Dynasty League Virgin: #2, The Rookie Draft

With the veteran draft for the new dynasty league out of the way, it was time to get set for the rookie draft. I was initially picking at 1.11. With a glaring need at RB and on the defence, I wasn’t going to be happy with my first pick. Chances were that the top tier of backs would be gone, and the prospect of taking an IDP in the first round make me uneasy.

Moving Back

I decided to trade back. And back again. Pick 1.11 was traded away for four picks (2, 2×3, 6). I had a glaring need at RB coming out of the veteran draft. This was coupled with a fear that the top tier backs would be gone by 1.11. In the end, I decided to move back into the second round and accumulate more draft capital instead.

Grady Jarrett was a late round pick of mine in the veteran draft. He was traded away for another second round pick, where there should still be some decent IDP value. With a wealth of veteran IDP talent that had gone undrafted, it made too much sense to accept the trade.

A third and admittedly less eye catching trade was a move back four spots from 3.11 to 4.03, with 6.03 thrown into the bargain. Again, the purpose of the trade was purely to pick up more picks.

And with that, ten rookie picks became 15. The draft picks are there if I need to get aggressive on draft night and move back up the board. We’ll just have to wait and see how the board falls on the night. 

Moving out of the first round is a risk I’m willing to take. With a ton of mid-round draft capital, I feel more comfortable reaching for promising IDP talent. The most glaring needs on the roster could well be addressed in the second round, or so I’m hoping.

I might not get a player with the name recognition of Chase Young or JK Dobbins, but there’ll inevitably be talented guys that fall out of the first round. That’s where I hope to swoop.

Moving Up

As soon as the draft order was announced, a huge trade was completed between two Miami Dolphins fans desperate to draft their new quarterback. The guy who was sitting on pick 1.01 has Patrick Mahomes as QB1. Rather than pair Mahomes with Tua Tagovailoa or even Joe Burrow, he found a rival willing to trade it all for the first overall pick.

In a trade of two parts, Player A gave up pick 1.01 and DeVante Parker for Player B’s 10 rookie draft picks and Albert Wilson. The trade was initially rejected by the rules committee, however a majority of players voted to overrule the decision.

Free agency beckons

One thing is for sure, free agency will be interesting. Players drafted in the veteran draft may need to be cut in order to fit roster restrictions of 30 players per team. Other players will be looking to fill gaps in their side that haven’t been plugged in the previous drafts.

This is what I’ve enjoyed the most about the dynasty league. In a redraft league, the excitement of the draft is over as soon as it has begun. With a dynasty draft, you can draft three times (vet, rookie, supplemental) and still not feel satisfied.

Wish me luck. I might need it. 

Tom Scott @downthemannyrd