Fantasy Draft Market Update: Leonard Fournette, Henry Ruggs, Joe Burrow and More
Draft Market Update: Leonard Fournette, Henry Ruggs, Joe Burrow and more
by Alan Seslowsky
All of RosterWatch Nation is in the thick of draft preparation. Below are some draft market updates that were highlighted in Rosterwatch podcast #274, with special guest Graham Barfield and RosterWatch co-founder, Alex Dunlap.
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Leonard Fournette is Polarizing
Fournette has quickly become one of the most polarizing RBs in 2020 fantasy drafts. Some fantasy players are participating in running back inflation and drafting Fournette as high as the 24th overall pick. Other fantasy players are claiming they wouldn’t even consider Fournette until the late fourth round. The case for Fournette is he is the Jaguars starter, a Top 5 pick in the NFL draft, who was targeted 100 times in 2019. Even in a season where he only scored three TDs, he still finished as a top 10 RB in PPR leagues. The counter-argument is that Jacksonville put a for sale sign on Fournette before the real 2020 NFL draft, The Jags hinted they would take what they could get for him. Add to that the Jags did not pick up Fournette’s fifth-year option. Furthermore, new OC, Jay Gruden, signed off on adding his long time pass-catching weapon Chris Thompson to the RB room, who presumably will bite into the RB reception pie. Lastly, rookie Laviska Shenault profiles as a WR who can be useful in the short passing game, and at times was used as the goal-line runner in college. In most years there is rarely a running back coming off a career year, with an ADP in the top 50, that has such a wide range of fantasy draft volatility.
Rookie WRs for re-draft
Henry Ruggs– The first WR drafted in the real NFL draft is off to an impressive training camp. The Raiders are moving Ruggs all over the field. Watching social media video clips you can see that Ruggs is making acrobatic catches with confidence. It is clear the Raiders have immediate plans for Ruggs, and he is the rookie WR most likely to hit early-on.
Jerry Jeudy– On RosterWatch podcast #274, guest Graham Barfield said that the number one trait you should look for in WR prospects is the ability to separate. Jeudy is elite in this area. The talent is deep in Denver so Jeudy’s path to being a reliable fantasy starter is not clear to start 2020.
Justin Jefferson– He walks into a clear opportunity for targets with the off-season trade of Stefon Diggs. Jefferson’s challenge is that he is going to have to win on the perimeter. Jefferson was not used that way last year at LSU, so this could present a bumpy start. When Jefferson is in the slot, we expect him to have more productive snaps.
Jalen Reagor– He too is walking into a clear role in Philadelphia. Reagor has the draft capital to ensure playing time. Reagor’s impressive athleticism is obvious, even when he isn’t making catches. QB Carson Wentz told Reagor he can do things on the field athletically that other receivers simply can’t do.
Late-Round QBs
It is a well-documented strategy in “start one QB” leagues to wait on drafting a quarterback until the later rounds. The thought process is that there are appealing options at every part of the draft board. Though there is merit to taking an elite QB, there is an opportunity cost that you pay. On Rosterwatch podcast #274 guest Graham Barfield talked about his favorite LRQBs:
Teddy Bridgewater: Barfield made a strong point that the draft market likes the Carolina weapons but they don’t like Bridgewater. Considering Teddy Bridgewater’s draft price of QB26 the anti-Teddy sentiment does not make sense.
Jimmy Garopollo: San Fran will likely need to throw more, and they have a “fast-start” schedule according to the Rosterwatch strength of schedule tool.
Joe Burrow: He is an older rookie, and looks pro-ready. With the Bengals projected as a team that needs to throw a lot, he has a high floor and ceiling. Burrow is a plus scrambler too, which could add broken coverage big plays.
16 Comments
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Where is your favorite spot to draft from this year? We do a comp before every draft , realistically I could pick anywhere I want. If I go first it’s obviously cmc in a .5ppr but then options for a second rb might be tough . Thoughts ?
Hi John:
this is a popular annual question and for good reason. Of course, there will be a variety of opinions. For 2020 I believe it is 1st pick (to get CMC, even in half PPR) or late meaning 10-12. in the later part of the draft, I prefer two rock solid RBs.
In most years back of first round is a nice WR-Wr spot bc your WRs are just so much better than everyone else’s. In 2020, the WRs you ca get on 3/4 turn late are almost just as good IMO.
If you start RB-RB, then on 3/4 turn go Beckham/Cooper (or your favorite pair, you will be happy) Good luck!
I like 3 and 10
Zeke and Mixon
to start
Hey RW! Just wondering if the standard/.5ppr cheat sheet will be updated one more time tomorrow or Saturday morning before drafts? Thanks for all you guys do, can’t wait to draft a killer team again.
Hi Gurpin:
I’ll wait for Byron to weigh in, since he is the architect of the .5/Standard CS, but Byron is usually updating it in real time, as news breaks or intel he gathers warrants a shift. I don’t want to speak for him, but the UDCS is a living breathing document that he updates in real time to reflect how he would draft. You should have confidence that if your print out the sheet and follow the 3 simple rules you WILL end up with an expert quality roster.
Good luck and make sure you share your results with us. I love seeing how RWN dominates their drafts
Al, You gotta change that Avatar man !
You’re much more handsome than that gives you credit for !
I mean that avatar makes you look like a 150 LB Moby FFS
Baron:
LOL I like to under-promise and over-deliver on my looks. This way nobody is too disappointed.
Alan I’ll be in this spot picking at 9 or 10 of a 10 team half point league. I’m thinking take 2 RB of who’s left, probably Drake, Jacobs, maybe CEH. Than circle back with something like A Rob and DJ Moore or OBJ. Sound good for first 4 picks?
Robert:
I love that plan. All of these great WRs are falling this year. Scoop up those elite RBs. Let me know how it goes, I love seeing those drafts!
I have a keeper question for you guys but don’t know the best avenue to post the question. I am a PRO member as well. Here is my question. I’m in a 0.5 PPR league and need to keep 1 player out of the following options and hoping you can help out.
DeAndre Hopkins in the 2nd round
Leonard Fournette in the 2nd round
Todd Gurley in the 2nd round
Kenny Golladay in the 4th
Anthony Miller in the 10th
Not sure if it matters but I am drafting 2nd Overall and is a snake draft.
Thanks for your help and keep up the great work.
Alan thanks for the reply. Sounds good, let’s turn me picking last into getting 2 of these top 10 rbs. I think there are plenty of WRs to choose from later.
Robert: You nailed it. The cheatsheet will reflect that too. The UDCS is all of the leverage against ADP. Follow those 3 simple rules, you will end up with a draft that pushes the RBs up. Good luck!
Hey Guys have a keeper question…12 team PPR league can keep 3…Im keeping McCaffrey and DJ Moore who should be my 3rd between AJ Green, Marc Andrews, Darren Waller and Nick Chubb. I also have the 12th pick…
Thanks
Mr Ballz
I have same choice to make between Chubb and Andrews. It was trough but went with Chubb. Those RBs with starting secure workloads are just to hard to find. Andrews set for big breakout but you have to let it go.
Pick 12 w/ 2 Keepers (Ekeler in the 6th and Chris Godwin in the 4th) Full Point PPR who would y’all take? Personally with the other keepers, I personally think I could go Tyreek Hill and Jacobs
I’d have to see who was available, but I would always default to the UDCS and take BPA (Best player available)