By Mark Carpenter-
Let me state that Fantasy Football is one of the greatest creations in history. I think I have been involved in some way or another since its inception, missing the good old days of holding the drafts in person, a good time had by all. Now, it’s all online drafts, so impersonal and so missing the trash talk. Perhaps that is why I am so looking forward to tomorrow night when a real-life Fantasy Football Draft takes place.
If you are a football fan, you know what I am talking about. Tomorrow night, the National Football League will hold its 2020 Draft, and it’s not going to look anything like it has in the past. Thanks to our good friend COVID-19, the NFL is going “virtual”, beginning with Commissioner Roger Goodell live from his basement. Of course, many fans have believed that Goodell should have been put in his basement years ago. I’m sure he will be surrounded by his favorite people, that being anyone involved with the Pittsburgh Squealers organization. I can see a scenario where Goodell has his technicians blow up the system so he can award the Squealers all of the picks in the draft.
As it is, the whole “virtual” draft is going to be riveting television for sure. If nothing else, it is the closest thing to live sports that we have had in a long while. Every NFL team will be drafting from home, social distancing at its very best. With the way people are starving for sports entertainment, tomorrow night’s draft could be a ratings bonanza, but certainly it will whet our appetite for something real on the field fuel our imaginations for the future.
As Bengals fans, we have high hopes for this draft, mainly because of one young man from down in “Convo” land. It seems to be a certainty that the Bengals are going to pick Athens native Joe Burrow with the number one pick, but don’t forget folks, it is the Bengals so nothing can ever be a certainty. Of course, the likely scenario for the Bengals could go something like this:
“The Bengals are on the clock. Oh wait, we have lost the signal from Paul Brown Stadium. Hold on we’re getting a report. It seems that the Bengals have lost their wi-fi signal….seems that Mike Brown didn’t pay that cable bill. We now move to Zac Taylor’s cell phone for the pick.”
(Note that in Monday’s simulation, the Bengals had a technical glitch, reportedly not their fault.)
Now don’t let me be too hard on the Bengals, they have had one of their more productive offseasons, dipping more deeply into the free agent market than they every have. Now whether that money spent will turn out to be worthwhile remains to be seen, but it did show some kind of new commitment for a franchise coming off a two-win season.
There are still questions surrounding the orange and black, the big one being what to do with Andy Dalton. I’ve made no secret that I am a big fan of Dalton, and I have a theory of my own for why he is still around as I’m certain the Bengals have gotten offers for their quarterback. If the Bengals draft Burrow but a lot of the offseason activities are delayed, including the preseason, then there may not be time for a new quarterback to get a sufficient grasp of the system. So, having Dalton as an insurance policy might be an option, though an expensive option. The offensive line looks to be better and will likely be bolstered with some draft choices and if the other offensive weapons are healthy, things have got to be better no matter who is under center. But again, it is the Bengals, so Murphy’s Law will always apply.
I miss the “retired” Scott Dryden and his expert draft analysis that he shared on these pages, and I’m not near the expert he is so I’m not making any big draft predictions. All I will do is sit back and watch tomorrow and be amazed at the technology that I don’t understand, I can’t ZOOM. But I’m a football fan and I need something to feed my current sports hunger. So for at least one night- Who Dey!