So for anyone who may have purchased the 10-team package for $200 through Fantasy Football Evolution you may have ran into a bit of a problem. At the time there weren’t any options to draft from multiple spots. The program through FFE’s website would only allow you to draft from the same spot for all 10 teams. I reached out to the kind people at Fantasy Football Evolution and they were VERY quick to respond and let me know they have met with their developers and they’re hoping this is resolved early next week. Which is perfectly fine, there’s still plenty of time before the regular season kicks off. So if you bought the 10-team package just hold off on drafting for now. Honestly it may even serve you better to hold off and observe the all-important third week of the preseason.

So as I mentioned at the end of last week’s piece I drafted out of the two-spot. Going into this draft I was thinking a lot about how I need to separate this team from the norm to win. And this group really got away from me. I drafted good players, but I didn’t build the team I wanted to.  I tried to approach this draft like I would a GPP contest on DraftKings or FanDuel. The trouble with that strategy goes back to the lack of waivers. I can’t go out and pick up a player breaking out midway through the season. So with this draft I wanted to make sure I grabbed the likes of Cooper Kupp, Kenny Golladay, or maybe even Carson Smith. SPOILER ALERT! That didn’t happen. Like I said this team really got away from me and I’d be surprised if this group moves on to Stage Two. But I hope I’m wrong!

Quarterbacks

Matthew Stafford, Philip Rivers, Deshaun Watson

With Stafford and Rivers I got two guys that will throw the ball a ton. Turnovers will be the key with these two, but I’m okay with starting them on a regular basis. I like that Rivers has a plethora of guys to throw to including Keenan Allen, Tyrell Williams, Dontrelle Inman, Travis Benjamin, Mike Williams, Antonio Gates, Hunter Henry, Melvin Gordon, etc. He has plenty of targets and the defense is still prone to giving points so I’m optimistic that the Chargers will play from behind quite a bit. Deshaun Watson was a bit of a late-round dart throw simply to satisfy the 3-QB roster requirement. I certainly believe he’ll take over the starting job later in the season, but he’ll likely be useless to me through the first eight weeks.

Running Backs

David Johnson, Joe Mixon, Mike Gillislee, Kareem Hunt, Darren McFadden

Absolutely LOADED at running back. The problem is that I won’t be able to start them all, which is fine. Once Elliott’s suspension is up I’ll have no use for McFadden but I’m hoping he can help me get enough wins to move on to Stage Two. I went with David Johnson as my first pick out of the second spot. Sure it’s another team where I landed DJ, and I gave a lot of thought to taking Aaron Rodgers, but I wasn’t sure of the group of RB’s I could draft if I opted to go with a QB with my first pick. I really do like this group. DJ, if he’s healthy, will touch the ball at least 320 times. Mixon and Hunt could take over a majority of reps midway through the year, and Gillislee could be a nice source of TD’s. For the most injury prone position, I got a lot of talent.

Wide Receivers

Michael Thomas, Brandin Cooks, John Brown, Keenan Allen, Stefon Diggs, Jeremy Maclin

I was surprised I landed Michael Thomas with my fourth pick, but he’s a borderline Top Ten WR and the departure of Cooks (who I also took) makes his regression less likely. Cooks is a guy I’m really growing to like. He’s done well in training camp and there’s a lot of talk about him disappearing certain weeks throughout the year, but he’ll also explode certain weeks (hopefully during that Stage Two round). My lone concern pertains to his ability to play outdoors, especially in the colder months.

The group is rounded out by John Brown, Keenan Allen, Stefon Diggs, and Jeremy Maclin. There’s a lot of good value with these guys. With Michael Floyd gone from Arizona and Larry Fitzgerald another year older, there’s some reason to believe that Brown could be the #1 WR in Arizona. That’s a BIG if, but since I drafted him in FFE I’ll tell myself anything I want to feel better! I love Allen’s upside as long as he’s healthy, which is always a big concern. Luckily if he does get hurt I have plenty of depth behind him. I love Diggs in any form of PPR. He should be peppered with targets this year and Jeremy Maclin was a late round flier. Somebody has to catch the ball in Baltimore and it’ll be either him or Mike Wallace.

Tight Ends

Austin Seferian-Jenkins, Jason Witten

So this is easily my weakest position. I’d like to go back to my original statement about going into this draft with a GPP mindset. ASJ is exactly that. With Quincy Enunwa done for the year the Jets don’t have great options in the passing game. ASJ is sober, he’s cleaned up his act, and he should see some targets in an offense that’s lacking talent. Jason Witten has been drafted before by me in FFE. He’s consistent and healthy, but his age is becoming more and more of a concern. This position could haunt me all year.

Defense/Special Teams

Minnesota Vikings, Tennessee Titans

The Vikings are a Top 10 fantasy D/ST despite struggling down the stretch and with the Titans I may play the matchups. The AFC South projects to be one of the worst divisions in football so I like their potential to be a streaming defense this year if the matchup is right.

Kickers

Brandon McManus, Matt Prater

Again I aimed for guys that’ll be on teams that move the ball between the 20’s but may struggle to find the end zone. I got that with the Broncos and McManus. McManus has one hell of a leg and I don’t have much faith in the Denver QB’s to be productive in the red zone. I love the performance of the offensive line thus far, but I like McManus to get plenty of 40+ field goal opportunities. Matt Prater is in a similar boat. I know the Lions will explode every so often, but he’s a safe bet for a healthy amount of field goal opportunities if Detroit can’t pound it into the end zone with the rushing attack.

Like I said before this one got away from me. With the next draft I’ll be in either the third, fourth, or fifth slot and I can almost guarantee I will take a quarterback just to show you how your team can shape up by going that route. I’ve missed out on the stud QB’s with all three of my teams so it’s time to buck that trend. Also, please refer back to the Introduction article. I tried getting cute with this draft and thought I could dedicate more spots to RB/WR by taking just two QB’s, but forgot that FFE requires you to take three QB’s. Be aware of the draft rules. I came home after a 13-hour workday and thought it would be cute to throw $20 at another lineup and got my ass handed to me in this draft. But it’s a long season and anything can happen. Maybe this island of misfit toys makes me $25K richer!

Also if you’re a part of the Mock Draft Army you already have an account set up with Real Time Fantasy Sports. Be sure to check out Jon Impemba’s Introduction to Real Time Fantasy Sports as he breaks down all the different contests available through their site. Also be sure to hit up the Head2Head College Football and the Head2Head NFL Salary Cap pieces from Nick Berns. The King of the Mountain contest on RT as well as the NFL Salary Cap Game on H2H definitely seem like awesome contests you FFE guys would love too.

If you have any questions about FFE whether it’s the draft, the main event contest, or just general strategy I’d be glad to talk to you or even help offer feedback on a team you draft. Check back next week and see how my team did after going QB heavy from an early draft spot!