A Decade Ago I Started Mocking “Devy” Drafts – Here’s How 2015 Went

Devy League:
A Fantasy League Where You Draft "Developmental/Devy" Players, i.e. players that are not yet declared for the NFL Draft 

If you want to go back to beyond “a decade ago” – see here for the 2012 opening piece. Picking up the pace here as I only published the most recent one last week!

To bring everyone up to speed…

I started a Devy League mock draft series back in 2012. I didn’t know that Devy Leagues were a thing at the time (were they?). Nonetheless it was something to look forward too as I would get a head start on the future year’s draft class, and start to imagine what it would be like to draft future fantasy football stars when whey were in high school and watch them rise through the ranks.

2015 was year 4 of the experiment. So the eligible players for the 2015 draft were any player:

1. With amateur status
2. That was not drafted in the previous Devy mock drafts

I’ll start with the players drafted in 2012 that were not in the NFL yet, and get into the year’s picks.

2012 Draft Holdovers

• Jeff Driskel, QB, Florida
  It was around this time that I started to realize how badly a highly recruited player could flame out.
• Ricky Seals-Jones, WR, Texas A&M
  Still a WR at this point.
• Johnathan Gray, RB, Texas
  Makes me sad every time I type his name. Mainly because of the way it’s spelled.

2013 Draft Holdovers

• Leonard Fournette, RB, LSU
  I was a Fournette > Henry guy until about mid-2020
• Kelvin Taylor, RB, Florida
• Braxton Miller, QB, Ohio St.
  Still a QB at this point.
• Derrick Henry, RB, Alabama
• Keith Marshall, RB, Georgia

2014 Draft Holdovers

• Speedy Noil, WR, Texas A&M
  Beginning of a long run on the holdovers list.
• DJ Foster, RB, Arizona St.
• Connor Cook, QB, Michigan St.

2015 Draft

1. Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Ohio St.
   Active 2016-Present, 1920 Career Fantasy Pts
   Coming off the 2015 National Championship performance, even non-Devy players were talking about Zeke’s inevitable future in the NFL. Easy choice for #1, IMO.
2. Christian Hackenberg, QB, Penn St.
   Active 2016-2017, 0 Pts
   Hackenberg was the #1 pick in the Todd McShay early mock draft and #8 in the Kiper viesion. Before you use this as Anti-McShay ammo, though, it’s true that Hack’s freshman year at Penn St. was legit. James Franklin ruined him. (Then, the Jets drafted him even though Todd Bowles didn’t want him, etc. etc. etc.)
3. Laquon Treadwell, WR, Mississippi
   Active 2016-Present; 261 Pts
   To me, Treadwell never really leapt off the screen in highlights. But he was already touted as a future #1 pick at this point.
4. Hunter Henry, TE, Arkansas
   Active 2016-Present; 834 Pts
   Given the challenge of drafting a TE in Devy so far, not a terrible pick.
5. Jared Goff, QB, Cal
   Active 2016-Present; 1738 Pts
   Goff’s thoughts on the nature of the rising sun is a top 5 funniest Hard Knocks moment for me, along with:
   – Browns coach Bob Wylie’s pointing out that we won two world wars without stretching
   – Rex Ryan telling everyone to get a goddamn snack
   – Vince Wilfork showing up in overalls
   – Antonio Cromartie struggling to remember all his kids (easily #1)
6. Michael Thomas, WR, Ohio St.
   Active 2016-Present; 1370 Pts
   The master of slants slipped a bit from now til draft day.
7. Josh Doctson, WR, TCU
   Active 2016-2019; 240 Pts
   Something about WR prospects and wearing purple (Treadwell) has me wondering about Quentin Johnston.
8. D’Haquille “Duke” Williams, WR, Auburn
   Active 2019-2020; 37 Pts
   Duke was the #1 Senior WR prospect at the time. If you’re not OK with the prospect of spending a first round pick on a guy that could score 1/10 what Josh Doctson scored in his career, maybe avoid Devy leagues.
9. Cardale Jones, QB, Ohio St.
   Active 2016-2018; 2.7 Pts
   Also riding high from the National Championship game like Zeke was…he 1,000% should have declared for the draft afterwards. Would have been a first rounder.
10. Jonathan Williams, RB, Arkansas
    Active 2016-Present; 117 Pts
    Almost the definition of journeyman RB.
11. Cody Kessler, QB, USC
    Active 2016-2018; 127 Pts
    He was no John David Booty.
12. James Conner, RB, Pitt
    Active 2017-Present; 1093 Pts
    This was actually before his Cancer diagnosis announcement. Imagine drafting him, then finding he beat cancer, and eventually becomes a near first round redraft RB. That is a reason to give Devy a try.
13. Will Fuller, WR, Notre Dame
    Active 2016-2021; 697 Pts
    Maybe the best example I can think of for why I came up with the Fantasy Games Won stat.
14. Evan Engram, TE, Mississippi
    Active 2017-Present; 846 Pts
    2015 was the year of the Devy Tight End!
15. George Campbell, ATH, Florida St.
    Active 2020; 0 Pts
    The 5-star recruit would go on to have a cup of coffee with the Jets as an UDFA. I can’t even find him on Pro Football Reference.
16. Devontae Booker, RB, Utah
    Active 2016-2021; 584 Pts
    Solid value here.
17. Dylan Moses, ATH
    Active 2021; 0 Pts
    Drafted off the cover of ESPN The Magazine, would eventually move to the defensive side of the ball. The anti-Bryce Harper.
18. Alex Collins, RB, Arkansas
    Active 2016-2021; 427 Pts
    That was as fast a rise and fall as I can remember…that literally nobody talks about.
19. Tyler Boyd, WR, Pitt
    Active 2016-Present; 1186 Pts
    Awesome value in the oddly tall slot WR.
20. Devon Johnson, RB, Marshall
    Active 2016; 0 Pts
21. Nelson Spruce, WR, Colorado
    Active 2016; 0 Pts
22. Corey Clement, RB, Wisconsin
    Active 2017-Present; 252 Pts
    Devy is how you hear about undrafted guys way early sometimes.
23. Byron Marshall, WR, Oregon
    Active 2016-2018; 31 Pts
24. Isaac Nauta, TE
    Active 2019-2020; 4 Pts
    The year of the Devy TE is cancelled.
25. Kenneth Dixon, RB, Louisiana Tech
    Active 2016-2018; 160 Pts
    The definition of JAG. Not sure I know of anyone whom fits the JAG (Just A Guy) bill better than Dixon.
26. Nick Vannett, TE, Ohio St.
    Active 2016-Present; 222 Pts
    OK fine, we can have a Devy TE party, but we’re just inviting close family.
27. Rashard Higgins, WR, Colorado St.
    Active 2016-Present; 405 Pts
    Higgins might have the WR JAG championship belt.
28. Leonte Carroo, WR, Rutgers
    Active 2016-2018; 44 Pts
    Instead of sharing a detail on Carroo, of which I don’t think I have any, here’s the famous ESPN The Mag cover that sat in my townhouse bathroom for a few months back in 2014.

Continue with 2016 HERE.

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