2018 DRAFT RECAPS - 8TH OVERALL - ROB D — Protector Of The League

Number 8: Leveon Stuffed Ken’s Taco Bell owned by Rob DeMagistris

First Five:

Robby D was in unfamiliar territory as he was picking outside of the top 3 for the first time in league history. That is unfathomable, but I’m glad we evened the playing field a little bit. Even with the 8 pick, his average draft position over the league’s history is 3.3 overall. That’s of course the highest ADP by far. Anyways, it was nice to change things up.

He started out by taking Odell Beckham at #8 overall. Beckham is arguably the #1 WR in football and should be fully healthy this year. The Giants have some weapons to take coverage away, but it’s possible that opposing teams just blanket him and make them look to those other options (Shepard, Engram, etc). Even with extra attention, Beckham should put up numbers.

Dalvin Cook in the 2nd round was a high risk high reward pick. He’s coming off an ACL tear and only had 2 carries in the preseason, but by all accounts he’s looked good this summer. I personally love Cook and had him last year, so I’m hoping he’s fully healthy. Just fun to watch.

Father Bob took LeSean McCoy in the 3rd round which is good and bad. It’s good because McCoy should get a TON of work – he’s basically the Bills only good player. It’s bad because McCoy could end up facing a suspension and the Bills are going to stink this year. Golden Tate in the 4th was a pretty solid pick. Tate was a top 15 WR last year and gets a ton of looks. He doesn’t score too many TDs, but makes up for it with volume.

Last but not least was Chris Hogan – this one could be huge. Hogan is going to be the Patriots #1 WR the first month and should double his numbers from last year (5 TDs).

Next Five:

Ken’s Taco Bell went with a good mix of players in the middle rounds, taking a QB, WR, RB, TE and another WR. Russel Ciara Wilson was QB1 last year and put up monster numbers (4,000 passing, 34 TDs. 586 rushing, 3 TDs). Kinda nuts he went AFTER TB12 and Deshaun Watson. Devin Funchess BitchYou was a top 20 WR for most of last season and could be Cam Newton’s #1 target. The former TE had 5 games with 5 or more catches last year.

Chris Thompson Sub Machine Gun was a high upside pick in the 8th round – he was a monster for a 10 week stretch last year and averaged more than 15 points per game. With Derrius Guice out for the year, Thompson should get a lot of looks. Bob D doubled down on Redskins in the 9th round when he took Jordan Belfort Reed with the 88th pick. Alex Smith likes his TEs, so if Reed can get healthy he could be huge. We close out the middle rounds with Jordy Nelson Mandela and the end of Apartheid. Considering Nelson was a 1st/2nd round pick last year this is a good value.

Last Five:

Robby D took a Kicker, a D/ST, a backup QB and some RB depth in the last 5 rounds. Gostkowski has been shaky in recent years but you could do a lot worse than the Pats kicker. The Chargers D is one of the more underrated units in the NFL and Joey Bosa/Melvin Ingram are beasts. Speaking of the Chargers – Phillip Rivers is going to be a good backup and is nice to have around if Wilson gets hurt.

The last two picks were RBs, one a great pick and one a wasted pick. Devontae Booker stinks stinks stinks stinks. He averaged 3.8 YPC last year and was the definition of a plodder. Rob D made up for it with Gio Bernard in the final round though – I don’t know how the Joe Mixon owner let that one get away. If Mixon goes down Bernard is immediately an RB1. This good pick is somewhat negated by the fact Robby D didn’t take his own handcuff (Latavius Murray), but that’s splitting hairs I guess.

Grade:

I give Robby D a B for this draft. He has a lot of upside on his team, but there are a ton of injury question marks as well. Odell Beckham, Dalvin Cook and Chris Hogan all spent a significant portion of last year injured, while LeSean is known for battling nagging injuries. Russel Wilson was healthy last year, but his playing style is prone to injury. He doesn’t have the true stud running back that he’s used to having so I give him a solid B.

Prediction:

Robby D finishes 7-6 and YET AGAIN loses in the finals. I’m not sure his team is as good as it was last year, but the thought of him finishing 2nd for the 10th year in a row is so hard not to root for. Noone circles the wagons like the Buffalo Bills. (Bob even has LeSean McCoy, I mean come on.)