Drafting Graham and Gronk (1 Viewer)

[TheFootballJesus]

I'm in a non-PPR 14 team league and am not a big fan of the RBs available in the late 1st and late 3rd round. The league has two flex positions (RB/WR/TE). I have been thinking things through for a while and am contemplating taking Graham in the 1st and Gronk in the 3rd- I was wondering if anyone had done this in their drafts this year and how their teams turned out- in general do you believe that going for TWO elite TEs forces you to sacrifice too much at RB and WR?

 

[zed2283]

Well when those guys are each scoring 2 TD's a week it may not seem so bad...

I think it's an interesting strategy since you have the two flex spots. Is there a TE required?

Maybe go TE-WR-TE-RB-RB-RB?

 

[bostonfred]

Too fancy. If gronk I'd the highest scoring player left on your board, then sure. But in the third, he probably shouldn't be.

 

[Steeler]

I drafted Graham and Gronk over the weekend in a 10 team, non-ppr, one player keeper league. Start 1QB, 2RB,2WR,1TE,1FLEX(RB,WR,TE). My keeper was M. Forte and I snagged Graham in the 2nd and Gronk in the 3rd. There was a group of RBs and group of WRs available at that pick but they all seemed equivalent to me so I went Gronk. I ended up with T.Gerhardt, R. Cobb, and P. Harvin as the rest of my starters with J. Cutler as my QB.

I'm OK with that starting lineup, I guess we'll see how it goes.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

I'm in a non-PPR 14 team league and am not a big fan of the RBs available in the late 1st and late 3rd round. The league has two flex positions (RB/WR/TE). I have been thinking things through for a while and am contemplating taking Graham in the 1st and Gronk in the 3rd- I was wondering if anyone had done this in their drafts this year and how their teams turned out- in general do you believe that going for TWO elite TEs forces you to sacrifice too much at RB and WR?

Considering that a healthy Graham and a healthy Gronk each score like a top 10 WR I don't think it's a terrible plan. It does takes away some flexibility though in that RB and WR HAVE to be your targets in round 2, 4, 5, 6 etc. - and you would not be able to take advantage if another top TE falls further than he should.

 

[VikingFrog]

Not in love with this team. Still exciting to have Gronk and Graham if they can do what we know they can do.

Hate RG3 but qbs were flying off the board. Hate my running backs, but that's to be expected sacrificing the first 3 picks at te and wr.

Had #10 in a 12 team non-ppr today and took Graham. Here's my team (QB,2RB,2WR,Flex(RB/WR/TE),K,D/ST,5BN):

QB: Robert Griffin III

RB: C.J. Spiller, Joique Bell, Stevan Ridley, Knowshon Moreno, Jonathan Stewart, Ahmad Bradshaw

WR: A.J. Green, Michael Floyd, Brandin Cooks, Josh Gordon

TE: Jimmy Graham, Rob Gronkowski

PK: Steve Hauschka

TD:

 

[Slugg]

Bloom brought this up on one of the latest podcasts. He promotes it not only for the two difference making players, but also it takes the entire top tier of TEs out of play from the rest of the field... ensuring that no one can touch your weekly ceiling. its an interesting scheme.. but in a 14 team league i'd need some stability at rb just to sleep at night.

 

[Tanner9919]

Bloom brought this up on one of the latest podcasts. He promotes it not only for the two difference making players, but also it takes the entire top tier of TEs out of play from the rest of the field... ensuring that no one can touch your weekly ceiling. its an interesting scheme.. but in a 14 team league i'd need some stability at rb just to sleep at night.

interesting theory, was thinking of doing the same thing myself..(we score TE's at PPR, 1 pt per 15 yards/rec, while WR's are PPR and 1 pt per 20 yards/rec..)

Graham ( 232 pts) was sandwiched between Jamaal Charles (238 pts) and L. McCoy (229pts) in total pts scored last year..the next-best TE, Julius Thomas, came in at 162 pts, 70 pts less than Graham..

so you figure Graham scores another 220+ this season ( his 3-yr avg is 208),and Thomas' numbers go up to maybe 200 - no Welker (I think they force him to retire) no Decker, and only E. Sanders to catch those extra balls, so a big bump up for Thomas..

so I'm getting roughly 420 pts from two TE's, one of which I can start at the flex position? I'm SOLD on this idea..200 pts from my #2 TE is basically identical to what Brandon Marshall's 3-yr avg is at 204 pts..

(I use Thomas instead of Gronk because I don't want the injury report drama each and every week coming from NE..I want the plug-n-play guy like Julius Thomas.).

but the most important aspect is that you take out the top two TE's from the player pool, and force your league mates to have to deal with Gronk's injury woes, and lesser guys like Reed and V. Davis, and so on..

 

[ROYALWITCHEESE]

I'm in a non-PPR 14 team league and am not a big fan of the RBs available in the late 1st and late 3rd round. The league has two flex positions (RB/WR/TE). I have been thinking things through for a while and am contemplating taking Graham in the 1st and Gronk in the 3rd- I was wondering if anyone had done this in their drafts this year and how their teams turned out- in general do you believe that going for TWO elite TEs forces you to sacrifice too much at RB and WR?

I recently did this in a TE required, W/R/T flex league. But I drafted gronk at 5.04. 3rd is too high if you already have Graham.

 

[Banger]

I think it's a great strategy in TE heavy scoring leagues but in those leagues I doubt you have an opportunity to do it. If you take this approach I think you really need to be confident in your mid round RBs to break through. If you hit on a couple it could work out tremendously.

 

[Bills_Fan11]

Considering that a healthy Graham and a healthy Gronk each score like a top 10 WR I don't think it's a terrible plan. It does takes away some flexibility though in that RB and WR HAVE to be your targets in round 2, 4, 5, 6 etc. - and you would not be able to take advantage if another top TE falls further than he should.

I like the theory, but does this ever actually happen? I almost never see Cameron or Davis fall very far and once they're taken, the next wash of dozen guys are basically all the same; so if anything they mostly are picked too soon.

 

[eNdblu]

Draft Graham & Gronk in an MFL10 w/ Roster Management

This is how my team turned out

1.07 Graham, Jimmy NOS TE 4:23:46 p.m.

2.06 Gronkowski, Rob NEP TE 10:35:56 p.m.

3.07 Cobb, Randall GBP WR 1:54:17 p.m.

4.06 Crabtree, Michael SFO WR 8:59:24 a.m.

5.07 Harvin, Percy SEA WR 3:43:35 p.m.

6.06 Edelman, Julian NEP WR 8:35:17 a.m.

7.07 Moreno, Knowshon MIA RB 12:58:58 p.m.

8.06 Jackson, Steven ATL RB 10:43:35 a.m.

9.07 Woodhead, Danny SDC RB 7:05:42 a.m.

10.06 West, Terrance CLE RB 4:18:23 p.m.

11.07 Wilson, Russell SEA QB 8:29:55 a.m.

12.06 Hill, Jeremy CIN RB 5:28:31 p.m.

13.07 Kelce, Travis KCC TE 7:45:39 a.m.

14.06 Hartline, Brian MIA WR 4:01:39 p.m.

15.07 Chiefs, Kansas City KCC Def 10:24:23 a.m.

16.06 Vinatieri, Adam IND PK 10:50:49 p.m.

 

[Lobary]

I had the 8th pick in a 12 team ppr redraft and went in with this as my primary plan. We start 1 QB/2RB/3WRs/1 Flex(RB, WR, TE), 1K, 1DEF. All TDs are 6 points.

My team:

1.8 Graham

2.5 AJ Green

3.8 Andre Johnson

4.5 Gronk

5.8 Rashad Jennings

6.5 Pierre Thomas (dumb pick here)

7.8 Cam Newton

8.5 Lamar Miller

9.8 Riley Cooper

10.5 Bernard Pierce

11.8 Steven Jackson

12.5 Christine Michael

13.8 Joe Flacco

14.5 Eli Manning

15.8 Steven Hauschka

16.5 HOU DEF

Employing this strategy left me stockpiling as many upside RBs as I could get, hoping that one or more of them emerge as viable point-producers. I was also left in bad shape at the QB position because I rolled the dice in the sixth round that I could wait one more pick. I could have had Matt Ryan there instead, and I would feel way better about this team had I pulled the trigger then. I had to settle on Cam instead.

 

[mquinnjr]

I'm in a non-PPR 14 team league and am not a big fan of the RBs available in the late 1st and late 3rd round. The league has two flex positions (RB/WR/TE). I have been thinking things through for a while and am contemplating taking Graham in the 1st and Gronk in the 3rd- I was wondering if anyone had done this in their drafts this year and how their teams turned out- in general do you believe that going for TWO elite TEs forces you to sacrifice too much at RB and WR?

Considering that a healthy Graham and a healthy Gronk each score like a top 10 WR I don't think it's a terrible plan. It does takes away some flexibility though in that RB and WR HAVE to be your targets in round 2, 4, 5, 6 etc. - and you would not be able to take advantage if another top TE falls further than he should.

I'm in a 10 team league and includes PPR and yardage bonuses. Last night, I took Graham 1.7 and Gronk 3.7, and am floored to have them both. I took best player available, and am left with a weak WR corps. I view it as a risk, of course. But, I took 5 RB's that suit PPR so that I have plentiful depth there, and also focused on a mid-low 1 10-team QB and a low-end QB1/high end QB2 that I believe is undervalued to firm up QB.

I'd rather have the upside of Graham and Gronk, who perform like WR1's when healthy and are the focal point of the Brees and Brady passing games, respectively, than the guy who goes Calvin/Cobb (replacing 1st and 3rd round WR's for Graham and Gronk) and the dreck they have to deal with at TE, RB's and QB strategy all being equal.

 

[Skoo]

Bloom brought this up on one of the latest podcasts. He promotes it not only for the two difference making players, but also it takes the entire top tier of TEs out of play from the rest of the field... ensuring that no one can touch your weekly ceiling. its an interesting scheme.. but in a 14 team league i'd need some stability at rb just to sleep at night.

Yeah I've been contemplating this in my keeper league. 10-team league Non-PPR 2RB 2WR 1 RB/WR/TE, we keep 2 vets and 1 rookie each year.

I have Brees, Graham, LeVeon, and the 9th pick.

Was thinking if Gronk falls to me in the 1st maybe I should take him and freak everyone out. I figure I'm not getting a stud RB regardless, and I can snag a WR at the start of the 2nd. Will probably leave me pretty thin at RB, but there's a few goobers in the league and I've always been able to get some great value picks later.

 

[ROYALWITCHEESE]

10 team ppr

1. Graham

2. Murray

3. Jeffery

4. Spiller

5. Gronk

6. Patterson

7. Brady

8. Wallace

9. G Tate

10. Moreno

11. Ingram

12. Gordon

13. Bradshaw

14. Palmer

 

[Banger]

10 team ppr

1. Graham

2. Murray

3. Jeffery

4. Spiller

5. Gronk

6. Patterson

7. Brady

8. Wallace

9. G Tate

10. Moreno

11. Ingram

12. Gordon

13. Bradshaw

14. Palmer

wow...5th round for gronk in PPR

 

[ROYALWITCHEESE]

10 team ppr

1. Graham

2. Murray

3. Jeffery

4. Spiller

5. Gronk

6. Patterson

7. Brady

8. Wallace

9. G Tate

10. Moreno

11. Ingram

12. Gordon

13. Bradshaw

14. Palmer

wow...5th round for gronk in PPR

44th overall.

 

[mquinnjr]

10 team ppr

1. Graham

2. Murray

3. Jeffery

4. Spiller

5. Gronk

6. Patterson

7. Brady

8. Wallace

9. G Tate

10. Moreno

11. Ingram

12. Gordon

13. Bradshaw

14. Palmer

I'll post mine then too, for perspective, same format, 10 team PPR:

1: Graham

2: Ball

3: Gronk

4: Foster

5: Bush

6: Foles

7: Patterson

8: Sproles

9: SF DST

10: Romo

11: DMC

12: Decker

13: Watkins

14: Hauschka

 

[Banger]

Ugh. I did it tonight. Drafted with a mix of good players and others not so good. 10 team, .5 ppr, 6 pts per all tds some yardage bonuses but all pretty standard after that and drafted 9th. I never, ever take Qb's early and haven't for probably 10 years but unexpectedly Manning dropped to me at 9. He absolutely crushed in this format last year and while he'll surely have a good bit of regression but even at 20% he's #1. I was hoping for graham but thinking I'd get Ball. Unexpectedly Manning dropped to me at 9. Guy behind me goes Bree's/demarius so I go Graham.

Comes to me and Gronk is staring me right in face at the end of the 3rd. I hate the pick because it's a 1 TE but a flex but I hate being hemmed into someone in my flex each week. He was definitely going within 5 picks after me and the value potential was too much. I've never ever had a guy forced into my flex each week and am not crazy about the idea. I had graham last year and he was crushing in the early part of the year in this format and the thought of he and Gronk could be nasty. Especially with the scarcity at the position. WORST case scenario is that I have terrific trade bait ..if you can draft RB/wr well the remainder of the draft that could be a great start to win the league. It's only $150 entry so I figured why not? Go for it. So I snag Gronk and proceed with:

Andre Johnson - hated this pick but thought it was a good safe pick in this format

J. Bell - ugh for a rb1

Gerhart - again didn't love it but .5 ppr he'll get a lot of touches

Mike Wallace - again didn't love this pick either. Some people love him and he dropped a decent bit....took a shot at being the best option..new coordinator, tannehill can chuck it...

Steven Jackson - I know most hate him but I'm gambling on him this year...that offense is gonna score a lot of tds and if he's on the field he's an rb2 at worst.

MJD - again kickin it old school

Wes Welker -dropped like a stone and until he's done he's likely in my lineup.

Kelvin Benjamin - good upside #1 in offense

Carlos Hyde - wanted to mix some youth and upside with the all geriatric team.

Jonathan Stewart - could be the #1...why not

Carson Palmer - awesome value late

Shonn Greene - I hate him too but he's the starter in like the 15th round

Britt

Pats

Kicker

So I'm curious to see what the pool feels about the draft? To me it was like an out of body experience as there were so many things that i did that I usually never do that I don't know what to think.

 

[SameSongNDance]

In my FFPC 1k league where TEs get 1.5PPR and you can flex up to 3 of them I went Graham -> Gronk out of the 5 spot and almost pissed my pants.

 

[Casting Couch]

I love Graham in the first, he's head and shoulders above the rest.

Gronk is a very risky play this season, imo. I would probably target him in the late 3rd, early 4th.

 

[VikingFrog]

Starting Gronk and Graham week 1 is looking tasty.

Will be interesting to see how this strategy pays off for those of us that took the plunge and can start two TEs.

 

[ponchsox]

I love Yahoo's rankings, I got Gronk at 4.09

 

[shadyridr]

I wouldve drafted graham and JT but JT went a few picks before me in the third. gronk was still there but his injury history scares me and so i passed. I wouldve taken him if he slipped back into the fourth. Pairing a guy like gronk with graham defeats the purpose when he gets hurt

 

[[icon]]

Not quite gronk and graham but I did have this unfold in a recent live draft for a PPR 10T League with two flexes.

Cameron was still on the board in the 6th (#55 overall) and was among the highest projected scoring players remaining in our scoring system... given nerves surrounding Gronk, I opted to double dip in the TE pool.

1. (6) Calvin Johnson (Det - WR)

2. (15) A.J. Green (Cin - WR)

3. (26) Rob Gronkowski (NE - TE)

4. (35) Doug Martin (TB - RB)

5. (46) Andre Ellington (Ari - RB)

6. (55) Jordan Cameron (Cle - TE)

7. (66) Mike Wallace (Mia - WR)

8. (75) Terrance Williams (Dal - WR)

9. (86) C.J. Spiller (Buf - RB)

10. (95) Nick Foles (Phi - QB)

11. (106) Robert Griffin III (Was - QB)

12. (115) Marques Colston (NO - WR)

13. (126) Kenny Britt (StL - WR)

14. (135) Arizona (Ari - DEF)

15. (146) Maurice Jones-Drew (Oak - RB)

16. (155) Danny Amendola (NE - WR)

17. (166) Phil Dawson (SF - K)

18. (175) Karlos Dansby (Cle - LB)

 

[DexterDew]

Somehow ended up drafting both in a 12 team 2 keeper from the 10 spot. TD heavy, .5 ppr, start 2RB/2WR/TE flex. Just couldn't pass up their potential, though my RBs are poor. 5 player bench

Romo

Tate, Pierce, Hill, Ridley

Cobb, Allen, White, Evans, Lee

Graham, Gronk