PML’s second season is underway, coaches are excited to play their week 1 games, and we have already seen a few upsets this week. We are going to evaluate a few key points about the draft and determine which team had the most value and upside in each round after the DDT results. PML is the best league out there and our DDT tool provides exceptional opportunities to coaches to find diamond in the rough players deep in the draft. It happens every season and this season was no exception.
Best Value in Every Round:
Round 1: Edge Matayo Uiagaleli, Pick 27, drafted at a 74 overall with X-Factor development
The pass rusher from Oregon was the 4th edge rusher off the board. Matayo is 21 years old, with 85 strength and 90 hit power. His overall was on the lower end of the three drafted before him, but the development trait is what boosted his potential. Matayo is a day 1 starter and this was a position of need for the Cowboys heading into the draft. Matayo may not have the raw talent that Micah Parsons has, but the Dallas scouting department far exceeded expectations this off-season.
Round 2: Tight End Kenyon Sadiq, Pick 16, drafted at a 65 overall with Superstar development.
Sadiq was the third tight end taken in the draft, but coming from Oregon, he had the best opportunity to acquire abilities. Sadiq lacks the height usually desired at the position, he is 6 ‘3 ” with 87 jumping, but Cleveland was in the market for a new tight end when they let David Njoku hit the market in free agency. Sadiq will likely be the starter for the Browns and has the highest upside of all the tight ends in the draft to shoot up in overall by the end of the season.
Round 3: Wide Receiver Noah Thomas, Pick 26, drafted at 70 overall with Star development.
Baltimore has a very crowded wide receiver room, but he is the tallest receiver of the group at 6’5”. He has 91 speed with 88 acceleration, he is not a total burner, but he has the ability to go up and rake in a contested catch. Round 3 featured no superstars, but Thomas was the last drafted player that received an upgrade to his development.
Round 4: Edge Korey Foreman, Pick 23, drafted at 75 overall with Star development.
Foreman was the 3rd to last player drafted with Star development, but he had the second highest overall drafted in the round. Foreman was a steal at this spot for the Panthers, but currently he is sitting at backup territory on the line. The Panthers have a healthy group of edge rushers, but scheming a rotation to get Foreman a few snaps each game could go a long way in taking advantage of his development trait.
Round 5: Guard Emmanuel Pregnon, Pick 26, drafted at 68 overall with Superstar development.
The Denver Broncos have a lot of money tied into their offensive line, more so, those players are older, aging, and will likely regress with another passing season. Denver decided to bolster their offensive line in this draft by selecting four offensive linemen and Pregnon was their last offensive linemen selected in the draft. Denver was excited about Pregnon’s strength and repetitions at the combine, he came into the league sporting 93 strength and he ran very well for the offensive linemen group. HIs 72 speed is above average for the position, while his pass blocking is ideal for a starting caliber linemen, his run blocking is very raw. Pregnon’s mis-timed blocks and rusty footwork was a liability at times. However, sitting behind Mike McGlinchey for this season should help him fine tune his run blocking skills.
Round 6: Guard DJ Campbell, Pick 7, drafted at 68 overall with Superstar development.
Campbell was the only superstar drafted in the 6th round. Cleveland had 11 selections in this draft and they drafted 2 superstar development and 3 star development players. Campbell currently sits behind Wyatt Teller on the depth chart. Teller is on a 1 year deal worth almost $15M, so with this selection, and his age, Cleveland is not expected to bring Teller back in the off-season. Despite being drafted at a 68 overall, Campbell has increased his overall to a respectable 73 in the pre-season. As his overall rating increases, it will be difficult for Cleveland not to rotate their superstar guard in to gain some experience with the unit.
Round 7: Kicker Blake Doud, Pick 31, drafted at 79 overall with normal development.
Detroit drafted a top rated player in the 7th round, albeit a kicker, but getting a starting kicker with 95 kick power that will be on the team for the cycle is a steal this late in the draft. A lot of times, coming out of the draft, kickers with the range to nail a 50+ yard field goal are not quite as accurate. However, Doud has 83 kick accuracy, and he has 80 speed to boot. If Detroit places him on the kickoff team, Doud has the speed to protect the backside against returners that may advance the field.
