Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
This Sunday night some of the writers at Rant Sports had another fantasy football mock draft. This time it was an auction.
Here is my complete breakdown of my auction draft:
Auction Picks:
RB Trent Richardson, Cleveland Browns – $55
RB Ray Rice, Baltimore Ravens – $53
RB Steven Jackson, Atlanta Falcons – $31
WR Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons – $30
WR Marques Colston, New Orleans – $26
RB Giovani Bernard, Cincinnati Bengals – $18
RB Eddie Lacy, Green Bay Packers – $12
QB Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys -$10
RB Ben Tate, Houston Texans – $5
RB Rashard Mendenhall, Arizona Cardinals – $1
RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Cincinnati Bengals – $1
WR Greg Jennings, Minnesota Vikings – $1
TE Owen Daniels, Houston Texans – $1
Pittsburgh Steelers Defense – $1
K Sebastian Janikowski, Oakland Raiders – $1
Total Spent: $246
Remaining: $4
Pick Analysis:
$55 – RB Trent Richardson, Cleveland Browns – Richardson scored 11 rushing touchdowns in his rookie season and quickly showed that he is a legitimate fantasy back. He does it all in Cleveland and has absolutely no competition to speak of. I think T-Rich will finish as a top-five back this fantasy season and definitely be worth his $55 price tag.
$53 – RB Ray Rice, Baltimore Ravens – Most people like to load on two stud backs in standard fantasy formats and you will be hard-pressed to find a tougher one-two punch than Richardson and Rice. Rice finished with 1,621 all-purpose yards (1,143 rushing and 478 receiving) last year to along with 10 touchdowns in a supposed down year. He is a bonafide first back and should be drafted like one in all formats.
$31 – RB Steven Jackson, Atlanta Falcons – Jackson will be a touchdown machine in Hot-lanta. QB Matt Ryan has built an amazing chemistry with wideouts Roddy White and Julio Jones and the strong presence of a passing game should only give S-Jax more room to work. Jackson should easily eclipse 10 touchdowns this season in this offense.
$30 – WR Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons – Jones has grabbed 18 touchdowns through his first two professional seasons. Jones has yet to truly breakout, but in Atlanta’s high-powered offense, he can still be a reliable WR1. I think this is the year that Jones finally takes the next step and finishes with over 1,400 yards.
$26 – WR Marques Colston, New Orleans – Colston is one of the last true number one wideouts selected in each draft. He does come with some injury concern, but his All-Pro resume and superstar quarterback still make him a viable top-15 wideout.
$18 RB Giovani Bernard, Cincinnati Bengals – Bernard was an insurance pick. He was my fifth running back, but he could easily end up being a top-20 back by the time the season is over. He has an amazing running/ receiving combination that is very reminiscent of Ray Rice, and if he can just figure out the pass-protection, he will be a fantasy All-Star this season.
$12 – RB Eddie Lacy, Green Bay Packers – Lacy has received vast critic for showing up to camp out of shape. Anyone that has seen him run this preseason, though, would not doubt the ability of this rookie. He possesses an amazing downhill running style that could flourish in Green Bay behind the team’s zone-blocking scheme. Needless to say, I am one guy that is all on in with Lacy.
$10 – QB Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys – Romo was not drawing much attention in the middle of the auction, as just myself and one other owner were the only ones bidding on the three-time Pro Bowler. However, I think he is in store for a bounce back season in 2013 and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him eclipse 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns.
$5 – RB Ben Tate, Houston Texans – With all the talk about Arian Foster’s back injury, I thought Tate was a great sleeper grab. He could end up being the Week 1 starter if Foster can’t go, and that alone is worth the five spot.
$1 RB Rashard Mendenhall, Arizona Cardinals – Mendy has a minor knee sprain at the moment, but he has looked like the team’s number one back this preseason. If he is healthy, he is a steal in the dollar derby.
$1 RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Cincinnati Bengals – The Law Firm is still listed as the number one back in Cincy. For one dollar, I will gladly take the handcuff to the popular rookie back.
$1 WR Greg Jennings, Minnesota Vikings – Jennings was drafted as a top-10 wideout in most formats last season. However, a lingering groin injury and a move to Minnesota has all but killed his fantasy value. He still deserves a spot start once and a while, but he is no longer the WR1 he once was.
$1 – TE Owen Daniels, Houston Texans – Daniels had a career-high six touchdowns receptions last year, but yet he continues to fall down tight end rankings. The former Wisconsin Badger hauled in 18 passes for 172 receiving yards in Houston’s two playoff contests and the tight end really showed what he could do when he is healthy.
$1 – Pittsburgh Steelers Defense – Pittsburgh’s defense is severely falling in drafts this season, but I still have faith in the Blitzberg defense.
$1 – K Sebastian Janikowski, Oakland Raiders - Janikowski finished with 31 field goals last season, which was ranked fifth in the league. Oakland doesn’t exactly have the flashiest offense, so I expect Jano to once again get plenty of chances to kick field goals in 2013.
Depth Chart:
QB Tony Romo
RB Trent Richardson, Ray Rice, Steven Jackson, Eddie Lacy, Giovani Bernard, Rashard Mendenhall, BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Ben Tate
WR Julio Jones, Marques Colston, Greg Jennings
TE Owen Daniels
K Sebastian Janikowski
Def/ ST Pittsburgh Steelers Defense
Conclusion:
I once again tried to load up with running back, as it tends to be by yearly philosophy. I was able to add Ray Rice and Trent Richardson early in the auction; two guys I have ranked inside of my top-six running backs. They may combine for a staggering $108, but to be able to pencil them both in week after week is a steal in my eyes.
I also added studs like S-Jax, Julio jones, Tony Romo, and Marques Colston for a relativity low price, which is the key in auction formats. I absolutely love this team and think I could easily make my way into the playoffs with this squad.
Adam McGill is the Senior Fantasy Sports Writer at Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter @adammcgill83, like him on Facebook, or add him to you networks on Google here or here.
