Tue Sep 2nd 2025

My Latest Start-Up Draft

Sadly, one of the dynasty leagues I've been in for several years folded two weeks ago. It was a very complex 48-team league with four copies of each player and four twelve-team divisions. It was a league filled with super fans and many in the dynasty industry. I don't have hard feelings about it folding because I would never wish to commission a league as complicated as that. It was fun while it lasted, and I made connections with others in the dynasty space through the league.

Thankfully, twelve teams in the league quickly assembled a new league with the same scoring format, but with just twelve teams. We quickly started the league and completed our 30-player slow draft over the next ten days. It's been several years since I was part of a start-up, and I've forgotten how much fun it was. I had a blast drafting my newest dynasty team and wanted to write about it. It gives me a chance to explain my start-up strategies and discuss the players I like, having drafted them.

This new league features a superflex, PPR, tight end premium (1.75 PPR) format with numerous flex positions, allowing managers to employ various strategies when drafting and setting their starting lineups. You have to start two wide receivers, but only one quarterback, running back, and tight end. That leaves five more starting roster sports as flex positions, but only one can be filled by a quarterback. We also have four taxi squad spots available to first and second-year players.

I went into the rookie draft with no particular strategy. I took the draft as it came to me, and about midway through, I decided to take a more win-now approach. I drafted from the 12th spot, so I had back-to-back picks throughout the draft and did not make any trades during the draft, resulting in me picking back-to-back for the entire draft.

Here's how my team looks as we head into year one of this new dynasty league.

CeeDee Lamb & Puka Nacua

• At the one-two turn, I decided to take the top two receivers available in my dynasty rankings with Lamb and Nacua. Five quarterbacks, three receivers, two running backs, and one tight end were drafted ahead of me. By the time it came to my pick, I had decided to pass on quarterback. The only two players I considered with this pick were Ashton Jeanty and Trey McBride, who were selected three and four picks after mine. In a PPR and tight-end premium league like this, with many flex positions, I decided to make my core wide receivers the strength of my draft early. Lamb and Nacua are target hogs and are sure to be among the top five receivers in targets per game. While I could have drafted a receiver a few years younger than Lamb, like Brian Thomas Jr. or Drake London, I expect Lamb to score far more points than them over the next three years, so I did not let his age move me off of him. I loved my first two picks. Then I had to wait and hope that in a superflex league, solid quarterbacks would fall to me 24 picks later.

Caleb Williams & Brock Purdy

• At the three-four turn, I was committed to draft two quarterbacks, and I chose Williams and Purdy. Jordan Love and Trevor Lawrence were the other two quarterbacks I considered with these picks (they went four and twelve picks later). Still, I decided to bank on Williams due to his age and the new start with Ben Johnson, and I liked Purdy because of his offensive system, new contract, and his years of consistency as a top-12 quarterback. So I drafted a safe quarterback with Purdy and a young quarterback with upside with Williams. The manager who picked before and after me immediately messaged the group after I drafted Purdy, upset with me that I sniped him, and has since offered me a trade for Purdy. It always feels good to snipe someone. I drafted two quarterbacks that will anchor my team in a superflex league for many years to come. I was also committed to being one of the teams that would draft a third starting quarterback sooner rather than later.

Jordan Addison & Emeka Ebuka

• At the five-six turn, I was thrilled to continue punting on running back and add to my receiver depth with two excellent young players, one already proven after two years in the league and one rookie who has been the most talked-about receiver during training camp. It will be a shame to miss three games of productivity this season while Addison serves his suspension. Still, a future starting lineup with Lamb, Nacua, Addison, and Ebuka makes me thrilled. At this point in the draft, teams were drafting younger guys and rookies. I expected Ebuka to get drafted before he fell to me, but the fifth round was riddled with tight ends selected. I hoped Colston Loveland, Tyler Warren, or George Kittle would fall to me, but they all got drafted in the fifth round. I would have loved to have the Loveland-Williams stack for a decade or the Purdy-Kittle stack for a short time, but selecting Addison and Ebuka also made me excited, especially after the manager who picked after me messaged the group saying he wanted Ebuka and should have picked him before me. I like youth and depth of my wide receivers at this point in the draft, and was ready to venture to other positions after drafting those solid four receivers.

Tucker Kraft & Geno Smith

• I highly considered drafting Kraft with one of my last picks, especially in a high-tight-end premium league like this. So when he fell to me 24 picks later at the seven-eight turn, I was pleased to take him. I expect his role in the Packers' offense to increase tremendously this season and in the years to come. He was by far the highest-ranked dynasty tight end available at this point in the draft. In a league like this, I wanted to secure a young top tight end, and I got the last one in that tier according to my rankings. As for Smith, I wanted to be one of the teams with three legitimate starting quarterbacks with no threats of competition behind them. Smith fit the bill and was one of the last quarterbacks available that did. Matt Stafford, Sam Darnold, and Daniel Jones were the three quarterbacks drafted after Smith, and their leashes are much shorter on their teams.  Now, if one of my quarterbacks gets injured, I will have a starting quarterback to put in his place.

Alvin Kamara & Travis Kelce

• At the nine-ten turn, I decided to take a more win-now approach in this draft. Cam Skattebo and Luther Burden were the rookies I considered drafting, or at least drafting one of the two. The Burden-Williams stack could have been nice for years to come, and Skattebo, if he wins a starting job, would have been a steal as my first drafted running back. I weighed this decision more heavily than any other one in this draft, but I decided to go the old-man, win-now route instead. Burden and Skattebo have yet to secure a starting role on their teams, which created just enough doubt for me, especially when I continued to examine this league's scoring settings and saw that Kelce and Kamara were the 29th and 47th-highest-scoring players in the league last year. Kelce scored more points than CeeDee Lamb and Brock Purdy last year in this league, and Kamara finished two spots behind Caleb Williams. I decided to go with Team Old and grab two players who will be in my starting lineup every week this first year of the league, even if it is their only year. I was immediately sent the "I'm in my prime" meme on our group chat after making these picks, and I deserved it. We'll see if I live to regret it. I'll have to follow Burden and Skattebo's careers to decide.

Tyrone Tracy & Braelon Allen

• I drafted two New York running backs at the eleven-twelve turn, hoping one could hold off the rookie running back behind him and the other could overtake the older running back ahead of him. Tracy is sure to be in my starting lineup early this season, and if Skattebo cannot overtake him, this will become an excellent late pick to get a team's RB-1. Allen has been the talk of camp this year, and Breece Hall's contract is up at the end of the year. I expect Allen's role to increase this season, with an opportunity to be the Jets' starting running back after this season. If so, he'll be an excellent selection for me this late in the draft. Several managers messaged our chat after I selected Allen, cursing me for picking him, so I must have done something right. Allen is now the youngest player on my team. If he can become a starter, I will have him for years to come.

Jaylen Warren & Xavier Legette

• At the thirteen-fourteen turn, I was pleased to select two of "my guys." I expect Warren to hold off Kaleb Johnson this season and earn a new contract with the Steelers for next season. Even if he doesn't, my win-now approach makes him a player worth adding because I am very confident that he will start the season as the Steelers' starter and be involved in every passing down throughout the year. At this turn, I drafted one player who could at least help me this year and one player whom I am convinced is better than he looked in his rookie season. Legette is a "my guy," and I am not afraid to put my faith in him in a start-up like I did in so many rookie drafts last season. I'll go down with the sinking ship if he does not turn into a productive WR-2 behind Tetairoa McMillan for years to come. He was worth the risk and a player I believe in, so I selected him here earlier than most dynasty managers would have, but surely he would not have fallen to me 24 picks later.

Theo Johnson & DeMario Douglas

• At the halfway point of the draft at the fifteen-sixteen turn, I wanted to grab another young tight end who will breakout this season and see his role increase for years to come. Theo Johnson could very well be the second-most targeted pass catcher for the Giants this season, and he has a rookie quarterback who can make the Giants' offense productive again. If he breaks out, I could start Johnson, Kraft, and Kelce in a league like this with 1.75 PPR. I expect Douglas to become Drake Maye's security blanket in the slot and see his role solidify in the offense. He could become a safe starter when players are on a bye week for my team, if only because his PPR floor will be high. The only other player I considered drafting was Jaylin Noel, but since I had committed to a win-now approach, I selected the player who would see a lot of targets this season instead of waiting for Noel to break out in the coming seasons. Noel was picked with the very next pick.

DJ Giddens & Keenan Allen

• I wanted to draft another young running back who could benefit my team if the starter ahead of him was injured, and have a slight opportunity to become the team's running back of the future. That's what I saw in Giddens at the seventeen-eighteen turn. He's solidified the RB-2 role with the Colts after just weeks of training camp, and he's playing behind Jonathan Taylor, who has battled injuries often in his career. Giddens can sit on my taxi squad until he gets a chance to play, and when he does, he'll be an instant starter in my lineups with a slight chance to become the Colts' future running back. As for Allen, since I committed to the win-now approach, it would be fun to add one of my all-time dynasty favorites to my newest team, even though I have traded him off of all my other teams. I love that he landed back in LA, and I am sure he will have a productive season and help my team this season.

Romeo Doubs & Tyler Higbee

• At the nineteen-twenty turn, I thought Doubs had fallen too far. He's had productive stretches with the Packers and, over the last few years, has been their receiver with the most snaps. Dynasty managers don't like him, but the Packers do. He's a depth piece for my receivers who could have some big games if I ever need to start him in my lineups. As for Higbee, since I am focused on winning now, he will likely hold off the rookie, Terrance Ferguson, for much of this year. Once he returned healthy at the end of last year, he was incredibly productive for the Rams. He's their starter until he is not. If he gets off to a hot start this season, I could find a tight-end-needy team and trade him away.

Mac Jones & Dameon Pierce

• At the twenty-one-twenty-two turn, I thought it was time to handcuff Brock Purdy with Mac Jones, who has had productive games in the NFL, including last season with the Jaguars. I like handcuffing my quarterbacks in superflex leagues, especially this late, on a team that has proven it can make backup quarterbacks productive. As for Pierce, at the time of this draft, Mixon had not yet been placed on IR, but all the reports were bad. Who knows if Nick Chubb or Woody Marks will benefit from Mixon's extended absence, but I wanted to hedge my bets on Pierce. At this point in the draft, I thought he was a risk worth taking in case he winds up winning the RB-1 position in Houston. If Chubb has a miracle return or Marks is the real deal, I can move on from Pierce this season, but I wanted to have a share of the Texans' backfield to see how it plays out this season.

Will Dissly & Dyami Brown

• At the twenty-three-twenty-four turn, I decided to place a bet on Dissly to hold off his competition at the Chargers' tight end position. He was the only starting tight end, according to Ourlads, that was still available in this draft. Oronde Gadsden, everyone's darling, is still listed as third on their depth chart. Brown is third fiddle among the receivers in Jacksonville, but he has a starting role in three-receiver sets and could play in two-receiver sets when Travis Hunter is not playing offense. He finally showed his ability at the end of last season in Washington, and the Jaguars paid him handsomely to join their team this season. They'll use him in a variety of ways. He's a depth piece for me that could be used in emergencies this season.

Kaleel Mullings & Jarrett Stidham

• Based on their preseason play, Mullings and Stidham seemed like wise additions to my team this late in the draft at the twenty-five-twenty-six turn. Mullings had a few nice preseason runs, made the final roster, and is not the RB-2 behind Tony Pollard because Tyjae Spears was placed on IR. Mullings can sit on my taxi squad in this league and see what his future holds. Stidham had an excellent preseason and proved he can manage the offense if Bo Nix were to get injured. In superflex leagues, I like to roster a lot of backup quarterbacks. They can become surprise fantasy starters or considerable trade bait when the starters in front of them go down.

Kenny Pickett & Zach Wilson

• As I just mentioned, I like to roster backup quarterbacks. Here in the twenty-seven-twenty-eight turn, I was able to add Pickett, who, after being traded to Las Vegas, is now a handcuff to Geno Smith on my roster. Wilson is sitting behind the most oft-injured quarterback in the league, Tua Tagovailoa. I was surprised that no one else drafted him ahead of me, and I was pleased to add him as a movable piece on my team in case Tua gets injured again this season.

Brandin Cooks & Darius Slayton

• To complete my old-man draft and be the first in his league to complete his draft, I added Cooks and Slayton at the twenty-nine-thirty turn. I added two starting NFL wide receivers with the last two picks of my draft. Cooks is definitely nearing the end of his career, but he had some productive games last season in Dallas, and Slayton signed a new contract with the Giants this year. I already mentioned how their offense can improve significantly once Jaxson Dart is the starter. Slayton still has a chance to improve on what he's been thus far in his career.

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My Team

At the end of the draft, I did what I wanted to do. I have solid starting quarterbacks, with a third NFL starter to boot, as well as handcuffs for two of my quarterbacks, and two additional backup quarterbacks. I made the receiver the strength of my team with two top-tier receivers, two second-tier receivers, and a mix of youth and productive old men behind them. I have one top-tier tight end who may be in his final season, but backed up by two young tight ends poised to break out and some intriguing NFL starters behind them. I intentionally punted at running back, but I only have to start one each week. I have a faithful old man ready to start every game for me this year. If one of the two vets I drafted holds off the rookies behind them, I'll have a suitable starter. If my RB-2s become RB-1s for a short time or earn a future starting role, I'll have more depth in that position than I initially thought.

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