Last night I had my first run at an FFWC DraftnGo BestBall event. To get you up to speed on the format, here’s a look at the rules:
- Review Scout Starter Rules before your draft.
- 90-second timer.
- 24 Rounds of Drafting
- No Lineups, No Waivers, Just Draft!
- Weekly Lineups are Optimized so the best players will start at each position.
- Please be courteous to other drafters and use the Auto-One-Pick feature when possible. This will select your next pick based off the players in your player queue.
- PPR – 10-man starting lineup 1QB, 2RB, 3WR, 1TE, 1PK, 1DST and 1 FLEX (RB-WR-TE)
I’ve played in this type of format plenty of times in the past, but it was the first time with a short roster. My plan going into the draft was to fill these roster buckets at each position:
- QB (3)
- RB (6)
- WR (8)
- TE (3)
- K (2)
- DEF (2)
If given a choice, I’d rather be strong at defense over the kicker position. Kickers can get hurt while a defense will always produce some stats.
Preferably, I’d like to own one top TE to help set a foundation while adding a second strong option.
I want to roster three good RBs to fill the top two RB slots plus have a core of four strong WRs to cover the base of my WR spot on my roster. By having an extra TE, depth at RB, and some high game potential WRs, I should have enough talent to fill my flex spot in most weeks plus cover injuries and bye weeks at RB and WR.
Now, let’s take a look to see how I did:
From pick six, I selected Saquon Barkley. Due to the format, I wanted to start with a three-down back with upside in the passing game and TDs. Barkley lacks a proven NFL resume, but I’m betting on his talent.
Keenan Allen was the choice in the second round. He slid later than expected while fitting my desire to add an elite WR with high upside in catches.
In the middle of the third round, I felt as though I was in no man’s land at RB and WR. The top three WRs drafted after my pick were Doug Baldwin, Jarvis Landry, and Golden Tate. I wanted no part of Baldwin with his recent injury news. I love the upside of Jarvis Landry, but I’m still not convinced he’ll have the same opportunity in Cleveland as he did in Miami especially if Josh Gordon plays. Tate may be the safest option based on his recent resume and opportunity in Detroit.
At RB, Jordan Howard, Derrick Henry, and LeSean McCoy were the top three choices. I like Howard as a player better than Henry, but his opportunity in the passing game lacks upside with Tarik Cohen on the roster in Chicago. I’m avoiding McCoy in August until I have a better feel for his off the field issue. Therefore, Henry was the best option for me at RB2. My draft plan was to own two RBs and two WRs over the first four rounds. I also knew that my RB options would be weaker in the fourth round.
I drafted Cooper Kupp as my WR2 in the fourth round. His draft value is rising while being the 22nd WR off the table.
In the fifth round, I had multiple directions I could have gone, and I may have taken the wrong path. If I wanted a top TE, I hade the opportunity when Zach Ertz slid to me. I didn’t view a WR of interest, which pushed me back to the RB position. In the end, I shot for the upside with Rashaad Penny. Looking back, I wish I had taken Ertz. By doing so, I would have opened up a wider range to select my second and third TEs.
Over the next two rounds, I added more depth at WR with Jamison Crowder and Randell Cobb. I like the opportunity of Crowder in 2018 while seeing him as a value in the early draft season. Cobb should be active in the Packers’ passing game even with lost luster in his game.
As soon as I drafted Marlon Mack in the 8th round, I get the update that he suffered a hamstring injury in the Colts’ first preseason game. My other choice in this round was Cam Newton who failed to make it to me in the ninth round.
Over the next seven rounds, I focused on added QB and TE depth leading to these picks:
Carson Wentz, Matt Ryan, and Eli Manning
Jack Doyle, Cameron Brate, Eric Ebron, and Dallas Goedert
My lack of feel for draft flow led to me giving up any chance at an upside WR in this range while pushing me even further back at the RB position. If I had one stud TE, I would have created a wider window to roster the correct backup TEs. Ideally, I should have taken six combined QBs and TEs over eight rounds helping me roster a better RB5 and WR5.
In the 16th and 17th round, I selected a pair of upside WRs (Courtland Sutton and Christian Kirk). Both options have upside, but they may produce many short games until they develop.
My desperation out at RB came with Elijah McGuire and Tavon Austin. McGuire may miss a month of the season, which is the reason for his discounted value. I’m hoping Austin works his way into some carries and reasonable targets.
I finished off my roster with two kickers (Dan Bailey and Zane Gonzalez), two defenses (Green Bay and San Francisco), and Curtis Samuels. I waited at kicker and defense due to my struggles to build my QB and TE base. I wanted to roster two kickers who should keep the job all year if healthy.
As for Samuels, I liked him last year, so I figured I’d take a flier on him.
How did my plan work out? I don’t believe I did a good enough job with the back end of my roster at RB or WR. If I had a chance to go back, I would add a TE earlier while picking up a better RB and WR from round 9 to round 12.
If this draft were a main event in the FFWC, I would feel comfortable with my first eight picks. I would have pushed the QB further back, which would allow me to pick a better RB or WR in round nine plus add another option at either position in one of the rounds when I selected my three straight TEs.
Here’s a look at the whole draft board:
Team 1
This owner decided to be RB strong early in the draft, but he made a mistake gauging the value of Chris Thompson in round 9. Thompson doesn’t look healthy, and he’s going to miss games to start the 2018 season. When you add in four missed game by Mark Ingram at RB, this Team won’t have much overflow at RB to help the flex position. On the positive side, Ingram will help cover the bye weeks.
His plan matched my pre-draft plan at wide receiver as far as number of options (8). I don’t view enough elite options to expect a winning edge at WR. A breakout season by Martavis Bryant may be the missing ingredient needed to be competitive for the league title.
He has a clear edge at TE1 with Rob Gronkowski and has decent backup depth. The key to his success at this position will be a bounce-back year by Tyler Eifert.
Team 1 will give back some Fantasy points at kicker. He rostered only one option (Daniel Carlson) who may not even win the starting job.
Team 2
Over the first seven picks, this owner set a foundation at both RB and WR. I like the breakout ability of two of his WR while not holding a Chris Hogan torch. His backup WR core has a chance to add some playable games while lacking an eight option to help extend into the flex bucket.
He caught a couple of bad breaks in the first preseason game when both Greg Kittle and Matt Breida went down with injuries.
I don’t like his overall TE core after the Kittle injury unless O.J. Howard breaks out. His choices for depth do have upside with some scoring ability in part-time roles.
This team is doesn’t have a third viable option at QB, which will hurt over the long haul in this format.
He decided to roster three defenses, which may offer minimal upside in scoring compared to a skill player with more playing time.
Team 3
After the first five rounds, this owner went with a traditional approach – stud RB, WR1, WR2, TE, and RB2. Royce Freeman may define his success at RB in 2018.
I like his decision making to finish this roster depth at RB (Tevin Coleman, Ty Montgomery, and De’Angelo Henderson) while not having a strong feeling for his sixth RB option (Ameer Abdullah).
I sense some weakness in his WR depth with minimal overflow at TE to the flex position.
This team tripled up at kicker as the expense of his third QB. Most kickers will average between eight and ten Fantasy points per game. The right QB could easily score over 300 Fantasy points. By owning a third kicker, a Fantasy may only improve his scoring at the position by 30 percent or 30 to 40 Fantasy points. Using the same ratio, a third QB may help a Fantasy Team gain close to 100 Fantasy points with a full season of games.
Team 4
This team tried to fill the two running back slots with one elite RB and two upside RBs with upside in playing time. He also added a possible goal-line back (LeGarrette Blount) plus a breakout option in Nick Chubb.
From round 2 to round 15, this owner jammed home eight WRs while doubling with two top QBs. His plan left him chasing out at TEs over the last nine rounds of the draft.
Overall, his structure has a chance to work in nine of his ten starting roster slots.
Team 5
After looking at six teams (including mine at pick six), Team 5 probably had the best plan to cover his RBs, WRs, and flex options.
This team has a stud front end RB plus third combinations to fill the RB2 bucket with some overall flow into the flex position. Jay Ajayi tends to be undervalued, and Sony Michel could be a steal if he misses minimal time. By sewing up two-thirds of the Packers’ backfield, he should be only winning path in the green sticker area.
This owner has three strong options at WR as long as Josh Gordon plays while adding four very good options for depth.
His style led to a step down in depth at both QB and TE. He chooses upside for both positions, but there is some downside risk as well. I like the idea of owning both Tyrod Taylor and Baker Mayfield, and I mention as much in my sleeper article at ScoutFantasySports.com.
Team 7
Team 7 must have been disappointed that a top-six RB didn’t slide to him at pick seven with no owner investing in a stud front end WR. He decided to push up Leonard Fournette, which may be a great move. He caught a break when Jordan Howard fell to him in the third, but overall his backup RBs don’t have that sexy upside feel.
He landed a backend WR1 plus an upside WR2, but it appears he has risk at the back end of his roster at WR unless Brandon Marshall and Dez Bryant regain their previous success. The first step for Dez is finding a job.
This TE position looks to be a strength at the front end with Evan Engram and Greg Olsen, but his third option (Antonio Gates) still hasn’t resigned with the Chargers.
Team 7 decided to ride two QBs (Drew Brees and Philip Rivers) while trying to gain some points back with a third defense.
Team 8
The first against the grain team in this draft was Team 8. He landed three top WRs over third first three round plus two elite TEs. He chooses to avoid adding any other TE depth with six other options at WR. His backend core at WR has some big game ability with a couple of options possibly gaining more playing time.
The RB chase led to two options in Cleveland (Duke Johnson and Carlos Hyde) and two shots in Washington (Rob Kelley and Samaje Perine) plus four other darts.
He went bare at defense with the Jaguars while rostering only two options at QB (Russell Wilson and Mitchell Trubisky).
Team 9
This owner must have been blown away when Antonio Brown slipped to pick nine. He followed up his edge with a very good WR2 in Mike Thomas. His structure in WR depth should more than fill his WR2 and flex roster spots if Eric Decker does work his way into a solid role with the Patriots.
His second area in roster development came at RB. He went four straight backs from round three to round six, but he lost Derrius Guice already for the season. His RB5 (Peyton Barber) and RB6 (C.J. Prosise) have sneaky upside.
The TE position has three shots with two ranking at the back end of the TE1 pool.
His team should have a strength in QB points with three players drafted – Kirk Cousins, Derek Carr, and Ryan Tannehill).
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Team 10
Goal one of Team 10 was filling the RB slots in his starting lineup. He understood the value of pass-catching backs by adding Melvin Gordon and Christian McCaffrey with his first two picks plus a couple of pass catchers for depth (James White and Bilal Powell). Alex Collins should be well worth an RB3 option.
He attacked the WR position with six picks over the first nine rounds. I don’t see one elite option or a breakout player in the group, but the some of core will rank well within the top 40 WRs while needing to wait four weeks for Julian Edelman to add value. Overall, he chooses to ride nine WRs.
This owner drafted three QBs (Ben Roethlisberger, Alex Smith, and Jameis Winston). His success at TE will come from the health of Jordan Reed with minimal upside behind him.
Team 11
Team 11 was the only team in this draft to take the handcuff approach at RB. He started with Kareem Hunt and Dalvin Cook while adding Latavius Murray and Spencer Ware. I like the upside in the passing game for Tarik Cohen, but I’m not a fan of Kerryon Johnson. In the end, he should have two top ten options at RB by securing most of the Chiefs and the Vikings rushing attacks. Cohen will cover bye weeks and down games with some overflow to the flex position.
Jarvis Landry and Amari Cooper set the stage for him at WR. He drafted the top three options at WR in San Fran while doubling down in Dallas with Allen Hurns and Michael Gallop. Both of his other two options at WR have upside.
With the WR love for the 49ers, he added Jimmy Garoppolo plus two other options (Jared Goff and Joe Flacco).
His TE output won’t be an edge with only two players drafted (David Njoku and Mike Gesicki), but both options have upside.
Team 12
This team busted out with four strong WRs (Odell Beckham, Julio Jones, Golden Tate, and Larry Fitzgerald) plus two upside WRs in Kenny Golladay and James Washington. His only other shot at WR came in the 24th round with Travis Benjamin.
His WR quest led to the weakest core of RBs in the draft. Rex Burkhead, Dion Lewis, Theo Riddick, and Corey Clement have value in the passing game, which may lead to better than expected production at RB. I don’t view any of these options with three-down upside, which will be a problem when trying to fill the RB1 bucket. He added three shots at RB for his bench.
He gained back some points by rostering three solid QBs – Matthew Stafford, Marcus Mariota, and Andy Dalton with two steady option at TE (Kyle Rudolph and Delanie Walker).
In the end, I like Team 7 and Team 11 the best. I’m going to pick Team 7 as the winner here, but he may fall just short due to lacking a third QB.
