IDP Dynasty Startup – Rounds 6-10
This Spring, the boys at RPO Football decided to form an official IDP Dynasty league and we are currently having our inaugural startup draft! As we make our way through the startup draft, I’ll be keeping track of the ooey-gooey details of all of my picks and moves and sending them your way five rounds at a time. I’m in the fifth spot in the snake draft, which is maybe my favorite spot to draft from this year. If you missed part 1, here is a review of my first five picks!
- 1.05 – QB – Jalen Hurts
- 2.08 – WR – Amon-Ra St. Brown
- 3.05 – WR – Chris Olave
- 4.08 – WR – Drake London
- 5.05 – LB – Foyesade Oluokun
You can read more about those selections here! In the meantime, here are my picks from rounds 6-10. @TFFGRobbie
Sixth Round: 6.12 – RB – Javonte Williams
By the time my pick rolled around at 6.08, I was pretty set on taking Javonte. However, after looking at the other teams’ rosters, I had a good feeling that none of them were likely to take running back before it got back to me. There weren’t any other players I absolutely HAD to have though. So, I decided to try and trade back a few picks. I was able to move back four spots and pick up an additional pick in the 13th round (13.01).
As I predicted, Javonte was still available at 6.12. I think he has the potential to be a top 3 running back this year with continued success for the next several years. He is coming off of a brutal knee injury, but modern medicine makes injuries like that less of a career killer. The addition of Samaje Perine means he doesn’t have to rush back onto the field and can continue to recover. Javonte is entering his third year in the league but is only 22 years old. Since running backs have relatively short windows for success, getting a guy this young is a massive win for my dynasty team.
His first two years had him starting in a timeshare with Melvin Gordon and at the mercy of awful quarterback play and offensive scheme. Battling through all that adversity, we could see glimpses of high-level play. In his first 20 games, he was able to eclipse the RB3/flex threshold (8.5 points) 14 times, the RB2 threshold (10.5 points) 10 times, and the RB1 (13.5 points) threshold 5 times. Expect him to see more success in the improved Sean Payton offense. I’m happy with Javonte Williams as my #1 RB and lucky I was able to get him at the back end of the sixth!
Seventh Round: 7.11 – WR – Christian Watson
Same situation as in round six, I didn’t feel like I HAD to draft anyone at my pick in this round. I was fairly confident that Watson would still be on the board later in the round. So, once again, I traded back 6 picks and got another 13th-round pick (13.11). The 13th round is shaping up to be a big value round!
I don’t want to say that Christian Watson is necessarily “undervalued” but I do think that some people don’t realize how productive he was in the second half of the season. In the first nine of his games, he struggled with injury and integrating with the offense. However, starting in week 10, Watson went on a four-game streak of scoring a touchdown totaling 8 during the period. Over his last 8 games, he averaged a whopping 17.2 points per game. If you averaged that number across the whole season, it would put him as the #9 receiver in scoring. I’m not expecting that level of production without Aaron Rodgers throwing him the football, but I think he still should remain a dominant receiver in fantasy and I’m more than happy to have him as my fourth receiver.
Eighth Round: 8.08 – QB – Jordan Love
This one might be the risk of the draft for me. All signs are pointing to Jordan Love being the starting quarterback for the Packers in 2023. BUT…is he going to be any good? I think so. I recently went back and watched some pre-draft analysis from 2020 and found that Love’s projection then was completely different from opinions now. Some prognosticators had Love ranked above Justin Herbert! I think most of the negative stigma around him now is his lack of experience. However, it’s not fair to say that he’s not good. I don’t think he would still be with the Packers if he wasn’t the right guy.
Love spent his first three years backing up one of the best to ever do it, Aaron Rodgers. While Rodgers might not be seen as a teacher, just being in the same room as him has to impart an unbelievable amount of knowledge to young players. In the few games we’ve seen from Love, he hasn’t been spectacular, but he wasn’t horrendous. He did manage to throw a nice touchdown against the highly-ranked Eagles’ defense in 2022. I have faith that a full offseason as the #1 will allow Jordan Love to grow to his full potential.
All that being said, my other options for quarterback here weren’t great by comparison. The only other two I had an interest in were Derek Carr and Kenny Pickett. Carr’s situation is certainly more secure, but he’s 32 right now and doesn’t seem like the long-term answer for the Saints. Pickett, in my opinion, is about the same value as Love right now anyway. Pickett isn’t nearly the physical specimen that Love is, but he has actual NFL experience. In my opinion, Love’s ceiling is higher than both of those guys. The biggest question is going to be where his floor rests. I look forward to finding out!
Ninth Round: 9.05 – RB – Dameon Pierce
Dameon Pierce was a premium target for me in last year’s drafts and this year is no different. His physical attributes (5’10 and 218 lbs) put him in the same class as running backs like Dalvin Cook, Josh Jacobs, and Travis Etienne. Great company to be in for a running back! His production early in the season helped him cement himself as the #1 back, not that there was stout competition. His biggest knock is the logo on his helmet. The Texans have not been good in a few years and are certainly in rebuild mode. Last year, the lack of offensive capability hindered Pierce’s ability to perform since defenses could just key on him and shut down the run.
This upcoming year, with the amount of new talent that should be joining the team in late April, I expect Pierce’s production to rocket up to the RB2 floor. A new coaching staff, a great young quarterback, a rebuilt offensive line, new receiving weapons, and a hopefully improved defense will all contribute to a wonderful situation for Pierce. I don’t think that the addition of Devin Singletary will take much away from Pierce’s touches as Singletary’s game will likely be more change of pace or pass blocking. Unless the Texans take another running back early in this draft, I think Pierce is in for a great season and a great career.
Tenth Round: Traded Out
Trade backs were a popular choice for me in these rounds. Just like in rounds 6 and 7, there were players available at 10.08 that I thought I would be able to get later. I was able to trade away 10.08 and 14.08 to receive 11.02 and 13.02. I think moving back 6 picks to move up 18 picks only a few rounds later was a great play. Spoiler, but I ended up drafting my guy at 11.02 anyway and added another pick to my already loaded 13th round.
In rounds 6-10, I was able to almost fully complete my offensive lineup and set myself up nicely to draft heavily on defense in the next five rounds. I’m very happy that all of my offensive players are under the age of 25. If everyone plays to the level, I expect them to, I should be set for several years to come. Great draft so far; check out rounds 11-15 by clicking here!
Thank you for reading! Follow me on Twitter at @TFFGRobbie
If you want to win a dynasty championship trophy, make sure you check out RPOFootball.com for dynasty articles, rankings and so much more.