An analyst-by-analyst look at their drafted teams after the latest IDP Guys mock draft
Welcome to the latest edition of my IDP Beginner Series. I gathered most of the IDPGuys.org writers as well as a fan (@Myndflyte) for our latest mock draft. The mock was a 12-team, Full PPR, Superflex, and tackle heavy. I enjoyed seeing the different approaches the analysts took and finally creating an offense and IDP player pool required a significant increase in attention to detail.
With that being said, let’s look at the results:
Two notes about the draft overall before going into the team-by-team analysis:
- The first defensive player was Joey Bosa at 7.01. A wide variety of talented offensive players were still available but Joey Bosa is likely to be a position-dominating player at DL so it is justified.
- Looking at this draft it is important to note just how valuable quarterbacks are in the Superflex format. 13 quarterbacks were taken in the first three rounds. Many of the teams had already filled both quarterback slots by that time. You don’t want to find yourself at the end of a quarterback run.
BrianDFF(me, @BrianDFF on Twitter):
For starters, I went with David Johnson. The guy is an absolute beast and has the potential to earn 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards. I then followed up with the old men Tom Brady and Philip Rivers to lock in my QB position for the rest of the season. This tends to be my strategy when playing the Superflex format: get my quarterbacks early and benefit from value players falling to me in later rounds.
Even after taking two QBs I was able to land two potential top 10 WRs. After 5 rounds, however, I had to take a few dart-throws at RBs, including Sony Michel, Tarik Cohen, and Aaron Jones(pre-suspension). I was able to grab Landon Collins, an elite player at his position before an IDP run began. There were 18 defensive players taken in the 8th and 9th round and the run would probably have come a round earlier had it not been for Superflex.
A few players I like to target in the mid to late rounds:
Mike Williams: Talented wide receiver from Clemson who has high draft capital. He should get first look at the Chargers #2 WR position and could be a late round steal with a ton of upside.
Dont’a Hightower: Extremely talented LB who will be the clear starter upon his return from injury. He has been banged up the last few years but when you are picking him up late you are looking for high upside. He finished with 89 combined tackles and 6 sacks.
Quincy Enunwa: Forgotten about after an injury ended last season, Enunwa might be the biggest steal of this year. With over 800 yards and 4 touchdowns in 2016, look for Enunwa to have a bounce-back year, potentially proving he is the #1 in New York.
Now, on to the experts.
(Their Twitter names will be first, followed by their Sleeperbot username on the mock if it is different).
(Analyst’s comments will be in italics. Mine won’t.)
@OrangeMan3142(RobinHood31):
Took best available 1st with Hopkins, then got cook as a risky RB1 but could have huge numbers. Went with both quarterbacks since its Superflex: Stafford and Mariota, not who I wanted but they’ll do. Rounded out WRs with D Thomas, Funchess, and Hurns. Jimmy Graham for TE. Not a terrible offense. Grabbed Chris Ivory because of McCoy‘s impending doom from the domestic abuse stuff and hyde as another backup. Got Lamar Jackson in case he takes over and blows up later this season.
On defense got CJ Mosley, Avery Williamson, Daron Lee, Raekwon McMillan and Wesley Woodyard for 4x LB slots (2x of them flex D). Solid linebackers. Got Poyer and Budda Baker for DB with Jenkins as a backup, also solid. Took DeMarcus Lawrence and Akiem hicks for DL with a Bradley chubb backup, also very solid. All in all, I would say the offense is decent, like a B- or C +. Defense is terrific, solid A-. Not too bad at all.
I like the way Jon drafts. He mixes his teams with a diverse mix of guys with upside and safe plays. He needs another top RB with Henry and Hyde as his second and third options. They might not be in starting roles when the season starts.
@HBogart27(IDPTipster):
I need to admit that I was caught off guard mid-sixth. My bad was not catching the format and was confused when the QBs were flying off the board. Imagine when I was told it was a “super-flex”, a format I hadn’t tried in years. So after seeing the top QBs go, I stuck to my plan anyhow. The scoring was set “even” between the offense and IDPs, so I drafted my target Deion Jones, the first IDP off the board.
When thinking it was a regular format I’d planned to go QB around the ninth, and picking Jones or a top LB early was going to happen anyhow. I actually think that it might have worked out in the end. My QBs might be mediocre, but if I was to enter the season with Bortles(14th rd), Tayler(15th rd), and Flacco(18th rd), I’d play the matchups and hope that at one would out produces their draft position. I don’t recall the lineup requirements, imagine that, but I don’t hate this:
QB(2): Bortles/Taylor or Flacco
RB(2): Zeke/Ajayi or Burkhead
WR(2-3): Adams/Hill/Hilton
TE(1-2): Gronk/Doyle
DL(2): Ingram/Harrison
LB(2-4): Jones/Kuechly/Z. Brown/Barron or A. Williams
DB(2): Johnson/Burnett or Bell
It’s possible I could put up a fight with some luck, even if there was no trade for a QB upgrade. My interest has peaked in this mock and I’ve since joined a real “SF” league. Holding on tight, this could be a rough ride.
Gary’s team is dominant on the defensive side but certainly doesn’t have a bad offensive team. Certainly, you wish his QBs could be better but he explained that. His WRs are very good and his RBs are solid. He also has potentially the top-two LBs in the league, along with a few other high-ceiling guys.
@ONUTyjo:
Found myself following the same strategy I have in most drafts this year: load up on WR early if you don’t land the top 4 backs, always load up on off-ball LB. Wait on the second QB and safety. I absolutely love how this team turned out. Brees, Kelce, Mixon, and Mack aren’t really big targets for me but I felt they were massive values here.
Lynch, Ngakoue, and Eifert were other values that I loved. My big mistake here was drafting Kelce and Watkins. I hate stacking teammates that are going to be competing for targets. Just kind of overlooked it here with a few drafts going on simultaneously.
I want to highlight a few IDP picks from the “IDP Dynasty Authority”. Chandler Jones and Myles Garrett give you two very high upside guys at DL. Danny Trevathan will be a high tackle player this season. I thought he could’ve waited for a round or two for Burfict because of his suspension. Lynch and Eifert have high upside and their price is significantly lower than the risk.
@ChiRuxinIDP(ChiRuxin):
I was slotted with the eighth pick in the draft – not my ideal spot. I went running back, wide receiver and two top-12 quarterbacks in the first four rounds. This is super-flex and quarterbacks were going like crazy. I then grabbed value at running back in the fifth and upside at the position in the sixth. I finished that off with Corey Davis in the seventh. Davis has the potential to be a top-20 receiver this year.
Now for the defense! I grabbed Kwon Alexander and Tremaine Edmunds. With how the rosters are constructed, linebackers are important. Edmunds has a great situation. The Bills love to reward solo tackles and the offense should be so bad Edmunds will see plenty of opportunities.
I like to target IDP around the 8th round of most drafts. This could vary depending on roster size and construction, but it is my rule of thumb on considering the switch from offense to defense. I grabbed a top-8 defensive end and a solid young safety. Then I went for consistent value at linebacker and sprinkled in offensive skill positions. Overall, I am not thrilled about this team, but it has some solid pieces and upside plays that should make it competitive.
I like Rob’s top-end team. Barkley Allen for his first two picks, with Kirk and Ryan as your QBs. He also has very tackle-heavy defensive players which give him a safe floor. I think Rob’s team is better then he gives himself credit for. Another reminder to make sure you know your league settings.
@FFStompy(Stompy33):
My basic strategy was to fill out my starting offensive lineup, sans TE, before I started picking IDP. In Superflex, I tend to start picking up QBs in the 3rd round. QB is really deep right now, so I choose to wait. I chose not to pick a TE earlier because beyond the top 3 of 4, it’s a crapshoot and there are some high upside guys later on.
IDPs started going earlier than I wanted to take them, which meant that a lot of LBs were taken. Sean Lee, though injury prone, is a top 10 LB and he somehow dropped to me. I normally don’t like taking LBs early, but a lot of them went and Lee dropping forced my hand. That started a run of IDPs for me. I waited a bit on safety because the top safeties were gone and the value is in later safeties.
After that, I mixed and matched offensive and defensive players. I really like the later round IDPs I got. They are under the radar guys that have been productive and could take the next step. Overall really like my team, especially picking at the back on a turn.
Sam’s team might be the best in the league. Being at the turn, he was able to control positional runs and grab the value when a player fell to him. He seemingly grabbed good value everywhere. Robert Quinn is also becoming a favorite late-round grab of mine.
@A5hcrack:
My first two picks were RBs. Bell and McCaffrey should be top tier in PPR. Between my third pick, Newton, and my fourth pick all the worthwhile QBs went. Not a great scenario for Superflex. I swung for the fences in the rest of the draft to try and make up for my quarterback disparity. I took the second IDP off the board with Mack.
Then I took two locks for 100 tackles at the DB spot with Neal and Jones. I could have the worst team in this draft. If even half of my gamble’s pay off though, I have a shot to win this league. When the draft goes away from you at the start you need to alter your strategy to fit.
Ash has shown his IDP expertise with elite talent to fill his lineup. Lev Bell and McCaffery were great starts and I believe the key to waiting on WRs is grabbing Golden Tate. Perfect high floor, medium ceiling type guy that could present stability a little later in drafts.
@gardner_rake(gardcj83):
So first things first I’d be interested to see how this team played out in a league, but I wouldn’t expect much. And getting the first mock done as a Superflex league became very eye-opening as the draft rolled on. I had no issue pairing Hunt and Fournette together as one-two picks. And seeing three QBs selected before I took Fournette in the second didn’t really register on my radar. But then the third round happened…
Eight more QBs were selected before I felt my hand forced to take who I thought to be the best QB in the third. I settled on Goff. And settling on Goff should be okay because the third-year QB should break 30 passing TDs and 4,200 yards passing this season. The fourth round is where I wish I could go back. I took a risk building depth at RB with McKinnon and hoping for some WR value in the fifth.
While I like McKinnon a lot in San Fran’s offense, I would take a WR here if I could have the pick back and take Thielen or Fitzgerald. I snagged Lavonte David with the ninth pick of the ninth round and came away with what I thought is really good value here and that David can find his way back to a season about 80-tackles.
Really like Roquan Smith a lot and wasn’t passing him up here in the 10th round. He could be in for a huge rookie season. Taking Jarrad Davis adds another player who should only become better in his third season. Davis will be a three-down linebacker for the Lions this season. I like Bears safety Adrian Amos, who started 10 games in 2017 with 60 tackles, as a flier in the later rounds. Marquise Goodwin is a sneaky flier in the last round who could build on his Week 11 to Week 14 stretch in 2017.
Garnder had a nice draft. He secured his running back position with his first two picks but sacrificed value at another position by taking McKinnon and Penny in the fourth and fifth. He was then left to pick from the flyer WRs. It is a risky game to play but could work out if he hits on a few of them. Roquan Smith that high is a risk as rookies are hit or miss.
Thank you for reading another IDP Beginner Series article. My next one will take a look at every team’s defensive scheme and how that will impact their IDP players.
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