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Ready to be graded, double draft media, 1709 wordsAlright, so the draft was last night and I think that there are a lot of people who were happy with how it turned out. That being said, there were some that weren’t quite as happy, but I hope with time they learn to love the situations that they are in. Anyway, everyone is going to have a take on how the draft went down. Everyone is going to want to put out an article with either analysis or grades of the draft picks. People eat that shit up during the NFL draft despite the fact that draft grades rarely seem to come to fruition. So all of that being said, here are my takes on all of the first round selections in this seasons NSFL draft.
(All TPE was taken from the draft cards, so there will be some inconsistencies with what your current TPE level is)
1. Arizona Outlaws selects… WR Brock Landers – Norfolk Seawolves – 223 TPE (@gucci)
I’m honestly a little bit surprised about Landers going first overall. Don’t get me wrong, Landers is an incredible talent and will be tearing it up in the NSFL in no time. Despite the fact that he only put up 727 yards and 1 touchdown his rookie DSFL season, he was the clear number one wide receiver on the board, so I guess you can’t really go wrong in selecting him. I guess I was only surprised because I thought Arizona would have gone to the defensive side of the ball with this pick. As previously mentioned though, Landers is one hell of a pick and I believe that the Outlaws are going to be extremely happy with his dedication and production on the field.
Grade – A
2. New Orleans Second Line selects… LB Quenton Bode – San Antonio Marshals – 231 TPE (@terriblehippo)
Now this is a guy that I thought had more of a chance to go first overall. Being one of the top linebacker prospects in the draft is going to gather a lot of attention and a lot of attention did Bode get. Honestly, this is one of those picks that I think every other team in the league groaned with they saw the name flash up on the screen. Bode is honestly that good and will be an imposing figure on the Second Line defense very soon. With 115 tackles and 6 sacks on the season there is no question as to why Bode was picked here. Overall, this was an excellent decision on the part of the Second Line general managers. What makes this pick even scarier is when you pair Bode with New Orleans next pick in the draft.
Grade – A
3. New Orleans Second Line selects… LB Johnny Slothface – Tijuana Luchadores – 245 TPE (@slothfacekilla)
So yeah, like I said before. This pick makes the Bode pick even more terrifying and vice versa. The Second Line chose to double down on linebackers in the first round and solidified having potentially the most fearsome linebacker combo for the future. I honestly would want nothing to do with a combination of Slothface and Bode in the future. That tandem is going to be a nightmare for opposing offenses. Slothface racked up 123 tackles and 4 sacks on the season and is also one of the nicest guys in the locker room. Honestly, two stellar picks by New Orleans here in the first round and potentially the start of a generational defense.
Grade – A
4. Yellowknife Wraiths selects… DE Nero Alexander – San Antonio Marshals – 235 TPE (@shadyshoelace)
Based off of interviews that I had with the various general managers of the league before the draft, I thought that I had a decent chance of being selected here. They did tell me that they had some defensive needs that had to be addressed, but that I was in the running. They decided to go with the defensive need in Nero Alexander which I can’t blame the Wraiths in doing. Alexander is an elite talent on the defensive line as shown by his 12 tackles for losses and 8 sacks as a rookie in the DSFL. Yellowknife already has a spectacular prospect pool and the addition of Alexander makes the Wraiths much more ferocious on the line. All-in-all, this is a pick that didn’t surprise me and a good one as well.
Grade – A
5. Austin Copperheads selects… TE Chase Jensen – Palm Beach Solar Bears – 247 TPE (@dizzyDC)
First ever selection in Austin Copperheads history goes to the tight end out of Palm Beach. I had a lot of great talks with the general managers leading up to the draft so I wasn’t particularly surprised that I ended up here. Just because I’m not surprised doesn’t mean that I’m not ecstatic though. I can’t wait the get out there on the field as part of an inaugural class for this team that is going to win a whole bunch of championships. Anyway, back to the analysis. I think this pick left some people scratching their heads as tight end isn’t typically seen as a first round need. But, if you look around the league and through league history there have been tight ends that have been the focal point of offenses and have had hall of fame careers. I think Jensen will be that type of player for the Copperheads. Jensen’s receiving capabilities were displayed in his rookie season where he 65 receptions for 817 yards which put him in the top five for receiving in the DSFL.
Grade – A-
6. Chicago Butchers selects… LB Lightsout Lewis – Kansas City Coyotes – 205 TPE (@flyeaglesfly29)
So we go right back to the defensive side of the ball with the linebacker out of Kansas City. This is a pretty dang good pick for the Butchers as pick six as they get their defensive captain of the future. This guy is super dedicated to the league and it shows day in and day out. While he didn’t necessarily have a ton of on field production with 63 tackles and 3 sacks, his TPE level is still pretty decent. I think that his experience of being a general manager at the DSFL level helped with this selection. I think Lewis is awesome, but I think some people were left wondering why some other linebackers with higher TPE weren’t taken first. Lewis is still a great pick a great base for a future defense.
Grade – A-
7. Arizona Outlaws selects… DT Ricardo Morris – Norfolk Seawolves – 221 TPE (@Roly)
The big boy in the middle of the defensive line gets the pick here at the seventh spot. The Outlaws went offense early with Landers and now get a blue-chip defensive piece. I don’t think that defensive tackle is necessarily always on people’s mind in the first round, but I don’t blame the Outlaws at all for going in this direction. Big time veteran presence that will help shore up an Arizona defense that struggled this last season. Morris can do a little bit of everything as he displayed by getting 39 tackles and 6 sacks his rookie season in the DSFL. I honestly do not know how much longer Morris would have stayed on the board, but Arizona got themselves an elite interior defensive lineman.
Grade – A
8. Orange County Otters selects… DT AJ Lattimer – Portland Pythons – 184 TPE (@TeyonSchavari)
Well, here’s your answer to how much longer Morris would have stayed on the board. I have to believe that Morris would have been the pick here if he had not been taken by the Outlaws. I think that Lattimer is a decent player and this isn’t a knock against him by any means, but I think that he would have been available in the second round just based off of TPE. That being said, there weren’t a ton of interior defensive linemen to go around so Orange County decided to go with the player they really felt that they needed. Being a little bit behind in the TPE race showed in the stats as Lattimer had 22 tackles and 1 tackle for loss. There is still plenty of time for Lattimer to develop into an elite prospect though.
Grade – B
9. Philadelphia Liberty selects… S Richard D’Attoria V – Portland Pythons – 215 TPE (@124715)
Many considered D’Attoria to be the top safety prospect in the draft and I’m a little bit surprised that he dropped all the way to nine. He’s fast and hits like a train. Any defensive backfield with him in it is going to be a fearsome one. With 64 tackles, 7 sacks, and an interception in his rookie season in the DSFL it is apparent that this guy is going to be a star at the next level. In terms of value this was an awesome pick for Philadelphia as I thought he would be a mid-round pick in the first at the very latest. Good on you Philadelphia.
Grade – A
10. San Jose Sabercats selects… WR Ahri Espeeyeeseetee – Norfolk Seawolves – 222 TPE (@`steelsound`)
Rounding out the first round is the wide receiver with the hard name from the Seawolves. The champions don’t really seem like they have too many holes in their roster so this seemed more like a best player available kind of situation. There’s nothing wrong with adding more offensive talent though. Espeeyeeseetee had 75 receptions for 873 yards and 4 touchdowns on the season making him one of the more productive receivers in this draft class. Overall, this is a good pick to top off the top round and not really a pick that anyone could question what the general managers were thinking when making the selection.
Grade – A
So as you can see, I think that the general managers made pretty darn good selections in the first round for the most part. I think that the top players in this class really separated themselves and that showed in the results. That being said, I think that there should have been some of my Palm Beach brethren taken earlier than they were but I guess some teams just ended up with huge steals because of that. Anyway, I’m super excited to be a Copperhead and can’t wait to see how the expansion draft plays out this next season.
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Mario Moloka'i, #93 LB ![[Image: Untitled_1.png]](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/578426975266537482/1057708477155393566/Untitled_1.png)
