EFL Power Rankings - Post-Draft, 2024
Including a Recap of 2023
Look at us: continuing to grow and mature over the course of 16 years of fantasy football prowess in the Elite Fantasy League - now with our very own space on our very own website.
Our illustrious selves put together a great 2023 and are moving into an already-promising 2024. I’ll talk more about both below, but before I do, accept this most hardy welcome back.
Read ‘em and weep.
2023 SEASON RECAP
Nick, true to title-favorite form, beat Team Chad by, and this is not a typo, 113 points. No other team in the league even scored 113 points in the first round of the playoffs.
RD, true to Dallas-fandom form, rode his three Cowboys starters into the first round of the playoffs, where the Cowboys traditionally go to die. Dak, Pollard, and Brandon Aubrey combined for a whopping 16.7 points and Ruthlessberger cruised bast ThrowUpThe X, 107-91.
Josh, true to sixth-place-finish form, went ahead and bowed out in the first round to Kyler, who continued his bold strategy of sub-100-point performances and still got a dub. Unfortunately, his luck would run out in the second round to Run CMC, who advanced to the EFL Superbowl.
Pewter Pirates, true to Mahomes-and-Kelce-disappointment form, got a whopping 18 points from the “dynamic” duo and fell to Sweet Carolina in round one.
Ruthlessberger, true to defending-champion form, led a balanced attack in a 125-107 win over Sweet Carolina to reach the EFL Superbowl.
Golden Boy would go ahead and notch one more sub-100-point win to finish 3rd in the consolation game against Sweet Carolina.
The EFL championship would be decided between our title-favorite, Run CMC and our defending champ, Ruthlessberger. Run CMC was projected to win by 1 point, but it never materialized. Ruthlessberger rode Lamar Jackson & Kyren Williams’ best games of the season to a comfortable 147-102 victory, securing EFL’s second-ever back-to-back championship season joining Austin Owen (2015, 2016).
2024 POST DRAFT RANKINGS
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1.
Nick’s Fury
Y! Draft Grade: C+
Y! Projected Record: (7-7)
Manager: Nick Gosney
Years in League: 6
Best Finish: Champ (1x - 2019)
If you’re looking for pedigree by name, this team has it up and down the roster. I mean, this team honestly sounds like a pro-bowl roster when you say the names out loud. Of course, not everything is about names, but when your third-best WR is Stefon Diggs, you’re probably doing ok. We’ll see how much revamped ATL and NYJ succeed in the coming year. Wilson & Bijan Robinson’s success may be the X-factors for Nick’s Fury in pursuit of a second Fauxbardi in 2024.
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2.
ThrowUpThe X
Y! Draft Grade: B-
Y! Projected Record: (7-7)
Manager: RD Gallant
Years in League: 15
Best Finish: Champ (1x - 2013)
I had this team at #1. Then, I moved it down. Then, I moved it back. Now, I’ve moved it down again - this time to stay. It’s not that there’s a serious flaw in this team. The waffling actually comes from the opposite. Similar to Nick’s Fury, this team has the high-profile names. It’s just that I don’t trust Najee Harris, never know how to anticipate Chris Godwin’s involvement (even as a Bucs fan), and think that Kamara and the Dallas defense have lost a step. Outside of those still-quite-serviceable options, this team is elite. Stroud, Hill, Kyren Williams, and spot explosions from Amari Cooper are enough to make anyone salivate a little bit.
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3.
Sweet Carolina
Y! Draft Grade: D+
Y! Projected Record: (4-10)
Manager: Michael Schultz
Years in League: 4
Best Finish: 3rd (2021)
It’s probably a good sign when my biggest gripe about your team is your defense.
I’m really close to loving this team. Not quite there, but really close. This team has consistency (Amon-Ra, Evans) with explosive potential (Saquon, Lamar). If Mark Andrews finds his form, Josh Allen stops stealing James Cook’s TD carries and a true third WR emerges...this team won’t have any holes. Not the team you’ll want to play in the playoffs.
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4.
Pewter Pirates
Y! Draft Grade: A+
Y! Projected Record: (11-3)
Manager: Sy Gallimore
Years in League: 16+
Best Finish: Champ (2x – 2010, 2020)
Maybe a boringly solid team across the board? Feels like every point total for the season will be between 85-120. Consistency is key? There should be stability with the talent at hand. Jonathan Taylor, Patrick Mahomes should headline consistency, while the WR and RB corps collectively average around 8-10 points each. The largest inhibitor of this team being in the top three is second options - and this team might be full of them. It’s hard to say whether Puka will stay ahead of Cooper Kupp, Aiyuk will pass Deebo Samuel, and Nico Collins stays ahead of Stefon Diggs in the depth charts of their respective teams. Add to that an aging Aaron Jones in Minnesota - the first few weeks of the season will likely determine the fate of this team.
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5.
Turn down for Watt
Y! Draft Grade: B+
Y! Projected Record: (10-4)
Manager: Joshuwa Shelton
Years in League: 10
Best Finish: 3rd (2018)
Similar to Sweet Carolina, I’m so close to loving this team. I love the vast majority of it, I just think there are just a couple of larger question marks that will make it a bit less consistent than Pewter Pirates, but potentially just as spicy as the top 3 teams. How much do we trust Jalen Hurts, James Connor, George Kittle and the Steelers Defense? That’s it. That’s the only question you have to answer to decide where this team lands.
Chase, Waddle, Dell, Gibbs, with a side of Christian Kirk feels like a really solid group of 7-15 point players. If that’s the case, then you just need Hurts, Connor, Kittle and the Steelers D to get the other 40-50 points to win games. I don’t trust any of those individuals all that much, even though I have been the beneficiary of both Hurts and Connor as recently as last season. If they prove me wrong, this is a dangerous team.
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6.
Stevie Kicks
Y! Draft Grade: A+
Y! Projected Record: (12-2)
Manager: Stevie Collins
Years in League: 1
Best Finish: N/A
This is probably a crime ranking for the team that Yahoo believes in the most. But Yahoo believes in upside. I might too, but I need a week or two to warm up to the idea.. Outside of a phenomenal RB room, there are a lot of upside picks, but more riding on Anthony Richardson than I feel good about in my gut. If he gets injured again, this team might be riding Caleb Williams for the season. And maybe by Week 7 we’ll realize that is the best possible outcome anyways.
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7.
Ruthlessberger
Y! Draft Grade: B
Y! Projected Record: (7-7)
Manager: Ian Svendsen
Years in League: 8
Best Finish: Champ (2x - 2022, 2023)
Title defense underway. 7th feels low for this team, but there are just question marks that we’ll have to see to believe. Drake London could explode in ATL’s now-competent QB room. Jordan Love could have another solid season. Travis Kelce could return to 2021/2022 form. Justin Jefferson could be the only WR in Minnesota that can get enough separation fast enough for Sam Darnold to find before taking a sack. There’s definitive potential for this team to be scary. We just have to see what it could become.
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8.
Jets Jets Jets
Y! Draft Grade: D
Y! Projected Record: (3-11)
Manager: Tim Cook
Years in League: 16
Best Finish: Champ (1x - 2015)
The only reason this team is as low as it is is because I think Brock Purdy, CeeDee Lamb, and Travis Etienne are going to regress a bit. That said, I love Josh Jacobs for this season in Green Bay. I love have Rodgers on the bench just in case. I love Pollard as a backup for Etienne if he finds a good workload in Tennessee. Jets Jets Jets is built to not have to hit the waiver wire in case of injury, and that in and of itself could be a huge boost this season. And if I’m wrong on the first three regressing, watch out.
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9.
Golden Boy
Y! Draft Grade: D-
Y! Projected Record: (4-10)
Manager: Kyler Stock
Years in League: 3
Best Finish: 3rd (2023)
I liked this team the first time I looked at it. But the more I look at it the more I’m not sure.
The success of this team relies on rookie/young players and old/veteran players finding the best version of themselves. And that’s super possible. So, most likely, this team makes a run at the end of the season with Jayden Daniels, Marvin Harrison Jr., Davante Adams and Breece Hall, and I lose to them in the first round of the playoffs and I’ll wish I never said anything at all.
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10.
Butt Fumble
Y! Draft Grade: D+
Y! Projected Record: (5-9)
Manager: Austin Owen
Years in League: 11
Best Finish: Champ (3x – 2016, 2017, 2021)
I’ll start with the bad news and get to the good news.
Bad: I really just don’t like Dak for fantasy football. He’s the Kirk Cousins of fantasy football. And that’s fine if the rest of your roster is explosive. But I don’t trust Chicago or Pittsburgh’s offenses, so it’s tough to love those receivers. And I don’t trust Lamar not to steal Henry’s carries. And, while they’re talented, I don’t trust Mixon period and Brown only in spots.
Good: My gut doesn’t determine your team’s success. And the kicker/defense situation here is solid - which is probably underrated.