It is the final day of August drafting for the 2022 Footballguys Players Championship. With NFL teams trimming down to 53 players, we have seen some ADP movement and fascinating builds in this contest. Remember that fantasy managers are chasing a $500,000 grand prize in drafts going off daily, and I have a front-row seat for all the action as one of the online facilitators of these drafts. If any of the drafters have a connection issue, cannot get into the draft room, or experiences any other obstacles in making their picks, I am there in the draft room to assist. In this piece, I want to share a few of the things I have noticed while monitoring these drafts over the last week:
How high has Dameon Pierce climbed up boards?
With the release of Marlon Mack, high-stakes drafters have been selecting Dameon Pierce with unbridled enthusiasm. By all reports, he has been the best running back in Houston in training camp, even being held back in preseason games because the Texans want to protect him for the regular season.
It is always fun to draft a player that everyone else covets, but Footballguys players have to wonder: “Is he worth the draft capital?” I have seen him go within the top-20 at his position—one drafter on Tuesday night actually chose him at the 3.06! Now THAT is aggressive! I was talking with one high-stakes player who believes Pierce will settle into the fourth round next week. I do not necessarily see that happening, but—as I always say—there is a non-zero chance of anything.
Is Antonio Gibson back to being a sleeper?
Over the last week or so, I saw the switch of Brian Robinson Jr over Antonio Gibson reach its completion more or less. FPC drafters had made up their minds that Robinson would be their eighth (sometimes seventh) round target, and they would let Gibson fall to the ninth or tenth. Then, we all heard the Brian Robinson Jr news this past Sunday, and things changed again.
While I did see one Footballguys GM select Gibson in the fifth round this week, he is usually not going that high, with most fantasy football players choosing to grab him in the late seventh or early eighth. Yes, one portion of that three-headed committee will likely not be a factor at least early on in the season, but that does not mean Washington will not get another person off the wire to take his place. Obviously, after waiver claims are processed this week, we will get more clarity on what Ron Rivera and the Commanders plan to do.
Based on recent news, who is a player to watch in the next week?
While this is not necessarily based on “recent news,” some high-stakes players are beginning to get concerned about Jaylen Waddle’s absence from practice and the preseason. It has been three (THREE!) weeks since he has practiced—that is not good, Bob, for a young player trying to learn a new offense.
We found out that he is trying to get over a soft tissue injury in his lower body, but Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel continues to say that Miami is being cautious with him. Waddle has not slipped much…yet. I’ve consistently see him picked in the early-to-mid fourth, but we only have 11 days of drafting left until the Dolphins take the field for real. Are you going to draft a player who has missed so much time in the fourth round when you are trying to win $500,000? You will answer that question today when you join the 2022 Footballguys Players Championship.
Thanks for reading, everyone! I will see you in the Footballguys Players Championship draft rooms!
Eric Balkman is an online commissioner for live Footballguys Players Championship drafts at MyFFPC.com. He is also the host and producer of The High Stakes Fantasy Football Hour, the RotoViz High-Stakes Lowdown, and the FFPC Live Best Ball Coverage shows broadcast on all FFPC media outlets.