This is a mock draft for the upcoming fantasy football draft with analysis and potential sleeper picks.
1. Kevin
The pick: Jamaal Charles
“I don’t want the first pick, I’d prefer the last” – Kevin directly prior to sticking his hand into the helmet and pulling out his own name for the first pick in this year’s fantasy draft.
Jamaal Charles helped oust Kevin’s first seeded team in the quarterfinals of last year’s fantasy playoffs and now Kevin seems poised to poach the electric Charles to be the workhorse for this year’s team. Charles has a unique blend of speed, power, and catching ability and last year rushed for 1,467 yards and 5 touchdowns, with Thomas Jones taking more than a few goal line TDs away from Charles last year. Nothing indicates that Charles will be slowing down this year, and you have to think that Jones will see fewer carries, resulting in more TDs for Charles. The only negatives going into this year for Charles is that the Chiefs lost Offensive Coordinator Charlie Weis to the Florida Gators, so JC has not had a chance to work with new Chiefs OC Bill Muir, so the longer this lockout continues, the longer Kevin has to think about taking another player.
Sleeper Pick: Arian Foster. Kevin’s monster pick up from last year.
2. Feifer
The pick: Arian Foster
Last year was a breakout year for Arian Foster, who had 2,570 yards from the line of scrimmage and 18 total TDs. Fantasy owners are probably wondering if last season was a fluke, but with a potent Passing attack led by Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson, the Texans RB may be looking at another huge season due to the threat of the long ball. It’s going to be tough to post video game numbers again, but I still think Foster is worth the risk as the #2 pick.
Sleeper Pick: Adrian Peterson. Feifer says he won’t, I say he will.
3. Jimmy
The pick: Peyton Manning
There are few things that are certain in fantasy football. One of these things is that Peyton Manning will be on Jimmy’s team. Last year Peyton led Jimmy to his first Championship and if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Peyton is healthy and he’s getting back a healthy Dallas Clark and Austin Collie, to compliment Reggie Wayne, Pierre Garcon, and Jacob Tamme. Look for Manning to return to his fantasy glory days and put up some excellent numbers.
Sleeper Pick: Chris Johnson or AP. Tough to pass on either of them at 3.
4. Powers
The pick: Adrian Peterson
Adrian Peterson and Chris Johnson cannot fall much farther in a fantasy draft than here, so look for Powers to snag one of them up. I think he chooses AP, who we know will put up some monster numbers, but this is contingent on the Vikings moves once the lockout ends. The Vikings are looking to Christian Ponder to help form a connection with Sydney Rice, Percy Harvin, and 2nd round draft pick TE Kyle Rudolph. If the chemistry is there, teams will not be able to stack the box and Peterson should find some running lanes that he will help him break off some long runs.
Sleeper pick: Michael Vick. That 70 point comeback is fresh in Powers’ memory.
5. Nick
The pick: Chris Johnson
Chris Johnson is an immense talent, but the question of what the hell he’s doing during the lockout may be cause for concern (see Feifer’s Twitter account). Assuming that Johnson is training and gets a contract hashed out quickly after the lockout ends, you have to assume that he will be able to utilize his 4.31 speed to post some marvelous fantasy numbers, regardless of who is playing QB. Look for him to have a nice season, maybe not to the same level as 2009 season, but he should definitely be worth the #5 pick in the draft.
Sleeper Pick: Ray Rice. Nice productive season last year for Nick.
6. Terrono
The pick: Philip Rivers
Matt has always taken a unique approach to the draft and isn’t necessarily going to take a RB in the first round, or even the 2nd round for that matter. There is no denying that Terrono loves Rivers and although Rodgers is rated ahead of Rivers on most Fantasy rankings, but having a full season of Vincent Jackson and Antonio Gates could mean some unreal numbers for a guy who posted 4710 yards and 30 TDs with those two missing a bunch of games.
Sleeper Pick: Andre Johnson. Matt’s other man crush.
7. Chris
The pick: LeSean McCoy
This pick is a little easier to sort through since I know exactly what I’m thinking with the crop of players left. It’d be between McCoy and Ray Rice, but would ultimately go with McCoy for several reasons. First, the Eagles have so many weapons that they can just explode for points, whereas the Raven offense will tend to struggle from time to time. Second, the Eagles get to play lackluster Redskins and Cowboy defenses twice a year while the Ravens play the Steelers defense twice and an above average Browns defense twice. Have to give the edge to Shady.
Sleeper Pick: Aaron Rodgers. Quarterbacks who post ridiculous numbers are never a bad thing.
8. Timmy
The pick: Ray Rice
It’s hard to predict the drafting strategy for someone who we’ve never played Fantasy Football with, but I’m thinking that if he looks to build the RB position first and Ray Rice is the best left on the board. Ray Rice had 1,776 (USA USA) All purpose yards last season and that’s quite a bit of fantasy points with the 63 receptions he had as well. Look for Ravens offense to improve and Rice to find pay dirt more than 6 times this season.
Sleeper Pick: Michael Vick. If Powers doesn’t take him, Timmy just might.
9. Buckley
The Pick: Darren McFadden
Jerry Jones was a Razorback. McFadden was a Razorback. John loves the SEC. All of these factors are enough for Johnny Boy to pick McFadden. “Run DMC” enjoyed the best season of his NFL career last year and is showing teams why Al “what the hell is that on your face?” Davis took him with the 3rdoverall pick in the draft. The Raiders’ offense was finally starting to evolve into a legitimate offense at the end of last year and I think that McFadden might eclipse last year’s totals to show that he wasn’t just a fluke.
Sleeper Pick: Tom Brady. It wouldn’t be farfetched to see John reach for Brady here.
10. Joey
The Pick: Aaron Rodgers
If Aaron Rodgers is still sitting here at #10, I think that Joey picks him up with a great Value pick. Joey can grab the top rated Quarterback here and after the year Rodgers had last year, you have to think he’ll have another outstanding season. It’s a safe pick especially since we’re getting into the 2nd tier running backs and He’ll only have to wait 4 more picks to pick up a RB, so getting Rodgers before the turn is going to be a smart move.
Sleeper Pick: Maurice Jones-Drew. One of the last 1st tier Running backs.
11. Hurst
The Pick: Maurice Jones-Drew
MJD has been a solid running back for the past 5 years and last year he had 1,641 all purpose yards on a very mediocre Jaguars Offense. It’s reasonable to think that Jones-Drew will cross the goal line more than the 7 times he scored last year and that the Jaguars Offense will be improved if Blaine Gabbert shows that he is going to be the QB that the Jaguars hoped he would be. MJD has been a mid range first round pick the past 3 years and this might turn out to be a steal at #11 if Gabbert can spread the field and create some lanes for Jones-Drew to run.
Sleeper Pick: Rashard Mendenhall. He hates America, but he scores TDs.
12. Lukas
The pick: Frank Gore and Michael Vick (Bonus pick on the turn)
At the turn, you need to really pick two players who are going to be playmakers and you’re going to need a RB because you’ll fall well into the 3rd tier RBs if you wait another 22 picks. Frank Gore and Rashard Mendenhall are probably the best backs left in the draft at this point and I think incoming coach Jim Harbaugh turns the 49ers into the team that they were supposed to be last year, making Gore fantasy owners the main beneficiaries of this success. While Lukas might reach for a WR of Andre Johnson caliber, I think he rolls the dice and selects Michael Vick for his ability to turn in some mind boggling performances.
Sleeper Pick: Calvin Johnson. If he decides to go WR and doesn’t go with Andre, if will be Calvin.
No comments:
Post a Comment