I just drafted my NFFC Primetime tonight, the $1750 buy-in league I do every year. I won it last year and the year before, and I hope to keep the streak going with the team below. I drew the 12th pick, my first choice, though I was sixth to choose my slot via KDS.
Here are the results:
1.12 CeeDee Lamb — Alan Seslowsky and I gamed out the possibilities at the 1/2 turn pretty throroughly, or so we thought, but for some reason we never contemplated Lamb being available at 12. This was an easy call, especially once Bijan Robinson was off the board at 1.10, ending any temptation I might have had to do things the hard way and go RB-RB.
2.1 Saquon Barkley — I was relieved to see Robinson (and especially Austin Ekeler) go ahead of me because that meant (a) I’d get my receiver (otherwise I’d have had to reach for Jaylen Waddle); and (b) I didn’t have to make the Sophie’s choice betwen Robinson and Barkley. I have plenty of Robinson and only one other share of Barkley, but I expect both to be huge so long as they can stay healthy.
3.1 Devonta Smith — I really wanted Calvin Ridley here — he went one pick ahead of me at 2.12 — until I realized Smith had dropped. I had taken DK Metcalf narrowly (in a coin flip) over Smith in BCL2, but I have too much Metcalf, and was happy to take the other receiver in that tier.
4.12 Chris Godwin — I’ve been taking Darren Waller and Godwin at this turn, but Waller, who I had initially gotten late sixth, did not come close to making it back. I love Godwin’s skill set and lack of competition for targets beyond Mike Evans.
5.1 Kenneth Walker — Walker aced the eye test for me last year. It’s really just a matter of him staying healthy.
6.12 George Kittle — I got snaked on Jonathan Taylor by one pick, or else I’d surely have rolled the dice here. Kittle is dinged up, but he was last year at this time too, and he carried me in the fantasy playoffs last year. Kittle’s still only 29, which is square in the prime for a tight end, and remember his season took off when Brock Purdy got the job last year.
7.1 Jerry Jeudy — I thought about this one for a while as I considered Mike Evans (to pair with Godwin), Zay Flowers and Elijah Moore, but Jeudy, on whom I threw shade last week, made it to the seventh round which is where I said he’d have to fall for me to consider him. You have to be careful when you have a strong opinion not to forget that opinion is conditional on price. Saying “I’m out on Jeudy” when you’ve seen him go mid-Round 3 all summer and still get taken in Round 5 after being hurt, can’t be absolute if he drops to a point where you should be back in.
8.12 Quentin Johnston — With four picks to go, I had resolved to take D’Andre Swift, Treylon Burks or Rashod Bateman, but all three went ahead of me, so I pivoted to Johnston. I’ve passed on him all summer because it’s a crowded receiving corps, and he’s not the small, quick slot type that makes an easy transition to the league, but Keenan Allen is old, Mike Williams is always banged up and this is a high-octane passing game.
9.1 Evan Engram — As a Giants fan, I hate Engram the player. We spent a first-round pick on him, and he was plagued by injuries and catastrophic, game-ruining drops. But somehow on the Jaguars last year, he was a reliable target, especially in the second half. With Kittle banged up, I thought he was the best player on the board, and I could play him in the flex while I wait for Jeudy to get healthy/Johnston to carve out a role. The one negative I noticed after taking Engram is he and Kittle have the same bye week, something I rarely look at, but it’s not ideal.
10.12 Dak Prescott — Amazingly Deshaun Watson was still available midway into the 10th round, and I thought I might have to take him. Otherwise Danny Dimes was on the board too, and I’d have been happy to settle for him. But Bob Cramutola swiped Dimes at 10.8, and Chad Schroeder snagged Watson at 10.9. Normally I would have waited on QB, but I held my nose and took Prescott to pair him with Lamb.
Now I had not only drafted the scourge that is Evan Engram, missed out on Waller and Dimes, but also hit rock bottom by stacking Cowboys.
11.1 Rashaad Penny — I had only two backs through 10 rounds, and Penny is one. I like his upside in Philly in the exceedingly unlikely event he stays healthy. Perhaps this pick was pound foolish
12.12 Damien Harris — I’m not sold on James Cook carrying a big early-down load — Harris might actually lead the Bills in carries. He’s likely TD dependent, and the Bills have a QB that vultures a lot of goal-line work, but I needed someone I could start in a pinch.
13.1 Justin Tucker — It was now or never, and while I don’t mind playing matchups with defenses, I hate doing it with kickers.
14.12 Alec Pierce — He was decent last year as a rookie, he’s a second-round pick in his second year, and I could see him supplanting Michael Pittman as the team’s No. 1 as the year goes on with his new quarterback.
15.1 Clyde Edwards-Helaire — I take him in every draft, it seems. He’s been a bust, but Jerick McKinnon is in his 30s, and Isiah Pacheco is just a guy.
16.12 Michael Gallup — Might as well lean into the Cowboys stack at this point. Gallup is now two years removed from his injuries, claims to feel great in camp.
17.1 Brock Purdy — A sneaky stack with George Kittle, and the quarterback who throws to a first-round pass-catching running back, a third-round receiver, a fourth-round receiver and Kittle. They have to get their points from someone, and unless you believe in Sam Darnold, it’s Purdy.
18.12 Jaguars Defense — They draw the Colts Week 1.
19.1 Giants Defense — They draw the Cardinals Week 2. (I almost took Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson for the stack, but with Kittle and Engram, I didn’t forsee using him much.)
20.12 Jalen Tolbert — Last year’s third-round pick is in his second year and had a good camp. He also adds to my Cowboys stack.
Roster By Position
QB Dak Prescott
RB Saquon Barkley/Kenneth Walker
WR CeeDee Lamb/Devonta Smith/Chris Godwin
TE George Kittle
FLEX Jerry Jeudy
K Justin Tucker
D Jaguars
Bench Evan Engram/Quentin Johnston/Rashaad Penny/Damien Harris/Alec Pierce/Clyde Edwards-Helaire/Michael Gallup/Brock Purdy/Giants Defense/Jalen Tolbert
Great start!