
12.11 | WR | IND | T.Y. Hilton |
12.12 | WR | IND | Michael Pittman |
13.01 | RB | NOS | Latavius Murray |
13.02 | RB | TBB | Giovani Bernard |
13.03 | TE | NOS | Adam Trautman |
13.04 | PK | KCC | Harrison Butker |
13.05 | QB | WAS | Ryan Fitzpatrick |
13.06 | WR | LVR | Bryan Edwards |
13.07 | WR | NOS | TreQuan Smith |
13.08 | QB | JAC | Trevor Lawrence |
13.09 | WR | NYG | Darius Slayton |
13.10 | WR | BUF | Cole Beasley |
13.11 | D/ST | LAR | Rams D/ST |
13.12 | PK | BAL | Justin Tucker |
14.01 | D/ST | TB | Tampa Bay D/ST |
14.02 | PK | BUF | Tyler Bass |
14.03 | D/ST | IND | Colts D/ST |
14.04 | QB | PIT | Ben Roethlisberger |
14.05 | RB | LAC | Justin Jackson |
14.06 | WR | NYJ | Elijah Moore |
14.07 | QB | SFO | Trey Lance |
14.08 | D/ST | WAS | Washington D/ST |
14.09 | WR | ARI | Christian Kirk |
14.10 | RB | CAR | Chuba Hubbard |
14.11 | RB | MIN | Alexander Mattison |
14.12 | WR | BAL | Marquise Brown |
15.01 | QB | CHI | Justin Fields |
15.02 | WR | GBP | Randall Cobb |
15.03 | QB | CLE | Baker Mayfield |
15.04 | RB | TEN | Darrynton Evans |
15.05 | RB | SEA | Rashaad Penny |
15.06 | WR | BUF | Gabriel Davis |