Drafting a QB has become a bit of a puzzle for certain individuals, since many people out there often wonder when and where to draft that perfect gunslinger who will lead your team to fantasy dominance.
And while there is really no correct answer here, there are a couple of easy strategies one can follow depending on what type of owner you are, and how exactly you intend to build your team.
In 2009, for instance, there were a whopping 10 QBs who hurled the pigskin for over 4,000 yards, and four QBs who threw for 30 touchdowns or more.
That’s a lot of cars to kick the tires on.
Let’s take a look at a couple of different strategies that may help you in your decision process and hopefully, when you do decide to pull the trigger, you’ll have a better game plan at draft time.
The High Roller Approach
Everyone understands that the elite QBs: Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Matt Schaub, Tom Brady, and Tony Romo are bound to go off the boards first (in no particular order of course) and possibly early. Obtaining an elite stud at QB is part of the high roller approach.
Drafting an elite QB nets you an average of 100 more fantasy points over the lower 9th, 10th or 11th QB and you're virtually a lock for season long stud because QB is the most consistent position in fantasy football.
The theory here is simply: These QBs will be every week starters aside from their respective bye weeks, so whomever you do draft as a QB2 will be nothing more than a bye week filler or trade bait later on. And since you're getting such a high profile QB in the early rounds save that backup QB for a late round sleeper pick like Matthew Stafford or Alex Smith.
The Gambler Approach
Some managers may not get a shot at any of these QBs depending on where their first selection is, and other managers may rather draft other player positions first, and target their helmsmen in the middle rounds (4 to 8).
Now, it is a bit risky only because there is an increase need for a quality backup, and you slightly fall into the realm of having to play the best matchups week to week.
But then again, it can have it’s benefits.
You could get a banner year out of Eli Manning, or Jay Cutler could finally wind up being a fantasy god. Heck you could even wind up with a better than expected year out of Donovan McNabb or Matthew Stafford.
Again, this approach does come with a certain risk factor but hey, they don’t call it The Gambler Approach for nothing , right?
The Card Player
This approach is not for the fantasy faint at heart, and it is not usually the easiest one to handle in an entire season, but it does have its benefits in the long run.
The Card Player Approach is often represented by that curious owner who waits until the eleventh hour to select his QB, and usually he doubles up with back to back picks.
The downside to this approach is you will have to play the matchups every week in order to maximize your QBs potential in regard to possible points. This is sometimes viewed as a headache by many, but it also opens up several positive doors.
- You can focus on building your positions earlier than most people, taking full advantage of other high impact players.
- You can build a QB tandem that could work wonders for your team, or serve as great bartering tools such as Matt Ryan and Carson Palmer.
- You have increased management over your QB, in the event one of them begins playing like crap…afterall, you are the owner, right?
This approach can be utilized from rounds 8 or 9 on, and could act as a great sneak attack on your league, or on your freaking fantasy season.
Conclusion
Everything a manager does at draft time is inevitably up to them, and how they want to build their team. The one thing you don’t want to get too caught up in being overwhelmingly inundated with rankings, or being that manager who follows a run on a position.
Building a team also take a great deal of strategy, and season insight that goes beyond the numbers, and hopefully this little piece will help you decide on a quality draft approach for one of the most important fantasy positions in today’s game =)
Good Luck to everyone this year, and be sure to check back frequently for more fantasy draft advice, and in season advice.
