Draft Strategy

David Montgomery was fantasy football’s RB6 on a points-per-game basis last season. His glut of opportunity led him to average 100.5 Total Yards per Game and 3.6 (No. 7 among qualified running backs) Receptions per Game, score 10 (No. 10) Total Touchdowns, and produce 11 top-24 weekly finishes, including six consecutive top-eight finishes to end the season. With the signing of Damien Williams, however, Montgomery is a clear fade this year based on ADP in redraft leagues.

From Weeks 1-3 when Tarik Cohen was healthy, David Montgomery was fantasy football’s RB26 on a points-per-game basis. Now enter Damien Williams. Usually, targeting ambiguous backfields creates one of the biggest edges in redraft leagues for fantasy gamers, but in the case of the Bears, not one back will offer stand-alone fantasy value unless an injury occurs.

In a 2 QB rookie draft, one would expect it to start QB-QB-QB, and it did from 1.02-1.04. But at the 1.01, our guy Jay Dozier grabbed Najee Harris. After a month of disappointing pro days, Harris was actually one of the big winners after not testing athletically at either Alabama pro day.

With guys like Kellen Mond, Kyle Trask, and Mac Jones getting pushed up boards, it allows players like Jaylen Waddle and Devonta Smith to drop into the early/mid-second round. This is exciting for rookie draft value, which is the key in any draft, and is ultra important in 2021. The late-second to early-third round is the ideal draft position in 2 QB rookie drafts if you are set at the quarterback position.

Without any athletic testing numbers, or even an official height and weight, Devonta Smith is the ultimate black box NFL prospect. But when dealing with a black box prospect who’s also a Heisman Trophy winner, we should be allowed to err on the side of the higher-end Best Comparable Player in the legendary Joe Horn. His Breakout Rating will be helped by his inevitable early round draft selection.

From being undrafted in our first SuperFlex/TE Premium outing to creeping into the fourth round last time and the second round this time, Kellen Mond is slowly working his way up in these mocks. Once the Elite Five signal callers are off the board, the placement of the remaining QBs will largely be determined by draft position/landing spot. The Texas A&M product has a bit of Konami Code appeal to him and can end up being a value by the end of this process.

Though Amari Rodgers didn’t pop athletically at his pro day, falling to 3.08 from 2.04 between Underworld vs. RosterWatch mocks is likely an overcorrection for a player with Lynn Bowden and Deebo Samuel among his Best Comparable Players. After letting Nico Collins slip to the Underworld at 4.10 last time, Byron Lambert and the RosterWatch crew ensured his services by taking him at the 3.11 and making us feel All Mixed Up.

Before any athletic testing is even taken into account, Javian Hawkins checked in with a top 10 Breakout Rating among this year’s rookie backs. Even if he falls a bit in the app’s next update once the pro day numbers are accounted for, he’s the kind of player that can overcome Day 3 draft capital and make an impact as a satellite back if he lands on the right team.

There’s a lot of QB talent in the NFL already, more is on the way and there’s only so much room at the top of the heap. That’s why Trevor Lawrence, as great as he will undoubtedly become, has a low-end QB1 dynasty ranking. And while, yes, a low-end QB1 is an excellent NFL player, what does that get us in fantasy over a middling signal caller?

I’m not seeing how choosing a QB at 1.01 – even if it’s Lawrence – does not require a moment’s thought. Staying on 1.01 Island and choosing Lawrence sets you up with a good QB for a long time, but means foregoing similar gains that might be out there at other positions – e.g., Travis Etienne, Najee Harris, Javonte Williams, Ja’Marr Chase and Kyle Pitts.

Quietly averaging 13.2 (No. 22 among qualified running backs) Fantasy Points per Game last season on a Broncos team averaging 27.6 (No. 13) Team Run Plays per Game, while splitting touches roughly 16-11 with Philip Lindsay, Gordon is primed to be a high-floor, high-ceiling fantasy asset. High floor because of the proven capability to produce on a capped workload, high ceiling because of the direct path to a three-down role in Lindsay’s absence.

A former first-round pick, Nelson Agholor will unlock a consistent Deep Ball threat for the New England offense. He totaled a 15.1 (No. 5) Average Target Distance mark, 22 (No. 12) Deep Targets, and 1,273 (No. 17) Air Yards with the Raiders last season. Pairing Agholor with Cam Newton’s 53.8-percent (No. 4) Deep Ball Completion Percentage is a match made in heaven, and prevents defenses from stacking the box and playing shallow against the Patriots offense. He is a sturdy draft target as a WR4.

The Bills have maximized Josh Allen’s size-adjusted athleticism in the most pivotal area of the field when it matters most: the red zone. Rushing touchdown regression is unlikely due to how he is deployed near the goal line. In 2020, we saw him rush 24 times inside the 20, tying him with Kyler Murray for attempts inside that distance. While this usage cripples the fantasy ceilings of Zack Moss and Devin Singletary, it bolsters both Allen’s floor and ceiling.

Even with questionable decision making, questionable play calling, and general coaching ineptitude, Kyler Murray finished the season with a 24.4 (No. 3 among qualified quarterbacks) Fantasy Points per Game average. While he only threw for over 300 passing yards three times, his rushing production more than made up for it. Given his otherworldly burst, it’s not unreasonable to assume he has a shot of breaking the all-time single-season QB rushing record as soon as next year.

Memphis is the new Running Back U. Kenny Gainwell was not a dominant college prospect, but you have to appreciate a 6.3 (79th-percentile among qualified running backs) College YPC average and you have to LOVE a 51-reception season being on the resume.

Nico Collins is 6-4 and 215-pounds. This is elite size and carries starting outside alpha-level upside potential with it. He outproduced Donovan Peoples-Jones for two of their three college seasons together, and was held back by the poor Michigan offense. He adds an 80th-percentile Breakout Age and 92nd-percentile College YPR average. No other players have this kind of upside at this point in the draft.

Devonta Smith ranks highly in all of the Breakout Finder metrics, the highest Teammate Score in the BOF database being the highlight, and he protects to be a top-10 NFL Draft pick. A Heisman-winning WR is the kind of player that deserves to be a first round rookie pick in any format.

Tutu Atwell is a straight dog as a receiver with an 18.9 (92nd-percentile among qualified wide receivers) Breakout Age and 35.1-percent (96th-percentile) College Target Share to pair with elite speed and athleticism. He is undersized at 5-9 and 165-pounds, but translates into a dangerous slot weapon in the NFL.

With Curtis Samuel set to walk in free agency, D.J. Moore and Robby Anderson are primed to be what we target in fantasy football: high-floor, high-ceiling assets. High floor because of the narrow pass distribution and boost in volume. High ceiling because of the potential of better, efficient quarterback play.

Already in a narrow pass distribution tree, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd are looking at an increase in targets in an already high-volume pass attack. Backed by a weak defense, we’re looking at another high-floor, high-ceiling receiver duo if Joe Burrow makes strides in Year 2. Boyd is going in the sixth round as WR26, while Higgins is going in the seventh as WR33.