The Valley Bulls have been on the clock ever since the 2017 season concluded. That said, there hasn't been much drama surrounding this pick. The Bulls are very much expected to draft New York Giants RB Saquon Barkley. From there is where things become unexpected. Below is my final mock draft. My final, bound-to-be-wrong guess at how the first round of the 2018 CRFL Draft will play out...
2018 CRFL Mock Draft
1.01. The Valley Bulls select...RB Saquon Barkley NYG (Penn State)
The NFL draft has come and gone, and while the owner of the Bulls is disappointed that Barkley didn't end up with his favorite NFL team, the Cleveland Browns, he'll still have an obvious option here. Saquon Barkley is being hyped up to be potentially better than recent Top 5 RB picks Ezekiel Elliott and Leonard Fournette. VERY bold proclamation, but the Bulls will be hoping the hype is real. The Bulls might see some offers for the 1.01, but I expect him to decline them all. The Bulls have been a doormat in the CRFL. This pick begins the build to contender status.
1.02. Desert Dreamers select...RB Derrius Guice WAS (Louisiana State)
The Cards very clearly entered the second half of the 2017 season with the intention of losing. That tanking was successful and landed them here at 1.02, with two more 1st round picks later in the round. Recently, the Cards changed owners and are now the Desert Dreamers. Much like the Bulls, the Dreamers are bad and should draft with the BPA (best player available) strategy in mind. There is a wild debate in the fantasy community about if there is a consensus in rookie drafts after Barkley. I'm not seeing one, but I've heard from a great source that the Dreamers prefer Guice. This is the first of three building blocks the Dreamers will select this round.
1.03. Tri-State Raptors select...RB Rashaad Penny SEA (San Diego State)
The Raptors traded Dak Prescott away in order to retain their original draft pick from Connell Conquistadors. The Raptors just might be the worst team in the league, but two early wins last season leave them picking at 1.03 for now. They won't complain too much, nabbing Rashaad Penny with this pick. Penny figures to be the workhorse RB for the Seahawks and will look to carry the Raptors out of the CRFL cellar.
1.04. Wind River Bison select (via Kaneohe Ikaika Warriors)...QB Josh Allen BUF (Wyoming)
The Bison had a shocking 2017 campaign. The loss of David Johnson killed the season, even with Alvin Kamara becoming a star. Jordan Howard was traded away to improve WR depth with T.Y. Hilton, but that position is still rather sketchy for Wind River. That said, sources tell us that the owner of the Bison, a huge Wyoming Cowboys fan, will not wait around and risk losing Josh Allen to another team. The Buffalo Bills QB is Wind River bound in fantasy land.
1.05. Brucey's crew selects...WR Calvin Ridley ATL (Alabama)
A quiet off-season in which the Crew forgot to set their keepers rankings correctly has suddenly set back one of the CRFL's few remaining original franchises. Brucey has since reemerged and while he typically autopicks, he tends to autopick rookies. Ridley feels like a Brucey type pick. Can Ridley and other WRs from this draft class end the rookie WR plague that has existed since the fame Mike Evans/Odell Beckham class?
1.06. Northern Lights (via Wind River Bison) select...WR D.J. Moore CAR (Maryland)
The Lights from the North Pole traded away Dolphins RB Kenyan Drake to draft in this position. With the Dolphins drafting Kallen Ballage, that appears to be a wise move. I'm told the Lights are really high on Moore and would be ecstatic to have him still here with the sixth pick. Again, rookie WRs have been dreadful in recent years. The Lights will be hoping Moore restores some respect for young pass catchers.
1.07. Desert Dreamers select (via Spokane Spartans) select...RB Ronald Jones TB (Southern California)
The RB revolution continues for the Dreamers. After adding Guice with the second overall pick, they add Ronald Jones five picks later. This WR class is considered to be weak, and the Dreamers don't have any roster strengths, so they won't care about grabbing a second RB. Best player available. Guice and Jones immediately give the Dreamers a very solid pairing of RBs. Sony Michel is a possibility here as well.
1.08. Gem State Bruins (via Connell Conquistadors) select...RB Sony Michel NE (Georgia)
The Bruins were involved of the blockbuster trade of the off-season in the CRFL, sending Leonard Fournette to the Conquistadors for two 2018 1st round picks and one 2019 1st round pick. The Bruins traded away the later 2018 1st round pick out of fear that they wouldn't be able to keep all these young players long term due to the 10 player keeper limit. Ideally, the Bruins will want a WR, but the Bruins have become a juggernaut in the CRFL via the BPA approach. Michel is a top-tier talent and Bill Belichick selecting him in the first round speaks volumes of what they think of him.
1.09. Huskerfan (via Vito's Vikings) selects...RB Kerryon Johnson DET (Aurburn)
To this point, considering the dominance of rookie RBs like Kareem Hunt and Leonard Fournette, Huskerfan has to be a little disappointed with how Christian McCaffrey has played to this point. In fact, Huskerfan briefly put McCaffrey on the trading block before the deadline, but no deal was reached. The first round fantasy prospects are off the board, so this comes down to preference. I think the Huskers keep the RB wave moving and draft Kerryon Johnson.
1.10. Huskerfan (via Gem State Bruins) selects...RB Nick Chubb CLE (Georgia)
The Bruins traded out of this spot in favor of an additional 2020 1st rounder. Huskerfan makes back-to-back selections and will be happy to grab Chubb, a second round select to the Browns, with this pick. Sure, the Huskers could split the difference and take Sutton or Kirk here, but I think he'll hoard RBs. The acquisitions of Chubb and Johnson put the Huskers in a good position to make that jump to compete for the CRFL title.
1.11. Wind River Bison (via Northern Lights) select...RB Royce Freeman DEN (Oregon)
The Bison drafted Josh Allen with the 4th overall pick of this round, not wanting to risk losing the Wyoming QB to another team. Freeman appears to be the last of the top RB crop of this class. He has very little resistance to becoming the starting RB in an offense that might surprise.
1.12. Desert Dreamers (via Gem State Bruins) select...WR Christian Kirk ARI (Texas A&M)
Their name is spot on, cause the Dreamers couldn't have dreamed of a better first round /rim shot. After selecting Guice and Jones earlier in the round, it's time to add some balance and draft a WR. This comes down to who the Dreamers prefer between Courtland Sutton, Christian Kirk, Dante Pettis, and Anthony Miller. I'll guess Kirk here as the first round closes.
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Looking ahead to 2019...
The draft is half the fun when it comes to fantasy football. You can bet that the likes of the Bulls, Dreamers, and Raptors have no intention of picking this high again come spring 2019. That said, sometimes rebuilding takes a few years. In this case, I'm predicting that Huskerfan will be drafting 1.01 next spring.
Hold up, I'm not predicting a fall 2018 meltdown for the Huskers. I think they draft here because of the 2019 first round pick they've acquired from Vito's Vikings. Vito's roster has gotten worse and the Dez Bryant acquisition was ill-advised. I unfortunately see them struggling big time and not having the pick to dig themselves out.
