2017 PFL Draft Preview

The PFL Draft Review 2017

128 Players to be picked over the next week, new stars made, team needs to be adressed. The PFL Draft is almost upon us…so here we go!

Draft Order & Team Needs 2017

No	Team	Main Needs
1	Eregon Eagles	OL, DL, WR, CMF
2	Tallassea Oilers	WR, OL, AB
3	Harteford Hawks	SE, MF, QB, FB
4	New Jorg 96ers	DL, MF, OL, DB
5	Iomagh Steelers	RB, OL, A, DL
6	Ballymore Tigers	DT, OL, WR, DB
7	Adelphia Phoenix	OL, MF, DB
8	Caligara Bulldogs	OL, DL, DB, A
9	Melborg Giants	WR, DB, OL
10	St. George Sharks	DE, MF, QB(?)
11	Oakland Ravens	WR, OL, A
12	San Andreas Miners	DL, DB
13	Rochester Trojans	WR, MF, DB
14	Chakota Wasps	DB, MF
15	Hallas Stars	DL, MF, OL, DB
16	Landor Knights	DB, MF, OL

Note: We think New Jorg 96ers have  traded up to 1st in a deal with the Eregon Eagles. Not confirmed as of press time.

Personnel:
Defensive End Vin Marshall (O’Connell) is the consensus number one pick. He blew apart the last seven games of his UFB career, tore the house down. He was also a beast at the combine. He will legitimately transform any teams pass rush. Guaranteed.

Wideout Edgerious Jones has been making noises about being an all-time great. He has the strength and ability to back up his words, but can he do it at the highest level? Many experts expect him to do so. He is most peoples number two talent in this years draft. He stands out more than Brenden Johnson, DeSean Berry and Eregonia‘s Zeke Hampton.

QBs Dre Nalen, Dexter Williams and Eric Chandler are all decent picks. They are so evenly matched at this point (only Nalen has Champions Bowl experience). They are all seen more as game managers than game-changers, this was said of Trent Harris, though.

Top runner Jamarcus Jones (O’Connell) will probably go late in the first round. Keith Millner is also a good prospect.

DBs are aplently- notable players available are Champ Sommers, Tayvon Bennett, Rob Carpenter, Richard Simmons, Desmond Sharpe and T.J. Owens.

With the rest of the field,  it’s not just about the backs! Forwards are present, with Mike Watkins, Mario Justice, Alan Smith and J.R. Malcom hitting up Offensive needs- Dez Williams, Duke Palmer, and Jermaine Fletcher lighting up defensive boards.

Some great Midfielders (that’s linebackers to you US fans) will go early: Calvin Smith and Theo Squibb will be steals, props are due to Paul Brooks, Jimmy Kincel and Tory Stock too.

Team Needs:

The Eregon Eagles have the top pick and have, when healthy, a pretty darned good defence to begin with. They can pick Marshall and become a shut-out defence in out opinion. However, they need help on the offence. QB Cam Reed needs blockers and playmakers to help him out. Ex- head coach Ed Walsh believed in Reed and lost his job in the process. Yet, listen to him- he still expects Cam to be great and just needs more talent around him. The toss-up is over balance- do you need help on offence or can you not pass up potentially the best DE prospect in this millennium?

With the second pick, we think Edgerious Jones is a lock for  the Oilers, unless the Eagles take him with no.1.  The Oilers have a solid base to build on and giving them a playmaker like Jones could be the difference between 6-12 and 12-6. ‘Edge’ wants to be the JetJones of PFL. He could be the one to help bring the pride back in Oiler-town.

The Harteford Hawks may be primed to pick up the first Quarterback of the Draft, unless they prefer to upgrade their defensive backfield with a big-hitter. Earl Carey is not getting any younger and needs a top replacement. They may gamble on one of the three QBs being great. 2018 looks like being a prime QB class, but can they wait that long?

The New Jorg 96ers had a pressing need at QB once Randy Dunn announced he wouldn’t be coming back following surgery. They’ve picked up Kurt Sierra from the Hawks, which was a good move. He should be okay for the next 1-2 seasons, giving them time to draft one of the more promising potential franchise QBs coming up next year. With QB okay, they need help at DB and Defensively up front. It’s unthinkable that Marshall would be available at four, so they either need to trade up to no.1 or to pick a top DB or second-best pass-rusher. Rumours are out there that they will be offering multiple picks and options to Eregon for the no.1 slot. We think this is a wise move.

Iomagh needs more talent. The Steelers added some great players in the re-allocation Draft, which addressed some needs well. With QB Kelvin Stewart in the bag, they can look towards the rest of this team to upgrade. We think someone like Justice or Watkins will help power-up the forward play for 2017-18.

What happened to the Tigers in 2016-17? They had swagger in 15-16 that carried them into the Crystal Bowl. They will be looking to restore that through the draft, needing a few impact players. They are a good balanced team, just needing someone fresh to bring in a new edge to their game.

Right behind the Tigers are the 2015-16 champions, the Adelphia Phoenix. They only just made the play-offs as defending champions and are in a tough division, with Melborg and Landor already strong. Add to that the incoming 96ers and you have a competitive division. The Attack is still very strong, although age is beginning to creep up, so the focus will most likely be on defence. A defensive forward like Dez Williams or Duke Palmer could help sure up the middle, whilst someone like Jermaine Fletcher or Calvin Smith could help replace Jeff Holliday, something they didn’t address last year.

tbc…