Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

Just because the NFL is in the middle of a lockout it doesn’t mean that you can’t start preparing for the upcoming fantasy football season. Comprised of 11 members of the Bruno Boys Fantasy Football Staff and guest draftee Steve Coppola , a member of the Bruno Boys Forum, we bring to you the second of many Fantasy Football 2011 Mock Drafts. This draft will be a 16-round affair based on a points per reception (PPR) scoring league (Pass TDs - 4 points, All Other TDs - 6 points, 25 Yards Passing - 1 point, 10 Yards Rushing/Receiving - 1 point, All Receptions - 1 point). Outside of having to field a starting lineup made up of 1 QB, 2 RBs, 3 WRs, 1 TE, 1 K, and 1 D/ST, owners are free to fill out their rosters any way they like. 

Commentary after each pick is provided by the Bruno Boys staff member who made that pick. The draft started on March 9, 2011. Be sure to check back on a regular basis for updates and feel free to give your opinion in our comments section. **All draft picks were made before the 2011 NFL Draft**

2011 FANTASY FOOTBALL PPR MOCK DRAFT ROUND 6 RESULTS

6.01:  Steve Coppola - Vernon Davis, TE, San Francisco 49ers — Talk about another tough decision to make. Ideally, I would prefer another wide receiver and wait on a tight end, however I need the best productivity here and wanted someone in that his respective position. Davis is a proven commodity at the tight end position and despite the poor play at the quarterback position in San Francisco he still was the No. 2 scoring tight end in PPR formats. With offensive minded Jim Harbaugh taking over as head coach, the hope is that he helps develop a signal caller and the offense is more focused on using Davis’ prowess in the red zone. There were plenty of wideouts with upside to gamble on, however the security of an elite position player could not be passed on at 6.01

6.02: Bruno Boys Cory - Brandon Pettigrew, TE, Detroit Lions — Since there’s going to be a lot of picks between now and my Round 7 selection, I wanted to get a quality tight end before they were all gone. Thankfully there were some good ones left for me to pick from, and I chose Brandon Pettigrew of the Detroit Lions. Though there were question marks at the quarterback position, mostly because of injury, Pettigrew still caught 77 passes for 742 yards and four touchdowns in 2010. Of course, I would like him to reach the end zone more but I think he’s got the potential to crack 85 receptions, especially if quarterback Matthew Stafford is healthy for a full season. And, in a PPR league that is huge at the tight end position. Even if Pettigrew just repeats his numbers from the 2010 season in 2011, I’m still comfortable with this pick.

6.03: Bruno Boys Brad - Shonn Greene, RB, New York Jets — I was very unsure of where to go with this pick, so I’ll go with what I deem to be the proverbial “best player available”. Greene may not be an accomplished pass receiver (16 receptions in two NFL seasons), however I feel like his role could expand in that regard in 2011. No, I am not forecasting 50 catches or anything close, however I wouldn’t be surprised if he finished the season in the 20 to 30 range. Once again Greene showed glimpses of his potential toward the end of last season, and I feel that he should breakout if head coach Rex Ryan decides to take the training wheels off.

6.04: Bruno Boys Jimbo - Tony Romo, QB, Dallas Cowboys — Before he got injured last season, Tony Romo was on pace to have another great fantasy year. With weapons like Miles Austin, Dez Bryant and Jason Witten all returning, Romo should be in line for another great fantasy campaign. As much as I would have liked to grab my WR3, I decided to take an elite quarterback while I still had a chance. There are only a few left and I did not want to be stuck with somebody like Joe Flacco as my QB1. Having Witten as my tight end means double points when these two connect on touchdowns, which very well may happen a lot in 2011.

6.05: Bruno Boys JRonstadt - Mario Manningham, WR, New York Giants — Manningham’s steady ascension continued in 2010 when he established career-highs in receptions (60), receiving yards (922) and touchdowns (nine) as a third-year wide receiver in a high-powered New York offense. With Steve Smith (knee) being a free agent and his status uncertain for the upcoming season, Manningham should have a more significant role within the Giants’ offense and I anticipate that he’ll establish new career-highs across the board.

6.06: Bruno Boys Cavigs - BenJarvus Green-Ellis, RB, New England Patriots — I debated going with my third wide receiver at 6.06, however using my value based drafting strategy I can’t pass on a running back. There are more than a handful of available wideouts that I rank in the same tier, and with only two running backs left in that tier I felt the need to secure my RB3. Green-Ellis won’t be scoring me fantasy football points through the air, but his ability to put the ball in the end zone is hard to pass on in Round 6. He scored a touchdown in 10 games last year and his 188 fantasy points ranked him No. 17 among running backs in PPR scoring. With New England featuring one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL, look for the “Law Firm” to once again hit pay dirt on a regular basis in 2011.

6.07: Bruno Boys James - Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers — Deep down I wanted to draft more running back or wide receiver depth, however I felt it was more important to grab a quarterback that I can rely on every week. Ben Roethlisberger has really improved his passing skills and had he not been suspended for the first four games of last year, he would have posted his second consecutive 4,000 plus yard season. Expect Big Ben to have another solid year in 2011.

6.08: Bruno Boys Lane - Pierre Garcon, WR, Indianapolis Colts — I had a few decisions to ponder here. Do I go with another receiver I’m rather enamored with still available or select one of the wealth of quarterback options left? In the end I went with my WR3 due to the format and a guy who could have a breakout fourth season. Garcon was a dud the first half of the season, however came on strong in the second half, averaging six receptions for 70 yards and scoring five touchdowns in the last six games. Garcon is now included in Peyton Manning’s coveted receiving “route tree” group, and with Indianapolis throwing the ball as much as they do don’t expect him to slow down anytime soon.

6.09: Bruno Boys Ryan - Johnny Knox, WR, Chicago Bears — I want to make sure I have a quality third wide receiver and I believe Knox has nice upside going into next season. Knox improved his chemistry with Jay Cutler during his sophomore campaign hauling in 51 receptions for 960 yards and five touchdowns. He is only 24 years old and is a perfect receiver for Mike Martz’s system. I think he takes a big step forward this season and can see him finishing 2011 in the range of 70 plus receptions.

6.10: Bruno Boys Kyle - Michael Crabtree, WR, San Francisco 49ers — Needing a third receiver, I’m excited to see someone as talented as Crabtree on the board at 6.10. Though he was something of a disappointment in 2010, you have to believe that the future is bright for him, and that his numbers will see a natural increase this year.

6.11: Bruno Boys Allie - Cedric Benson, Rb, Cincinnati Bengals — Though Benson is a free agent this offseason, his chances of returning to the Cincinnati Bengals are better than good following a productive meeting with new offensive coordinator Jay Gruden. The Bengals plan to return to the power-run game that best suits Benson’s style. His PPR value should also get a boost in Gruden’s West Coast offense where he’ll have an opportunity to catch more balls. Benson’s coming off two consecutive seasons of 1,100-plus rushing yards and I’m optimistic that he’ll do it again in 2011. By grabbing Benson as my RB3 late in the sixth round, I bought myself some peace of mind in case my RB2 Ryan Mathews gets off to a slow start and I got terrific value with this pick to boot.

6.12: Bruno Boys Rich - Matt Schaub, QB, Houston Texans — Since I have to wait so long after my picks, I can’t pass up a quarterback like Schaub who will most certainly not be around if I were to pass on a quarterback at 6.12 and 7.01. Schaub struggled early, however posted eight straight games with at least 14 fantasy points and he tossed 15 of his 24 touchdowns during that span. Until the Texans’ defense can improve, you can expect a lot of shootouts in Houston and this bodes well for his fantasy value. In my opinion, Schaub is a clear cut QB1 that I can rely on each week.

 
PPR ROUND-BY-ROUND RESULTS:  1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5  |  6  |  7  |  8  |  9  |  10  (click to view)

STANDARD ROUND-BY-ROUND RESULTS:  1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5  |  6  |  7  |  8  |  10  |  11  |  12  |  13  |  14  |  15  |  16

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