2068 FFL First Round Draft Review - Midyear Edition
Nov. 8, 2068 2068 FFL Draft.jpg
It's midseason in the Franchise Football League, which means it's a great time to look at the new rookies and how they have performed during the beginning of their careers. There have been superstars, developing impact players, and busts alike in this year's draft. We won't have time to review all 224 picks, so today, we are going to have a look at the first-rounders and how they are performing for their teams so far.
1.01 - Lee Dennis, QB, Jaxonville Jaguars
With Jaxonville owning the first two picks of the draft after trading with the Steelers, they ran the beginning of this year's class. Dennis was the consensus top quarterback this year and he has been as advertised. He has been eased into the league, attempting the least amount of passes for any full-time starter this year; this has seemed to work well for Dennis and the Jags. He is currently top 5 in the league in QB rate and number one in completion percentage. While he has not been far and away the best rookie QB this year, his play has more than warranted the number 1 overall pick and he should be a good NFL starter for years to come.
1.02 - Victor Holzberger, WR, Jaxonville Jaguars
This was a no-brainer pick to pair with the Jags' new rookie QB. Holzberger was seen as one of the best rookie WR prospects to come out in a long time, grading highly in basically every skill needed for the position. Even with a lot of star wide receivers in the league right now, Victor has already placed himself in that conversation despite playing for a rookie QB on a run-first team and being a rookie himself. He still has room to grow, particularly in his route running, so he has not even reached his full potential yet. It'll be a scary day when both he and Dennis grow into their best selves, shredding defenses across the league.
1.03 - Emmanuel Woods, QB, Tennessee Titans
Now is when the draft gets interesting. The first two picks were pretty much consensus throughout the league. It was at the third pick where real decisions had to be made. Tennessee already had a great defense coming into the draft, but they had a very poor passing offense. This team desperately needed a quarterback, but there was no easy pick after Dennis. The Titans decided to go with Woods, a high risk/high reward guy who had an up-and-down college career at West Virginia. He has not lived up to expectations in Tennessee. He has only played 4 games in 8 weeks, and he has one of the worst QB Ratings, Completion percentages, and Avg/A in the league. The Titans have also gone out and signed Terrance Patton, a solid but not great QB from Buffalo, which shows just how highly this organization already views their first-round quarterback.
1.04 - Eli Sawle, S, Dallas Cowboys
As the first defensive player off the board, Sawle was projected to be more of a box safety than a nickel corner type. His ability to sniff out the run and getting to the ball is what he was known for in school, and he excelled at it. His coverage was lacking, which is why some critics questioned him going as high as he did. One of the most underrated things he brings to the table, however, is his leadership and intelligence. Sawle has had some growing pains coming from a small school, but he has shown flashes of what he is capable of. While his stats have been mediocre at the start of his career, Sawle has shown growth over every game and should continue to grow into a high-flying, tackle machine for Dallas. Whether that was ultimately worth the 4th overall pick is another topic for debate.
1.05 - Roger Boege, QB, Chicago Bears
The third QB is taken in the top 5, and Boege may be the best of them all. That is, if the Chicago coaching staff can develop him into his full potential. He has had great games, like week 2 against Houston, and totally awful games, like week 4 against Carolina. Simply put, Boege is a very raw prospect that will need some time and experience to develop. The staff GM Chrustifus has put together simply adores his long-term potential. They even traded away their star QB George Suhocki to the New England Patriots because they believe in him so much. Right now, the Bears are struggling with a poor overall roster and raw rookie under center, but if they do well with the picks that Suhocki has netted them, Boege can become one of the league's bright young stars in the near future.
1.06 - Tyrell Imme, EDGE, Seattle Seahawks
Imme was projected as one of the best pass rushers in the class; he hasn't exactly lived up to the hype just yet. There is still plenty of time for him to come into his own, but so far, he hasn't made much of an impact on the field. Even though Imme has started all of Seattle's games and earned a significant amount of snaps, he just got his first sack and only has 8 hurries so far. The Seahawks are hoping for a second-half comeback for their young edge rusher. He has all the physical tools to do so, he just needs to tinker with his pass rush moves and then he can become the disrupting force Seattle picked him to be.
1.07 - Cornelius Kinney, WR, San Francisco 49ers
While Kinney has been stuck under the spotlight of Holzberger this season, he is still a great prospect in his own right. Kinney has not been given the heavy workload that Holzberger has, so his FFL outlook is still up in the air. Head Coach Reggie Hoppe has leaned more on Arnold Bernstein and Theodore Chafee instead of overwhelming Kinney at the start of his career. Maybe he hasn't picked up the playbook as quickly as intended, maybe the 9ers want to wait for a permanent solution at QB before seeing what Kinney can do. There's no way of knowing why Kinney hasn't taken over the WR1 position for San Francisco yet, but the majority of FFL insiders believe he will take over that role sooner rather than later.
1.08 - Denzel Gammon, G, Denver Broncos
When taking a guard in the top 10, you better know they are going to be great; Denzel Gammon is going to be great. Straight out of college, he is performing like an average to above-average guard at a position that requires cohesion with your fellow lineman. It's hard for a rookie lineman to come in and be great right away, so the fact that he is at the level he is right now this early shows how great he can be in the coming years. There's no doubt he will become a star guard for Denver once he gets up to FFL speed and connects with his teammates.
Nov. 8, 2068 2068 FFL Draft.jpg
It's midseason in the Franchise Football League, which means it's a great time to look at the new rookies and how they have performed during the beginning of their careers. There have been superstars, developing impact players, and busts alike in this year's draft. We won't have time to review all 224 picks, so today, we are going to have a look at the first-rounders and how they are performing for their teams so far.
1.01 - Lee Dennis, QB, Jaxonville Jaguars
With Jaxonville owning the first two picks of the draft after trading with the Steelers, they ran the beginning of this year's class. Dennis was the consensus top quarterback this year and he has been as advertised. He has been eased into the league, attempting the least amount of passes for any full-time starter this year; this has seemed to work well for Dennis and the Jags. He is currently top 5 in the league in QB rate and number one in completion percentage. While he has not been far and away the best rookie QB this year, his play has more than warranted the number 1 overall pick and he should be a good NFL starter for years to come.
1.02 - Victor Holzberger, WR, Jaxonville Jaguars
This was a no-brainer pick to pair with the Jags' new rookie QB. Holzberger was seen as one of the best rookie WR prospects to come out in a long time, grading highly in basically every skill needed for the position. Even with a lot of star wide receivers in the league right now, Victor has already placed himself in that conversation despite playing for a rookie QB on a run-first team and being a rookie himself. He still has room to grow, particularly in his route running, so he has not even reached his full potential yet. It'll be a scary day when both he and Dennis grow into their best selves, shredding defenses across the league.
1.03 - Emmanuel Woods, QB, Tennessee Titans
Now is when the draft gets interesting. The first two picks were pretty much consensus throughout the league. It was at the third pick where real decisions had to be made. Tennessee already had a great defense coming into the draft, but they had a very poor passing offense. This team desperately needed a quarterback, but there was no easy pick after Dennis. The Titans decided to go with Woods, a high risk/high reward guy who had an up-and-down college career at West Virginia. He has not lived up to expectations in Tennessee. He has only played 4 games in 8 weeks, and he has one of the worst QB Ratings, Completion percentages, and Avg/A in the league. The Titans have also gone out and signed Terrance Patton, a solid but not great QB from Buffalo, which shows just how highly this organization already views their first-round quarterback.
1.04 - Eli Sawle, S, Dallas Cowboys
As the first defensive player off the board, Sawle was projected to be more of a box safety than a nickel corner type. His ability to sniff out the run and getting to the ball is what he was known for in school, and he excelled at it. His coverage was lacking, which is why some critics questioned him going as high as he did. One of the most underrated things he brings to the table, however, is his leadership and intelligence. Sawle has had some growing pains coming from a small school, but he has shown flashes of what he is capable of. While his stats have been mediocre at the start of his career, Sawle has shown growth over every game and should continue to grow into a high-flying, tackle machine for Dallas. Whether that was ultimately worth the 4th overall pick is another topic for debate.
1.05 - Roger Boege, QB, Chicago Bears
The third QB is taken in the top 5, and Boege may be the best of them all. That is, if the Chicago coaching staff can develop him into his full potential. He has had great games, like week 2 against Houston, and totally awful games, like week 4 against Carolina. Simply put, Boege is a very raw prospect that will need some time and experience to develop. The staff GM Chrustifus has put together simply adores his long-term potential. They even traded away their star QB George Suhocki to the New England Patriots because they believe in him so much. Right now, the Bears are struggling with a poor overall roster and raw rookie under center, but if they do well with the picks that Suhocki has netted them, Boege can become one of the league's bright young stars in the near future.
1.06 - Tyrell Imme, EDGE, Seattle Seahawks
Imme was projected as one of the best pass rushers in the class; he hasn't exactly lived up to the hype just yet. There is still plenty of time for him to come into his own, but so far, he hasn't made much of an impact on the field. Even though Imme has started all of Seattle's games and earned a significant amount of snaps, he just got his first sack and only has 8 hurries so far. The Seahawks are hoping for a second-half comeback for their young edge rusher. He has all the physical tools to do so, he just needs to tinker with his pass rush moves and then he can become the disrupting force Seattle picked him to be.
1.07 - Cornelius Kinney, WR, San Francisco 49ers
While Kinney has been stuck under the spotlight of Holzberger this season, he is still a great prospect in his own right. Kinney has not been given the heavy workload that Holzberger has, so his FFL outlook is still up in the air. Head Coach Reggie Hoppe has leaned more on Arnold Bernstein and Theodore Chafee instead of overwhelming Kinney at the start of his career. Maybe he hasn't picked up the playbook as quickly as intended, maybe the 9ers want to wait for a permanent solution at QB before seeing what Kinney can do. There's no way of knowing why Kinney hasn't taken over the WR1 position for San Francisco yet, but the majority of FFL insiders believe he will take over that role sooner rather than later.
1.08 - Denzel Gammon, G, Denver Broncos
When taking a guard in the top 10, you better know they are going to be great; Denzel Gammon is going to be great. Straight out of college, he is performing like an average to above-average guard at a position that requires cohesion with your fellow lineman. It's hard for a rookie lineman to come in and be great right away, so the fact that he is at the level he is right now this early shows how great he can be in the coming years. There's no doubt he will become a star guard for Denver once he gets up to FFL speed and connects with his teammates.
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