Well folks, I hope I didn’t disappoint any of you that were tracking my blog. It was one of the craziest 10 days of my life last week and the first part of this week. Was in California on business all of last week, then headed to the Texas coast with some friends, then headed east to Florida and Philadelphia on business. That said, I didn’t have time to blog my picks… and probably irritated my leaguemates as I was on the clock for - at times - hours on end. Doh.
Anyways, let’s catch up with a round-by-round look at who I grabbed.
1.13 - Tom Brady
2.04 - Andre Johnson
3.08 - Ryan Grant
4.10 - Wes Welker
5.13 - Ray Lewis
6.04 - Osi Umenyiora
7.13 - Gibril Wilson
8.09 - Thomas Jones (traded away for Cedric Benson and rookie 1.14)
9.13 - Heath Miller
10.04 - Mike Peterson
11.13 - Madieu Williams
12.04 - D.J. Hackett
13.13 - Champ Bailey
14.04 - Donnie Edwards
15.13 - Antonio Cromartie
16.04 - Joey Galloway
And to catch you up…
17.13 - Chester Taylor (RB, MIN): At this point, I wanted to grab the “best available” and I wanted some RB depth. Everyone knows that Adrian Peterson is THE stud RB in dynasty formats, but Taylor is still going to get carries. And what happens if Peterson goes down? He has had some injuries in the past. In a PPR format, Taylor will have value even with a healthy Peterson.
18.04 - John Abraham (DE, ATL): This guy was once a part of the defensive end elite. I think, if he shakes the injury bug, that he has the talent to once again reach that level. I feel great with Umenyiora anchoring my DEs, and Abraham’s the perfect risk-reward at a position I’m already ahead of the curve on. To complete the trifecta at DE, I’ll be looking at a younger guy with upside at DE in later rounds.
19.13 - Caddy Williams (RB, TB): At this point, people were taking some chances on risk-reward players and I decided to do the same. Williams is an extremely talented back, but has a lot to work on in terms of getting healthy. If he can regain his form, he’s easily a solid #2 fantasy back, maybe better. At this point in the draft, it was worth the risk.
20.04 - Vonnie Holliday (DT, MIA): And at this point, I didn’t feel like taking much of a risk and needed to fill a starting position. DT is such a crapshoot, but I still wanted a guy that was at least consistent. Holliday will anchor the new-look Dolphin defense and will need to both plug the middle against the run and rush the QB. Not the sexiest pick ever, but filled a need.
21.13 - Adam Vinatieri (PK, IND): Perhaps a bit early to “go kicker”, but I really like having difference makers at as many positions as possible. Vinatieri is probably the consensus #1 dynasty kicker despite his age. He’ll be making FGs for the Colts for many, many years. Gotta love a dome-based kicker on a team that puts up big points.
22.04 - Mike Vrabel (LB, NE): Right when I thought my LB corps couldn’t get any older, Mr. Vrabel was there staring me in the face. I think he has a good year or two in him and could serve as a decent #3 or #4 or backup type LB for me. In a league this size with the scoring and starting requirements as they are, Vrabel could be valuable.
23.13 - Isaac Bruce (WR, SF): I think I got tremendous value here. Bruce comes west to a team that desperately needs veteran leadership on the offensive side of the ball. Mike Martz is now the OC in SF and will definitely use Bruce to the best of his ability. QB Alex Smith will be smart to look Bruce’s way. In a PPR league, Bruce could easily fill a #3 fantasy WR spot.
24.04 - Randy McMichael (TE, STL): McMichael was once a near-elite TE but his move to St. Louis rendered him all but rather useless. Still, he has value in a dynasty league where you can start multiple TEs. With QB Marc Bulger healthy and hopefully a healthier offensive line, McMichael could be a decent fill-in TE with some upside.
25.13 - Adrian Peterson (RB, CHI): No, not THAT Adrian Peterson. But still, I was surprised the backup to Cedric Benson lasted this long given Benson’s woes. Perhaps people were scared off by the Bears’ talking about drafting a RB. But even with a rookie RB in the mix, Peterson is going to have value… especially to the Benson owner, which just so happens to be yours truly. An absolute must-pick at this point.
26.04 - Jamar Williams (LB, CHI): Another point in the draft where you have to take chances, if you ask me. I grabbed Jamar Williams, who will be filling in for a probably-still-jaded Lance Briggs at the very productive WLB spot in Chicago. Should Briggs or Brian Urlacher go down with injury, both Williams and Michael Okwo would have awesome value. Williams will be DTS eligible, too.
27.13 - Mark Anderson (DE, CHI): Another pick, another Bear. And this one was a big surprise. Anderson is a sack-master and that means he has incredible value in this league. I think he has top-10 fantasy talent.
28.15 - DeShaun Foster (RB, SF): Felt real good with this pick. Frank Gore is going to get 75% or more of the carries in SF, but who knows if that workload gets him injured. At this point, I’m grabbing handcuffs that owners are failing to take. Foster looked to be slowing down in Carolina, but he could see a resurgence in his home state in Martz’s system.
28.16 - Andra Davis (LB, CLE): Oh how the mighty have fallen. Well, OK, Davis was never an elite LB, but was drafted as a solid #2 fantasy LB for a few years. In the 28th round, he’s a nice value as a backup LB.
29.13 - Doug Gabriel (WR, CIN): Another pick I really liked. With Chris Henry out of Cincy, someone’s going to need to step up as the #3 WR for the Bengals. And hey, if Ocho Cinco is sent packing, Gabriel could easily be fighting for the #2 spot for the Bengals. He’s had some alright stretches over the past few years, and could find a connection with QB Carson Palmer.
31.13 - Brodney Pool (S, CLE): Pool was touted as possibly the next big thing for the Brown defense. He’s had some decent stretches of games but nowhere close to what people thought. But hey, he’s a starter for a defense that gives up yards, so he’ll have opportunities to make plays and score fantasy points.
32.04 - Brandon Meriweather (CB, NE): Another risk-reward pick; a guy I can throw on DTS and cross my fingers that he develops into the defensive back (he could play safety, too) he was touted to be. With the trades of players and aging players that remain for New England, Meriweather will get playing time and could succeed soon.
33.13 - Mike Scifres (PN, SD): Alright, I guess it’s time to grab a punter. Never played in a league with a punter so didn’t really know when they’d start flying off the board. A few of the higher-ranked ones got drafted, and taking a look at their ‘07 production, there were only a few left that put up consistent points. I heard Scifres is probably one of the best punters in the league, so that’s who I went with. Ha!
34.04 - Clint Session (LB, IND): Another risk-reward pick; a guy I can throw on DTS. Session backs up one of the best LBs in the game, but could have value if there’s ever an injury situation.
35.13 - Najeh Davenport (RB, PIT): What are these people thinking? Always handcuff your stud backs, right? Well not only is Mr. Laundry Basket a good handcuff, but he’s a handcuff that will have value even if who he’s backing up is healthy. Davenport will get carries and I could see 6+ TDs from him this season, healthy Willie Parker or not.
36.04 - Boss Bailey (LB, DEN): At this point, I’m not exactly throwing darts, but pretty close. Bailey’s got a ton of talent and moves to the Mile High City to play a position traditionally not looked at as one that produces fantasy points, but he still could have value, especially if there are injuries or the Broncos decide to shake things up.
37.13 - Jason Elam (PK, ATL): Why not? At this point, value is king. Elam’s one of the best kickers in the game, and now moves to a dome environment, for a team that will struggle to score TDs. Seems like a no-brainer, and even with the best fantasy kicker already on my roster, Elam gives me a solid backup for the weeks the Colts face weather issues, or heck, trade bait!
38.08 - Marcus Pollard (TE, NE): I like this pick. Why? Well, Ben Watson has shown that he can’t fully shake the injury bug and Tom Brady spreads the ball around like nobody’s business. What if Watson goes down for an extended period of time? Pollard could be quite startable.
39.13 - Mike Furrey (WR, DET): Just a few years ago, Furrey was the “Wes Welker of his time”. Furrey’s still got skills, and in a PPR league, will still have value. Especially at the end of this marathon draft.
40.04 - Robert Bernard (DT, SEA): Another need-based pick, as I needed some depth at DT. Bernard has shown spells of unstoppability, especially in getting to the QB. I’ll only need him for a week, really, and if he gets hot, I could spot start him based on matchups.
*Deep breath* Phew, OK, so we’re caught up. Only a few more picks left in this draft. I’ll let you know what ultra-significant picks those are sometime next week. And then don’t wanna miss my rookie draft bloggage. That’ll be sweet!
