The People's Team

By: Josh Frey-Sam

I made the leap about a week ago.

* Insert Bobby Shmurda dance here *

I’ve been playing fantasy football since I was 10, and somehow, I had never been in a dynasty league. That needed to change.

I sent out a few texts and posted a callout on my Instagram story, asking if there were any orphan teams needing a new owner.

The next morning, I got a text:

“… rookie draft starts in an hour.”

I pondered the idea for three minutes, then agreed to take on a team that was in desperate need of a rebuild and a true direction. Frankly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Now that a week has passed and I’ve made some moves, I thought this would be a good opportunity to show my approach in dynasty and how I’m going to turn this team into a perennial contender in short order.

Today, I will show the initial moves I made, and then I will keep you updated periodically.

Without further ado, here is the team I inherited:

Not much, right? The direction of the previous owner was perplexing, and some of his moves were nightmare fuel for a league that is entering just its third season.

His first mistake was selecting Josh Allen in the startup draft at the 1.02 — a fine pick if it were a superflex league, but an inexcusable blunder in this format.

My immediate thought was to identify which players I believe will have strong upside two years from now and can serve as depth options as I look to begin competing; identify which veterans I can hold/acquire on the waiver wire and deal for picks/younger talent when the time is right; get younger via trade and the draft; and maximize my strongest asset (Josh Allen) to get more talent in other areas.

Well, here’s what the team looks like after one week:

In

QB Jaxson Dart (via trade)

WR Matthew Golden (via trade)

2027 2nd-round pick (via trade)

RB Nic Singleton (drafted)

RB Jonah Coleman (drafted)

WR Ted Hurst (drafted)

TE Gunnar Helm ($7 on waiver wire)

RB Ray Davis ($1 on waiver wire)

WR Jack Bech ($2 on waiver wire)

DST Baltimore Ravens ($5 on waiver wire)

WR Cyrus Allen ($0 on waiver wire)

RB Jordan James ($0 on waiver wire)

Out

QB Josh Allen (via trade)

DST Chicago Bears

DST Las Vegas Raiders

QB Sam Darnold

RB Michael Carter

WR Troy Franklin

WR Tez Johnson

WR Brandon Aiyuk

TE Luke Musgrave

TE Cade Otton

First, the draft. I left happy with my inaugural class, as I landed my target at each pick.

Nic Singleton was the inaugural pick at the 1.09. That pick likely won’t pay immediate dividends, but with Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears potentially playing their final year in Tennessee, the runway could be clear for a second-year breakout.

Jonah Coleman fell to me in the second round. I also had another selection that was two picks away, and my target was Ted Hurst, so I had to decide if he would survive one more pick. The path to success is murky right now for Coleman, but the fact that the Broncos invested in him tells me all I need to know about how they feel about RJ Harvey. Coleman could get goal-line/short-yardage work right out of the gates, and could very well be JK Dobbins’ successor.

Ted Hurst fell to me with my last pick, and I couldn’t be happier. He’s already in the mix to start in Tampa Bay, as he profiles as a true X receiver in a room that features a lot of slot-type profiles. With Chris Godwin likely playing his final year in Tampa Bay, Hurst could solidify himself as a big part of the Bucs’ future.

Next up, we wasted no time making a splash in the trade market by trading our No. 1 asset to kick off this rebuild.

Josh Allen for Jaxson Dart, Matthew Golden and a 2027 second-round pick.

I’m not sure I could’ve asked for more than that. I got younger at quarterback while maintaining a player with elite upside due to his mobility, added Golden, who I believe has a bright future as a high-end WR2, low-end WR1 in fantasy and a pick in next year’s draft, which should be loaded with talent.

I now have five picks going into the 2027 Draft.

As you can see by the other acquisitions I made and players I kept, I either have young guys who I believe possess amazing upside/could breakout this season (Gunnar Helm, Cyrus Allen, Jack Bech, Adonai Mitchell), established vets who could be one injury away from being huge trade assets (Ray Davis, Jordan James), or vets who could have a trade market if they play well (JK Dobbins, Michael Wilson, Jerry Jeudy).

You’re all caught up. We likely have a lean season ahead of us, but I don’t expect it to be that way for long.

I will update if I make any other deals before the season begins.

Thanks for reading and, as always, have a great day.

Josh