Editor’s note: Monty Phan updated his draft diary throughout the 20 rounds of a recent RotoViz TriFlex Dynasty startup. All 20 rounds are now in the book. Get Monty’s thoughts on all the picks, including reflections on how the late rounds might play out differently post-NFL draft.
During quarantine last year, one side effect of my boredom was that I joined a bunch of startup dynasty leagues, which was a great way to entertain myself during the offseason – until months later, when I actually had to manage all those teams. (Gulp.) After the 2020 season, I vowed to avoid making the same mistake.
Alas, when it comes to fantasy football, I’m a weak man. It hasn’t helped that RotoViz teamed up with FFPC to launch the TriFlex Dynasty Leagues, a new format that uses FFPC Superflex scoring but eliminates kickers and defenses, while adding a third starting wide receiver slot and extra flex.[1] As a result, I’ve fallen off the wagon.[2] I’ve already joined two currently ongoing startups, the first a best-ball dynasty, and the other a standard, head-to-head format.
In that second league, which kicked off Monday, I’m drafting a team with Shawn Siegele. Without divulging too much of our strategy or getting into minutiae of the draft, I’ll keep a running diary of our team-building process as it unfolds over the next few weeks, in case you’re considering jumping into this new format yourself. For a quick intro, Shawn did a wrap-up of first-round values from a recent startup he did with similar roster requirements.
Pre-draft
The value of players and picks can, of course, vary depending on the league, but a measuring stick was established fairly early, when a team traded its startup 5.05 for another owner’s 2022 first-round pick. After that, there were four more pre-draft trades, three of which involved a 2022 first-rounder. Shawn and I drew the third spot in the draft order and, although we received a flurry of offers, preferred to let things sit until we were on the clock.
Round 1
The Dynasty ADP App now defaults to RotoViz TriFlex FFPC leagues as its primary source, and the first two picks, Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen, mirrored that ADP. That meant we could take our target, Kyler Murray, or trade down. It didn’t take long for offers to come in. The most attractive to us was our 1.03 for another owner’s 1.12 and a 2022 first-rounder. According to ADP, there was a good chance Joe Burrow would be available at 12th overall, which we were fine with, so after some debate, we took the offer. The first round is below, with team names hidden, but owners with multiple picks are highlighted in matching colors, while our pick is in red.
Most surprising pick: Nothing truly unusual went down, but Dalvin Cook at the 1.10 as the third RB – he typically goes at the 1.12 as the RB4, after Saquon Barkley – was mildly noteworthy.
Our pick: Burrow at the 1.12.
Round 2
In the second round, teams started grabbing WRs, a major indicator that owners were approaching the TriFlex format differently from other FFPC leagues. In typical FFPC Superflex leagues, the rate that RBs fly off the board is nearly the same as that of QBs, and it’s not unusual to see seven RBs gone before the first WR (most often, Justin Jefferson) is selected. But by adding a required third WR starter, the balance shifted, with, oftentimes, as many WRs coming off the board in the first 25 picks as RBs in that range. That was the case here, as an equal number of RBs and WRs – seven – were selected in the first 25 picks.
Most surprising pick: Russell Wilson, a fringe first-rounder, lasted until the 2.09.
Our pick: Kyle Pitts at the 2.10. A nominee for most surprising pick (at least to me, a rigid follower of ADP and rankings), Pitts was the first tight end off the board. Both Shawn and I already have a lot of the consensus top TE, George Kittle, so we rolled the dice on the athletic freak who could be the most valuable at his position this time next year. After unsuccessful attempts to trade down, the Pitts pick was also a bet that we could swing a deal later to a team that hoped he would have fallen later. Stay tuned to find out!
