12:35pm: As I wait in the lobby for the mock draft to fill up I'm mentally somewhere between disgusted with myself and ridiculously excited. I used to judge people for playing Dugeons & Dragons and now I'm hooked on the sports equivalent.
12:40pm: I've been awarded the 5th pick in a 12 team draft. Not a bad spot to be at all. I'm guessing that I'll land Joseph Addai (#4 overall on my board) with my selection. Something tells me Tomlinson will be gone by then.
12:42pm: Addai it is! It was extremely difficult to pass on Shaun Alexander, but I like Addai's prospects and it's all about minimizing risk if you can.
12:45pm: If I'm lucky I could end up with Travis Henry or Reggie Bush in the second round. That might just be wishful thinking though.
12:46pm: Manning went 9th. He's a stud, but I have a hard time believing he is worth a 1st round pick in a 1 QB format.
12:47pm: Rudi Johnson might be the most boring guy you can take in the first round. That being said, you can't go wrong with him. He is a model of consistency.
12:47: The first round has come to a close. Here's the way it shook out:
1. L. Tomlinson
2. S. Jacskson
3. L. Johnson
4. F. Gore
5. J. Addai
6. S. Alexander
7. B, Westbrook
8. W. Parker
9. P. Manning
10. R. Johnson
11. L. Maroney
12. S. Smith
12:48pm: Ahhh! Bush was snatched away from me at number 13. I haven't felt this bad since I was sold on a "Groin Smasher 2000" after seeing a very convincing infomercial.
12:49pm: Henry was just ripped away from me as well (at #15) and now all the exciting backs are officially gone. At this point I'm left with only one choice. Ocho-Cinco, baby! You don't pass on a guy with a blond fohawk and gold teeth this late in the second round, okay? You just don't.
12:50pm: Thanks to the standard format and the inevitable run on backs I did something I promised myself I wouldn't. I drafted a Buffalo Bills' player to start on my team. Not that the Bills offense will be terrible this year, but it's almost become tradition for me to stay away from them at this point. I really wasn't planning on starting Marshawn Lynch, but that's just the way things played out. I'm going to be drafting for serious running back depth now that I only have 1 proven starter.
12:52pm: I snatched up Randy Moss with my 4th round pick and then asked myself this question. "If my two receivers got into a knife fight in a dark alley, who would win?" A huge smile stretched across my face before I was even done asking the question. I wasn't so much thinking about who would win (Chad Johnson), but rather how funny it was that neither guy would back down. As a matter of fact, they might be the only two receivers in the league that would actually welcome a knife fight. I'm not exactly sure what that does for my team, but that has to count for something.
12:56pm: It looks like waiting on a QB is going to pay off. We're heading towards the end of round 6 and Tony Romo and Jon Kitna are still on the board. Both of whom reside in my top 8 QB's.
12:57pm: And for my 7th round pick, I select...Tony Romo. Kitna would have probably been the safer pick, but my gut was saying Romo all the way. Let's just hope he's over that botched snap.
My starting lineup now looks like this.
QB: Tony Romo
RB: Joseph Addai
RB: Marshawn Lynch
RB/WR: Julius Jones
WR: Chad Johnson
WR: Randy Moss
TE: Tony Gonzalez
1:00pm: I haven't had a chance to survey the other teams yet. My instincts are telling me that I have a top 3 team, but probably not the best.
1:02pm: Believe it or not, my team is actually one of the 2 best. The one team that I would probably trade rosters with looks like this...
QB: Carson Palmer
RB: Ladainian Tomlinson
RB: Corey Dillon
RB/WR: Lee Evans
WR: Torry Holt
WR: Javon Walker
TE: Todd Heap
That really shows the advantage of getting the first pick in a standard league format. Tomlinson can make up for any deficiencies that you may have in your second running back slot. Even if it's somebody as ridiculous as Corey Dillon who is retired, sigh. LDT might score as much as my two backs combined even though I have Addai who is a top 5-6 back on most experts boards. I'm so glad that my actual fantasy league plays in a superior format that creates balance amongst the positions.
Well, all the exciting rounds have passed so it's time to close this wonderful chapter in our lives. All in all it was a pretty fun project. I'm glad you could share in my nerdy football experience. You can mock me for loving mock drafts if you want, but just remember one thing. We live in a fantasy football world and I'm a fantasy football girl, er guy.
