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Live Mock Draft Expert Draft |
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The guys at Mock Draft Central hosted their 5th Live Mock Draft Expert Draft of the season Monday night, and extended Fantasy Phenoms an invitation. The league settings-
QB (2)RB (3)WR TE K DEF: NO FLEX SPOT AND NO POINTS PER RECEPTION
I drew the 12th overall spot in a 12 team league, which gave me the most intriguing slot in the draft. “The Turn.” I love this spot, and would trade into it in any deal that is at least fair. To me, in a standard scoring league in 2008, drafting two running backs is so 2007. It’s turning into a receivers league, actually I’ll take it a step further, a pass catchers league. Don't forget that growing top teir of tight ends.
PPR or not, wide receivers are the gateway to fantasy championships in 2008. A large portion of NFL back-fields are tandems, meaning that less RBs will be getting 30+ touches a game, hence minimizing their potential fantasy output.
For those of you drafting with “The Turn,” be very happy with the options you’ll have. Grab that best RB on the board, and you may just end up with the seasons top WR.
Round 1 Pick (12)- Reggie Wayne IND WR
I was thrilled to get Wayne, who I believe will challenge Randy Moss for the title of league’s best fantasy wide out for standard leagues. Wayne is officially the go-to-guy in Indy, and Peyton Manning is now best friends with him, and not Marvin. Manning is going to throw a TD mark closer to his of 2006 rather than 2007, and expect Wayne to lead the charge. When it comes to yardage, no one in the NFL could top Wayne this year.
Round 2 Pick (1)- Marshawn Lynch BUF WR
 I mentioned it earlier; the NFL is running out of teams who primarily use one work horse running back. Lynch occupies Buffalo’s backfield, and there will be no split-carries going on. I expect top 5 RB fantasy numbers from the 8th RB selected in this draft, and he will certainly have the chances to score. Expect 30+ touches from Lynch each week.
Round 3 Pick (12)- Anquan Bolden ARI WR
I wasn’t thrilled with the value at RB here, and I wanted to stock up on high yard high TD guys at WR before they were all gone. So I decided to go with Bolden who is half of one of the leagues best receiving duos along with Larry Fitzgerald. Whether it is Matt Leinart or Kurt Warner throwing to them, Bolden is sure to have a huge year and double digit TDs is very realistic this season.
Round 4 Pick (1)- Greg Jennings GB WR
If this team played out a season, it would sink or swim with the performance of Greg Jennings/Aaron Rodgers. If these two can get a good thing going, Jennings could be the biggest steal of the draft, being he is my 3rd wide out. Last year he didn’t crack 60 receptions, and just missed 1,000 yards but had 12 TDs. Watch the receptions and yards go up, with the TDs not dropping a whole lot.
Round 5 Pick (12)- Ben Roethlisberger PIT QB
Roethlisberger had a great year in 2007 as he took the first step into his individual prime. I don’t expect a major deviation in last year’s performance on either side of the scale. Expect high 20’s in TD output and similar yardage numbers. If he is careful with the football this year, as he was last, then his INT total shouldn’t hurt you.
Round 6 Pick (1)- Darren McFadden OAK RB
I have been saying that McFadden may not even be this year’s top rookie runner, so draft with the non-Adrian Peterson expectation heading in. Fact is, no rookie back this season will come close to AP’s performance last year. Even that said, to see “Run DMC” in the beginning of the 6th was a shock to me. It proved that holding out until the 6th to get your No. 2 RB is feasible, and potentially a winning strategy.
Round 7 Pick (12)- Felix Jones DAL RB
So if not McFadden as the top fantasy rookie RB this season, then who?  One of the best candidates is Dallas rookie Felix Jones. A former teammate of McFadden at Arkansas, Jones looks to compliment Marion Barber much like Barber did to Julius Jones a season ago. Now that J. Jones is out and in Seattle, Barber is the feature back, and I won’t be surprised in the least if Felix makes a Barber like impact as a “compliment” back. I was thrilled to get these two Hogs in the middle of the draft.
Round 8 Pick (1)- San Diego Defense
I had everything pretty much set; expect a starting TE, so I needed to make a choice. A top defense potentially, or a choice of very similar guys like Vernon Davis, Owen Daniels, Zach Miller, etc. Some TE would fall to me who I would accept, so I had to go with the best option for my weekly starting team. With Shawn Merriman and Antonio Cromartie leading the unit, I will be excited to see many sacks, INTs and TDs from this "Lights Out D."
Round 9 Pick (12)- D.J. Hackett CAR WR
Hackett showed promise in Seattle last season and will now be paired with Steve Smith in Carolina. Week’s 1 and 2 are virtually stages for Hackett, as Smith’s suspension makes him Jake Delhomme’s go-to-guy to start the season. A few good games could turn Hackett into a favorite target, thus leading to very admirable fantasy numbers for a 4th or in some cases 5th fantasy WR.
Round 10 Pick (1)- Heath Miller PIT TE
Now was the time for the TE pick, as quality was starting to run out. I already had Roethlisberger, so I figured it would be nice to pair up a QB and TE who can sync up for at least six TDs this year. Miller is not by top option, but a serviceable starting fantasy TE.
Round 11 Pick (12)- Darrell Jackson DEN WR
Same idea as Hackett. Marshall is out Week’s 1 and 2, and D-Jax has a chance to make it 3 times the charm in DEN.
Round 12 Pick (1)- Jason Campbell WAS QB As a back up fantasy QB, I would love to trade Campbell mid-season, as I expect big numbers in his new offense.
Round 13 Pick (12)- Tim Hightower ARI RB Word out of camp is Hightower could see carries is James falters. He may be a surprise injury replacement this season.
Round 14 Pick (1)- Mason Crosby GB K THE most unpredictable position of them all, which is why you take one no earlier than your last pick.
Questions or comments: jasons@fantasyphenoms.com
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