Running backs hold all the cards when it comes to your fantasy football draft. Okay that's pretty much it, good luck - have fun. Some touts advise their followers to go zero RB, which I'd pick if I wanted to lower my chances of winning. How about value based drafting? Or the upside down draft strategy?
I recommend you use the strategy that falls into your lap. Understand that on draft day you can't control who will be available to draft when it's your pick. You'll have your eyes on 2 or 3 players only to watch them come of the board, it's time to change your strategy. You can navigate these waters with a simple, easy to follow cheat sheet. Cheat sheets are absolutely a requirement.
Had he stuck to this strategy before asking for my opinion, he could have had a fairly solid group of running backs to choose from every week. But his other positions would have been lacking. And then he would have been left hoping his lower-tier skill players at all the other positions somehow panned out for the season. Especially since RB is so inconsistent and unpredictable year after year who knows if his first three picks would have even panned out as round 1,2,3 value?
So what do I tell him? Take what the draft gives you. I have found that going with the Best Player Available in the first three rounds will not only be beneficial in giving you the highest-scoring players possible, but it will also help you garner a stud at almost every position. Which is talked about in here.
If you are able to draft a tier 1 running back in the first round then why draft a tier 2 RB in round 2, when there's a tier 1 WR or QB or TE (only Jimmy Graham in 2014) available? But if you look at your cheat sheets and see there is a wide receiver or two that are ranked higher than the next running back on your list, you're better off taking the receiver because you know he is going to give you more points. You can take this a step further and draft based on position scarcity and player value ensuring you draft a winning team.
Adjusting your initial strategy to counteract the changes that take place during the draft will ensure that you are getting the best player possible that fits your scoring system. If you don't do this you might as well forget about winning that championship.
Key points to maximize your draft strategy:
- Go into your draft with a "Best Player Available Strategy" for the first 3 rounds!
- Look for value based on tiers AKA position scarcity and player value
- Be ready to adjust to counteract changes
- If you don't get a tier 1 QB in round 2 or 3 then wait until the later rounds.
- If you don't draft Jimmy Graham late in round 1 or in round 2, then look for a TE in the later round, the point separation and consistency between Jimmy and the remaining TE's is huge.
- Last but not least, get a solid cheat sheet for each position. Ensure the cheat sheet list ADP and projected fantasy points based on your league settings, like the cheat sheets sold here.
Our online cheat sheets will help you win your fantasy league and draft a dominating team, check it out.