This 12-team PPR league is one of my best rosters. After loading up heavily on rookies in the 2014 startup, I won the first two years of the league. Unfortunately a stumble in the semi-finals last year kept me from a 3-peat. Even on a dominant roster, adding additional rookie picks is a key part of my dynasty strategy. I entered the offseason with an extra 1st and 3rd round rookie pick. The league is fairly vanilla with the exception of starting 3 flexes (up to 6WR). Here is a breakdown of the rookie draft and my moves along the way:
Having a dominant roster can result in multiple teams deciding to enter a rebuilding phase. One such team announced that LeVeon Bell was on the trading block shortly before the NFL Draft. Once they announced their desire for both picks and players to help build depth, we were able to come to an agreement fairly quickly.
Gave 1.10, 2.03, 3.05, Paul Perkins, LeGarrette Blount, Dion Lewis
Received LeVeon Bell, Martavis Bryant
With deep starters and only 25 roster spots for the league, this deal consolidates roster space and adds another top end starter to my team. Losing the 2 top-15 picks was painful, but adding an elite asset like Bell was well worth it.
1.03 Joe Mixon
The biggest win of the LeVeon Bell trade was being able to keep the 1.03 to add a top-tier rookie to my team. Selecting Mixon at 1.03 was my ‘worst-case scenario’ as I was hoping for a rogue pick in the top two selections. However, I will happily slide Mixon in as my RB3 on this roster.
With no picks until the early 3rd, my attempts to move up to grab falling talent like Evan Engram at 2.04 and JuJu Smith-Schuster at 2.06 were unsuccessful. Most owners wanted my future 1st and veterans in order to make a deal. Even making a deal to move from 3.02 to 2.12 to take the falling James Conner proved to be too costly.
3.02 Jamaal Williams
In hindsight, a better strategy might have been to trade back from this selection to add a few 4th round picks as the talent continued to fall. My decision for 3.02 came down to Williams over Adam Shaheen. I determined that Williams is more likely to see playing time this year and I may be able to flip him for an early rookie pick during the season.
4.10 Jake Butt
The 4th round of this draft was painful as it saw Adam Shaheen, Ishmael Zamora, Elijah Hood and Jonnu Smith all go in the first 6 picks. When I was on the clock at 4.10, Jake Butt was the best available selection. With my depth, I can afford to let him get healthy and potentially be a viable starter in 2018.
5.10 T.J. Logan
This late in the draft, I was thrilled to get a player with a realistic shot at hitting the field. With no other running backs of note in Arizona, Logan will see a significant boost in value if he can establish himself as the backup to David Johnson.
Roster Highlights
*Starting Lineup is 1-2-3-1, 3Flex*
Derek Carr, Eli Manning
Ezekiel Elliott, LeVeon Bell, Joe Mixon, Giovani Bernard, Jamaal Williams, T.J. Logan
Mike Evans, Odell Beckham, Allen Robinson, Davante Adams, Jordan Matthews, Golden Tate, Marqise Lee, Josh Doctson, Martavis Bryant, Pierre Garcon
Travis Kelce, Dennis Pitta, Jesse James, Jake Butt
2018 1,2,3,4,5
My receiver core has been the driver for success in this league. Adding Bell and Mixon take this team to the next level. The goal for the rest of the offseason will be to consolidate talent if possible. I will be working this season to sell players like Golden Tate and Jordan Matthews in attempts to gather additional 2018 rookie picks. I expect another deep playoff run with this roster.
