Team Five: A-
FiveThous has done a very good job of assembling a team in this draft, with no glaring weaknesses at the skill positions. His defense may be an issue for him, as he essentially punted there and, as of this writing, doesn't really have any high-potential youth there either. That said, this should be a highly competitive team both this year and going forward.
Offensively, FiveThous' only glaring long-term issue is at the quarterback position. Stafford was a great choice, though. He's a constantly underrated quarterback who is pretty consistently a QB1 in fantasy football. Last year, he finished sixth in QB scoring, and I'd expect a similar showing this year. Roethlisberger, on the other hand, is a terrific short-term draft pick, but his long-term prospects are questionable. There's been talk that he could retire as soon as next spring. This wouldn't be an issue normally, as FiveThous has a third starter in Sam Bradford, but Bradford's long-term prospects as a starter are equally in doubt. He's a decent game managing quarterback, but I wouldn't be shocked if the Vikings replaced him either with a returning Bridgewater or, if that fails, via the draft.
At the running back position, FiveThous has assembled a very quality squad filled with starters and high-upside back-ups with starter potential. Todd Gurley is likely in for a bounce-back year with a coach who is actually competent. Hyde is constantly the subject of rumors that he may not start and that the new regime isn't behind him, but he's easily the best back on that roster by a mile. Durability is a question with Hyde, to be sure, but if he's healthy, he'll be the lead back in San Francisco this year, and he shouldn't struggle to catch on somewhere else if he leaves the Niners next spring. Jonathan Stewart is nearing the end of his career, but if nothing else he should remain a decent flex play this year. Tevin Coleman is a Devonta Freeman injury away from being an RB1, and has maintained fantasy relevance even as the secondary back in Atlanta.
I'm also a big fan of Duke Johnson. He's been a highly efficient player when he's gotten touches in the past, and there's talk that the Browns will try to get him the ball more often, which shows they realize this. And while any catches he makes out of the slot will be less valuable than those coming from an actual WR (RBs receive .5 PPR less per catch in this league's scoring), any additional touches he gets are only good for his fantasy owners. I'm also very high on Marlon Mack, and think there's a good chance that he becomes the lead back in Indiana this year. The rest of his backs aren't much to write home about, but there are at least some rookies with decent satellite back potential in Henderson and Jones.
FiveThous has put together a nice receiving squad as well, headlined by AJ Green and Stefon Diggs. Green is consistently one of the best receivers in fantasy, and Diggs should be in line for another good year as the lead WR in Minnesota. Jordan Matthews was a sneaky good pick just after it was announced that he was traded to the Bills. He'll almost certainly be the main target there unless Zay Jones somehow usurps him. It's possible, but I'd consider it unlikely given Jones' absolutely horrid 7th percentile YPR in college, an impossibly bad stat for someone with Jones' elite athleticism. He's also got a couple of lottery tickets in Taywan Taylor, Paul Richardson, and Devin Funchess. It's possible that none of these guys ever amounts to anything, but having high-upside youth on your roster is never a bad thing in a dynasty league. Similarly, Enunwa was a solid pick even though he's going to spend the season on IR. He may not be the lead WR when he comes back next year, but I think he proved last year that he was at least good enough to be the WR2 for the Jets going forward, and next year they may have an actual QB!
The TE position is probably where FiveThous is weakest offensively. This makes sense, as it was a position that he waited until the 18th round to address. However, he did get Antonio Gates there, and while Gates is clearly on the decline and this may be his final year in the league, it's hard to argue with his value at that point in the draft. He also ended up with two prospects that I am very high on in Erik Swoope and George Kittle. Swoope is a former basketball player who is hoping to make the transition to elite TE much like Gates and Graham before him. He's a solid long-term prospect, if nothing else. The same goes for Kittle, who may not earn a ton of playing time this year with Vance ahead of him, but should pay dividends down the road as a prospect with absolutely elite athleticism. Next year could be an issue for this team, though, as Gates may be gone and his project players may not be ready yet.
Defense is the clear weak point for this team, though. While his starters are solid, he has no back-ups as of this writing and no guys early in their careers with high ceilings. The guys he's got are who they are at this point, and mostly they are average. Not terrible, but not amazing either. I understand the strategy of punting the position, as I did much the same with my own draft, but you'd very much like to end up with at least a couple of defensive lottery tickets if that's the case, and the bulk of those guys have already been drafted, leaving FiveThous picking up the scraps. It shouldn't hurt him too much in the short-term, but it may be a problem that he'll need to address down the line.
As a last note, FiveThous owns all of his future draft picks and one additional third-round pick, so he's well set up for the future.
All in all, FiveThous is walking out of the draft with one of the better rosters in our league. It's a fine balance of guys who can help him win now and guys that have some future potential. His quarterback situation and his defense will need some long-term attention, and he may be in trouble at TE in a year or two if his prospects don't pan out, but he's set up very well for this year and, for the most part, going forward as well.
Favorite Pick(s): Matt Stafford (#58), Marlon Mack (#178)
FiveThous smartly grabbed Stafford right at the end of the brutal fifth round QB run as one of the last reasonably young QB1s on the board. He also grabbed Marlon Mack just one pick ahead of where I was planning to draft him, an excellent pick given Mack's potential upside.
Least Favorite Pick(s): Carlos Hyde (#34), Dion Sims (#226)
While I like Hyde as a player, I'd be dubious of drafting him this high given his injury history and uncertain future. I think this pick would have been better used on another of the few remaining top-tier WRs left on the board, as they tend to have longer, more stable shelf lives in dynasty, or on a top TE given this league's scoring system. As for Sims, I think he's a low-upside guy whose team just drafted a great receiving TE, and there were just generally better TE prospects on the board at that point.
