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| Black Dogs head coach Jim McMahon hopes to be the first coach to beat the Curse of the Champion. |
Associated Web Press
The 24th season of the Nashvegas Fantasy Football Association is upon us. The East Nashville Black Dogs will begin the defense of their fifth NFFA title on Sept. 4 when they host the Cambridge Animals at the Dawg House in a matchup of the league's last two champions.
Animals head coach Doc the Animal felt the wrath of the Curse of the Champion last season. Black Dogs coach Jim McMahon, who helmed four of the Dogs’ five championships, has felt the Curse’s sting three previous times. Although the league has never had a repeat champion, McMahon told AWP he thinks the Curse of the Champion will lose eventually.
“Let’s face it — no one goes undefeated forever,” said McMahon, speaking from his quarters at Club Gitmo on Saturday. “I know the Curse is 22-0, but he’s going to lose at some point, and I’m thinking it may as well be this year.”
One major change going into the 2025 season is the move by the Midtown Browns to Seattle. Team president Joey “Little Tony” Vietti informed the AWP the franchise will now be known as the Puget Browns and indicated they will be unveiling a new logo in the coming days.
The pre-draft trade period kicked off yesterday and the rumor mill is working overtime. One prominent rumor has the West Nashville Beelzebubbas, who have the first overall pick, and the London Bakers swapping first-round picks to enable the Bakers to draft RB Derrick Henry. In addition to the Bakers’ sixth overall pick, the Beelzebubbas would receive additional compensation. One source says the ’Bubbas are looking to also receive the Bakers’ 2026 first-round pick.
There is also buzz about a potential trade between the Village Green and the Ballers. A source close to Ballers’ owner Mojo D tells the AWP the team has proposed swapping RB Saquon Barkley for Green WR Ja’Marr Chase. At press time, no word on whether the Green are interested in that deal.
There has also been some speculation that both the Boca Chica Daddies and the Browns are looking to make a trade for a starting QB prior to the keeper deadline, although the Daddies may now be satisfied with their free-agent pickup of Baker Mayfield. Matthew Stafford is the only keeper-eligible QB on the Browns roster, and he has yet to participate in the team’s training camp.
Projected Keepers
Here are the players the AWP projects to be each teams’ keepers based on their rosters as of August 16:
Animals
QB Josh Allen BUF
RB Jonathan Taylor IND
WR Nico Collins HOU
DL Trey Hendrickson CIN*
LB Foyesade Oluokun JAC
DB Kevin Byard CHI
Bakers
QB Jalen Hurts PHI
RB Tony Pollard TEN
WR Brian Thomas Jr. JAC
DL Andrew Van Ginkel MIN
LB Robert Spillane NEP
DB Budda Baker ARI
Ballers
QB Jayden Daniels WAS
RB Saquon Barkley PHI
WR Terry McLauren WAS*
DL Myles Garrett CLE
LB Bobby Wadner WAS
DB Kyle Hamilton BAL
Beelzebubbas
QB C.J. Stroud HOU
RB Joe Mixon HOU
WR Deebo Samuel WAS
DL Nick Bosa SFO
LB Zack Baun PHI
DB Kerby Joseph DET
Black Dogs
QB Patrick Mahomes KCC
RB Alvin Kamara NOS
WR A.J. Brown PHI
DL Brian Burns NYG
LB Jordan Brooks MIA
DB Keisean Nixon GBP
Browns
QB Matthew Stafford LAR
RB De’Von Achane MIA
WR Amon-Ra St. Brown
DL T.J. Watt PIT
LB T.J. Edwards CHI
DB Julian Love SEA
Daddies
QB Baker Mayfield TBB
RB Bijan Robinson ATL
WR Mike Evans TBB
DL Aiden Hutchinson DET
LB Fred Warner SFO
DB Nick Cross IND
Green
QB Joe Burrow CIN
RB Christian McCaffrey SFO
WR Ja’Marr Chase CIN
DL Maxx Crosby LVR
LB Germaine Pratt LVR
DB Brian Branch DET
* Players currently in a contract dispute
Mock Draft: Round One
The AWP also has projected round one of the 2025 NFFA draft scheduled for the evening of Monday, Sept. 1.
1-1 Beelzebubbas: RB Derrick Henry BAL
1-2 Green: RB Jahmyr Gibbs DET
1-3 Daddies: WR Justin Jefferson MIN
1-4 Ballers: RB Bijan Robinson ATL
1-5 Animals: RB Kyron Williams LAR
1-6 Bakers: RB James Cook BUF
1-7 Browns: QB Lamar Jackson BAL
1-8 Black Dogs: RB James Conner ARI
