Been a long time since I’ve done a mock draft, but tis the season for it, so why not give it a shot? The DSFL draft is traditionally much harder to predict than the ISFL draft, simply because user activity isn’t that defined yet, people haven’t had time to separate themselves from one another and the inactives haven’t fallen off the train yet. But, I do have some experience with GMing in the DSFL, and I will be drawing on everything I can find in order to create a 1-round mock. I’ll also be looking at potential needs for each team and seeing when and how they might wish to fill them! I am using the TPE tracker to determine roster needs and activity, so it might be slightly inaccurate, but I’ll do my best to not do anything super crazy.
KANSAS CITY COYOTES, 1st OVR
Well, KC by my estimation needs pretty much anyone they can get besides a QB and maybe a running back. They have a strong O-Lineman in Cheese Farley, a solid QB in Matt Peterson and a good 1-2 punch at RB with Xander Creed and King Tut, though Tut seems to be at least partially inactive. Other than that, this roster has tons of holes. The good news is that it allows them to pick whoever the hell they want, which is certainly not a bad position to be in.
Now, I’m gonna go for a little bit of a curveball. A lot of people are putting an offensive player here, but I firmly believe in building defense first and keeping the game under control.
I think you could go one of two ways here, but I’m gonna pick the newbie and select defensive tackle Professor Godfrey Gravity 1st overall, from user z0rem.
In terms of earnings, he’s right up there with the best of ‘em. He’s gotten everything he can earn, he’s been active in the rookie discord and he seems like a good guy. I think you get a strong rookie D-Lineman in the locker room, coach him up, and he can easily be just as good as any of the big name recreates. Admittedly, this pick is dependent on what Honolulu does with Eleven, because if he’s gone then they’ll grab a wideout no doubt about it. But, I won’t be taking into consideration call-ups, since they’re very unpredictable.
UPDATE: I have been informed that Peterson has retired, but that doesn't change my pick here. They can still grab one of many QBs in the second round and be all set, so I'm keeping the pick the same.
TIJUANA LUCHADORES, 2nd OVR
Tijuana actually has a pretty decent roster, looking at everyone involved. They have a decent amount of actives and plenty of firepower on offense and defense. One thing they are sorely lacking is a quarterback. To put it bluntly, they don’t have one at all. So, this is the pick I am likely most confident in going into the DSFL draft.
I have the Tijuana Luchadores picking up quarterback IsHe ReallyInvisible from user Jpach.
Why am I so confident in this pick? For one, Jpach is a great user who has been doing a ton of great work for the league in several key areas. He’s been earning everything he can earn, and he also has a history with Tijuana. Jpach is actually a recreate, and his old player, Literally JustAHexagon, was drafted by Tijuana all the way back in S21. I think that’s a relationship the Tijuana GMs are looking to maintain, and Jpach has been a great guy in the league on top of it all. This, to me, is a no-brainer.
MINNESOTA GREY DUCKS, 3rd OVR
Ah, my Grey Ducks. This team was the one I GM’d for, from S21 to S23. I have fond memories of my time there, and they have a decent squad put together. They have a maxed QB, strong secondary and a maxed running back. However, they’re lacking at defensive line and linebacker. They only have a single DE on the roster, inactive player Mills Wallace. So again, I’m going for one of the defensive big boys.
I will be taking Manhattan Project, defensive end from user Modern_Duke.
When looking at defensive lineman prospects, he’s another one of the big names. But honestly, any one of the DE prospects could go at this spot, they’ve almost universally been excellent earners and several of them have done media pieces or graphics already. However, Duke is another guy that, just like Jpach, has a history with the team in question. Duke was drafted by San Antonio (predecessor to Minnesota) along with me as part of the S17 DSFL class. He’s someone I’d think they’d want to bring back, but any other DE prospect could go here as well.
DALLAS BIRDDOGS, 4th OVR
Dallas is another team that seems to be in a decent spot overall. While they don’t have a ton of players, the majority of them are active and are in key positions for the team to succeed. They have a solid quarterback in Christ Jr., they have an elite tight end with Borgo San Lorenzo, they even have a strong defensive line built up. One thing they lack, however, is receivers. They do not have a single one on the roster. You have a lot of big names here, plenty of recreates and new players alike.
I will be selecting Chunt The Badger, wide receiver from user UltimateYeehaw.
You could absolutely bring in someone like Luke Quick, Sam the Onion Man or Bayley Cowabunga. They’re all sim league vets and excellent users. However, Yeehaw has been busting his ass off in the league, already writing two articles in just a week and purchasing tier 4 equipment as a true rookie. That is super impressive, and his potential for growth is obvious to anyone watching closely. While you would absolutely bring in a big name vet here, I’m sticking with the rookie in this case.
NORFOLK SEAWOLVES, 5th OVR
While this pick, to me, is another super obvious choice, I still want to talk about the Seawolves roster. They’re a team with a lot of talent on both sides of the ball, with star running back Mister 42 leading the way on offense and SparkySparky Boom-man being the leader of the defense. However, much like Tijuana, they currently lack an active quarterback. So, naturally, they need another one. This pick is another one I’m super confident in, as long as the player actually falls this far.
I have Norfolk picking up quarterback Raeni Clark from user Bex.
Again, this is one I’m super confident on for a couple reasons. One, Bex is the commissioner of the league. Don’t need to say much more than that. Secondly, and arguably more important than the first reason, is Norfolk is a very tight knit locker room. And Bex is still very friendly with everyone involved in Norfolk. Her first player, running back Marcella Toriki, was also drafted by Norfolk. This might be more of a slam dunk pick than Invisible, as long as she gets this far down the board.
LONDON ROYALS, 6th OVR
This is an interesting one. London is a team that has put together a very strong defense and has plenty of weapons to boot. They’re missing an elite running back as well as a good kicker, but otherwise they have a good amount of their positions locked down with strong actives. There is the issue of Charlemagne Cortez. Not in terms of activity, he’s been earning since day one, but it’s very likely he’ll be called up soon. He currently sits at 751 TPE according to the index, most likely closer to 780 with all the extra PTs waiting to be graded. The question for me is: does he get called up? As much as I didn’t want to consider it for KC, I need to here.
I think they wait on a QB and instead grab the best running back on the board, Busch Goose, piloted by user infinitempg.
It might be risky to wait on a QB, but there are plenty of options still on the board that will likely be available with their 2nd round pick. Zaylren, Raske, Gaare, Arrow Jr., etc. But it’s really hard to pass up on Infinite. He’s a great user, one of the best in the league, and London desperately needs a running back. With there being plenty of QBs left on the board, I think you can push the can down the road on that and pick a different position of need.
PORTLAND PYTHONS, 7th OVR
Portland is one of the most stacked rosters in the DSFL. At pretty much every position, they have an active. Portland can basically choose best player available here, but I do think they’ll grab a second wide receiver over anything else. They already have 2 strong running backs in Ander Christiansen and Giovanni Bianchi, they have a great tight end with Shane Benjamin and they have the quarterback position locked down with Lebron James III. The only offensive position they lack is a great #2 wideout.
For Portland, I have them taking Luke Quick, wideout from the user BigRed1580.
I know BR very well, personally. He’s an incredible veteran presence in the locker room, has some GM experience in Yellowknife, knows how to build a great wide receiver and could be an asset in the war room if he’s willing to do it. Again, you could put any of the big name veteran receivers here, all of them would be a good fit. But due to my personal experiences with BR, I think he’s the best receiver out of any of the recreates.
BONDI BEACH BUCCANEERS, 8th OVR
Our Ultimini champions, Bondi Beach are kind of in trouble when it comes to roster management, at least going by the TPE Tracker. They only have a handful of players that would currently be considered active. While I’m sure plenty of these guys have been in the locker room but haven’t updated, the Bucs have a lot of holes to fill and not a big draft to do it with. The biggest glaring hole here is at quarterback, where again, Bondi Beach has nothing. Thankfully for them, there are plenty of people willing to fill in that gap and get a starting spot.
I have the Buccaneers picking up quarterback Dexter Zaylren from user Laser.
He’s the best recreate QB still left on the board out of himself, Arrow Jr., and Raske. He also has a ton of experience as a GM that might make him more attractive compared to everyone else left on the board. He was the GM for Orange County for a very long time and brought the team several championships. While he wasn’t able to capture the success of his early years again, he kept OCO as a contender in the extremely balanced ASFC for a long time, which is certainly an achievement in and of itself. Again, you could also go with one of the new guys in Erik Gaare, who has been extremely active in the rookie discord and has already pumped out several media pieces. But, I’ll go with the slightly safer pick and choose Zaylren.
So, there’s my mock draft for the 1st round of the S27 DSFL draft! While the DSFL is much harder to predict compared to the ISFL, I like to think I did a decent job and this could be pretty close to the result on draft day. For some of the picks, at least, I’m almost certain they’ll happen as long as the player reaches that specific draft spot.
Any criticism? Do you agree with my picks? What would you do differently? The DSFL Draft is so chaotic that anyone could be right, so lemme know what you think!
KANSAS CITY COYOTES, 1st OVR
Well, KC by my estimation needs pretty much anyone they can get besides a QB and maybe a running back. They have a strong O-Lineman in Cheese Farley, a solid QB in Matt Peterson and a good 1-2 punch at RB with Xander Creed and King Tut, though Tut seems to be at least partially inactive. Other than that, this roster has tons of holes. The good news is that it allows them to pick whoever the hell they want, which is certainly not a bad position to be in.
Now, I’m gonna go for a little bit of a curveball. A lot of people are putting an offensive player here, but I firmly believe in building defense first and keeping the game under control.
I think you could go one of two ways here, but I’m gonna pick the newbie and select defensive tackle Professor Godfrey Gravity 1st overall, from user z0rem.
In terms of earnings, he’s right up there with the best of ‘em. He’s gotten everything he can earn, he’s been active in the rookie discord and he seems like a good guy. I think you get a strong rookie D-Lineman in the locker room, coach him up, and he can easily be just as good as any of the big name recreates. Admittedly, this pick is dependent on what Honolulu does with Eleven, because if he’s gone then they’ll grab a wideout no doubt about it. But, I won’t be taking into consideration call-ups, since they’re very unpredictable.
UPDATE: I have been informed that Peterson has retired, but that doesn't change my pick here. They can still grab one of many QBs in the second round and be all set, so I'm keeping the pick the same.
TIJUANA LUCHADORES, 2nd OVR
Tijuana actually has a pretty decent roster, looking at everyone involved. They have a decent amount of actives and plenty of firepower on offense and defense. One thing they are sorely lacking is a quarterback. To put it bluntly, they don’t have one at all. So, this is the pick I am likely most confident in going into the DSFL draft.
I have the Tijuana Luchadores picking up quarterback IsHe ReallyInvisible from user Jpach.
Why am I so confident in this pick? For one, Jpach is a great user who has been doing a ton of great work for the league in several key areas. He’s been earning everything he can earn, and he also has a history with Tijuana. Jpach is actually a recreate, and his old player, Literally JustAHexagon, was drafted by Tijuana all the way back in S21. I think that’s a relationship the Tijuana GMs are looking to maintain, and Jpach has been a great guy in the league on top of it all. This, to me, is a no-brainer.
MINNESOTA GREY DUCKS, 3rd OVR
Ah, my Grey Ducks. This team was the one I GM’d for, from S21 to S23. I have fond memories of my time there, and they have a decent squad put together. They have a maxed QB, strong secondary and a maxed running back. However, they’re lacking at defensive line and linebacker. They only have a single DE on the roster, inactive player Mills Wallace. So again, I’m going for one of the defensive big boys.
I will be taking Manhattan Project, defensive end from user Modern_Duke.
When looking at defensive lineman prospects, he’s another one of the big names. But honestly, any one of the DE prospects could go at this spot, they’ve almost universally been excellent earners and several of them have done media pieces or graphics already. However, Duke is another guy that, just like Jpach, has a history with the team in question. Duke was drafted by San Antonio (predecessor to Minnesota) along with me as part of the S17 DSFL class. He’s someone I’d think they’d want to bring back, but any other DE prospect could go here as well.
DALLAS BIRDDOGS, 4th OVR
Dallas is another team that seems to be in a decent spot overall. While they don’t have a ton of players, the majority of them are active and are in key positions for the team to succeed. They have a solid quarterback in Christ Jr., they have an elite tight end with Borgo San Lorenzo, they even have a strong defensive line built up. One thing they lack, however, is receivers. They do not have a single one on the roster. You have a lot of big names here, plenty of recreates and new players alike.
I will be selecting Chunt The Badger, wide receiver from user UltimateYeehaw.
You could absolutely bring in someone like Luke Quick, Sam the Onion Man or Bayley Cowabunga. They’re all sim league vets and excellent users. However, Yeehaw has been busting his ass off in the league, already writing two articles in just a week and purchasing tier 4 equipment as a true rookie. That is super impressive, and his potential for growth is obvious to anyone watching closely. While you would absolutely bring in a big name vet here, I’m sticking with the rookie in this case.
NORFOLK SEAWOLVES, 5th OVR
While this pick, to me, is another super obvious choice, I still want to talk about the Seawolves roster. They’re a team with a lot of talent on both sides of the ball, with star running back Mister 42 leading the way on offense and SparkySparky Boom-man being the leader of the defense. However, much like Tijuana, they currently lack an active quarterback. So, naturally, they need another one. This pick is another one I’m super confident in, as long as the player actually falls this far.
I have Norfolk picking up quarterback Raeni Clark from user Bex.
Again, this is one I’m super confident on for a couple reasons. One, Bex is the commissioner of the league. Don’t need to say much more than that. Secondly, and arguably more important than the first reason, is Norfolk is a very tight knit locker room. And Bex is still very friendly with everyone involved in Norfolk. Her first player, running back Marcella Toriki, was also drafted by Norfolk. This might be more of a slam dunk pick than Invisible, as long as she gets this far down the board.
LONDON ROYALS, 6th OVR
This is an interesting one. London is a team that has put together a very strong defense and has plenty of weapons to boot. They’re missing an elite running back as well as a good kicker, but otherwise they have a good amount of their positions locked down with strong actives. There is the issue of Charlemagne Cortez. Not in terms of activity, he’s been earning since day one, but it’s very likely he’ll be called up soon. He currently sits at 751 TPE according to the index, most likely closer to 780 with all the extra PTs waiting to be graded. The question for me is: does he get called up? As much as I didn’t want to consider it for KC, I need to here.
I think they wait on a QB and instead grab the best running back on the board, Busch Goose, piloted by user infinitempg.
It might be risky to wait on a QB, but there are plenty of options still on the board that will likely be available with their 2nd round pick. Zaylren, Raske, Gaare, Arrow Jr., etc. But it’s really hard to pass up on Infinite. He’s a great user, one of the best in the league, and London desperately needs a running back. With there being plenty of QBs left on the board, I think you can push the can down the road on that and pick a different position of need.
PORTLAND PYTHONS, 7th OVR
Portland is one of the most stacked rosters in the DSFL. At pretty much every position, they have an active. Portland can basically choose best player available here, but I do think they’ll grab a second wide receiver over anything else. They already have 2 strong running backs in Ander Christiansen and Giovanni Bianchi, they have a great tight end with Shane Benjamin and they have the quarterback position locked down with Lebron James III. The only offensive position they lack is a great #2 wideout.
For Portland, I have them taking Luke Quick, wideout from the user BigRed1580.
I know BR very well, personally. He’s an incredible veteran presence in the locker room, has some GM experience in Yellowknife, knows how to build a great wide receiver and could be an asset in the war room if he’s willing to do it. Again, you could put any of the big name veteran receivers here, all of them would be a good fit. But due to my personal experiences with BR, I think he’s the best receiver out of any of the recreates.
BONDI BEACH BUCCANEERS, 8th OVR
Our Ultimini champions, Bondi Beach are kind of in trouble when it comes to roster management, at least going by the TPE Tracker. They only have a handful of players that would currently be considered active. While I’m sure plenty of these guys have been in the locker room but haven’t updated, the Bucs have a lot of holes to fill and not a big draft to do it with. The biggest glaring hole here is at quarterback, where again, Bondi Beach has nothing. Thankfully for them, there are plenty of people willing to fill in that gap and get a starting spot.
I have the Buccaneers picking up quarterback Dexter Zaylren from user Laser.
He’s the best recreate QB still left on the board out of himself, Arrow Jr., and Raske. He also has a ton of experience as a GM that might make him more attractive compared to everyone else left on the board. He was the GM for Orange County for a very long time and brought the team several championships. While he wasn’t able to capture the success of his early years again, he kept OCO as a contender in the extremely balanced ASFC for a long time, which is certainly an achievement in and of itself. Again, you could also go with one of the new guys in Erik Gaare, who has been extremely active in the rookie discord and has already pumped out several media pieces. But, I’ll go with the slightly safer pick and choose Zaylren.
So, there’s my mock draft for the 1st round of the S27 DSFL draft! While the DSFL is much harder to predict compared to the ISFL, I like to think I did a decent job and this could be pretty close to the result on draft day. For some of the picks, at least, I’m almost certain they’ll happen as long as the player reaches that specific draft spot.
Any criticism? Do you agree with my picks? What would you do differently? The DSFL Draft is so chaotic that anyone could be right, so lemme know what you think!