I pick sixth in my money league tonight. I have a rule that I don't draft a receiver until the running backs I perceive as elite are off the board. I have nine of them: Chris Johnson Arian Foster Adrian Peterson Ray Rice LeSean McCoy Rashard Mendenhall Jamaal Charles Darren McFadden Maurice Jones-Drew Assuming the bolded are off the board, I'm having a hard time deciding which one (of the remaining backs) I would take. LeSean McCoy often has his scoring opportunities taken away by Michael Vick. Rashard Mendenhall doesn't catch enough passes. Maurice Jones-Drew is a major risk due to his knee red flags. Darren McFadden has only had one good year, but talent-wise he's off the charts. I always say that in a pay league, you either go big or you go home. Meaning the teams that have the most "boom" players usually win the trophy (in this case the money). What would you do?
One of the 5 you bolded out will probably be there. Someone in the top will take Vick or AJ or someone. In my money draft AJ was taken 5th.
Take Shady or MJD, especially if it's PPR. Why take McFadden here when you can possibly get him in the 2nd round? McFadden's been going in the middle of Rd 2 in every PPR league I'm in, and even lower in others.
It's not PPR. We start 2 RBs and 3 WRs. Darren McFadden's ADP is currently at 2.02. I have the 7th pick in the 2nd round.
I would go Mendenhall over McFadden in non-PPR, but it's close. I wouldn't get on you too much taking McFadden there. I thought hard about taking him at 8 in my main league, but then a deal came up where I could move up to 4 to get Charles, so I did that.
Take McCoy in the first and Steven Jackson in the 2nd then collect your winnings at the end of the year. Shit, McFadden might even be there in the 2nd.
I'll most likely take a receiver in the 2nd round over S-Jax. I think Felix Jones will have a better season than S-Jax so that's who I'm targeting in the 3rd (unless Mike Wallace is available in the 3rd for some reason).
I'm doing a mock right now and the RBs available at 6 were McCoy, Mendenhall, McFadden, and MJD. Between those four, I think I'm taking McFadden.
In both my money leagues those 5 were all taken with the 1st 5 picks. I would personally take Mendenhall just because his success is a little more sustained than McFadden and he's less of an injury risk. McFadden has a slightly higher upside, but Mendenhall is a pretty safe bet, which I think is what you want if you are going RB in the first round. If you're looking to take a risk go with Vick, AJ, or Rodgers. If you want to be safe go with Mendenhall.
Do what makes you the most comfortable. I'd rather take Mendenhall or MJD and wait for McFadden in the next round. I drafted him 22nd in a league this year. The earliest I've seen him go in any mock or actual draft is 17. You're drafting at 19.
I've pretty much decided that between those four, there's no way I'm drafting MJD. Way too much risk after coming off knee surgery (and now McCown's the starting QB). LeSean McCoy is probably the safest option as he'll always be involved in the offense (no matter the situation) but he doesn't excite me. Between Rashard Mendenhall and Darren McFadden, I have two players I really like. I've always called Mendenhall AP Lite because of their similar physical attributes and tough running styles. However, McFadden is probably inarguably the most physically gifted of the four backs. He'll catch passes while Mendenhall won't get the 3rd down work. He'll always be "the guy" in the offense unlike McCoy who will often have to relinquish to Vick in the red zone. He is no where near the injury risk that MJD is, plus he's younger and still has untapped potential. I think I'm going with DMC.
Alright, so this was one of the weirdest pay league drafts I've ever participated in. Here's what I got: 1) Darren McFadden 2) Rashard Mendenhall 3) Dez Bryant 4) Santonio Holmes 5) Matthew Stafford 6) Julio Jones 7) Jimmy Graham 8) Beanie Wells 9) Kyle Orton 10) Rob Gronkowski 11) Michael Crabtree 12) Greg Little 13) San Francisco DST (vs. Seattle) 14) Alex Henery
