Hey everyone, it’s good to be back! After a short break since Week 15 of the regular season, I again will be doing some writing about the NFL Draft into the first couple months of the offseason. However, there is good news! Unlike last year, I won’t be doing this alone! I’ll be getting some help from my good buddy Matt Bowe (Unbreakable MB for those that don’t know)!
For those of you that have followed Matt and his excellent roster strategy series this past year covering streaming, you already know what your getting: great analysis that is short, sweet, and to the point. And for those that haven’t kept up with Matt this past year, you’re in for a treat. Matt is one of my personal favorite writers on this site, and I can’t wait for you guys to see our work. Speaking of our work, what should you guys expect for this series? Great question!
What To Expect
I have to admit, when I started playing fantasy football, I rarely paid attention to the NFL draft outside of who the Patriots drafted. And I don’t think I was the only fan to do so. Why pay attention to an upcoming class of rookies if you’re not in a Dynasty League? Why not just pay attention to them after a breakout week early in the season? Well, you may have a point, but the NFL draft has a big impact on fantasy in more ways that just the receivers, backs, and quarterbacks that are produced every year. Look at it this way, a bunch of people knew that Ezekiel Elliot was not only a fantastic prospect, but also a sure bet for immediate fantasy goodness due to his situation in Dallas. However, fantasy championships were won by many who chose a mid-round pick on DeMarco Murray in his new home in Tennessee. Could it be that the Titans improved running lanes for Murray with rookie offensive tackle Jack Conklin? There’s an argument to be made there, but definitely an aspect of the NFL draft that was overlooked by many, but not all fantasy football players and writers out there. So this year Matt and I are kicking it up a notch in content from what I did last year, bringing you the best of what we have to offer when covering the NFL Draft. This year we’ll bring:
- Team Previews – We’ll recap every team’s finish last year and what it means for the draft, their positional needs to be addressed, and draft rumors that will help us gain an edge in determining which route teams will go when they’re on the clock.
- Player Profiles – We’ll cover the top prospects from each position, identifying their strengths, weaknessess, and what it means for the teams likely to get them.
- Mock Drafts – We’ll put together all of our knowledge into a prediction of how draft night will go.
- 2017 NFL Draft Live Stream – What’s better than having Matt alongside you while you watch the draft? I can’t think of a better substitute. He’ll breakdown every pick as it’s happening, letting you know his initial thoughts on fantasy impact. Lucky you.
- Draft Recap – Let’s face it, we’ll be wrong on some picks. Draft night is usually chaos, so we’ll recap the entire draft and tell you our initial thoughts for what these picks mean in fantasy.
And that’s it! Of course, many things will happen between now and April, so we’ll update it as we go along. And once the draft is over and the “season officially starts”, we’ll make sure you guys have everything you need to know leading up to and during training camp, and anything else that comes up on our radar before Week 1.
And for those that need a quick refresher:
NFL Draft Order and Dates
- Cleveland Browns (1-15)
- San Francisco 49ers (2-14)
- Chicago Bears (3-13)
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Tennessee Titans (from Rams) (9-7)
- New York Jets (5-11)
- San Diego Chargers (5-11)
- Carolina Panthers (6-10)
- Cincinnati Bengals (6-9-1)
- Buffalo Bills (7-9)
- New Orleans Saints (7-9)
- Cleveland Browns (from Eagles)Â (1-15)
- Arizona Cardinals (7-8-1)
- Indianapolis Colts (8-8)
- Philadelphia Eagles (from Vikings)Â (7-9)
- Baltimore Ravens (8-8)
- Washington Redskins (8-7-1)
- Tennessee Titans (9-7)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7)
- Denver Broncos (9-7)
- Detroit Lions (9-7)
- Miami Dolphins (10-6)
- New York Giants (11-5)
- Oakland Raiders (12-4)
- Houston Texans (9-7)
- Seattle Seahawks (10-5-1)
- Kansas City Chiefs (12-4)
- Dallas Cowboys (13-3)
- Green Bay Packers (10-6)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (11-5)
- Atlanta Falcons (11-5)
- New England Patriots (14-2)
NFL Draft –Â April 27-29
NFL Scouting Combine –Â February 28-March 6
Alright guys, thanks for sticking around for this opening primer into what is destined to be a pretty awesome series. As always, if you have a question or comment, please don’t hesitate to leave one below.
Up next in this series are the team previews for picks 1-16 from Matt himself. It’s gonna be a good one.
You can find me on Twitter @ohuhave12 and Matt @Razzball_MB. Go read a book.
