Top 10 Drafts

I suppose once in a while it's cool to resurrect the Top 10, and since I get to play all day on account of snow, there's no time like the present. I went back through the archives of our draft results to see who actually had a good draft. It's been chronicled by Eli that a good draft means nothing in this game if you don't have worthwhile keepers, so take it for what it's worth. The term "steals" is used very loosely here, in most circumstances.

10. Father Abraham. Top picks: Domanick Davis, Fred Taylor, LenDale White, Joey Galloway. Steals: Ben Roethlisberger, Jerramy Stevens. It was a mostly awful draft, but not because Lincoln had a bad eye for talent. Injuries to Davis and White were crippling, even if Taylor surprised everyone by NOT getting injured. Joey Galloway (until recently) and Drew Bennett were somewhat bust receivers, and Roethlisberger's troubles were well documented.

9. Cellar Dwellars. Top picks: Tom Brady, Derrick Mason, Greg Jones, Donte Stallworth. Steals: LJ Smith, Jon Kitna. The loss of Greg Jones before the season even started was offset by the breakout performance of Donte Stallworth, but once he went to the injury graveyard, this draft became a whole lot less likeable. Mason has been up and down with just two touchdowns and very little beyond a Lions mercy pick in the 19th round came through unexpectedly.

8. Tice's Partyboat. Top picks: Chris Brown, Donald Driver, Alge Crumpler, Trent Green. Steals: Keyshawn Johnson. Lots of reasonably decent name guys like Kevin Curtis, Marcus Robinson and Jermaine Wiggins populate this draft, but disappearances to Brown and Green make it mostly mediocre. Driver has proven his worth and then some, but nobody else distinguished themselves. I guess Alge Crumpler, the fifth best tight end in the game, has done his share.

7. The Nihilist Marmot. Top picks: Darell Jackson, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Kurt Warner, Mike Anderson. Steals: Antonio Bryant. The first two picks make for a powerful and consistent fantasy tandem, both among the game's top 10 receivers, and Kurt Warner's first week made this draft look outstanding for a bit. A trade of Housh and the death of Kurt made it less so, and the lack of a solid running back option or a breakout in later rounds made this an average venture only.

6. Fresh Legs. Top picks: Dominic Rhodes, Ahman Green, Reggie Brown, Laveranues Coles. Steals: Cedrick Wilson, Rod Smith. The draft gets high marks mostly for Coles alone, since Brendel's fourth choice in the draft has blossomed into a grade-A fantasy receiver. Green has had a productive bounceback year, even if Rhodes has seen his role diminished.

5. Naj Davenport's Poop. Top picks: Mike Bell, Cedric Benson, Javon Walker, Marion Barber. Steals: Greg Jennings, Matt Jones. Jennings, despite being a pick near the bottom of the draft and having some injury troubles, is an outside keeper possibility, and getting Walker and Barber helped solidify Viano's team big time. Peripherals like Jerious Norwood and Matt Jones could be much, much worse.

4. Who is Ron Mexico. Top picks: Reggie Bush, DeAngelo Williams, Deion Branch, Chris Cooley. Steals: Lawrence Tynes. Bush failed to live up to immediate expectations, but he's still a multi-year keeper. Williams has been productive, and it made for a reasonable back-to-back pick package for keeper-thirsty Tomke. I'd still take Muhsin Muhammad over three of Tomke's keepers, and Muhammad was his fifth choice. Branch has proven to have some value, as well.

3. Madd Skillz. Top picks: Antonio Gates, Kevan Barlow, Matt Hasselbeck, T.J. Duckett. Steals: Terry Glenn, Brandon Jacobs, Kellen Winslow, Phillip Rivers, Wali Lundy. We can make fun of Ed because his draft does not compare to his keepers, and Kevan Barlow was still inexplicably his second round choice, but he still came out with lots of helpful talent from the later rounds, whether or not he kept all of it. Jacobs is a future superhero, Winslow and Rivers had productive breakout seasons, and Lundy is a starter in Houston. Hasselbeck was hurt but remains an attractive fantasy option, and Glenn was one of the better gets in the entire drft.

2. The Slumpbusters. Top picks: Roy Williams, Santana Moss, Jeremy Shockey, Tatum Bell. Steals: Michael Vick, Benjamin Watson. If you forgive his selection of Kyle Orton, you can see this draft is stocked with keepers (Williams, Vick), serviceable starters (Bell, Watson, Shockey) and a couple guys like Santana Moss and Matt Leinart that can't be counted out, either. A very good draft.

1.. ChamPeons. Top picks: Corey Dillon, Laurence Maroney, Joseph Addai, Lee Evans. Steals: Cedric Houston. This is one of the reasons Champ is going to make the playoffs ... an outstanding first four choices in the draft. It seemed everyone walked into the draft looking for a running back, maybe two, and Champ somehow came away with three. The three running backs were not only great selections, but they've stayed on his team all year thanks to decent effectiveness and at least two of them are keeper-likely. Evans was a terrific fourth choice.