Horse Tracks: New fantasy football draft simulator

Well, maybe not new, but new to me! Fan Speak has their annual On The Clock draft simulator for the real live NFL Draft, but now they also have a simulator for the fun times called Fantasy Draft.

To set my draft simulator up, I picked my team name "Broncomaniac" and set the league to 12 teams, which is on the low end of the leagues I usually play in. Then for the final setting, I went middle of the road at 6th overall. I don't like drafting early anyway.

From there, I selected the typical positions seen on my fantasy teams. 1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 1 RB/WR/TE, 1 DEF, 1 K, and 6 guys on the bench. Pretty standard here, let's see how this shakes loose!

Round 1: The system says I should take Eddie Lacy, but he shares a bye week with the Denver Broncos, which means I could be screwing myself when I take either C.J. Anderson or Peyton Manning in the third round. Calvin Johnson, Demaryius Thomas, Odell Beckham Jr, Julius Jones and Dez Bryant are all right there and I've decided I am going to roll the dice and pick up Dez Bryant then try to snag Aaron Rodgers in the second round.

I chose Bryant over the other guys for a variety of reasons. First, I wanted DT first and foremost, but I feel like I might be able to pick up Emmanuel Sanders in later rounds. Out of the rest, Dez is in his prime and likely to produce enough points to warrant the pick.

Round 2: I rolled the dice and saw Aaron Rodgers come within inches of coming off the board. Peyton Manning was still an option, but I don't like doubling up QBs and WRs from the same team. Rodgers is easily the best player on the board besides Manning, so I selected him without hesitation.

Round 3: Whelp, my hopes of snagging Emmanuel Sanders in later rounds is rapidly disappearing. I must decide between him and C.J. Anderson. With running back options quickly evaporating for me, the pick had to be Anderson here. I won't lose any sleep over it - the dude is a monster on the field.

Round 4: Now that my options are all but gone for the "surefire" pick, I'll be looking for veterans with a body of consistency to back them up. I feel more week at running back than anywhere, so it makes sense to focus on that position here. My choices: Latavius Murray, Joique Bell, Andre Ellington or Frank Gore.

I actually had Frank Gore last season and he was consistently consistent in production. I loved that about him and he helped me win some money as I finished in second place in that league. Going Gore here!

Round 5: I'm not liking any of the options being suggested here and rather than reaching for a player I think might have a good year, I'm going to look for another veteran player who has a proven commodity in production. My options: Matt Ryan, Tony Romo, Desean Jackson, Kevin White, and Greg Olsen.

I'm not ready to double up on a QB just year and Greg Olsen is another guy who helped me win some money last year. He's better than people think and if Cam Newton were a better quarterback, people would know it. i'm going Olsen.

Round 6: We're getting down into the garbage heap in fantasy football terms, so now instead of veterans, I'm looking for any wide receiver who play for an elite quarterback. It just so happens, Julian Edleman is on the board. I'll just have to hope the risk pays off and Tom Brady comes back from suspension angry.

Round 7: Only three starting positions left, a FLEX position, which can be a RB, WR or TE, a kicker and a defense. I spot Anquan Bolden just sitting there for the taking. That dude catches everything. I would have taken Jeremy Maclin, but he apparently signed with the Kansas City Chiefs and we all know Alex Smith doesn't like to throw to wide receivers.

Round 8: I'm actually nervous that I only have two running backs on the roster this late in the draft, so I browse the entire list until I get to C.J. Spiller. He's let me down often as I always thought he could be a good running back, but Fred Jackson was always there to poach his carries. Maybe I just struck gold.

Round 9: Time to pick up a defense. I could choose the Seattle Seahawks, but that would make me sick. Therefore, I went with the No Fly Zone, baby!

Round 10: Quality quarterbacks are done, but I don't need a quality quarterback. I need a guy that will play one game for me. I'd take Jay Cutler, but he shares a Bye week with Rodgers. Instead, I'll go with Teddy Bridgewater. He seems like he might actually succeed in the NFL.

Round 11: For the back-up wide receiver, I suppose I'll take a risk on Cody Latimer, since I didn't get any of the other Broncos wide receivers. These later rounds are totally for me to get my homer on.

Round 12: Yet another back-up, this time for tight end. I'm liking that Vernon Davis is still on the board. In fact, why is he still on the board? Oh, because Colin Kaepernick sucked so bad. Oh well, he's on the bench for all but one game anyway.

Round 13: Oh crap, I need a kicker! Not only that, but I need a kicker from a team that has a good offense and plays most their games indoors. Ah, Dan Bailey. The Dallas Cowboys are masters at kicking the field goal. I'll win several games easily with Dan Bailey scoring those points for me.

Rounds 14 & 15: With all the starters set and back-ups secured for all my important positions, its time to pick up another defense and another kicker just so I don't have to do too much work mid-season to cover for Bye Weeks. I took the Cincinnati Bengals defense and, of course, Connor Barth as my last pick in this draft.

Here are the final draft results. So what do you all think? Give it a try and tell me how your roster came out. On with the Broncos news!

Horse Tracks

Demaryius Thomas returns to Denver with less weight | Denver Post
The first thing you notice about Demaryius Thomas is the crisp navy blue suit and perfectly trimmed hair. Then you notice the smile that never fades. If anyone could look the part of a $70 million player, it was Thomas on Friday.

The full Demaryius Thomas deal | ProFootballTalk
The numbers are now in on the new five-year, $70 million contract signed Wednesday by Broncos receiver Demaryius Thomas, just as the deadline for inking franchise-tagged players to long-term deals was closing.

Demaryius Thomas' pursuit of 2K will benefit Broncos more than him - Denver Post
Humility suffered a setback Friday. Demaryius Thomas stood before the press and admitted he wanted to break the NFL's single-season receiving yards record.

Demaryius Thomas loathed time apart from Peyton Manning | Denver Post
Demaryius Thomas said one of the most difficult parts of the offseason was not being able to work out with his quarterback, Peyton Manning.

WATCH: What Houston's Deal Means For Denver - Mile High Huddle
Justin Houston just became the second highest paid defensive player in the NFL. Von Miller will be an unrestricted free agent in 2015, so what does Houston's contract mean for John Elway as he tries to retain Miller for the future?

Peyton Manning Could Hit The Wall This Season | Inquisitr.com
The Denver Broncos are rumored to be preparing for the end of the Peyton Manning era, and the team is looking at an exit plan for the Hall of Famer as he nears what many believe will be a drop-off season.

Marshall’s best quarterback isn’t who you’d think it would be | ProFootballTalk
Earlier this month, a list of Jets receiver Brandon Marshall’s best teammates didn’t include quarterback Jay Cutler, a two-time teammate of Marshall in Denver and Chicago.

Tom Brady could beat the NFL in federal court - SBNation.com
The NFLPA has already put together a case on Tom Brady's behalf if that the NFL doesn't throw out his suspension.

The NFL's grittiest offensive role players - SBNation.com
They don't get the glory or even all that many snaps, but they're indispensable to building a winning team. Danny Kelly finally gives the role players their due.