Draft Reactions and Review

Fantasy Football Season is upon us! The annual MFFL draft occurred last night, August 2, to officially kick off the 2020 fantasy season and delivered way above expectations (much like Cam Akers will). In a hectic draft that featured not only the most ever draft pick trades, a zoom call with some of the most flamboyant managers, and a fully fledged google sheet that automatically updated with each pick, GM Matt of the Tittsburgh Feelers was finally able to make his live draft return after a multi year absence! This easily was the highlight of the draft for me and GM Matt seemed eager to make the most of his participation, eating up nearly all of (and then some) his time allotted for double draft picks each round. With the celebration of the draft and commencement of the 2020 season, a full draft review is in order as we look to break down some of the biggest moments and decisions that went down yesterday. 

Firstly, any manager who knows anything about Fantasy Football knows that the makings of a great fantasy team start and end with a great team name. Just ask any of our champions, your team name is your team's identity, what defines your team and determines if you'll be lifting a trophy come December, or getting your hair cut off and running a 5k in a ridiculous costume. Some managers have adopted a dynasty mentality, sticking with a single team name to define a full era of greatness, while others look to excite year to year with the new hottest name. Even still, a few league managers have taken up the challenge of continuing upon a transcendent theme to redefine their team each year while sticking to their core values. Regarding all of this, the only true way to start a draft review, is to begin with some team name power rankings. Let's take a look at the teams of the MFFL. 

Team Name Power Rankings:

1. Fantasy Football Team- GM Darren struck gold with this team name as he will be looking to lead his generic group of guys back to playoff contention. In an effort to not offend anyone (except maybe Dominic who doesn't know what a fantasy football team is) GM Darren mimics the Washington Football Team in telling us exactly what they are. I, for one, just can't wait for the team logo.
2. Top 2 Not 2- 2nd pick in the draft, only 2 time Champion, 2nd on the list here. While we are sure of the first half of this team name regarding its place on the power rankings, it will take some convincing on the field to have it live up to it's 2nd half. If history tells us anything however, if any manager can do that, its GM Ian. 
3. Bigpapihugetime- There is certainly something to be said about breeding long term success through a singular, long-standing team name, and GM Kurt will tell you all about it. Boasting only one team name since he came into the league, Bigpapihugetime has become the longest standing team name in MFFL history, and a league favorite year in and year out. The players may change from season to season, but one thing is always for certain; when you face the Big Papis, except nothing short of a Huge Time. 
4. Mr. Nice Guy- Quickly forming a dynastic identity of his own, GM Grafton and the Nice Guys have become fan favorites over the years as their team name has helped achieve near pinnacle success. This year should be no different and simply another season to add to their ever growing legacy.
5. Romanian RAPOs-  After a rough last season, GM Michael has opted to continue with the Romanian RAPOs team name. However, perfectly taking advantage of the Millbrook Soccer theme, GM Michael selected RB Clyde EDWARDS-Helaire to commemorate longtime great soccer coach Matt Edwards. Furthermore, the RAPOs have spent the entire offseason mastering the techniques of the pass and concluded that a year of practice and learning was needing before being fully ready to unleash the epic Pace of an Accurate and Open pass. In fact, GM Michael is so confident in his team's passing ability, he didn't even bother drafting a QB. Rest assured however, the RAPOs will be getting off to a Rolling start.
6. DTDB Irish Assassins- Bringing back the DTDB initials once again, GM Connor calls back to a previous epic team of his in the Irish Assassins. The reveal of the Irish themed name is an annual draft day treat that never fails to disappoint, unlike GM Connor's recent fantasy season performances. 
7. It Don't Even Schmatter- GM August's 5 year plan failed miserably, however he isn't getting too bummed about it. Bringing his careless managing approach into his team's true identity, the Lazy Boyz will be poised for a great season this time around; or not, who cares. It don't even schmatter. 
8. Belicheck Yo Self- Attempting to hop onto the dynasty name train, GM David will be continuing with the Yo Selfs this upcoming season. In order to cement themselves into the top tier of long-standing names, they will need a few more seasons of top performances. 
9. 2 Hungover 2 Come- Calling back to the lamest excuse to ever miss a fantasy draft, GM Kelly brings to the 2020 season a humorous team name that can be taken multiple different ways. This team name doesn't exactly scream competitor or intensity, but the gag is solid enough. A meme team that succeeds however is always good fun.
10. Tittsburgh Feelers- A team name that seems to have gone stale, the Feelers have felt up everything but the Ballzac Trophy. Maybe a championship for GM Matt can bring the name back into the dynasty S tier of team names.
11. Scoregasms- You've seen how a great dynasty team name can work for GM Kurt, well this is what happens when they go wrong. Stained with last season's Dansky Bowl finish, GM Brody opted against a rebranding and seems to be continuing on that same trajectory. The 'Gasms team name is all dried out and some new life is desperately needed over in Cum HQ. 
12. All other team names that have ever existed in the history of existence
13. COVID's Warriors- Is there something I'm not getting? What is this garbage? GM Dominic has officially been awarded the worst fantasy team name in the history of MFFL. If garbage is what you want your team's identity to be, then you have certainly succeeded. 

Trade Talk: 

With a record number of mid-draft trades this year, including a round 5-6 which at one point had 6 teams picking out of their original order, there were certainly some big time decisions that occured as managers traded up to get their guys, or traded back to gamble on the value. Here, we will break down the results of some of these draft day trades and see how each side turned out. 

• Top 2 Not 2 and It Don't Even Schmatter trade picks 1 and 2

A blockbuster trade was revealed right at the beginning of the draft, as GM Ian announced he would be trading his #2 overall pick back to GM August, sitting at pick 5. GM August chased after elite RB Saquon Barkley and scooped up TE Travis Kelce with his later 2nd round pick, while GM Ian looked to capitalize on the quickly disappearing 2nd round value by doubling up on RBs Derrick Henry and Chris Carson. GM August seemed elated with his draft day maneuver as he was able to claim 2 fantasy darlings of his. Meanwhile, GM Ian, although happy with the double RB turnout that might not have been available at his original 2nd round selection, was surprise sniped by GM Grafton taking deeply desired RB Dalvin Cook one spot ahead of him at #4. Overall however, this seems like a good trade for both sides with both getting what they wanted. 

• Romanian RAPOs and 2 Hungover 2 Come swap 5th and 6th round picks

  In panic mode over the RBs getting picked off the board as the 5th round rolled on, GM Michael traded up 5 picks in order to solidify his 2nd RB position, being one of the last managers to do so. Selecting Rookie RB Cam Akers in the 5th round, GM Michael was forced to wait a bit too long with the extended wait in the 6th, having to settle for another unproven RB, Derrius Guice, as higher valued players were taken off the board as he was stuck waiting. Meanwhile GM Kelly maximized the value of his 5th round pick by trading back and waiting for RB Ronald Jones II while being able to secure breakout candidate WR Marquise Brown who would not have made it back to his original 6th round pick. GM Kelly was able to get both of the players he wanted, while GM Michael was forced to trade up to get what he needed in the 5th, giving up what he might have wanted in the 6th. 

• GM Grafton trades for, and then trades away 5th round capital for 6th round value

Put simply, GM Grafton was on the phone lines orchestrating trades the entire evening. Being the nice guy that he is, GM Grafton allowed GM August to hop him in picks, trading 1 spot back in the 5th round and acquiring a slightly earlier 6th round pick, which he then proceeded to trade away to GM Connor for the late 5th round and very early 6th round picks that GM Connor was sitting on. These are the kind of transactions that give Commissioner Pasca nightmares, as the google sheets draft board was a full mess for the duration of those two rounds. Nevertheless, GM Grafton ended up with 2 amazing values after all the trades settled with 5th and 6th round acquisitions of WR Calvin Ridley and star QB Deshaun Watson. 

Draft Day Awards:

Let's now dive into a full review of the draft and how some of the teams shaped up. Here are the Draft Day Awards!

• unRivaled RB Room:

GM Connor of DTDB Irish Assassins gathered together the best group of RBs to lead the way for his team. Securing RBs Nick Chubb, Aaron Jones, and Mark Ingram in the first 4 rounds, the Assassins' ground game this season will be absolutely vicious. 

Honorable Mention: Mr. Nice Guy with RBs Dalvin Cook, Leonard Fournette, and Jonathan Taylor

• Wildest WR Weapons:

GM Michael went WR heavy and early, drafting 3 straight WRs in the 2nd-4th rounds and ending up with 7 WRs total. WRs Julio Jones, Kenny Golladay, and Robert Woods will look to be a lethal air strike trio on a team that has unproven talent littered among its RB group filled with 5 guys that have combined for 5 total seasons in the NFL.

Honorable Mention: COVID's Warriors with WRs Michael Thomas, DeAndre Hopkins, and Stefon Diggs.

• Bye Week Blindness:

GM David of Belicheck Yo Self clearly did not bother to even glance at the Bye Week schedule while drafting this year. With 6 RBs on the roster, 4 of them all share a week 9 bye, including the 3 starters: Joe Mixon, Myles Sanders, and Kareem Hunt. Expect the Yo Self front office to be frantically scouring the Waiver Wire to avoid a bye week disaster come week 9. 

• Rubbish RB Rodeo:

Nearing the end of the 7th round of the draft, 9 teams had already secured 3 RBs to fill their RB room, with the other 2 teams already having fulfilled their 2 starting RB positions. GM Brody of Scoregasms had a single RB in Josh Jacobs. Eventually doubling up on RBs in the later rounds, GM Brody attempted to fill in the gaps however still holds by far the weakest RB room in the league with either RB Jordan Howard or James White needing to be a weekly starter as the teams 2nd RB. GM Brody will surely be wishing for a hero in RB Josh Jacobs to pick up the slack if he has any hope to get a legitimate ground game going this season.

• Wackiest WR Weakness:

GM August became the last manager to draft a WR, selecting WR Juju Smith-Schuster in the 5th round. Adding on the 2nd WR the following round in Terry McLaurin, It Don't Even Schmatter said exactly that in regards to their WRs. 

• Superb Starting Squad:

Although weak at the WR position, GM August and It Don't Even Schmatter boast the greatest starting lineup in the league with 1 of the top 2 players at 3 different positions: RB Saquon Barkley, TE Travis Kelce, and QB Patrick Mahomes. At full strength, this team looks all set to be a formidable opponent and could be even stronger if some backup pieces breakout into startable options as well.

Honorable Mention: DTDB Irish Assasssins and 2 Hungover 2 Come 

That will wrap things up for our Draft Reactions and Review! As we get set for our greatest season yet, we here at MFFL Studios are wishing all teams health and good fortune in training camp and throughout the season. May the Force be with you all!

#FOOTBALLISBACK