One of the things I love about drafting on either end is the freedom. You never have to wonder if you are taking a guy a round too early because you're going to have to wait two rounds before you pick again. That frees you to go get your guys, and in my estimation it lends itself to taking more big swings. What was funny about this draft was the one of the safest players in Fantasy Football, Josh Allen, fell to me at 36. So it is a team of big swings anchored by the undeniable QB1 in Fantasy Football. That's probably why I love this team even more than the one I drafted from the six spot. Let's see how it came together.
This is our 12-part, pick-by-pick series where me, Jamey Eisenberg, Dan Schneier, Dave Richard, and Jacob Gibbs all took part in a six-person mock draft. We each built two of the 12 teams in this 14-round draft to show you a different strategy from each spot.
As a reference point, all touchdowns in this league are worth six points, and we award one point for every 10 yards rushing and receiving and one point for every 25 yards passing. We also award one point for every reception. We feature a starting lineup of QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, TE and FLEX (RB/WR/TE).
Here's how my team came together from the 11th pick:
1.12 Drake London, WR, Falcons 2.01 De'Von Achane, RB, Dolphins 3.12 Josh Allen, QB, Bills 4.01 Luther Burden, WR, Bears 5.12 Sam LaPorta, TE, Lions 6.01 Rome Odunze, WR, Bears 7.12 DK Metcalf, WR, Steelers 8.01 Jaylen Warren, RB, Steelers 9.12 RJ Harvey, RB, Broncos 10.01 Aaron Jones, RB, Vikings 11.12 Tre Tucker, WR, Raiders 12.01 Woody Marks, RB, Texans 13.12 Malik Washington, WR, Dolphins 14.01 Tank Dell, WR, Texans
The one-two turn is pretty favorable this year, depending on what you're looking for. I took London and Achane while Ashton Jeanty and Omarion Hampton were the next two picks. London is far less controversial here than Achane, but I'm not sure you can argue he has more upside. Achane averaged a league-best 5.7 yards per carry last year and an astounding 5.6 YPC for his career. The mobility of Malik Willis and a very solid offensive line should at least maintain that. The question is his role in the passing game. Willis historically has thrown to his backs at a very low rate, but that is a small sample size and the Dolphins have zero established wide receivers on their roster. There is some bust potential with Achane, but there is also 2,000 yard upside.
After Allen and Burden (more on them later) I took one of my favorite picks in LaPorta and a little bit of security in Odunze. LaPorta already has one TE1 season his resume and now gets to play in an offense ran by Drew Petzing, who has been responsible for all those Trey McBride targets the past three seasons. Normally I would say drfating two receivers from the same team in the first six rounds harms your upside, but the Bears pass offense should be so consolidated that I don't think it's an issue. If you are someone who likes to stack offenses, the Bears pass game is very stackable from here, I could have also taken Loveland where I took Allen and Caleb Williams in the later rounds.
Through six rounds I had the QB1, my favorite tight end this year, and three very good receivers. Running back, after Achane, was the big weakness. I tried to solve that with a mix of early season floor in Warren and upside and handcuff upside in Harvey and Marks. Whether you like those specific running backs or not isn't really the point, the point is that you want to cover yourself for the first few weeks with guys you expect to be contributors then add upside backups later. If anything, I could have done a better job of that but I loved the value on Tucker and Dell.
Favorite pick: Josh Allen
Some of you are rolling your eyes right now because Allen will be drafted in Round 1 of your league. Sorry, but ADP currently looks closer to the end of Round 3 than Round 1 on Allen, and any time you get a chance to pick him after pick 30 you should. Historically he has been a big part of both Fantasy playoff teams and Fantasy championships and he's been a top three Fantasy QB in each of the last four Fantasy seasons (not counting Week 18). If your league drafts QBs way too early then Brock Purdy and Jared Goff are my two favorite value QBs and you can plan on taking another running back where I took Allen and drafting a QB where I took Warren or Harvey.
Pick I might regret: De'Von Achane
Like I said, I think the upside is worth the risk with Achane. But I also recognize the pedigree of Jeanty and the allure of the Chargers offense this year. If things go wrong with Achane it will be because the Dolphins are the worst team in football and Willis refuses to check down to his running back. If that happens, I will need Caleb Williams to elevate both Odunze and Burden into the top 20 at receiver and Allen to have an all time season. If you're squeamish about this situation, just draft one of the Year 2 backs instead.
Player who could make or break my team: Luther Burden
Burden averaged 2.71 yards per route run last year. Amongst receivers with at least 50 targets last season only Puka Nacua and Jaxon Smith-Njigba were better. His 7.2 yards after catch per reception trailed only Rashee Rice. With DJ Moore and Olamide Zaccheaus gone Burden will be a full time player, and if he comes close to that efficiency he will be a top 12 wide receiver. If that happens, this team is an instant contender, even with the questions at RB2. But it was a very small sample size and Colston Loveland could be the best pass catcher on the team. If that happens I may be scrambling to make the playoffs.
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