Sunday 7 August 2022

The Draft as Fantasy Football Intended: Round 6

Round six is here, with more wide receivers needing to be taken, the first few quarterbacks jumping off the board as well as a few of the elite tight end players. Without any further ado, let's jump into round six and see who has gone where.

Pick 81: The Aberdeen Oilers Select T.J. Hockenson, Tight End, Detroit



Points Last Year: 145.3 Points
Average Per Game: 12.1 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 15th
Last Year Rank NFL: 123rd

T.J. Hockenson when he was drafted was drafted iin mind to be Detroit's Gronk. Safe to say, last season was a little hit and miss, but top ten status would have easily been achieved if he played in the final five games of the season. The talent is there to be sensational and if his first two weeks of last season can correlate to this one, he could be flying in what is a team that really needs to utilise him this season. It's a great pick for the Oilers and they have a lock at the position.

Pick 82: The Dublin Brewers Select Jalen Hurts, Quarterback, Philadelphia


Points Last Year: 312.16 Points
Average Per Game: 20.8 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 9th
Last Year Rank NFL: 15th

Jalen Hurts is the sort of quarterback who may play on a 500 team but his fantasy output is staggering. Built into a run/pass option system, Jalen made double digit rushing touchdowns and made great use of a system that values rushing yards at just over twice as valuable as thrown yards. He even has more help throwing with the likes of A.J. Brown but more than that, still with DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert, there are options to go more expansive if needs be. Only worry will be if Philadelphia, the team, loses.

Pick 83: The Cardiff Dragons Select Tom Brady, Quarterback, Tampa Bay


Points Last Year: 374.74 Points
Average Per Game: 22.0 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 3rd
Last Year Rank NFL: 4th

Making the biggest fake out in sports history, Tom Brady is back for one more crack of the whip. Tampa has been the go-to destination since Tom has been in town and with his level of accuracy, the yards slowly keep adding up along with his years in the game. No Gronk and no Antonio Brown will be losses but with Julio Jones and Russell Gage jumping in, there should still be fantastic production with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin to target. Brady should be giving his all after a small slump but TB12 is always in and around the top 5.

Pick 84: The Bristol Buccaneers Select Aaron Rodgers, Quarterback, Green Bay


Points Last Year: 333.3 Points
Average Per Game: 20.8 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 5th
Last Year Rank NFL: 10th

I do wonder if the Bristol Buccaneers have had the same ayahuasca that Aaron Rodgers has had. No doubt he is an excellent quarterback with back to back MVP seasons. Yet here is the trouble. Who does he throw to? Aaron Jones cannot be hit on every play, there's no Davante Adams or Marquez Valdes-Scantling and free agency isn't attracting Julio Jones or Odell Beckham. Is Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb and Robert Tonyan going to bring fantasy goods? I don't think so. Rodgers is highly overrated here, unless Christian Watson can make Tom Grossi happy.

Pick 85: The Newport Coal Miners Select Joe Burrow, Quarterback, Cincinnati


Points Last Year: 314.24 Points
Average Per Game: 19.6 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 8th
Last Year Rank NFL: 14th

314 points last season with arguably the worst offensive line in the league. Let that sink in for a moment. With three moves to protect Joe Burrow in free agency, what is a decent last season of 8th place could become a brilliant season, allowing him more time to access the targets that are monsters down the field. Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd all are very viable and have proven last season to be decent to world class options. Newport have struck gold and they'll be looking at this season as a must deliver for Joe Burrow.

Pick 86: The Glasgow Pipers Select Russell Wilson, Quarterback, Denver


Points Last Year: 242.82 Points
Average Per Game: 17.3 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 15th
Last Year Rank NFL: 38th

A new kitchen for Russell Wilson to cook in, the hopes are already high for him as the Denver Broncos traded the world to get the former superbowl winner. Having his first down year, missing games for the first time due to injuries, the four games missed in the middle could have easily been the equivalent of 70 points and another 300 plus season. I don't think it will be an immediate success, Tim Patrick out for the season, Noah Fant going the other way, reliance is clearly on Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton to be as good as, if not better than DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett.

Pick 87: The Belfast Giants Select Elijah Moore, Wide Receiver, New York Jets


Points Last Year: 138.2 Points
Average Per Game: 12.6 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 50th
Last Year Rank NFL: 130th

The start of 2021 was sluggish from Elijah Moore but when it is your rookie season, that can be forgiven. Yet were it not for the last five games of the season being lost due to injury, people would be raving a lot more about how good Elijah Moore can be. It's a subtly brilliant pick at 87 and Belfast know that there is a young core of talent developing with the Jets and Elijah Moore's performances might be ones to keep a close eye out on. 50th in rank last season, aim this time around should at minimum be top 25.

Pick 88: The Birmingham Bulls Select Christian Kirk, Wide Reciever, Jacksonville


Points Last Year: 207.62 Points
Average Per Game: 12.2 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 26th
Last Year Rank NFL: 65th

Christian Kirk's big money move to Jacksonville is a gamble because we don't know from his time in Arizona if he was an elite player or not. Stymied behind DeAndre Hopkins, moving to Jacksonville will prove to be the biggest task of his career, to see as a leading target, whether he can break 1000 yards receiving and also break 80 targets overall. Trevor Lawrence does have to throw to someone and taking any potential WR1's this late in the process is always a good decision to make, especially as Birmingham's WR5.

Pick 89: The Swansea Smelters Select DeAndre Hopkins, Wide Reciever, Arizona


Points Last Year: 147.2 Points
Average Per Game: 14.7 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 46th
Last Year Rank NFL: 119th

Speaking of DeAndre Hopkins, the big gamble for Swansea is the 6 missing games at the beginning for performance enhancing drugs. Not a great look but everybody and their neighbour's cat knows that DeAndre is an incredible wide receiver and come week 7, he will be chomping at the bit to take the helm once more for leading target. Helping more will be Hollywood Brown taking defensive attention away, allowing more opportunities for him to get free and to score massively. 

Pick 90: The Nottingham Sheriffs Select Treylon Burks, Wide Reciever, Tennessee


Points Last Year: 0.0 Points
Average Per Game: 0.0 Points
Last Year Rank Position: N/A
Last Year Rank NFL: N/A

His comparison was A.J. Brown, and now he is his replacement from the 2021 draft for Tennessee. Featuring well for Arkansas at the college level, he has been used mostly as a slot player more than a deep ball threat and in spite of that, he was the college leader in yards per route last season. The big thing holding Treylon back will be King Henry at running back who he will have to kneel to as the star of the offence. It will be a struggle to get receptions but if he can play like at college, he should still do really well for Nottingham.

Pick 91: The Cork City Rebels Select Kadarius Toney, Wide Receiver, New York Giants


Points Last Year: 82.36 Points
Average Per Game: 9.2 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 88th
Last Year Rank NFL: 210th

Gordie Howe could not have had a better "welcome to the NFL" moment like Kadarius Toney. Blitzing forth in week 5 last season for 189 receiving yards, it could have well been over 200 were it not for Toney fighting and as such, getting ejected from the game. His season was all fits and starts after that, never scoring over 11 points and constantly finding himself injured. He should have some good targets early as an achilles injury to Sterling Shepard should give him more time on the field. Still a solid pick for Cork despite the downside.

Pick 92: The Dundee Spinners Select Russell Gage, Wide Receiver, Tampa Bay


Points Last Year: 163.0 Points
Average Per Game: 12.5 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 38th
Last Year Rank NFL: 103rd

Early injury kept Russell Gage quiet in Atlanta last season but when Calvin Ridley stepped back, it was a combination of Gage and Zaccheus who had to fill the shoes. Now making a move to Tampa Bay, time on the field is going to be a difficult one to find with such a capable wide receiver core. He won't go over Mike Evans or Chris Godwin, and competition with Julio Jones is not going to be great for him. His value as a player when drafted was WR3 but he may be WR4 and that for Dundee, is their 5th and final wide receiver.

Pick 93: The London Steelers Select Chris Olave, Wide Receiver, New Orleans


Points Last Year: 0.0 Points
Average Per Game: 0.0 Points
Last Year Rank Position: N/A
Last Year Rank NFL: N/A

Chris Olave may not be the strongest player prospect but for New Orleans, he serves in good stead to be a WR3 behind Michael Thomas and Jarvis Landry and maybe a bit more if Thomas can't stay off of the injury table. Olave looks set to be a deep option however the former Ohio State player's lack of yards after catch may be somewhat of a concern. I am curious to see how well he does and as rookies go, he's decent for the London Steelers to take here. 

Pick 94: The Barry Islanders Select Chase Claypool, Wide Receiver, Pittsburgh


Points Last Year: 166.6 Points
Average Per Game: 11.1 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 37th
Last Year Rank NFL: 96th

The one and only issue with Chase Claypool last season was a deficiancy in touchdowns. With just 2 on the entire season of 2021, there was a lot to struggle with in terms of progress for him that could be made a lot easier with the retirement of Ben Roethlisberger. There is some promise for Chase which was shown in his week 5 performance against Denver last season, but this is a safe and dependable choice for the Barry Islanders who comfortably take the WR2 option out of Pittsburgh.

Pick 95: The Galway Tribesmen Select AJ Dillon, Running Back, Green Bay


Points Last Year: 185.6 Points
Average Per Game: 10.9 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 23rd
Last Year Rank NFL: 81st

When some of the RB2's at certain NFL teams are going before RB1's at others, you know you're a great player. This is the case for AJ Dillon, more commonly known as "Quadzilla." An engine who never stops rushing, there was a time last season where people were actively wondering if the Packers should trade Aaron Jones in order to give AJ some spotlight but another season as the backup should still show some great performances. Galway haven't taken the RB2 position for granted and they've come away with a great pick.

Pick 96: The Edinburgh Knights Select Tony Pollard, Running Back, Dallas


Points Last Year: 162.6 Points
Average Per Game: 10.8 Points
Last Year Rank Position: 28th
Last Year Rank NFL: 104th

As one running back's numbers have been dropping, another's have been steadily rising. Tony Pollard has been very much that same ilk of AJ Dillon in that he sits behind a great running back already but still produces some wonderful numbers. Capable of being a good pass option out of the back, Tony Pollard's average of nearly 11 a game is a great foundation moving into 2022, but one which will be needed to be relied on with a slightly weaker offensive line. Edinburgh have solidly picked here, and also picked both Dallas running backs.

Round 6 marks a third of the draft completed, meaning not only that we can look at the positional and team stats, but also take a look at how each team has drafted so far.

Round 6 By Position:
Wide Receiver: 8
Quarterback: 5
Running Back: 2
Tight End: 1

Round 6 By NFL Team:
Tampa Bay: 2
Green Bay: 2
Detroit: 1
Philadelphia: 1
Cincinnati: 1
Denver: 1
New York Jets: 1
Jacksonville: 1
Arizona: 1
Tennessee: 1
New York Giants: 1
New Orleans: 1
Pittsburgh: 1
Dallas: 1

Overall By Position:
Wide Receiver: 46
Running Back: 32
Quarterback: 11
Tight End: 7

Overall By NFL Team:
Tampa Bay: 5
Dallas: 5
Buffalo: 4
Los Angeles Chargers: 4
Baltimore: 4
Kansas City: 4
Las Vegas: 4
Philadelphia: 4
Cincinnati: 4
Denver: 4
Arizona: 4
San Francisco: 3
Los Angeles Rams: 3
Minnesota: 3
Atlanta: 3
Cleveland: 3
Green Bay: 3
Detroit: 3
New York Jets: 3
New Orleans: 3
Pittsburgh: 3
Miami: 2
Carolina: 2
Indianapolis: 2
Washington: 2
Chicago: 2
Seattle: 2
Jacksonville: 2
Tennessee: 2
New York Giants: 2
Houston: 1
New England: 1

Edinburgh Knights
RB1: Jonathan Taylor
RB2: Ezekiel Elliott
RB3: Tony Pollard
WR1: DJ Moore
WR2: Michael Thomas
TE1: George Kittle

Galway Tribesmen
RB1: Nick Chubb
RB2: AJ Dillon
WR1: Cooper Kupp
WR2: A.J. Brown
WR3: Hunter Renfrow
TE1: Darren Waller

Barry Islanders
RB1: Christian McCaffrey
RB2: J.K. Dobbins
RB3: Devin Singletary
WR1: Allen Robinson II
WR2: Chase Claypool
TE1: Travis Kelce

London Steelers
RB1: Austin Ekeler
RB2: Josh Jacobs
RB3: Cordarrelle Patterson
WR1: Adam Thielen
WR2: Chris Olave
TE1: Mark Andrews

Dundee Spinners
RB1: Miles Sanders
WR1: Justin Jefferson
WR2: Jaylen Waddle
WR3: Michael Pittman Jr.
WR4: Drake London
WR5: Russell Gage

Cork City Rebels
QB1: Lamar Jackson
RB1: Saquon Barkley
RB2: Elijah Mitchell
WR1: Ja'Marr Chase
WR2: Terry McLaurin
WR3: Kadarius Toney

Nottingham Sheriffs
RB1: Derrick Henry
RB2: David Montgomery
WR1: Diontae Johnson
WR2: Gabriel Davis
WR3: Treylon Burks
TE1: Dalton Schultz

Swansea Smelters
RB1: Najee Harris
RB2: Breece Hall
WR1: Mike Evans
WR2: Tyler Lockett
WR3: JuJu Smith-Schuster
WR4: DeAndre Hopkins

Birmingham Bulls
RB1: Antonio Gibson
WR1: Davante Adams
WR2: Tee Higgins
WR3: Amari Cooper
WR4: DeVonta Smith
WR5: Christian Kirk

Belfast Giants
QB1: Josh Allen
QB2: Justin Herbert
RB1: Dalvin Cook
WR1: Keenan Allen
WR2: Rashod Bateman
WR3: Elijah Moore

Glasgow Pipers
QB1: Russell Wilson
RB1: Cam Akers
WR1: Stefon Diggs
WR2: Mike Williams
WR3: Courtland Sutton
WR4: Garrett Wilson

Newport Coal Miners
QB1: Joe Burrow
RB1: Aaron Jones
RB2: Kareem Hunt
WR1: Deebo Samuel
WR2: DK Metcalf
WR3: Jerry Jeudy

Bristol Buccaneers
QB1: Aaron Rodgers
RB1: Javonte Williams
RB2: Clyde Edwards-Helaire
WR1: Tyreek Hill
WR2: Brandin Cooks
WR3: Chris Godwin

Cardiff Dragons
QB1: Tom Brady
RB1: D'Andre Swift
RB2: James Conner
RB3: Travis Etienne Jr.
RB4: Damien Harris
WR1: Marquise Brown

Dublin Brewers
QB1: Kyler Murray
QB2: Jalen Hurts
RB1: Joe Mixon
RB2: Leonard Fournette
WR1: Amon-Ra St. Brown
TE1: Kyle Pitts

Aberdeen Oilers
QB1: Patrick Mahomes
QB2: Dak Prescott
RB1: Alvin Kamara
WR1: CeeDee Lamb
WR2: Darnell Mooney
TE1: T.J. Hockenson

The teams start to look interesting with some varying philosophies kicking off the opening third of the draft. Keep a close eye on more content here. Artwork was illustrated by Althea Charlie. Round 7 will be up next!

No comments:

Post a Comment