I participated in a six-person contest on DRAFT for NFL Week 14. Below are my round-by-round impressions and thoughts as to why I made each selection and what I could have done better. This is meant to be used as a general guide before embarking on your own personal conquest on DRAFT.
Why did I choose a six-person contest? I’m glad you asked! DRAFT is running a six-person tournament called the “HYPE TRAIN” for NFL Week 14. The entry is $5 with $17.5k in prizes and the champion (of the multi-week bracket) collecting a cool $2k. You can see more details in the DRAFT Lobby, and even play free by using Rotoworld’s exclusive bonus on first deposits – info and link in the next paragraph!
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ROUND 1
Team 1. Saquon Barkley – RB
Team 2. Christian McCaffrey – RB
Team 3. Todd Gurley – RB
My team. Ezekiel Elliott – RB
Team 5. Alvin Kamara – RB
Team 6. Patrick Mahomes – QB
I wouldn’t advise taking Saquon Barkley ahead of Christian McCaffrey, but that’s how things started off in this particular draft. I’m happy Barkley went first, which allowed me to take Elliott as the fourth overall pick. For reference, my personal RB rankings go like this: 1) McCaffrey 2) Gurley 3) Elliott 4) Kamara 5) Barkley 6) A.Jones.
Patrick Mahomes is on his own level, but I’m still not a fan of taking him in the first round. I say this every week, so we might as well get it out of the way: the quarterback position is deep and you only need one of them! Go ahead and take a look at Round 5, where I was able to snag Cam Newton as one of the last overall picks. That is not a fluke, as a quality QB like Newton, Watson, Rivers, or somebody else will likely be waiting for you.
ROUND 2
Team 6. Keenan Allen – WR
Team 5. Antonio Brown – WR
My team. Michael Thomas – WR
Team 3. Davante Adams – WR
Team 2. DeAndre Hopkins – WR
Team 1. Aaron Jones – RB
There’s a cluster of receivers in the top tier. That includes Michael Thomas, Julio Jones, Davante Adams, DeAndre Hopkins, and Keenan Allen. Thomas is one of my personal favorites within that, looking at an excellent bounce-back spot vs Tampa Bay. I could’ve went with RB Aaron Jones in this spot, but the running back position has more depth than usual this week – which we’ll explain later in the article.
ROUND 3
Team 1. Julio Jones – WR
Team 2. Philip Lindsay – RB
Team 3. Nick Chubb – RB
My team. Jaylen Samuels – RB
Team 5. Travis Kelce – WR/TE
Team 6. Tyreek Hill – WR
Jaylen Samuels is underrated with a 12.0 fantasy point projection on DRAFT. Some people are worried that he will split carries with Stevan Ridley, but I’m expecting Samuels to handle the vast majority of Pittsburgh’s RB work this Sunday. This matchup is fantastic at Oakland, and the game flow plays into Samuels’ favor. He has legitimate 20-25 FP upside, which is why I took him in the third round here.
ROUND 4
Team 6. Austin Ekeler – RB
Team 5. David Johnson – RB
My team. Mike Evans – WR
Team 3. Drew Brees – QB
Team 2. Aaron Rodgers – QB
Team 1. JuJu Smith-Schuster – WR
This was a tough decision point for my team. I was set at running back while knowing I could wait on a quality quarterback. My focus was clearly set on finding a strong receiving option in this spot, but it’s like splitting hairs when looking at this tier. Mike Evans, Adam Thielen, Odell Beckham Jr, and Amari Cooper were all in contention. My final decision with Mike Evans was based on upside. He has an intriguing matchups vs New Orleans, and Tampa will be passing the ball a ton – per usual. This six-person tournament draft should have you thinking upside, upside, upside – as the first team advances to the next round. It doesn’t pay dividends to play it safe. That’s my mentality when going into these draft rooms.
ROUND 5
Team 1. Ben Roethlisberger – QB
Team 2. Brandin Cooks – WR
Team 3. Adam Thielen – WR
My team. Cam Newton – QB
Team 5. Deshaun Watson – QB
Team 6. Joe Mixon – RB
I teased it earlier, but look at all of these quality quarterbacks you are able to snag in the final round of six-person leagues. Cam Newton is my third ranked QB of the week, and he fell to this spot. Philip Rivers checks in as QB4 on my list, and he wasn’t even drafted.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
For more tips and strategy on how to win your DRAFT leagues this weekend, check out the DRAFT NFL Strategy article posted earlier this week. Combining that column with this Mock Draft provides a potent one-two punch to make you more informed than your competition.
Comparing the Week 14 Rankings from our experts alongside the DRAFT projections is another quick tool to help your DRAFT strategy.
Best of luck and happy drafting this weekend!
