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Paying attention to average draft position (ADP) is the easiest way to gain an edge in your fantasy drafts. So, as we get into the heart of draft season, I thought it would be valuable to take a look at a handful of players that are likely to outperform their ADPs.* There are several great values at each position, and I’d like to explain the rationale behind each selection, so this installment of “Redraft Values” will be the first of two parts.
After writing my redraft team breakdown series, I decided to start a new series as we approach the 2020 fantasy season. Every week, or probably more often than that, I’m going to bring you one fantasy sleeper representing a massive value in 2020 redraft leagues. All the links to previous articles are at the bottom of the article. In the first article, I detailed my methodology behind this series, so go back and read that piece if you haven’t yet!
Seasonal (redraft) ranks will appear in article form this year at Dynasty Football Factory. The IDP ranks in spreadsheet form are and will remain for a dynasty format. I’ll update the dynasty ranks year-round, thus making available a rare resource for IDP gamers. I, myself, was always on the hunt for current dynasty ranks for start-up and dispersal drafts for IDP leagues before I started writing. Here are my 2020 Safety ranks, dominated by “jack of all trades” type players!
Back in 2019, the then-DFF team wrote a dynasty startup strategy guide. That guide holds up well even now, and I would highly recommend going back and reading it. However, I feel like the guide needs a 2020 update. So much has changed in the dynasty universe since March 2019, and I want to address that before the 2020 season. Now that the 2020 season looks like a lock to happen, many of you readers might participate in dynasty startups before the season begins. Therefore, I want to give you my version of this guide. I’m going to split it up into two parts, one for regular 1QB leagues and one for superflex leagues. At this point, superflex formats are so popular within the dynasty community that they certainly deserve their own guide. With all that said, let’s get into the 1QB guide.
I’ve done a bunch of reaction articles throughout the offseason, but they were all from a dynasty lens. At this point in the offseason, the season is in sight, so any moves have a more direct effect on 2020 redraft leagues. We know far more about each team’s depth chart, so it’s far easier to slot any new additions into a role. I broke down the Patriots for redraft in June, but so much has changed since then. The Patriots signed Cam Newton to replace Jarrett Stidham at quarterback. Also, we received news that Sony Michel had offseason foot surgery, leaving him in a race to be ready for the start of the season. That’s where Lamar Miller comes into play. As he’s an older veteran running back, Miller doesn’t carry much dynasty value, but he makes a massive impact on the Patriots’ backfield in 2020. I’ll begin with Miller, and then move into how I’ve moved each other Patriots’ running back based on his signing. Let’s jump into it!
The original idea of half and full PPR scoring was to even out the production between running backs and wide receivers. In the past, say 15-20 years ago, running backs significantly outscored wide receivers. But, giving points per reception leveled the playing field. I’ll break down whether that’s still true, but that was the primary purpose behind PPR scoring systems. Also, basing scoring on receptions creates more predictability in projecting fantasy points. As always, fantasy leagues are more fun when they reward skill over luck. Specifically, adding PPR scoring reduces the scoring impact of touchdowns, which are highly unpredictable, in favor of receptions, which are highly predictable.
After writing my redraft team breakdown series, I decided to start a new series as we approach the 2020 fantasy season. Every week, or probably more often than that, I’m going to bring you one fantasy sleeper representing a massive value in 2020 redraft leagues. All the links to previous articles are at the bottom of the article. In the first article, I detailed my methodology behind this series, so go back and read that piece if you haven’t yet! Now, I want to take a look at Jamison Crowder. My friend @DocFFN recently wrote a free dynasty profile on Crowder, but I wanted to look at Crowder’s redraft prospects. I also wanted to take more of a long-form approach, as the dynasty free profiles are quick-hitters. Anyway, Crowder might play for the hapless Jets, but I think he deserves some attention as a sleeper for 2020 PPR redraft leagues. Let’s get into why.
The scarcity of defensive ends that challenge fantasy gamers assembling rosters in conventional-position IDP leagues shifts to the interior in true-position IDP. I’ve ranked 62 interior defensive linemen for 2020 because every IDL with a pulse will eventually appear on fantasy rosters. I calibrated my ranks for 2020 seasonal leagues for 14-team, true-position full-IDP leagues with the scoring settings of FantasyPros.com and 55 roster spots. To that end, I list here 40 interior defensive linemen in the order of value they offer teams starting 11 IDPs including two IDLs. The remaining 22 require additional explanation.
2019 was a banner year for rookie edge defenders. Several more break-out performances from players that fantasy gamers had left for dead combine with the rookies good depth to the EDGE position. The position mirrors the wide-receiver position in that there are more strong, steady options than ever and plenty of depth for those with the stomach to play match-ups.
The shovel is back! My favorite article series returns once again. If you don’t already know, I figuratively bury fantasy players and their redraft stock. You can find all my previous work in this series at the bottom of the page. Unfortunately, the grim reaper has come for Emmanuel Sanders. He’s had a great career, but his time is up. Also, to jump out in front of the potential backlash, I want to make sure you don’t hear what I’m not saying in this article. Sanders was an exceptional real-life and fantasy wide receiver for many years. He had a stellar NFL career and deserves nothing but praise for his perseverance.
Joey and Nick Bosa are both amazing talents with nearly identical profiles. Joey is a known commodity with a little extra size, and his production is proven. He knows he’ll be playing in Los Angeles through his prime and is a model IDP asset…
After writing my redraft team breakdown series, I decided to start a new series as we approach the 2020 fantasy season. Every week, or probably more often than that, I’m going to bring you one fantasy sleeper representing a massive value in 2020 redraft leagues. All the links to previous articles are at the bottom of the article. In the first article, I detailed my methodology behind this series, so go back and read that piece if you haven’t yet! Now, I want to take a look at Jamison Crowder. My friend @DocFFN recently wrote a free dynasty profile on Crowder, but I wanted to look at Crowder’s redraft prospects. I also wanted to take more of a long-form approach, as the dynasty free profiles are quick-hitters. Anyway, Crowder might play for the hapless Jets, but I think he deserves some attention as a sleeper for 2020 PPR redraft leagues. Let’s get into why.
Seasonal (redraft) ranks will appear in article form this year at Dynasty Football Factory. The IDP ranks in spreadsheet form are and will remain for a dynasty format. I’ll update these dynasty ranks year-round, thus making available a rare resource for IDP gamers. I, myself, was always on the hunt for current dynasty ranks for start-up and dispersal drafts for IDP leagues before I started writing.
The league-altering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have now significantly hurt the IDP world of fantasy football, as a consensus LB2 in C.J. Mosley just became the biggest name on the defensive side of the football to take the NFL’s opt-out alternative to the 2020 season. Mosley joins Patriots’ linebacker Dont’a Hightower and safety Patrick Chung as the only rosterable IDPs to have opted out before the season, outside of deeper leagues. This is a monumental blow to the New York Jets’ defense as well.
Now, I want to jump into Sterling Shepard. I wrote a redraft breakdown about Shepard and the rest of the Giants in May as my first piece in that 32-part series. Outside of star running back Saquon Barkley, the Giants have four secondary offensive options in Darius Slayton, Evan Engram, Golden Tate, and Shepard. Back then, I recommended fading Shepard and saw Golden Tate as the best sleeper in the Giants offense. However, at this point, I’ve come around to Shepard as the best overall option at cost. Let’s get into why.
I recently took part in a 1QB, PPR redraft mock with eleven other members of the DFF crew. I was very happy with the results, so I’d like to break down my team and my decision-making process throughout the draft. I entered the draft planning to select RBs in the first three rounds before addressing any other positions. This strategy, which I broke down in great detail here, is one I’ve been implementing whenever possible this offseason. I expected to target WR in the middle rounds while waiting to get my QB and TE late, which worked out perfectly.
Jamal Adams has been traded to the Seattle Seahawks by the New York Jets! Wow, very exciting news that I’m sure everyone has heard about but I still felt the need to shout it out, so to speak, for all to hear. Which means I was definitely wrong when I wrote just a few days that I didn’t foresee a deal happening before the season. It did and it was a big one that included safety Bradley McDougald, a first-round pick in 2021 and 2022, and a third-round pick in 2021. The Seahawks got Jamal Adams and a fourth-round pick in 2022 in return. That’s established, we know the trade details, let’s get to the real reason we’re here, to try to see the future
Recently, the @DFF_Redraft crew joined up for a redraft mock draft. The format was: start 1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, 2 Flex, 6 bench spots, and PPR scoring. It was the first time this offseason that we did a mock with three starting wide receivers, so I was curious to see how that small change affected my strategy and the other drafters’ strategy.
Every few weeks, the Dynasty Football Factory team gathers its sharpest minds to put together a no time limit mock draft. Throughout the year the type of mock changes quite a bit. At the beginning of the year, it’s a lot of dynasty startups and rookie drafts. Now that it’s summer, the focus switches to redraft.
Mock drafts are a place to let your wildest ideas play out in hopes of developing a new strategy for how to attack your 2020 drafts. In this 12-team redraft mock, I selected out of the 10th spot. I chose this spot because I typically don’t like to draft from the end. So, to be as prepared as possible, I wanted to see what kind of team I could come up with selecting at the end of this snake draft. Going into the draft I did not have a set plan on what I wanted to do other than to choose who I felt was the best available player on the board regardless of position. This process turned into a zero-RB approach, which I have never endorsed or tried previously. So join me as I venture into the always polarizing strategy of the zero-RB.
The defensive scheme change in Dallas could be quite shocking to Cowboys’ fans. Mike Nolan’s body of work combined with recent experience in the Saints’ hybrid system as a linebackers coach should yield a more varied and complex defense than fans have known. Not only will we miss preseason action to see a preview of this defense, but also beat writers are prohibited from reporting players’ alignments during training camp. 2020 will provide more surprises than ever for IDP aficionados and this in a time when defenses are ever more multiple. September 13, 2020, will be the most astonishing day of football in a long time!
After writing my redraft team breakdown series, I decided to start a new series as we approach the 2020 fantasy season. Every week, or probably more often than that, I’m going to bring you one fantasy sleeper representing a massive value in 2020 redraft leagues. In my first article, I wrote about Hayden Hurst and how he represents a value. Additionally, I detailed my methodology behind this series, so go back and read that piece if you haven’t yet! Let’s jump into my second player, Sony Michel. I’ve come a long way on Michel since I buried him in my “Dead to Me” series. Well, that isn’t entirely true, but let’s get into exactly how I feel about Michel since it’s a complicated story.
Everyone wants the hot new thing. As kids, we all wanted the brand new toy for Christmas and turned our noses up at the pairs of socks we sometimes got instead. Now that we are adults we want the cool new sports car instead of the pre-owned Honda. It’s the same in fantasy football. Everybody wants to be the guy who drafts the young running back who vaults himself into the first round next year. We all target those third-year wide receivers looking for that elusive breakout. But you know what? Those socks are a good present. They get the job done and you use them all the time. That pre-owned Honda is reliable and doesn’t cost an arm and a leg to maintain. You can find similar values every year in fantasy football. No one in your draft room will let out a sigh of relief when you take one of these guys, but they’ll get the job done for you. These are the used cars and Christmas socks of the 2020 fantasy season. I present to you 2020 All-Uglies.
In part one of Auction Draft Dos and Don’ts we discussed how tiers should guide your auction drafting strategy over specific targets. Here in part two, we’ll go over how to stay focused during your draft and why mock drafts aren’t as helpful when preparing for an auction. Dominate your auction draft with the help of these dos and don’ts!
Best ball is a fantasy football format that’s all about your favorite part of the fantasy season: the draft. You simply draft an expanded roster, usually somewhere between 18 and 25 players, and that’s it. You will not set weekly lineups, place waiver claims, or send trade offers. Instead, your optimal lineup is generated each week after all the games have been played. You score points based on that optimal lineup, and, at the end of the season, the team with the most points wins.