d’andre swift

Navigating Your Rookie Draft- 2021 Running Backs

Dynasty Build or Dynasty Maintenance?: Najee Harris

The building or maintenance of a dynasty team can be such a fragile project. One early missed pick can quickly change the direction of your team. Such as using a second-round startup pick (1QB) or the 1.01 in rookie drafts on a player who doesn’t project to be worth the price. I am talking about Najee Harris.

Harris was selected 24th overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers who were lacking any sort of production from their backfield. But the bigger part of this is that he became a first-rounder, the 19th running back to do so since 2010. This is great for Harris because between 2010 and 2019, 43.8% of first-round running backs achieved at least an RB5 finish, and 75% achieved at least an RB12 finish.

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Antonio Gibson: Is the Sky the Limit or is the Limit the Sky?

Would you believe it if I told you that Antonio Gibson, who played mostly wide receiver (WR) in college, tallied 16.2 carries and targets per game in the first 11 games of his pro football career at running back (RB)? After blowing up in Week 12 for 20/115/3, along with five receptions on seven targets, he was hurt early in the next game and missed two weeks. He then came back and received a large share of the workload again, but he was hobbled a bit by the injury and indeed it has lingered into the offseason, somewhat unexpectedly. What are his prospects for 2021, and how do they compare to the rest of the 2020 RB class and other similar ranked veteran RBs?

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2020 Rookie RBs Revisited

Each year in dynasty formats a new set of rookies come in that take your attention away from the veterans and last year’s class. In this article, I am going to break down some of the rookie RBs from the 2020 class and give you some insight on what’s to expect this season and beyond. The 2020 Rookie RBs are like no other, and with the value and hype that each possesses, these backs will likely continue to be great dynasty assets.

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DFF Draft Coverage: Jermar Jefferson to the Lions

Jermar Jefferson broke out as a true freshman in 2018 as he garnered Freshman All-American, Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, and honorable mention all-conference honors with 1,380 rushing yards and 12 scores on 239 carries (5.8 per attempt). Jefferson also caught 25 passes for 147 yards that season, displaying his competence as a receiver. The following season, an ankle injury stunted his sophomore campaign limiting him to six starts in nine games played as he compiled 142 carries, 685 yards, and eight touchdowns. Jefferson rebounded in 2020, earning first-team All-Pac-12 accolades by ranking fourth in the FBS with 143 rushing yards per game and ninth with 159.5 all-purpose yards per game. He did miss one game due to COVID-19 protocols.

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Cam Akers: 2021 Dynasty Profile

During his three seasons at Florida State, Cam Akers rushed for 2,875 yards and 27 TDs, adding 69 receptions for 486 yards and seven TDs through the air. Akers was the focal point of his college offense. As a junior, he accounted for 39.8% (90th percentile) of his team’s yards and TDs while commanding a 10.4% target share (78th percentile). Akers did average a pedestrian 5.0 YPC across his college career, but most attribute this to abysmal offensive line play.

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No Reason to Worry for Second Year RBs

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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Eric Gray: 2021 Devy Profile

Eric Gray began his career at Tennessee in impressive fashion, sharing the backfield before breaking out late in the season. He finished with 539 rushing yards and 115 receiving yards with 5 total TDs as a true freshman. This past season, he led the Vols with 772 yards and scored four TDs on 157 carries. He tacked on 30 receptions for 254 more yards and two TDs, eclipsing 1000 scrimmage yards. Gray was featured as a player on the rise in your author’s weekly draft stock seasonal article in October. 

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new coaching hires

New NFL Coaching Hires: Where The Dust Settled (Part 2)

Your author covered the first three coaching hires in a previous article, so it’s time to cover the remaining four new head coaches here. Each team needed enough time and attention and a fair rundown of where their franchise currently stands. Let’s continue the break down! 

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1 QB Dynasty Startup First Round Part 2

Intro With the dynasty offseason in full swing, I wanted to give everyone a quick look into my dynasty startup first-round. I know the top players aren’t usually controversial, but I believe it’s essential to understand why particular players carry such a high dynasty value. Also, I won’t include any 2021 rookie players or picks.

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Week 8 Early Game Storylines

I love writing these storyline pieces. I will go through the games and discuss one dynasty-relevant storyline per team that I’m excited to see. Usually, I’ll split the games into two sets, covering the early games in one story and the later games in another. Also, I’ll do a special spotlight on the Thursday night game from time to time, as that’s a midweek contest. I like to go into more detail for that game, just for a change of pace.

This piece will give you something specific to look for in each contest, which I hope helps you enjoy the games even more. We all play fantasy football to enhance our enjoyment of football, and I’m trying to add to that sense of happiness here. Fun is the most essential part of this hobby for all of us, including me.

I’ve listed the home team first for each game to keep things organized. I won’t waste any more time, so let’s jump straight in!

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Week 7 Early Game Storylines

I love writing these weekend storyline pieces. I will go through the games and discuss one dynasty-relevant storyline per team that I’m excited to see. Usually, I’ll split the games into two sets, covering the early games in one story and the later games in another. In this article, I’ll look at the seven 1 PM games. This piece will give you something specific to look for in each contest, which I hope helps you enjoy the games even more.

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Rookie Stock Market: Week 6

What is up, party people, and welcome back for the sixth edition of the “Rookie Stock Market”. It has been a crazy season thus far. The season has had its ups and downs, and so has this rookie class. Eb and flow are to be expected for rookies, but it has not stopped a few from being within the top 12 of their positional scoring. James Robinson (RB7), Clyde Edwards-Helaire (RB11), Justin Jefferson (WR7), and CeeDee Lamb (WR10) have all been great and contributors in your lineups as their dynasty values rise. Not all the rookies can be studs and some rookies appear to be studs when they really aren’t. Let’s dive in once again.

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Dynasty Risers and Fallers Week 7

Dynasty Risers and Fallers: Week 7

In this weekly piece, I will bring you some risers and fallers from a dynasty lens. Whether it’s injuries, performance, or value, I want to discuss how players have moved around. Based on the week’s events, I’ll give some advice on how to act on the market’s movement, whether it’s buying, selling, or holding. 

I won’t limit myself to talking about any specific players or teams because I want to have the freedom to discuss whatever is most relevant. Also, of course, there are more risers and fallers than those I’m listing. However, it’s impossible to cover every single one of them, as dynasty values change weekly for many players. With that said, let’s jump into the risers first, followed by the fallers.

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Start/Sit Week 7

Each and every week, I’ll be covering a handful of players that I believe will either exceed expectations or let your team down in a major way. Here’s who you should be looking at for Week 7. In terms of points per game, Justin Herbert is the QB8. Through four games, Herbert has 10 total TDs, and he’s averaging nearly 300 passing yards per game. You can trust the rookie against Jacksonville’s atrocious defense in Week 7.

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Week 6 Buy/Sell

Six weeks is a long time. Remember last year, when Joe Mixon was RB32 and DJ Chark was WR2 through the first six games? We had seen six weeks of evidence that Mixon was an unquestionable bust and that Chark was the next big thing. Chark had a bit more than double Mixon’s points in standard scoring. If you had traded Chark away for Joe Mixon at that point, let’s just say that some eyebrows would have been raised. That would have been a bold move, but it would have been the right move. Mixon scored 145 to Chark’s 70 standard points from weeks 7-17.

Of course, you’re never going to get the timing right on trades like these. The point here is to be bold. If you believe in a player, go get him. Here are some guys we’re looking to get, and some we’re looking to get rid of.

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Week 6 Early Game Storylines

As usual, I’m trying a different type of article this week. I will go through each of the early slate games and discuss one dynasty-relevant storyline per team that I’m excited to see. If I get a chance, I might look at the rest of the games in another article, but I wanted to start with only the first set. This piece will give you something specific to look for in each contest, which I hope helps you enjoy the games even more. I’ve listed the home team first for each game. I won’t waste any more time, so let’s jump straight in!

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Week 3 Buy/Sell

Week three is when you know. If a guy has been bad for the first two weeks, it can be easy to chalk it up to small sample size. If a guy is bad for three straight games, you can’t pretend anymore. The story is the same with breakout players. Calvin Ridley, D.K. Metcalf, and James Robinson? Yeah, they’re for real. Joe Mixon and Carson Wentz? Time to move on. Now that you know, the next move is to adjust your expectations. Let go of whatever pre-draft notions you have and take an honest look at the players on your team. And then… get to dealing!

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