Mike Blahnik, long-time UTH subscriber shares his startup draft from the summer of 2016:
This mid-June startup was 12×22, start 1-1-2-1-2 flex. I drew the 1.08.
Typically I’m a mover and a shaker in startup drafts. In this instance I found myself priced out. I was on the outside looking in. Instead of letting that knock me off balance or selling at a discount, I stuck to my board, got my guys, and as a result feel pretty good about the short and long-term outlook.
- 1.08 Allen Robinson
Picking eighth and unable to trade back, my list was 5 players long:
- Odell Beckham Jr.
- Allen Robinson
- Mike Evans
- DeAndre Hopkins
- Amari Cooper
Landing Robinson here was the best outcome for which I could have reasonably hoped. I tried to trade up from 2.05 for Mike Evans at 1.10 but it wasn’t going to happen with what I was willing to offer. Not with a player like Evans on the board.
- 2.05 Brandin Cooks
Next, at 2.05 I initiated some trade offers to move back and add future rookie picks. Brandin Cooks was my target player and fallback plan if no trade materialized. When Rob Gronkowski and Alshon Jeffery were still available, I ratcheted up the trade machine. I was disappointed that I couldn’t trade back to the late second and pick up some value. In my spot, I stuck to my board and picked Brandin Cooks.
- 2.12 Donte Moncrief
Faced with a long wait until my next pick and locked out of the fertile late 2nd/early 3rd round range, I was willing to pay iron price to move back up for one of Kevin White or Donte Moncrief. It appeared that a number of UTH-minded owners had accumulated picks in the late-2nd to early-3rd range. I wasn’t optimistic that a target player would last to 3.08.
Trade offers bounced back and forth. DeVante Parker went 2.07. More trade offers. Kevin White went 2.11. I felt certain Donte Moncrief was going with the next pick. I accepted a counteroffer and sent 3.08/6.05 for 2.12/22.08. I picked Moncrief and hunkered down for a long wait until my 4th round selection.
- 4.05 LaQuon Treadwell
In the early fourth round, I was shocked LaQuon Treadwell, Corey Coleman, and Josh Doctson were all available. Coleman and Doctson went at 4.03 and 4.04 respectively. I scooped up Treadwell at 4.05.
- 5.08 Tyler Lockett
- 6.05 Traded away
At 5.08 I targeted another young WR prospect. Sterling Shepard, Tyler Lockett, and Devin Funchess were my target players. I was happy to snag Lockett. With a strong WR foundation through 5 picks/6 rounds, I felt good about my start.
For bookkeeping purposes the 6.05 that I traded away in the Moncrief move was used to select Michael Thomas. It bothered me a little bit. He’s a player I actually like (nobody tell Chad).
- 7.08 Eric Ebron
- 8.05 Giovani Bernard
This was my attempt to draft upside options to fill the start-one requirements at TE and RB. Ebron was TE7 and Bernard was RB28. I like both players stand-alone, and I like the value on them in this draft range. Giovani has always reminded me of Brian Westbrook and I believe he’s capable of a season like old-school Westbrook; 180 carries for 800 yards, 70 catches for 650 yards, 7-9 total TDs.
My target pick in the 7th round was Jameis Winston (with a bullet). I thought he might fall into my lap but he was picked a few picks before 7.08. I made some offers to move up but my league mates were anxious to use their picks in this area. Ebron was next on my target list, but ideally I would have traded down and drafted Ebron a half-round later.
- 9.08 Leonte Carroo
- 10.05 Jerick McKinnon
- 11.08 Austin Seferian-Jenkins
These three players are all target buys for me. Call me a sucker for it, but I want these guys on my roster just in case they turn into what I think they can be. In hindsight, I wish I had more picks in this range. Charles Sims and Sammie Coates were drafted between Carroo and McKinnon.
- 12.05 Torrey Smith
- 13.08 Ryan Tannehill
- 14.05 DeSean Jackson
I sandwiched two veteran WR options around my first QB. Tannehill was QB19. Smith (WR62) and Jackson (WR67) add value as win-now WR3/WR4/bye week options. I’m playing a hunch both these guys bounce back and produce relatively well this season, perhaps pushing my team into a year 1 title window.
- 15.08 Bruce Ellington
- 16.05 Matt Ryan
- 17.08 Jordan Payton
- 18.05 Shane Vereen
- 19.08 Chris Moore
- 20.05 Marquez North
- 21.08 James Starks
- 22.05 Darren McFadden
- 22.08 Kelvin Taylor
Aside from Ryan (QB24) this section of the draft was all about getting players I thought could climb in value enough to trade them away. These players all had a plausible story that would result in me being able to trade them for value. Some are longer-term holds than others, but I’d jump at the chance to package up any 2-3 of them right now to clear up two roster spots for the required DST and K.
Wide Lens
It was odd and frustrating to be priced out of the future pick market. Due to that deadlock, this draft was very ‘paint-by-numbers’ for me. I was firm on my target player list when my picks came up. I stacked target players at decent value. When given the chance, I moved aggressively to get Moncrief, a potential 2016 league-winner in my eyes. I built a strong WR corps and backfilled it with cheap veterans and prospects. The investment at other positions stacked up well compared to the value of the player.
This roster will likely marinate until late training camp/preseason. At that point, I’ll be fairly aggressive in the trade market and on the waiver wire. From there I’m interested to see how the first few weeks of the season play out. I think this team could be competitive right away and grow into a juggernaut as my young core heads into their prime production window.
