Fantasy Football: GoingFor2.com’s Writer’s League Draft Grades and Rosters

Don’t Get In My Way
1.	(1)	Todd Gurley  (LA – RB)
2.	(24)	Amari Cooper  (Oak – WR)
3.	(25)	Doug Martin  (TB – RB)
4.	(48)	Blake Bortles  (Jax – QB)
5.	(49)	Jeremy Maclin  (KC – WR)
6.	(72)	Sterling Shepard  (NYG – WR)
7.	(73)	Giovani Bernard  (Cin – RB)
8.	(96)	New York  (NYJ – DEF)
9.	(97)	Stefon Diggs  (Min – WR)
10.	(120)	Philip Rivers  (SD – QB)
11.	(121)	Antonio Gates  (SD – TE)
12.	(144)	Mike Wallace  (Bal – WR)
13.	(145)	Kyle Rudolph  (Min – TE)
14.	(168)	Cairo Santos  (KC – K)
15.	(169)	Darren McFadden  (Dal – RB)

 

Brandon started off the draft with a bang by going against the consensus and taking Todd Gurley with the No. 1 overall pick. It was pretty ballsy, and I don’t think it worked out in his favor as his WR position suffered. His No.3 WR, Sterling Shepard, is a guy with high upside but a rookie WR in and an offense that has Odell Backham Jr. isn’t exactly a sure thing. Also, taking the Jets defense in Round 8 hurt his bench depth with guys like Mike Wallace and Darren McFadden potentially covering bye weeks. Grade: D

JoshGordon a Freeman
1.	(2)	Antonio Brown  (Pit – WR)
2.	(23)	Aaron Rodgers  (GB – QB)
3.	(26)	Devonta Freeman  (Atl – RB)
4.	(47)	Jeremy Langford  (Chi – RB)
5.	(50)	Matt Jones  (Was – RB)
6.	(71)	Denver  (Den – DEF)
7.	(74)	Tyler Eifert  (Cin – TE)
8.	(95)	Steve Smith Sr.  (Bal – WR)
9.	(98)	Mohamed Sanu  (Atl – WR)
10.	(119)	T.J. Yeldon  (Jax – RB)
11.	(122)	Devontae Booker  (Den – RB)
12.	(143)	Josh Gordon  (Cle – WR)
13.	(146)	Michael Thomas  (NO – WR)
14.	(167)	Jordan Howard  (Chi – RB)
15.	(170)	Brandon McManus  (Den – K)

 

Gerson did pretty well for himself in this draft by first getting Antonio Brown with the No.2 pick. He did go a bit against the grain with a QB in the second, but it’s his pick of the Denver defense in the sixth round baffles me. Outside of Brown, I do not like the rest of his WRs with Steve Smith Sr. coming off a double ruptured Achilles injury and Mohamed Sanu as a high upside guy, but playing in a new offense with a new team — ricky. His bench is full of high risk/high reward guys, and he’ll need at least two of them to pan out for him to have a shot at winning the whole thing. Grade: C+

Run DeForest Run!
1.	(3)	DeAndre Hopkins  (Hou – WR)
2.	(22)	Keenan Allen  (SD – WR)
3.	(27)	Mike Evans  (TB – WR)
4.	(46)	Thomas Rawls  (Sea – RB)
5.	(51)	Dion Lewis  (NE – RB)
6.	(70)	Kevin White  (Chi – WR)
7.	(75)	Duke Johnson Jr.  (Cle – RB)
8.	(94)	Theo Riddick  (Det – RB)
9.	(99)	Tom Brady  (NE – QB)
10.	(118)	Tevin Coleman  (Atl – RB)
11.	(123)	Kamar Aiken  (Bal – WR)
12.	(142)	Matt Ryan  (Atl – QB)
13.	(147)	Eric Ebron  (Det – TE)
14.	(166)	Paul Perkins  (NYG – RB)
15.	(171)	Pittsburgh  (Pit – DEF)

 

I’ve never used the zero RB strategy before, but I figured this would be a good year to try it. I went heavy on WR taking three of the top 15 WRs on the board. My RBs obviously suffered because of this, so I took as many high upside guys as I could and hope one of them becomes this year’s Devonta Freeman. My tight end is another spot of weakness as I’ll be left streaming TEs if Eric Ebron can’t finally put it together this year with Calvin Johnson gone. Tom Brady in the 9th round will make or break my team, and I need to go 3-1 in those first four games or I will be behind the eight ball all season. Grade: C+

BradB’s Boss Team
1.	(4)	Odell Beckham Jr.  (NYG – WR)
2.	(21)	Alshon Jeffery  (Chi – WR)
3.	(28)	Brandin Cooks  (NO – WR)
4.	(45)	C.J. Anderson  (Den – RB)
5.	(52)	Jeremy Hill  (Cin – RB)
6.	(69)	Carson Palmer  (Ari – QB)
7.	(76)	Delanie Walker  (Ten – TE)
8.	(93)	Arizona  (Ari – DEF)
9.	(100)	Stephen Gostkowski  (NE – K)
10.	(117)	Eli Manning  (NYG – QB)
11.	(124)	Karlos Williams  (Buf – RB)
12.	(141)	Jimmy Graham  (Sea – TE)
13.	(148)	Kendall Wright  (Ten – WR)
14.	(165)	Jeff Janis  (GB – WR)
15.	(172)	Los Angeles  (LA – DEF)

 

It looks like Brad had the same strategy I did — go WR early — but he didn’t follow through with the second part of that strategy, draft a ton of RBs. He ended up with only four! Drafting Arizona’s DEF and K Stephen Gostkowski in back to back rounds really hurt his bench depth and he will likely end up looking for some RBs on waivers after the first week of the season. Grade: D-

 

Butters Boys
1.	(5)	David Johnson  (Ari – RB)
2.	(20)	Mark Ingram  (NO – RB)
3.	(29)	Julian Edelman  (NE – WR)
4.	(44)	Jarvis Landry  (Mia – WR)
5.	(53)	Tyler Lockett  (Sea – WR)
6.	(68)	Jonathan Stewart  (Car – RB)
7.	(77)	DeAngelo Williams  (Pit – RB)
8.	(92)	Julius Thomas  (Jax – TE)
9.	(101)	Tavon Austin  (LA – WR)
10.	(116)	Kirk Cousins  (Was – QB)
11.	(125)	Buffalo  (Buf – DEF)
12.	(140)	Jameis Winston  (TB – QB)
13.	(149)	Dwayne Allen  (Ind – TE)
14.	(164)	Josh Brown  (NYG – K)
15.	(173)	Rishard Matthews  (Ten – WR)

 

Butters went traditional with his draft strategy here going RB RB in the first two rounds, and then followed it up with three straight WRs. In fact, his first seven picks were either RBs or WRs. He has two upside QBs that I’m really high on in Jameis Winston and Kirk Cousins and all in all had a pretty good draft. Grade: B+

 

Michael’s Team
1.	(6)	Julio Jones  (Atl – WR)
2.	(19)	Eddie Lacy  (GB – RB)
3.	(30)	Russell Wilson  (Sea – QB)
4.	(43)	Greg Olsen  (Car – TE)
5.	(54)	DeMarco Murray  (Ten – RB)
6.	(67)	Emmanuel Sanders  (Den – WR)
7.	(78)	DeSean Jackson  (Was – WR)
8.	(91)	Carolina  (Car – DEF)
9.	(102)	Willie Snead  (NO – WR)
10.	(115)	Justin Tucker  (Bal – K)
11.	(126)	Markus Wheaton  (Pit – WR)
12.	(139)	Rashad Jennings  (NYG – RB)
13.	(150)	Jermaine Kearse  (Sea – WR)
14.	(163)	Robert Griffin III  (Cle – QB)
15.	(174)	C.J. Spiller  (NO – RB)

 

Michael’s RBs are the All-Bounce-Back team with Eddie Lacy/DeMarco Murray as his starters and Rashad Jennings/ C.J. Spiller on his bench. That’s a lot of risk at a very important position. I don’t feel like Michael has a particular position of strength except maybe his WRS. It should be noted that Yahoo! gave Michael the best grade for his draft, so my draft grade may come as a surprise. Grade: D

 

I Wanna Ertz You Up!
1.	(7)	Rob Gronkowski  (NE – TE)
2.	(18)	Jamaal Charles  (KC – RB)
3.	(31)	Kelvin Benjamin  (Car – WR)
4.	(42)	Ben Roethlisberger  (Pit – QB)
5.	(55)	Jordan Matthews  (Phi – WR)
6.	(66)	Melvin Gordon  (SD – RB)
7.	(79)	Allen Hurns  (Jax – WR)
8.	(90)	Zach Ertz  (Phi – TE)
9.	(103)	Kansas City  (KC – DEF)
10.	(114)	Laquon Treadwell  (Min – WR)
11.	(127)	LeGarrette Blount  (NE – RB)
12.	(138)	Josh Doctson  (Was – WR)
13.	(151)	Blair Walsh  (Min – K)
14.	(162)	Kenneth Dixon  (Bal – RB)
15.	(175)	Oakland  (Oak – DEF)

 

Matthew took two guys returning from major injuries with two of his first three picks with Jamaal Charles in the second and Kelvin Benjamin in the third. With that said, I like both of those picks. Where I think Matthew’s team suffers is in bench depth. If this league were a Dynasty league, I would love his picks of rookies WR Laquon Treadwell, WR Josh Doctson, and RB Kenneth Dixon, but since it’s a redraft league, putting that much faith in that many rookies is risky. His RB2 is a bit risky too with Melvin Gordon and he didn’t really do a whole lot to back him up in case he is what he was last year — a bad fantasy RB. Grade: C-

 

Brad R’s Team
1.	(8)	Dez Bryant  (Dal – WR)
2.	(17)	Jordy Nelson  (GB – WR)
3.	(32)	Demaryius Thomas  (Den – WR)
4.	(41)	Carlos Hyde  (SF – RB)
5.	(56)	Ryan Mathews  (Phi – RB)
6.	(65)	Marvin Jones  (Det – WR)
7.	(80)	Coby Fleener  (NO – TE)
8.	(89)	Arian Foster  (Mia – RB)
9.	(104)	Derek Carr  (Oak – QB)
10.	(113)	Frank Gore  (Ind – RB)
11.	(128)	Justin Forsett  (Bal – RB)
12.	(137)	Travis Benjamin  (SD – WR)
13.	(152)	Houston  (Hou – DEF)
14.	(161)	Steven Hauschka  (Sea – K)
15.	(176)	Javorius Allen  (Bal – RB)

 

Brad makes yet another team owner to go with three straight WRs to start the draft, and he drafted three top guys with questions marks going into the season. Dez Bryant is coming off an injury-riddled season but more importantly is reliant on an oft-injured QB in Tony Romo. Jordy Nelson didn’t play a single snap last year after a season-ending injury in the preseason. Brad will need him to return to form quickly in 2016. The third WR Brad takes, Demaryius Thomas, has big question marks at QB. Is it Mark Sanchez or Trevor Siemian? Either way, you can’t be thrilled with the QB situation if you’re a Thomas owner. All-in-all, Brad had a pretty good draft. I really like his pick of Derek Carr in the ninth and Justin Forsett in the 11th. Grade: B

 

Zeke and Destroy
1.	(9)	Ezekiel Elliott  (Dal – RB)
2.	(16)	Allen Robinson  (Jax – WR)
3.	(33)	LeSean McCoy  (Buf – RB)
4.	(40)	Randall Cobb  (GB – WR)
5.	(57)	Drew Brees  (NO – QB)
6.	(64)	Larry Fitzgerald  (Ari – WR)
7.	(81)	Donte Moncrief  (Ind – WR)
8.	(88)	Jay Ajayi  (Mia – RB)
9.	(105)	Danny Woodhead  (SD – RB)
10.	(112)	Gary Barnidge  (Cle – TE)
11.	(129)	Matthew Stafford  (Det – QB)
12.	(136)	Corey Coleman  (Cle – WR)
13.	(153)	Derrick Henry  (Ten – RB)
14.	(160)	Minnesota  (Min – DEF)
15.	(177)	Dan Bailey  (Dal – K)

 

Jared started off his draft with a bang and ended with somewhat of a fizzle. His first six picks were stellar, locking up two top-tier RBs, three top-tier WRs, and a top-tier QB. But when we start looking at what he has on his bench, I start to get a little worried. Jay Ajayi’s upside will be limited with Arian Foster in Miami, Corey Coleman will no longer be the top option in the passing game after Week 4 when Josh Gordon comes back, and Derrick Henry’s upside is limited by the presence of Demarco Murray. That’s too many question marks for me. I do like the Donte Moncrief and Danny Woodhead picks, so it’s not all bad. Grade: B+

 

Le’Veon on a Prayer
1.	(10)	Adrian Peterson  (Min – RB)
2.	(15)	Cam Newton  (Car – QB)
3.	(34)	Jordan Reed  (Was – TE)
4.	(39)	Sammy Watkins  (Buf – WR)
5.	(58)	Doug Baldwin  (Sea – WR)
6.	(63)	Latavius Murray  (Oak – RB)
7.	(82)	Graham Gano  (Car – K)
8.	(87)	Seattle  (Sea – DEF)
9.	(106)	Torrey Smith  (SF – WR)
10.	(111)	Tony Romo  (Dal – QB)
11.	(130)	Isaiah Crowell  (Cle – RB)
12.	(135)	Dorial Green-Beckham  (Ten – WR)
13.	(154)	Martellus Bennett  (NE – TE)
14.	(159)	Tyrod Taylor  (Buf – QB)
15.	(178)	Marcus Mariota  (Ten – QB)

 

Matt went completely against modern convention going RB, QB, TE with his first three picks. He probably didn’t expect three other owners in the league to go WR WR WR in their first three picks and it left him very thin at the position. Sammy Watkins, Doug Baldwin, and Torrey Smith make up his starting receivers and to add insult to injury, he drafted four QBs! Maybe Matt thought this was a two-QB league or maybe he thinks he can use them as trade bait? I hope he has some type of plan, cause as his team stands now it doesn’t look so good. Grade: F

The Professor
1.	(11)	A.J. Green  (Cin – WR)
2.	(14)	Lamar Miller  (Hou – RB)
3.	(35)	T.Y. Hilton  (Ind – WR)
4.	(38)	Andrew Luck  (Ind – QB)
5.	(59)	Michael Floyd  (Ari – WR)
6.	(62)	DeVante Parker  (Mia – WR)
7.	(83)	Ameer Abdullah  (Det – RB)
8.	(86)	Michael Crabtree  (Oak – WR)
9.	(107)	Ladarius Green  (Pit – TE)
10.	(110)	Charles Sims  (TB – RB)
11.	(131)	Pierre Garcon  (Was – WR)
12.	(134)	Zach Miller  (Chi – TE)
13.	(155)	Phillip Dorsett  (Ind – WR)
14.	(158)	Shane Vereen  (NYG – RB)
15.	(179)	Ryan Tannehill  (Mia – QB)

 

I really like what Michael did with his draft. Just at first glance, without going back and looking at who was available, it appears he took the best player on the board regardless of need — within reason of course. He didn’t reach for any one player nor did he try to force a certain strategy on his draft. He let the draft come to him. I love the pairing of A.J. Green and Lamar Miller with his first two picks, and then, to use a DFS term, he stacked T.Y. Hilton and Andrew Luck with his 3rd and 4th picks. DeVante Parker is a risky WR3 but he bought himself some insurance with Michael Crabtree and Pierre Garcon. Grade: A

 

Wentz Upon a Time
1.	(12)	Le’Veon Bell  (Pit – RB)
2.	(13)	Brandon Marshall  (NYJ – WR)
3.	(36)	Matt Forte  (NYJ – RB)
4.	(37)	Golden Tate  (Det – WR)
5.	(60)	Eric Decker  (NYJ – WR)
6.	(61)	Travis Kelce  (KC – TE)
7.	(84)	John Brown  (Ari – WR)
8.	(85)	Chris Ivory  (Jax – RB)
9.	(108)	Vincent Jackson  (TB – WR)
10.	(109)	Andy Dalton  (Cin – QB)
11.	(132)	Philadelphia  (Phi – DEF)
12.	(133)	Connor Barth  (NO – K)
13.	(156)	Darren Sproles  (Phi – RB)
14.	(157)	Nelson Agholor  (Phi – WR)
15.	(180)	Jason Witten  (Dal – TE)

 

As the last pick in a 12-team league, Kellie couldn’t ask for a better player to fall to her in Le’Veon Bell. Yes, he will likely miss the first four games of the season, but when he returns, he will be a top three RB the rest of the way. Picks 2-5 is where I start to question Kellie’s fan status. Over those four picks, she drafts three Jets? I thought you were an Eagles fan? I guess she realized what she did and in an effort to reclaim her fandom she drafts three Eagles from picks 11-14. With both Eric Decker and Brandon Marshall from the Jets, she could use one of them as trade bait. Maybe the WR thin Le’Veon on a Prayer would be an excellent trade partner? Kellie’s draft wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great either. Grade: C

There you have it. The GoingFor2.com’s Writers League Draft Grades. I’ll give updates throughout the season letting all you readers know just how everyone is doing. I’ll be willing to eat some crow if my grades are way off base. But in the words of Chris Berman, “That’s why they play the game.”