Fantasy Football: NFC West Winners & Losers from the NFL Draft
The 2017 season saw a changing of the guard in the NFC West. The longtime kings, the Seahawks, took a backseat to the surging Rams while the Cardinals and Niners are in building mode. The NFL Draft is a vital part of the offseason for these teams. Let’s take a look at the Winners and Losers in the wild NFC West.
This article will recap the NFC West part of Episode #545 of The Fantasy Footballers podcast- NFL Draft Breakdown: NFC Winners and Losers.
Arizona Cardinals
Winners: David Johnson
Losers: Chad Williams, Christian Kirk
The theme for the Cardinals draft was finding their offense of the future. Drafting Josh Rosen, Chase Edmonds and Christian Kirk along with fortifications for the offensive line should bode well for David Johnson. RBs have more room for success in successful offenses, which is what Arizona is trying to build. As for Kirk, he immediately puts a damper on a possible breakout for 2nd-year WR Chad Williams. Kirk will also need to adjust to a slightly different role in year one. In college, he was utilized as an inside weapon, the role currently occupied by Larry Fitzgerald. It will be up to Kirk to tailor his game if he’s going to prosper in the NFL.
San Francisco 49ers
Winners: Jimmy Garoppolo
Losers: none
The lack of big moves in free agency showed that the 49ers had a plan to rebuild this team through the draft. With their franchise QB, Jimmy Garoppolo coming via trade last season, GM John Lynch set out to acquire more help on the offensive side of the ball. Taking a tackle in the first round and trading up for WR Dante Pettis in the second provides the protection Garoppolo needs while giving him another offensive playmaker.
Los Angeles Rams
Winners: None
Losers: John Kelly
It’s hard to call anyone on the offensive side of the ball a true winner for the Rams, as their offense remains largely intact from 2017, except for the swap of Sammy Watkins for Brandin Cooks. Additionally, the Rams didn’t have any early picks in the draft so the rookies they did pick will be hard pressed to make an immediate impact. John Kelly, RB, will be one of those rookies who will struggle to get playing time. An exciting prospect, Kelly is now stuck on a depth chart behind Todd Gurley, one of the best in the business. Kelly will hold value as a handcuff only if he is able to win the backup job on that RB Depth Chart.
Seattle Seahawks
Winners: Tyler Lockett, Doug Baldwin, Rashaad Penny
Losers: Chris Carson, Mike Davis
One of the biggest surprises in the NFL draft, Rashaad Penny, is also one of the biggest winners for the Seahawks. Not only has the team said the right things, that they see him as a 3-down back, they put their money where their mouth is by selecting him in the first round. The addition of a workhorse back in the first round is a killer blow to incumbents Chris Carson and Mike Davis who flashed in 2017 but struggled to stay on the field.
As for the WRs, Lockett and Baldwin are winners by default. The Seahawks failed to address the void in their receiving corps left by Jimmy Graham and Paul Richardson in any meaningful way.