šµ Round 1 Whiplash
Well, that escalated quickly...
Roger Goodell (hugs) is a draft-time decisionā¦
In todayās Fantasy Life Newsletter presented by BetMGM:
Holy Sh*t, the 1.08 is inā¦
A historic draft: QB heavy
Round 1 takeaways: Winners and Losers (from the same team??)
Trade Alert: Wait, WHO?
It's 4/26. Take it away, Cooterdoodleā¦
Some might say that the 2024 NFL Draft began as soon as Roger Goodell yelled, āWelcome to the D!ā Not me, but some might say that.Ā
And after an entire offseason of being taunted and teased with juicy rumors of pandemonium, Day 1 started out unexpectedlyā¦ just as expected. Where were the trades? Where were the defensive players?
13 picks. No defense.
Is this a fantasy football draft?
āBoring!ā āSnoozefest!ā āChalkiest draft ever!ā They yelled from their couches. But then, an unsung hero took the stage. Atlanta knew exactly what we craved: CHAOS.
The 1.08? Oh, I remember it well. That, ladies and gentlemenā¦THAT is when the true 2024 NFL Draft began. Now letās get into some Round 1 takeaways, shall we?
š»Ā New Offense, Who Dis?
Thereās something eerily similar about Chicagoās Day 1 draft picks that I just can't quite put my finger on.Ā Letās seeā¦ A highly sought-after rookie QB gets drafted by a team that just finished at the bottom of their division. Followed up by a shiny, new rookie WR that the QB admires.
Houston, I think we have a copycat.
While everyone expected Caleb Williams would leave Detroit in a Bears jersey, Iām not sure any fan base (besides MIN, perhaps) came away from Day 1 with more dopamine flowing through their veins than CHI. Huge win. Congrats! (Iām not jealous. I just want to know when it will be my teamās turn.)
With this new offensive weaponry, the Bears now have one of the most well-rounded WR trios in the league.Ā
Caleb Williams has DJ Moore, Keenan Allen and Rome Odunze.
If it doesn't work, that franchise is cursed.
Letās just hope we can all leave our fantasy drafts looking this good.
šØĀ Accident in ATL?
So, um. Yea. Hereās the rundown.
2021:
Hire Arthur Smith
Draft Kyle Pitts (1.04)
2022:
Draft Drake London (1.08)
2023:
Draft Bijan Robinson (1.08)
Didnāt fire Arthur Smith
2024:
Didnāt hire Bill Belichick
Sign QB Kirk Cousins ($100 mil guaranteed)
??? Draft QB Michael Penix Jr. (1.08)
No, youāre not seeing double. I hope youāre ready for the flurry of reactions and memes coming, because everyone will be taking swings at the Falcons this week. I guess weāll have to wait to see what ATL was thinking when they doubled down on QB after already paying Kohlās Cash Kirk. But for now, we react.
As usual, Twitter is wrong. Penix is a sharp pick. Cousins plays all your Sunday afternoons. Penix handles the Primetime games.
I may not know why ATL took Penix, but I do know this: Falcons fans have not known peace since Super Bowl 51.
Suddenly Bill Belicheck asking for full control in Atlanta doesnāt look so bad does it Falcons fans?
š¤Ā āA trade has been completedā
The Vikings officially ripped off the band-aid, marking the first trade of the evening ā Well, twice.
While many think MIN nailed their negotiations to secure J.J. McCarthy and Dallas Turner, these were arguably NOT the biggest trade bombshells of the evening.
That award goes to BUF and KC.
With the No. 28 pick that they acquired from the Bills, the Chiefs selected Texas WR Xavier Worthy, who ran the fastest 40 in scouting combine history.
I mean yeah, despite all the rings, Kansas City was in need of a WR given their wideout woes. I just donāt think any of us saw it coming at the hands of their AFC rivalā¦ Huh. Thereās always tonight, Buffalo.
Claim up to $1,500 in bonus bets!
šŗ What. A. Night.Ā Recapping all you need to know from Round 1.
šĀ 12 picks and 6 QBs.Ā Hereās to something historic.
šĀ If it walks like Bill Belichick and talks like Bill Belichick, but it has sleeves,Ā is it still Bill Belichick?
š¤Ā Pre-draft contract negotiations are in.Ā A.J. Brown gets PAID.
š¬Ā ICYMI: Roger Goodell was a Draft-time decision.Ā Close call.
š»Ā We all have ghosts from past drafts.Ā But Sean Paytonās may take the cake.
šĀ How does the boss man feel about WASās pick?Ā Tell āem, MB.
šĀ Biggest bet of the night?Ā Whatās ārisk vs. rewardā anyway? PHEW!
āļø Kirk Cousinsā agent didnāt get a call?Ā How about a āheads upā next time?
Round 1 of the NFL Draft wasā¦something. Here to break down the biggest winners and losers from a fantasy football standpoint is Fantasy Lifeās Content Manager Joe Metz, with some assists from an array of our draft-day contentā¦
š Winners
š» Caleb Williams
You had to see this coming, right? While it may be boring, I almost feel obligated to include Williams (and most of the Bears offense) among the winners, if not as the biggest winner.
After the offseason acquisitions of Keenan Allen, Gerald Everett and D'Andre Swift, the Bears have quickly turned their offensive unit into one that will demand defensive respect.
Per Chris Allen, "Williamsā 76.0% career-adjusted completion percentage (the highest of the top-3 prospects) will keep Allen as a high-end WR. But the former Trojanās penchant for extending plays also plays into what DJ Moore does best, as Chicagoās new WR1 had the fourth-highest explosive play rate in 2023.
Williams has the skills as a passer and a runner, plus the infrastructure, to meet his QB12 ADP. Now, letās wait to see how high the hype train takes him in fantasy drafts."
Nowā¦what you may not have seen coming? The Bears added another weapon for Williams less than 90 minutes after drafting him, taking Rome Odunze with the ninth overall pick.
While this only adds to Williams' upside in fantasy land, things may not be as rosy for Odunze from a fantasy football standpoint (more on that soonā¦).
š Xavier Worthy
Shocker, being drafted to catch passes from Patrick Mahomes dubs you a winner.
As Ian Hartitz noted on Fantasy Life's latest podcast recapping the first round, āThe way this offense is designed is perfect for a wide receiver that could struggle with the physicality of corners, because he's not the biggest guy, but they know how to use his speed better than just about any other team with pre-snap motion to put him in a position to succeed.ā
Going from a 17-yard aDOT in 2022 to a 10-yard aDOT in 2023, Worthy is a receiver who can operate in both the underneath areas of the field but also as a field-stretcher who ran a 4.21 40-yard-dash at the combine.
With the possibility that Rashee Rice misses upwards of a month-plus to start the season due to a looming suspension, the Bills seemed to hand the Chiefs (and fantasy managers) a massive draft-day W on a silver platter on Thursday night.
š Losers
š» Rome Odunze
From a real football standpoint, this would be dubbed a winner, as Chicago gets a player in Odunze as their WR3 when thereās been the argument that he'd be the runaway WR1 in any other rookie class.
From a fantasy football standpoint, this is challenging.
As Chris Allen noted in Fantasy Life's 2024 NFL Draft Tracker, "Odunze joins a squad already fitted with high-end target earners. DJ Moore (28.5%) and Keenan Allen (24.4%) both ranked in the Top 20 amongst all WRs in total target share. Both receivers play in areas of the field where Odunze excelled. There's no direct area of the field where Odunze could easily carve out a role.
We just saw a high-end prospect in Jaxon Smith-Njigba join a crowded offense with disappointing results. The Bears' offense may be better than the Seahawks in '23. But Odunze has a tough road to break out as a rookie".
