Sam Draper may only be 83 senior games into his AFL career but, at the age of 27, he has been in the system for ten years now so he has no potential left to fulfil. He was brought across from Essendon in the off season to the Lions to fill the gap left by the retirement of Oscar McInerney, and is now first-choice for Brisbane in the newly-formed tandem in ruck with Darcy Fort. While Fort found his feet late in his career to go to another level, Draper seems destined to never be an undisputed lead ruck. It helps to be tall in footy, and he'll get to 100 games before he retires.
Sam Draper may only be 83 senior games into his AFL career but, at the age of 27, he has been in the system for ten years now so he has no potential left to fulfil. He was brought across from Essendon in the off season to the Lions to fill the gap left by the retirement of Oscar McInerney, and is now first-choice for Brisbane in the newly-formed tandem in ruck with Darcy Fort. While Fort found his feet late in his career to go to another level, Draper seems destined to never be an undisputed lead ruck. It helps to be tall in footy, and he'll get to 100 games before he retires.
Sam Draper has had one of the more rollercoaster journeys of the AFL season, starting with being supplanted in what was thought to be his #1 ruck role at Essendon by the recruitment of Todd Goldstein in the off season. Goldie is a wise old head on even older shoulders, and his personal performances in the sash have dropped away sharply from his glory days. For his part, Draper has had a poor season but has rediscovered his best form late in the piece, unlike the rest of the club. Both he and the Dons look towards 2025 with hope.
Sam Draper has been in the news recently for lying down on the job, particularly at the controversial conclusion to the Adelaide game where he finished the match lying on the ball within range of the Crows goals without being whistled for holding the ball. On a broader note, it has been noticeable that Essendon's midfield have enjoyed life a lot more when Todd Goldstein is in ruck, putting into question Draper's longevity in a role which was supposed to be his. Draper is not the most graceful footballer, so his ceiling is more like Shane Mumford than a Max Gawn.
Sam Draper is not one of the most high-profile rucks in the competition, with most interest from fantasy coaches going to the Grawndy combo and the likes of Tim English and Braydon Preuss who have more immediate upside. His body shape suggests he will be a better ruckman than an accumulator around the ground, with his big bulk procluding much in the way of aerobic capacity to get to contests outside stoppages. He will be in a tandem with Andrew Phillips today, further limiting his short-term worth in draft leagues. A dubious keeper league option, at best.
Sam Draper is still in the very early part of his senior career as a ruckman, but he has definitely shown signs of belonging at the level. Essendon have a raft of very tall youngsters on their list at the moment, but it appears that Draper is going to be the long-term lead ruck for the Dons which means he will be of fantasy interest for the next decade. It will most likely be several years before he hits his ceiling, with season five usually the time when a ruckman hits his peak, which means if you're a dynasty league owner you'll have to wait a fair while.
Mothballs for Draper
Coming off 47 hit outs in the VFL early in his third listed season, Sam Draper ruptured an ACL and will not be sighted on field until after the 2020 season has started. Draper's senior debut will have to wait, which is okay since ruckmen of his shape tend to take at least four years to develop anyway. One for the future.
Curtains open for Draper
For the past two years, Sam Draper has played VFL and done much better when not in a tandem with Matthew Leuenberger. This trend came to a head in the last four games of 2018 leading into finals, where he posted three totals of 60+ hit outs and averaged 106 fantasy points. Leuenberger has now been delisted so we get to see what Draper can do for a more extended run as lead ruck. He would be a very interesting pick up if Tom Bellchambers goes down with injury, as he is built like Sean Darcy with none of the hype in fantasy circles.
Tapered finish by Draper
Spending all of his first listed season in the VFL, Sam Draper did much better without Matthew Leuenberger taking the lead ruck slot. He showed improvement late when Leuey was injured, with 58 and 49 hit outs in the last two games. Draper starts behind Leuenberger and Tom Bellchambers in the ruck depth chart, and will continue to develop at reserves level as all but the greatest rucks do at this age.
