Create
Your Own Positional Rankings
Don’t
be that person who shows up to a draft with printed out ranking sheets as your
only source of preparation. Instead, create your own positional PPR rankings
based on personal preferences and opinions. Once you complete your rankings,
then seek other professional ranking sheets to see how your value of players
aligns with that of experts in the fantasy football industry. You’d be
surprised how entertaining and rewarding this process can be, as it will result
in you having a stronger idea of how all players are valued in fantasy. Even
more, it will give you an advantage on draft day since you will likely be more
organized and prepared than other members of your league.
Draft
From Picks 1, 2, 3, or 10 (Assuming a 10 Team League)
Even
though most draft orders are determined randomly, I think it is advantageous to
attempt and trade for the following draft positions: 1, 2, 3, or 10. If you are
able to draft from one of these positions, you are nearly guaranteed to draft
1-2 elite WR’s/TE’s and a RB in the first three rounds. This will give you a
major advantage in a PPR scoring format, since it will allow you to draft
players such as Adrian Peterson, Alshon Jeffery, and Randall Cobb with your
first three picks. The 10 slot in the draft order is also appealing, as you can
obtain two elite WR’s like Demaryius Thomas, Calvin Johnson, Dez Bryant, or
even A.J. Green in 10-team leagues.
Draft
An Elite WR (Or Two) Early
Due
to the minimal amount of workhorse RB’s in the NFL, I believe it is a sound
strategy to draft elite WR’s early in PPR leagues. Imagine drafting Antonio
Brown, Jordy Nelson, and Alson Jeffery with your first three picks. Not only
would you own three of the best WR’s in fantasy, but you would also hold a
major competitive advantage against your opponent on a weekly basis at WR since
most people are inclined to draft RB’s early. If you implement this strategy
for your draft, be sure to load up on RB’s in the middle and late rounds to build
depth on your roster. Potential RB’s that may be available if your draft WR’s
early on include Melvin Gordon, Carlos Hyde, T.J. Yeldon, Latavius Murray, or
even C.J. Spiller. Clearly, you will miss out on the few elite RB’s available
that are typically drafted in the first round, but will be able to pick up
high-upside players who receive a slight uptick in value for PPR scoring
formats based on their receiving abilities.
Load
Up On Adept Receiving Backs
Implementing
a “Zero RB Approach” can be a dangerous strategy in PPR leagues if you are
unable to select valuable receiving backs during the middle-rounds of a draft.
Therefore, make it a priority to compile RB’s who are adept at catching balls
out of the backfield. This is especially important to do if you plan to invest
in WR’s with some of your early draft picks.
Here
are some of my favorite receiving backs that can be drafted near the middle of
every draft: Giovani Bernard, Shane Vereen, C.J. Spiller, Ameer Abdullah, and
Charles Sims.
Wait
On Drafting A Quarterback
Trust
me, the opportunity cost of waiting to draft a quarterback is extremely beneficial.
Instead of using a 3rd, 4th, or 5th round
draft pick on the likes of Aaron Rodgers or Andrew luck, wait and select a QB
in the later rounds. By doing so, you will be able to assemble a strong core of
RB’s and WR’s/TE’s, which is essential to do in order to compete in PPR
leagues.
QB’s
I Recommend Targeting: Ryan Tannehill, Tony Romo, Eli Manning, Carson Palmer,
and Teddy Bridgewater.
Don’t
Be Afraid Of Bye Weeks
Time
and time again I have witnessed fantasy owners pass on a RB, WR, or TE because
their bye week conflicted with other starters on their roster. I recommend
monitoring bye weeks, but do not believe that they should dictate whether or
not you draft a certain player.
RB
Example: Eddie Lacy: Bye Week 7
Jeremy Hill: Bye Week 7
WR
Example: Dez Bryant: Bye Week 6
Mike Evans: Bye Week 6
If
you are fortunate enough to be a position to draft either combination of
players presented above, do not let bye weeks influence you to avoid such
incredible value. If you end up losing one week due to bye week constraints,
then so be it. More likely than not, you will face opponents throughout the
season with similar problems while your team is at full-strength.
Study
Receiver Targets
A
critical statistic to study and analyze before drafting in a PPR league is the
amount of targets a receiver earned in a previous season. Consider the
following list as a brief exposure to the idea:
2014
NFL Target Leaders
1.) Antonio Brown & Demaryius
Thomas: 178 Targets
2.) Julio Jones: 156 Targets
3.) Jordy Nelson: 146 Targets
4.) Kelvin Benjamin: 142 Targets
5.) Andre Johnson: 141 Targets
Evidently,
these WR’s would be ideal players to target in a PPR league. However, targets
do not always translate to success in fantasy. Thus, it is important to
consider offensive schemes and player roles before selecting a player based on
the amount of targets he has received. Still, targets are an important metric
to utilize while attempting to project the success of a WR in PPR scoring.
Know
Offensive Schemes
In
order to understand how RB’s, WR’s, and TE’s will be involved in an offense, it
is vital to recognize the coaching personnel that each player is surrounded by
to gauge their overall value.
Therefore,
consider the following teams with new coaching personnel and how it could make
an impact from a fantasy perspective:
·
New
York Jets Offensive Coordinator: Chan Gailey
o
Pros:
§
Balanced
offensive attack
§
Uses
a Spread Offense
§
Implements
Three-WR Sets
o
Cons:
§
Rarely
involves RB’s in the passing game
o
Increases Value: Brandon Marshall, Eric Decker, Jace
Amaro, and Devin Smith
o
Decreases Value: Chris Ivory
·
Chicago
Bears Offensive Coordinator: Adam Gase
o
Pros:
§
Has
coordinated a successful Denver offense the past two seasons
§
Operates
heavily with Three-WR Sets
o
Cons:
§
Does
not distribute the ball to receiving backs often
o
Increases Value: Alshon Jeffery, Kevin White, Eddie
Royal, and Martellus Bennett
o
Decreases Value: Matt Forte
·
Baltimore
Ravens Offensive Coordinator: Marc Trestman
o
Pros:
§
Distributes
the ball to receiving backs (Matt Forte- 102 receptions last season)
§
Will
likely adopt Gary Kubiak’s offense scheme from last season
o
Cons:
§
Inconsistency
with personnel usage
o
Increases Value: Justin Forsett, Javorius Allen, Maxx
Williams
o
Decreases Value: Steve Smith
·
Buffalo
Bills Offensive Coordinator: Greg Roman
o
Pros:
§
Run-Heavy
Approach
§
Experienced
OC (Previously with the SF 49ers)
o
Cons:
§
Rarely
utilizes Three-WR Sets
§
Does
not feature RB’s in the passing game
o
Increases Value: LeSean McCoy
o
Decreases Value: Sammy Watkins, Percy Harvin
·
Atlanta
Falcons Offensive Coordinator: Kyle Shanahan
o
Pros:
§
Operates
with a very balanced offensive attack
§
Run-Heavy
at times
o
Cons:
§
Does
not have a tremendous success record
§
Rarely
features his RB’s in the passing game
o
Increases Value: Tevin Coleman, Julio Jones
o
Decreases Value: Matt Ryan
·
Denver
Broncos Head Coach: Gary Kubiak
o
Pros:
§
Loves
to run the football
§
Has
a good track record with the Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens
o
Cons:
§
Can
rely too heavily on the run at times
o
Increases Value: CJ Anderson
o
Decreases Value: Peyton Manning
Participate
In Mock Drafts
Mock
Drafts are an important aspect of preparing for a league if you’re a PPR
beginner or veteran. By participating in multiple mock drafts, you will have a
better understanding of ADP and where players are likely to be drafted. In
addition, mock drafts allow you to experiment with different draft strategies;
such as the Zero RB Approach. Overall, mock drafts are an important tool to
utilize in order to be prepared for an actual draft.
Play
In DFS Leagues Routinely
A
common mistake that people make in re-draft leagues is only focusing on the
players that they draft for their fantasy team. To solve this problem and develop
a larger understanding of players, I recommend that everyone should at the very
least try playing in a DFS league. Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) have actually
become one of the more popular options for fantasy football as of late.
Essentially, you are provided a budget and need to allocate funds to set a
lineup every week. DFS will require intensive research and will surely expand
your knowledge of players and statistics in the process. In turn, the knowledge
you can obtain from playing DFS can be used for re-draft leagues by acquiring
players on the waiver wire or through free agency that others may not be aware
of. DFS is also intriguing because you can draft new players throughout the
entire season and have the opportunity to win a substantial amount of money if
enough time is invested into research.
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