Happy Tuesday my Fantasy Guru fam! The summer is here and it is extremely hot in South Florida, but thank goodness for a wise man called Willis Carrier who invented air conditioning. I have —- yes you know it — my Cuban coffee in hand and I am ready to roll, so let’s jump right into it.
It’s that time of the week where we find ourselves in a draft with a decision to make. Remember, each week I will walk you through a scenario you may be faced with on draft day and present multiple options, then choosing the way I would go about it. There will also be weeks where I just talk about one player, in a specific format and round, and elaborate on why that player will likely make my roster at that time.
We are two rounds in the draft that we started with the eighth overall pick. At this point our roster consists of Julio Jones and Nick Chubb. Today we will continue with that same team and make our third round selection at the 3.08. The format remains the same, a 12-team PPR league and the roster consists of 1-QB, 2-RB, 3-WR, 1-TE, 1-Flex, 1-Defense, and 1-Kicker. Here is the draft board.
| PICK | PLAYER | POS | PICK | PLAYER | POS | PICK | PLAYER | POS |
| 1.01 | Saquon Barkley | RB | 2.12 | T.Y. Hilton | WR | 3.01 | Zach Ertz | TE |
| 1.02 | Alvin Kamara | RB | 2.11 | Adam Thielen | WR | 3.02 | Keenan Allen | WR |
| 1.03 | Christian McCaffrey | RB | 2.1 | Damien Williams | RB | 3.03 | Patrick Mahomes | QB |
| 1.04 | Ezekiel Elliott | RB | 2.09 | Mike Evans | WR | 3.04 | Leonard Fournette | RB |
| 1.05 | DeAndre Hopkins | RB | 2.08 | Dalvin Cook | RB | 3.05 | Devonta Freeman | RB |
| 1.06 | Melvin Gordon | RB | 2.07 | Antonio Brown | WR | 3.06 | Marlon Mack | RB |
| 1.07 | Davante Adams | WR | 2.06 | Travis Kelce | TE | 3.07 | Aaron Jones | RB |
| 1.08 | Julio Jones | WR | 2.05 | Nick Chubb | RB | 3.08 | **ON THE CLOCK** | |
| 1.09 | David Johnson | RB | 2.04 | Todd Gurley | RB | 3.09 | ||
| 1.10 | LeVeon Bell | RB | 2.03 | JuJu Smith-Schuster | WR | 3.10 | ||
| 1.11 | Michael Thomas | WR | 2.02 | Joe Mixon | RB | 3.11 | ||
| 1.12 | James Conner | RB | 2.01 | Odell Beckham Jr | WR | 3.12 |
YOU’RE ON THE CLOCK!
Another round is in the books and even though a ton of talent is off the board, there are still plenty of appealing choices left on the board to choose from. Based on my rankings, here are the top options on my list.
WR Amari Cooper, Cowboys – Cooper was traded to the Cowboys midway through last season and immediately became a very productive wide out, after starting out the season very slow. In nine games with Dallas, he caught 53 passes for 725 yards and scored six touchdowns. During that stretch, he was one touchdown shy of his career high seven touchdowns that he caught in 2017 and it was in five less games. From Weeks 9 through 17, Cooper was 12th in receiving yards among receivers, tied third in receiving touchdowns, and 12th in fantasy points, all while averaging a healthy 2.99 fantasy points per touch. The Cowboys put Cooper in a position to succeed and he did just that. His talent has never been the issue, he had just failed to break out of his shell, but that does not seem like it is going to be an issue in Dallas. A career year is very possible for Cooper this season, making him a very enticing choice with this pick.
WR A.J. Green, Bengals – Coming off of an injury that forced him to miss six games in 2018, Green is a bit of a risk here. Not to mention, he has only played a full season in four of the eight years in the league, so durability is also a concern. With that said, he is currently healthy and expected to be a full-go as early as training camp. Let’s face it, there is no denying that when Green is healthy, he is one of the better receivers in the league. He has posted 1,000+ receiving yards seasons in six of his eight seasons, has an impressive career average of 80.2 receiving yards per game, and has six or more touchdown passes in all but one season. In every season that he has played all 16 games, Green has finished as a top 10 wide receiver in fantasy points (PPR formats). Considering I have not selected players with a ton of risk up to this point, taking a chance with a player like Green, offering this much upside, is very tempting.
RB Kerryon Johnson, Lions – I am pretty high on Johnson this season and think he could be in for a huge sophomore year in the NFL. He played just 10 games as a rookie and rushed for 641 yards on 118 carries with three rushing touchdowns, while averaging a very healthy 5.4 yards per carry. In addition to an efficient runner, he displayed his skills as a pass catcher, with 32 receptions for 213 yards and a touchdown. Not to mention his 82 percent catch rate. The Lions are looking to be a run first team under Matt Patricia as we saw last season. In 2018, they averaged three more rushing plays per game than they did in 2017. In fact, in the final three games of the season, Detroit was seventh in rush attempts per game with 29. Johnson is an explosive back that showed the ability to manage a heavy workload and be an efficient player. The team did sign C.J. Anderson which could have some impact on Johnson’s true ceiling, but I still think the Lions are going to feature Johnson as their back and he could have a breakout season. Having him as my No. 2 RB is very appealing, as I think he could easily finish as a top 12 back in fantasy making him a potential RB1.
RB Derrick Henry, Titans – Henry has been a running back I have been drafting since he joined the league and after two let down seasons, he finally erupted last year in a big way. He posted career highs in rushing yards (1,059), rushing touchdowns (12), yards per carry (4.9), rush attempts (215), and receptions (15). Of course he did this the year I was least bullish on him and had the fewest shares. This season should be another strong one for Henry who is the clear-cut bell-cow for Tennessee. He runs behind a very solid offensive line and displayed the ability to be an every down back. He was also utilized a team-high 54.5 percent of the time inside the 20-yard line in rushing plays, converting 23 percent of those touches into touchdowns. I would not be surprised to see him have a breakout season this year, even after his career season in 2018. He, alongside Nick Chubb, would be a great one-two combination for my roster.
MY CHOICE
This was a tough decision for me as I like all these players quite a bit. Both backs are breakout candidates in my eyes. While each of these receivers are strong options and one of them has shown the ability to be a top five wide out multiple times throughout his career. Let’s make our pick — A.J. Green it is!
Ultimately my decision was based on the way I like to build my roster, the players already on my team, and what could land to me in the next couple of rounds. At the time of the pick, there was not a ton of risk on my roster with Jones and Chubb, so taking Green’s upside made a lot of sense to me despite the injury concerns and risk factors. We know that when Green is healthy, he is consistently producing each week and is a reliable fantasy wide out. Having him and Jones on the team, gives me two players that could finish in the top five of their position. I like the value I am getting on Green with this pick and thought he was the best bang for my buck. This team has a strong foundation combining high floors with plenty of upside.
That’s it for this week’s edition of “On The Clock”. See ya next week my peeps!
