I felt like signing up for another draft this weekend, and when it didn’t fill, I just pushed it to Monday. I selected the 11th pick as my first choice and got it. Here are the results:
And here’s the livestream.
1.11 Ashton Jeanty — I was hoping for Brian Thomas, but he went one pick before me at 1.10, and I considered Drake London, but thought there was a better chance he’d be back in Round 2. Jeanty’s volume is not in doubt, but the Raiders aren’t good, and there’s always the Trent Richardson possibility, though even he didn’t kill you in the first round during his rookie year.
2.2 Drake London — Turns out I was right to wait on London. If Michael Penix turns out to be good, London will be a top-five WR. If “12-inch” lives up to his Real Man Sports nickname, London could be WR1.
3.2 Bucky Irving — I was really hoping to get Brock Bowers here, but he went at 2.12, and I snapped up Irving instead. Irving is a good running back who catches passes in a good offense that’s missing key receivers to start the year. Probably close to his max pick too.
4.11 Courtland Sutton — If Sutton was there in Round 4, I told myself I’d take RJ Harvey in Round 5, two more receivers in 6 and 7, then Bo Nix and Evan Engram in 8 and 9, for the total Denver stack. Sutton was there, so I took him narrowly over Kenny Walker who all the fantasy football “sharps” seem to love. I like Walker the player too, except that he’s always hurt.
5.2 RJ Harvey — I couldn’t believe Davante Adams was still on the board in the fifth and I needed WR more than RB, but I was committed to the stack and I really like Harvey in the Sean Payton offense.
6.11 Jordan Addison — If you go early QB or TE and need a WR for Week 1, Addison is a tough call, but if you are planning to wait unil the 8-9 turn for non-WR/RB, you can weather the first three games just fine, and Addison, who should be a fourth-rounder, is an easy click.
7.2 Matthew Golden — I thought long and hard about Stefon Diggs, who I really like and expect to get a lot of volume, but I went Golden based on athleticism and maybe a little too much hype. I expressed regret in the livestream afterwards — Diggs is easy PPR points — but Golden has a big ceiling if he’s as good as advertised.
8.11 Tyler Warren — Team 8 jumped me on Bo Nix (he has no one to stack him with) and destroyed my whole plan. My Plan A at least. I bought another hyped rookie in Warren now that there was no point in getting Engram (without Nix.)
9.2 Jayden Reed — I love Reed as a player even though his targets disappeared for God knows what reason last year, but I also leaned into this to complement the Golden pick. Not only was I assembling another stack, but Golden and Reed are insurance of sorts for each other getting hurt or losing targets.
10.11 Cooper Kupp — I had actually considered him with the Reed pick and was shocked he fell this far. Maybe he’s done, but in Round 10 I’ll take the odds he’s not.
11.2 Austin Ekeler — This was a weird pick for me. I took him over Colston Loveland who went with the very next pick and a bunch of quality backup running backs. But Ekeler should be the guy on passing downs in a good offense, and you don’t need to be that young or physical to fill the Darren Sproles role.
12.11 Tyjae Spears — This was ahead of the news he’d miss the first four games on IR, though I knew he was likely to miss at least two. I missed out on Jayden Higgins by one pick (couldn’t believe he fell that far), and went for Spears narrowly over Jake Ferguson. I just want ceiling, and Ferguson seems like a solid pick in case Warren doesn’t pan out, but it would have been cowardly.
13.2 Jordan Love — This was a round early for Love, but after getting swiped on Nix, I didn’t want to take the chance of losing the Packers stack. Greg Ambrosius joked in our first livestream I should take Love in the second round, and I’m taking his joke seriously.
14.11 Keaton Mitchell — He’s healthy now, and makes plays whether that’s the case. If Derrick Henry got hurt, there’s serious upside on that team. Even if Henry doesn’t get hurt, Mitchell could have value as the third-down back.
15.2 Michael Penix — Of course I got 13-inch! A second stack with London is good in case the Packers hand the ball to Josh Jacobs another 350 times.
16.11 Chargers Kicker — This was probably too early. Would have been better off grabbing Eric Ayomanor, who I got in my first two drafts, as I needed one more WR. But I wanted a good kicker for a good team in good weather.
17.2 Woody Marks — He’s in the mix in Houston with Joe Mixon out, and by Week 2 could easily be considered the best back of the three. No brainer in this round even though I had a lot of backs.
18.11 Chig Okonkwo — I played chicken at second TE, but I like Okonkwo’s chances to be the No. 2 option in what might be a real passing game in Tennessee.
19.2 Patriots Defense — I usually take the Niners who face the Seahawks, but I also like the Pats who face the Raiders. A team’s defense starts with its head coach, and I like Mike Vrabel to set the culture.
20.11 Trevor Etienne — I thought about Cade Otton, but always go for the home run late and running back value can change on a dime.
Roster By Position
QB Jordan Love
RB Ashton Jeanty/Bucky Irving
WR Drake London/Courtland Sutton/Jordan Addison
TE Tyler Warren
FLEX RJ Harvey
K Chargers
D Patriots
B Matthew Golden/Jayden Reed/Cooper Kupp/Austin Ekeler/Tyjae Spears/Keaton Mitchell/Michael Penix/Woddy Marks/Chig Okonkwo/Trevor Etienne