The Football Garbage Time Staff Fantasy Football Draft

August 17, 2015

By The Football Garbage Time Staff

So we discussed who we would draft in our Mock Draft breakdown for Rounds 1 & 2 and Rounds 3 & 4. Then I told you my Courageous Conjectures for the 2015 season. And now it’s time for the real deal.

Behold! The results of the Football Garbage Time Staff Fantasy Football Draft! And we’re not about to go “run-of-the-mill” on you, because as you know, it’s not our style. We’re doing it up with a custom 10-team head-to-head 2 Quarterback league with an added half point per reception. In total, each team will have to field 2 Quarterbacks, 2 Running Backs, 2 Wide Receivers, 1 Tight End, 1 WR/RB/TE Flex, 1 Kicker and 1 Defense/Special Teams. Wonder how our fantasy football draft sorted out? Well, take a look, and I’ll make a few comments along the way regarding which picks I liked the most.

And if you’d like to follow our league, feel free to check it out throughout the season by clicking the button below!

Football Garbage Time Staff Fantasy Football League

— Ha Kung Wong, Editor-in-Chief

The 2015 Football Garbage Time Staff Fantasy Football Draft

Team: FXP

Owner: Scott King

Aaron Rodgers as a first overall pick in a 2 QB league is a no-brainer. One could argue for Andrew Luck, but Rodgers has a better track record with exactly the same weapons he had last year. Ryan Tannehill is a solid second QB in the 6th round as well. I really like taking LaGarette Blount, one game suspension and all, in the 8th Round, particularly as a fourth RB. He’s not a lock, but if he repeats what he did upon returning to the Patriots at the end of 2014, he’ll be a steal. Last, Julius Thomas may not be the same player he was on the Denver Broncos, and he does have a broken finger, but he’s a fine dice roll in a shallow TE pool for fantasy purposes.

Team: Joey’s Team (now “JPP’s 10th Finger”)

Owner: Joey Alibro

Eli Manning and Tony Romo back to back in the 5th and 6th Rounds is a solid play in a 2 QB league. Manning has potential to really take off with both OBJ and Victor Cruz to throw to. And Romeo will have to pass more out of necessity, seeing as workhorse DeMarco Murray is now flying with the Eagles. Speaking of Victor Cruz, a late snag of Cruz in the 12th Round is a great gamble coming back from injury. Maybe he gets less looks with OBJ around, but OBJ actually helps Cruz get more quality looks, which could mean break out seasons for both wideouts in New York.

This is what Joey had to say about his picks:

Taking a chance on both Cruz and Gurley in the middle to late rounds is a low risk, high reward type move that could pay dividends down the stretch.

Team: Dez-ination Unkown

Owner: Ryan Whitfield

Matt Forte in the second round is a terrific pickup in a half point per reception league. With a career high 102 receptions in 2014, and with Brandon Marshall out of town, Forte can be better than most WRs in PPR-type leagues. T.J. Yeldon in the 4th Round is a bit of a gamble, as the Jaguars offense is still in flux. But assuming it doesn’t become an RBBC with Denard Robinson, it could pay off. And finally, Arian Foster in the 15th Round is a great bet, as if you even get 6 games with Foster, he’ll more than double your investment.

Team: David Boston Biceps

Owner: Michael Pattison

I’m actually a fan of Derek Carr in the 9th Round. Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree are significant upgrades for the Raiders, and I still have a feeling Josh Harper may contribute. His 6 of 9 for 43 yards and one interception in the first preseason game wasn’t what we wanted to see, but I still have faith. Larry Fitzgerald in the 11th Round is a steal. As long as Carson Palmer stays healthy, Fitzgerald has the opportunity to return 2nd or 3rd Round value. I have my doubts about Jimmy Graham in the 4th Round, as I actually like Travis Kelce more, but since the TE pool is so shallow, I understand reaching for him a bit.

Team: JKLMNO’s Fine Team

Owner: John Kirkland

C.J. Anderson in the 3rd Round is a steal, as he’s likely to be a true bellcow back in Denver. Heck, I could make an argument for him in the 1st Round. But being stuck with Philip Rivers and Carson Palmer as starting QBs in a 2 QB league is a huge gamble that has more downside than not. One of the two is fine, but both is really scary.

This is what John had to say about his picks:

So this is what a completely Yahoo-auto-drafted team looks like. How did Yahoo rate my draft a “B.” Time to hit the waiver wire!

Team: Two Cool Dudes

Owner: Joanne Kong

Andrew Luck being available as the sixth overall pick is surprising. But if he’s available there in a 2 QB league, don’t overthink it and just draft him. Rob Gronkowski in the 2nd Round is also good move, as he’s in a class all by himself among TEs. He provides such a significant advantage over all other TEs, in particular with the half PPR bump, that he can be a difference maker from week to week. Teddy Bridgewater as a second QB in the 7th is also a decent move. He looked solid in his first preseason game going 7 of 8 for 86 yards in limited time. With Adrian Peterson returning, the Vikings offense has everything it needs to really be productive, and Bridgewater will be the primary beneficiary. Rookie WR Nelson Agholor in the 11th Round is also a nice lottery ticket. He caught 3 of 5 targets for 57 yards and a TD in the first preseason game, showing a lot of the promise the Eagles had hoped for when drafting him. With Jeremy Maclin out of town, someone has to make up for that production other than Jordan Matthews. Agholor is a good candidate to pick up the slack.

Team: Anon’s Amazing Team

Owner: Bobby Pierson

I knew in advance that Bobby was a complete homer when it came to fantasy football, so I knew he would grab DeMarco Murray early. At the same time, I actually don’t totally disagree with the pick, as Murray will have plenty of opportunity in Chip Kelly’s up tempo system, and the presence of Ryan Mathews and Darren Sproles actually will help keep him healthy all year. And honestly, Martellus Bennett in the 7th Round is a solid TE that will get plenty more looks in a Chicago Bears system sans Brandon Marshall and, potentially, Kevin White. We saw what Offensive Coordinator Adam Gase did for Julius Thomas in Denver. He might be able to do the same for Bennett in Chicago.

Bobby had this to say about his draft picks:

As an Eagle’s fan, I was happy to get my top choices:

EAGLES RB1, EAGLES RB1 (former), EAGLES WR1, EAGLES QB1, EAGLES QB1 (former).

And I was also pleasantly surprised by AUTO-DRAFT’s other selections:

Dan Carpenter (K) AND Connor Barth (K), can never have enough kickers;

Super Bowl XLIX MVP, Tom Brady (QB)!!!

Can I get a witness? I think I did all right!

Team: Un-BEAR-Able

Owner: Ha Kung Wong

I was SHOCKED that Le’Veon Bell was available at eighth overall. Do you realize he averaged over 138 total yards and over 5 receptions PER GAME with 11 total TDs in 2014? I don’t care that he has a two game suspension, the fact of the matter is that you’re looking at an average of almost 22 fantasy points per week from Bell in our half point per reception system. That’s a contributor that can carry your team all the way to the championship. Of course, having taken Bell, I decided to load up late on RB lottery tickets, including Andre Ellington, Rashad Jennings, Chris Ivory and Joique Bell. So what did all these backs have in common? Other than being a bit injury prone (and thus cheaper to acquire), except for Ivory (who I just had the inside track to get most of the Jets’ carries), all of them have averaged almost 3 receptions per game on their respective teams. In a half PPR league, that’s a bunch of extra fantasy point potential.

The other pre-planned strategy I had was to take two top tier QBs early, so as to solidify the 2 weekly QB slots, as I don’t want to worry about that from week to week. Thus, Peyton Manning in the 2nd Round and Ben Roethlisberger in the 3rd Round. I’m not totally enamored with Manning, but I took him first because I thought Big Ben would hold to the 3rd Round, whereas I though Manning would be gone based on name value alone. I actually like Big Ben better than Manning for 2015 in basically any type of fantasy football league.

The last thing I’ll mention is Jordan Cameron in the 11th Round. I know he has some injury risk (as does a lot of my team), but I targeted him for a TE since I knew his value would be depressed and know that he has the skills to be a top 5 TE with plenty of redzone targets in Miami (as I also mentioned in my Courageous Conjectures article).

Team: Jason’s Cool Team

Owner: Jason Johnson

I’m a fan of Cam Newton in the 6th Round, as rushing yards and TDs are worth more than passing yards and TDs in our league, and Newton started to really roll at the end of 2014. If he picks up where he left off, I can see him being able to exceed other QBs based on his ground potential alone. I also like the potential of Zac Ertz in the 10th Round. He can be a real breakout star if he gets consistent looks in Chip Kelly’s system, and from what we can tell, he’s going to get his shot. But Brent Celek is still there, and we saw that although he’s a better blocking TE, he can certainly compete for targets depending on who’s behind center. And at this point, there’s no guarantee Sam Bradford is the man, or remains injury-free even if he does get the nod. Last, I really love the Duke Johnson pick in the 13th Round. You all know I’m on the Duke Johnson hype train, and I think he’ll eventually be the every down back in Cleveland. In the 13th Round, he’s a steal.

Team: Robert Knarr’s Team

Owner: Robert Knarr

Antonio Brown at 10th overall is basically as sure a thing as you can get. He’s had at least 72 yards in every game he played last year and totaled 13 TDs. He also had at least 7 receptions in every game except 2. So you’re saying his floor is 7 receptions for 70 yards week in and week out with upside for 100+ yards, 10 receptions and a TD per week? No non-QB is better than that. Greg Olsen in the 6th Round is also a good pick. Olsen is as consistent and solid a TE you can get, yet he never gets the same love that bigger names like Jimmy Graham, or even Jason Witten, get. Amari Cooper is a nice lottery ticket in the 8th Round, as he looks to be the number one target on a team that will be playing from behind a lot in 2015. I’m not totally sold as Colin Kaepernick in the 9th Round, but if he starts to run again and returns to his pre-2014 productivity, he could be a good value. Not having a third QB to back him up, though, is living life on the proverbial edge.