Connor Rozee – Deck of Dream Team 2023

Player	Connor Rozee
Club	Port Adelaide
Position	MID/FWD
Price	$780,000
Bye	15
2022 avg	88.1
2022 gms	22
Proj. avg	104
Draft range	3rd round

Click here for 2023 Fantasy Classic prices.

Why should I pick him?

Last Half of the Year – It’s simple, the way we end a year is usually a good indication of the way you should start the next. Personally… I need to lift my game if this is the case or I’m in for a shit 2023.

Connor had a strange year in 2022. He averaged 75 before the bye and 102 after.

The difference there is significantly nuts. Add to this his last seven games where he averaged 110 and you get my point. During the back half of the year he received the all important CBAs and the midfield time he asked for. In that time as well, he only had only blunder, one score under 75 which was a 64 in round 21 against Richmond.

The Slow Start – Remember this? For those who jumped the gun early with Rozee know exactly what I am talking about.

He started the season with scores 21, 48, 54 and 55. This means he averaged 45 across the first four games and his coaches were fuming. The benefit of this is… all those score effect his overall average. I know people hate me doing this, but this one I feel is legit.

If you removed those scores, or even ignore them and have a look at what he averaged from round 5 onwards we will get a clearly picture of what we can expect in 2023. Therefore, from round 5 onwards he averaged 98…. 10 more than what he is priced at overall.

Midfield Minutes – As I have already pointed out, Rozee loves midfield minutes and when he got them he went big.

Before the bye, Power only used Rozee in 37% of the CBAs and in the second half of the year they used him in 62% of them, the second most behind Ollie Wines. Robbie Gray was used 29% of the time after the bye and Karl Amon 12%. With these blokes no longer there, the writing is on the wall that Rozee’s CBAs next year could even be higher and up around the 65-75% which means … more points.

Draft – In my eyes (and Roy’s at the moment) the top-6 forwards are – Dunkley, Coniglio, Taranto, Moore, Rozee and Butters in no particular order. After that… you’re looking at Heeney, Gresham, Zorko… and now I want to be sick. Shit drops off very quick, and I mean very quick! Those top-6 forwards will go very quick and god help those who miss out.

Why shouldn’t I pick him?

Trust – Ok… I’ve never been a fan of this guy based on this alone – “TRUST”. I have trust issues and that dates back many many years ago but that’s another story.

I have never trusted him, never trusted his head and never trusted his body and never trusted his scoring. This was the case up until last year when he had only played in 75% of games over the two years before 2022. His scoring during this time was pretty bloody average as well… he averaged 68 in 2021 for god’s sake.

Meat on the Bone – What can he actually average to make him a worthy starter in Classic, or an early pick in Draft. Is 100 enough? That means just 12 points upside… my opinion is 100 isn’t quite enough and this is how you need to base your decision. What is enough for you? Is there going to be enough growth? Add Jason Horne-Francis into the mix as well. He hasn’t jumped ship because he wants less than the 42% CBAs he was getting at North. He wants more than that… so who takes a hit?

Deck of DT Rating.

KING

To be an ACE, you need to be an ACE… and be an ACE for longer than half a season. Rozee did manage to play all 22 games last year which is obviously a huge tick for a guy like him, for me, he is priced at an average of 88 with potentially 15+ points upside. The fact he ended the year like he did only proves that he could be a 105+ forward and if that’s the case, then this one is a no brainer.

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