2018 Fantasy Football Draft Prep: Go deeper in 14-team PPR draft

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One of the best leagues we do every year is with our Fantasy Football Today podcast listeners. It's a 14-team PPR league, and the listeners to our show usually take part in some contest to earn a spot in this draft with Dave Richard, Heath Cummings, Adam Aizer, and I.

Some of the entries this year included a Brian McKnight song parody about our show, a Die Hard script related to Fantasy Football and a husband trying to give his wife a birthday present with an entry into the league. And then there was this story by Stefan Pejic.

Enjoy.

It happened over the summer Kenny Golladay's. My Kirk Cousins and I set up a Kareem Hunt-ing trip through the Robert Woods.

We were all Cam Newton to this, but we DeAndre Hopped in the Derek Carr and headed Terrance West. It was getting Orleans Darkwa, but we had to Kerryon Johnson. We arrived at the Devante Parker, but the Antonio Gates were closed!

Good Moncrief, we thought.

At that moment, our Andrew Luck really turned for the Hurst. I saw an Antonio Brown bear heading in a straight Greg Zuerlein in our direction. ... So we Devontae Booker-ed it.

There was nowhere to Carlos Hyde, so we ran to the Philip Rivers and jumped in the Teddy Bridgewater. Oh, how Rex Grossman it was, we were covered in Emmanuel Sanders and Charles Clay!

We eventually climbed up the Brandon Banks to strong safety. We needed to get to Tim Hightower ground for a more C.J. Prosise view of the Jarvis Landry, so I Delanie Walker-ed up the Tyreek Hill, through the Baker Mayfield, past the Josh Rosen bush and climbed the nearest Michael Crabtree.

I couldn't get a good grip on the Saquon Barkley. My foot slipped, and a Deion Branch came loose. It Brandon LaFell down and smacked me right in the Rex Burkhead. "It Zach Ertz!" I T.J. Yeldon pain.

It was clear it was time to Blake Abortles the trip. We Michael Gallup-ed our way to the nearest Hines medical Ward.

There was a nice Eli Manning there. He Dalvin Cook-ed us up a Big Ben Roethlisberger. I didn't have a Rashaad Penny to my name. "Don't worry," he said, "it's Royce Free, man."

They stitched up the Jay Cutler, and we were sent Patrick Mahomes.

All I can Zay Jones is I should never have Carson Wentz in the first place. Next time I get the Alex Collins to join a Theo Riddick-ulous trip to the James Wilderness, I'll just say Graham Gano!

Danny Amendola to that.

That story was amazing, as were the hundreds of entries we received, and I wish I could share them all with you. You guys are beyond creative. And kudos to Aizer for going through all the submissions. 

Our podcast listeners are awesome, and you guys make our show with your emails and interaction. For anyone who hasn't listened to our podcast, you can find it here, and hopefully we help you with our Fantasy advice all throughout the year.

As for this draft, a 14-team league is always a challenge because the talent pool thins out quickly. Even though it's a PPR league, my approach was to get quality running back depth with at least two standout receivers, and hopefully land a talented quarterback and tight end.

Picking at No. 2 overall, I started with Le'Veon Bell, and I got Doug Baldwin and Stefon Diggs at the Round 2-3 turn. I was then able to get Kerryon Johnson in Round 4, Mark Ingram in Round 5, Chris Carson in Round 6 and Tevin Coleman in Round 7.

I achieved my goal at running back and got two receivers I love. But in hindsight, I wish that I passed on Carson for another receiver like Will Fuller, Randall Cobb, Kenny Stills or Pierre Garcon, who all went in Round 7. With Carson, I was looking at an Ingram replacement during his four-game suspension to open the year, and Carson should still have a prominent role with the Seahawks during that stretch. We'll see how that works out.

My reserve receivers are Calvin Ridley, Taywan Taylor and Tyler Lockett, although I plan to upgrade on Lockett once waivers are open. And I waited on quarterback and tight end and still got a breakout candidate in David Njoku in Round 10, as well as Jared Goff in Round 12.

Part of the reason I waited so long on quarterback was because I drafted the Jaguars DST in Round 11. I was thrilled with that pick, and if Goff struggles, I still have guys like Jameis Winston, Eli Manning, Derek Carr, Dak Prescott and Tyrod Taylor, among others, on waivers.

In this league, all touchdowns are worth six points, and we award one point for every 10 yards rushing and receiving and one point for every 25 yards passing. We also award one point for every reception. We feature a starting lineup of QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, TE, FLEX (RB/WR/TE), K and DST. There will also be five reserve spots for a 14-round draft.

Our draft order is as follows: 

1. Dave Richard, Senior Fantasy Writer/Phil Klein: Government Employee from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Playing Fantasy since 2010.
2. Jamey Eisenberg, Senior Fantasy Writer
3. Elliot Nolan: Medical Sales Representative from Port Charlotte, FL. Playing Fantasy since 1999.
   
4. Anne Feeney: Stay at home mom/SAT Prep Teacher from Barnegat, NJ. Playing Fantasy since 2011.
   
5. Heath Cummings, Senior Fantasy Writer
6. Adam Aizer, Podcast Host
7. Brooks Peel: Weather Officer in the Air Force from Alexandria, VA. Playing Fantasy since 2008.
   
8. Paul Pierorazio: Operations Manager from New York, NY. Playing Fantasy since 1999.
   
9. Kevin Hesselink: CNC Machinist from Highland, IN. Playing Fantasy since 2007.
   
10. Stefan Pejic: Manager for TSN Sportscentre from Toronto. Playing Fantasy since 2009.
    
11. David Kwee: Attorney from Sound Beach, NY. Playing Fantasy since 2003.
    
12. Jarek Wigness: Civil Engineer from Williston, ND. Playing Fantasy since 2013.
    
13. Todd Gleason: Writer/editor from Portland, OR. Playing Fantasy since 2013.
    
14. Joseph Russo: Lieutenant for the New York City Fire Department from Brooklyn, NY. Playing Fantasy since 2003.
    

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