Author name: Zach Freed

Copy Editor for @DFF_Dynasty and host of Fantasy Fifteen, a #FantasyFootballAdvice show answering all your #fantasyfootball questions in 15 minutes or less.

Entertain Offers for Justin Herbert

Dynasty / By /

Justin Herbert’s rookie season was a veritable perfect storm for the rookie QB. Everything fell into place, and it allowed him the opportunity to break the rookie passing touchdown record. Coming off the incredible season, Herbert currently has an average draft position (ADP) of 6.6 in Superflex dynasty leagues. Only four QBs are coming off the board before him. Even if you’re a Justin Herbert truther, I think now is the time to trade him, as his value could never be higher. Let’s explore what happened last year, and hypothesize how “Big Herbs” could be looking at a different situation moving forward.

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Knee Deep in Muddy Backfields: The Texans

Dynasty / By /

While the Texans may look like a terrible franchise that could be without Deshaun Watson this season, there’s still value to be found in their backfield. The Texans signed Mark Ingram and Phillip Lindsay to one-year contracts adding to David Johnson and a number of backs that have remained irrelevant. The average age of the Texans backfield by the start of next season is 26.8, which is basically geriatric for the NFL.

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Knee Deep in Muddy Backfields: The Jaguars

Dynasty / By /

James Robinson managers were shocked (maybe) in the draft when the Jaguars selected Travis Etienne in the first round with the 25th overall pick. This wasn’t out of the question going in, as the Jags had a lot of draft capital to throw around, but it was a bit surprising to me. James Robinson was more than serviceable in 2020, he was good. They also added veteran depth to the backfield during free agency in the form of Carlos Hyde.

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Knee Deep in Muddy Backfields: The Falcons

Dynasty / By /

The only Falcon with meaningful rushing numbers that returns to the team is Matt Ryan. Todd Gurley and Ito Smith are both free agents, and Brian Hill is a Titan. The Falcons return Tony Brooks-James and Qadree Ollison, but neither one has contributed much to the franchise at this point in their careers. The biggest name in the Falcons backfield is Mike Davis, who they signed to a two-year $5,500,000 contract this past offseason. The team also signed Cordarrelle Patterson, a converted wide receiver who saw 64 carries with the Bears last season. Not to be lost in the fray, are UDFAs Javian Hawkins and Caleb Huntley.

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dfs week 14

Knee Deep in Muddy Backfields: The Dolphins

Dynasty / By /

Miami is similar to the 49ers in that they give one guy a ton of work, it’s just sometimes difficult to be sure who that guy is going to be. In every game he played, Gaskin saw more than 60% of the snaps. He even saw 70% or more in five games, which was half of his games played. When Gaskin was out, Ahmed stepped in and received 46%, 76%, 66%, and 60%. They’re going to give the ball to primarily one guy, and right now that one guy looks like Myles Gaskin.

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Knee Deep in Muddy Backfields: The Broncos

Dynasty / By /

The Broncos signed Melvin Gordon to a two-year $16 million contract last offseason. This offseason they originally placed a restricted free agent tender on Phillip Lindsay, before allowing him to walk in free agency. To replace Lindsay, they brought in Mike Boone on a two-year deal worth $3,850,000 and drafted Javonte Williams with the 35th pick in the draft. Oh yeah, Royce Freeman is still around somewhere too.

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cardinals backfield

Knee Deep in Muddy Backfields: The Cardinals

Dynasty / By /

After the NFL draft, there are quite a few backfields without a clear picture of who the workload is going to fall on. While it’s possible some backfields may continue as committees, more than likely, a few of them will have one guy receive a large volume of the work. That’s what I’m aiming to dive into in this series: who will emerge from the muddy backfields and cement their place as a fantasy value this season?

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Knee Deep in Muddy Backfields: The Bucs

Knee Deep in Muddy Backfields: The Bucs

Dynasty / By /

After the NFL draft, there are quite a few backfields without a clear picture of who the workload is going to fall on. While it’s possible some backfields may continue as committees, more than likely, a few of them will have one guy receive a large volume of the work. That’s what I’m aiming to dive into in this series: who will emerge from the muddy backfields and cement their place as a fantasy value this season?

Luckily, JJ Zachariason has already put in the research to show us what to look for. Even though his research is primarily for redraft, we can apply it to dynasty as well. Breakout running backs typically aren’t handcuffs. They come from ambiguous backfields and are oftentimes drafted as the 2nd back from their team. Pass catchers have an easier route to breakout, as there is typically a three rush to one reception workload ratio. Most importantly, age doesn’t matter. Players in their 5th year are just as likely as rookies to break out in these situations.

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Knee Deep in Muddy Backfields: The Bills

Knee Deep in Muddy Backfields: The Bills

Dynasty / By /

After the NFL draft, there are quite a few backfields without a clear picture of who the workload is going to fall on. While some backfields may continue as committees, more than likely, a few of them will have one guy receive a large volume of the work. That’s what I’m aiming to dive into in this series: who will emerge from the muddy backfields and cement their place as a fantasy value this season?

Luckily, JJ Zachariason has already put in the research to show us what to look for. Breakout running backs typically aren’t handcuffs. They come from ambiguous backfields and are oftentimes drafted as the 2nd back from their team. Pass catchers have an easier route to breakout, as there is typically a three rush to one reception workload ratio. Most importantly, age doesn’t matter. Players in their 5th year are just as likely as rookies to break out in these situations.

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49ers backfield

Knee Deep in Muddy Backfields: The 49ers

Dynasty / By /

After the NFL Draft, there are quite a few backfields without a clear picture of who the workload is going to fall on. While it’s possible some backfields continue as committees, more than likely, a few of them will have one guy receive a large volume of the work. That’s what I’m aiming to dive into in this series: who will emerge from the muddy backfields and cement their place as a fantasy value this season?

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DFF Devy League Manual: Pt 2

DFF Draft Coverage: Chuba Hubbard to the Panthers

Dynasty, Rookie / By /

Chuba Hubbard profiles as more of a committee back because he seems to lack pass-catching ability. With this deficiency, his upside is capped a bit. If given the opportunity, he could jump into a 1st and 2nd down role and could be a consistent producer in a zone scheme. He has great patience, uses his blockers well, and has enough finishing speed to score long TDs.

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DFF Draft Coverage: DeVonta Smith to the Eagles

Dynasty, Rookie / By /

In his four years at Alabama, Smith accumulated 235 receptions for 46 total TDs and nearly 4000 yards (3965). He was extremely productive in college and surpassed even Ja’Marr Chase’s impressive 2019 season this past year. Even with two first-rounders on the team in 2019, Smith was able to post a 1000-yard season, giving him a breakout age of 20.8. He had a college dominator of 51.3%, good enough to place him in the 96th percentile. Add that to a target share of 34.6% which put him in the 95th percentile. His catch rate over the last two seasons was nearly 80% (79.1, 79.6). DeVonta Smith was a beast in college, and he has the  production to back it up.

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Bench Churning and Why You Should Be Doing It

Dynasty / By /

In most dynasty leagues, once the season starts there isn’t always much to be done on the waiver wire. There’s always going to be players that breakout, but if your league has deep benches, they may already be rostered. Churning your bench is a relatively simple strategy that has benefits beyond just keeping you busy on waivers during the season.

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How the '21 Salary Cap Changed the NFL

How the ’21 Salary Cap Changes the NFL

Dynasty / By /

In March the NFL set the salary cap at $182.5 million. Which was a significant drop from 2020’s $198.2 million and even below 2019’s $188.2 million. It was the first time in seven years the cap didn’t increase by at least $10 million. With everything typically trending up, NFL teams faced cap issues heading into the 2021 offseason. We’ve already seen teams cutting veteran players and restructuring contracts. With a few notable free agents still out there and draft day approaching, what other moves could we see as teams maneuver around the cap?

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Desmond Ridder: 2021 Devy Profile

Devy / By /

At 6’4” 215 lbs. Desmond Ridder was in the conversation with Mac Jones and Kyle Trask to be the QB5 in the 2021 draft class. However, he opted to return to Cincinnati for his senior season. The former three-star-recruit has come a long way and enters the 2021 season with hopes of making a case for himself as a top-three QB.

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Jayden Daniels: 2021 Devy Profile

Devy / By /

In his freshman season, Jayden Daniels proved to be a trusted piece putting up five games of more than 300 yards and rushing over the 50-yard mark three times. A few games stand out when looking at his game log from 2019: completion percentages of 22.2% and 42.9% against Utah and Florida State. These are two of the better teams Daniels faced, and while it shouldn’t be shocking they gave him fits, a sub-50% completion percentage is rough.

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How Does a 17-Game Season Impact Fantasy Football?

Dynasty / By /

Recently the NFL announced plans to expand the season, adding one additional regular-season game. This has led to a lot of speculation on how record books will change, and some players, most notably Alvin Kamara, expressed disappointment. With this change, managers and league commissioners will have some adapting to do in the upcoming season, so let’s look at what’s in store.

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Is Jalen Reagor Good?

Dynasty / By /

Hotly debated heading into rookie drafts last season and now again this season is the potential of Eagles wide receiver, Jalen Reagor. Is he good? Do you want him on your fantasy team? Are the Eagles bad at developing wide receiver talent? All of these are valid questions that we honestly don’t have a definite answer to. I’m going to try to provide those answers today.

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No Reason to Worry for Second Year RBs

Dynasty / By /

After recent free agent signings, some have cooled on running backs entering their 2nd season. Jonathan Tayor, D’Andre Swift, and James Robinson have seen their value dip with the worry of a veteran backup coming in to take some of the workloads. I firmly believe there is nothing to worry about with these three backs, but I wanted to see if the numbers back me up. Here’s what I found.

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