Now that we have had a week for the dust to settle after the 2020 King’s Classic draft, I wanted to recap how my drafts turned out in the George Blanda Division. Usually, all of the participants head to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. This year’s draft, just like everything else in 2020 was a little different. The number of teams grew to 42 as another division was added. Everyone drafted online, and considering there were teams drafting from all over the world this time around, everything went off without a hitch.
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2020 King’s Classic Draft Recap — George Blanda Snake
Each division participant drafts both a snake and auction team with a total of 14 owners. I will include a link to the draft boards as well to compare the rosters. It’s a full point PPR, with no kickers or defense. The positions started each week are as follows:
- QB
- 2 RB
- 3 WR
- TE
- 3 RB/WR/TE Flex
For the snake I drafted from the fourth spot. Here’s my total team and a breakdown of each position. Feel free to let me know how I did @therealmaday on Twitter.
QB: Kyler Murray, Kirk Cousins
RB: Ezekiel Elliott, Leonard Fournette, Matt Brieda, Nyheim Hines, Ryquell Armstead, DeeJay Dallas
WR: Cooper Cupp, Brandin Cooks, Michael Pittman Jr., Hunter Renfrow, Larry Fitzgerald, Cole Beasley
TE: Mark Andrews, Austin Hooper
Quarterback
I didn’t want to spend up for Lamar Jackson or Patrick Mahomes, but I also really wanted Kyler Murray heading into draft weekend. I feel like another year under Kliff Kingsbury, plus the addition of DeAndre Hopkins will help him take a big step. At four points per passing touchdown, I also wanted to add a QB that has the potential to punch a few into the end zone with his legs. I couldn’t wait too long on him, so I nabbed him in round four. Maybe a bit early, but I didn’t feel he would be there much longer. I added Kirk Cousins as my backup with my final pick in round 16. Nice value for a guy coming off a 3600 yard, 26 touchdowns, six interception season. Overall I got my guy and a capable backup at the position.
Running Back
Knowing a few days prior to the draft that I would be picking from the four spot, I was counting on getting Michael Thomas or Alvin Kamara there. Both of which I would have been fine with. However, Marcas Grant of NFL.com pulled a surprise move and took Kamara at three. This meant Ezekiel Elliott fell to me at four. It took me less than a second to hit that draft button. I was absolutely stoked to get him there. He makes for a great piece to build around. I came back in round two to get one of my favorite runners heading into 2020, Leonard Fournette. I seem to be in the minority of those excited to have Fournette, and I’m perfectly fine with that. Coming off a season that saw him surpass 300 total touches, he finished as the sixth-ranked running back in fantasy. He surprisingly hauled in 76 receptions on 95 targets in the passing game in addition to 1152 yards on the ground. The addition of Chris Thompson will obviously eat into that reception total. I’m not expecting a repeat performance or last year, but I’m also not expecting as big of a drop off as some. I would like to see a few more touchdowns, and if he can add to his total of just three from last year, that will make up for some of the receptions he loses. I was also able to add his main backup and handcuff Ryquell Armstead in case of any injury. In taking Matt Brieda in round seven, along with Nyheim Hines in the ninth, I was able to nab a couple of third down PPR types who I can plug into my flex spots. My last RB DeeJay Dallas has a big hill to climb to see the field in Seattle. He was a total dart throw, and a guy I like in dynasty. With his athleticism and versatility, who knows? I’m extremely happy with my two starters. Beyond that, I think I did ok.
Wide Receiver
When the draft ended, I wasn’t too excited about my WR corps. After a few days, and a bit of analysis, I like what I ended up with in a PPR format. Cooper Kupp will serve as my WR1, coming off the board in round three. After going with two straight running backs to start, I didn’t want to wait much longer to get my first wideout. As long as he stays healthy, he will come close to his 94 grabs from 2020. Three rounds later I took new Houston Texans weapon Brandin Cooks. Cooks definitely had a down season in 2020, but I love the fit in Houston, especially with QB Deshaun Watson. I think he bounces back in a big way. Michael Pittman Jr. slides in as my WR3. I’m not excited about a rookie being counted on to start every week at this spot. However, Pittman landed in a great spot, and I feel he will be one of the top fantasy wide-outs at the end of 2020, especially in PPR formats. I finished out by adding Hunter Renfrow, Larry Fitzgerald, and Cole Beasley. All three have the potential to be helpful pieces in a PPR format, especially for the price tag of double-digit round picks. I’m not jumping up and down because of this position, but if I play match-ups right I think I will be fine.
Tight End
I used to be firmly against starting a tight end as a flex option. After having it pay off for me for the last two seasons, it’s something I will look to do from here on out. Especially in a league with three flex spots. Mark Andrews was my fifth-round pick. While I could have gotten solid value later, I wanted to get a top guy at the position and be able to flex another. I was fortunate enough to have Andrews AND Lamar Jackson in both King’s Classic leagues and it paid big dividends. Andrews did major damage and was on the field for less than 60% of Baltimore’s snaps. They will have him on the field a ton more this season and he will build on his impressive 2020 totals. By Round 11 I had my starters set, and it appeared the only players available were ones who would either be buried on my bench or guys I would have to cut anyway. Austin Hooper was still available, and it became clear to me he was the pick. Hooper has been a PPR machine over the past two seasons. Cleveland paid him a ton of money, and they didn’t pay him to come sit, or to block. If he can build chemistry with QB Baker Mayfield, he should continue to deliver in PPR. Why not go with a guy who has top ten potential at his position over the 70th ranked WR?
Overall, I like what I was able to do. I was able to get a few of my must have guys, but also started my draft with a player I didn’t think I had a chance at. I feel my wide receivers are my biggest question mark overall. My running back depth could come back to haunt me, especially if I have injuries. In a 14 team league, especially with the sharks I drafted with, if you come out feeling great about every spot on your roster, something is wrong.
Here is where you can check out the rest of the George Blanda Snake results, as well as what the Jim Brown and Len Dawson divisions did. Next week I’ll break down what I was able to do in the auction and you’ll learn about my heated bidding war for Dolphins’ RB Matt Brieda. Nope, not a typo!
Jim Brown
George Blanda
Len Dawson
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