7/26/23
Let’s be honest, the NFL is the most popular sport in America for one reason and one reason only…fantasy football. Sure, other sports like baseball, basketball and even hockey have fantasy charm to them, but you’ll never find your girlfriend playing in those leagues. The NFL is the OG of fantasy sports, and for good reason – but is fantasy football changing?
With all the latest buzz around Saquon, Josh Jacobs, Dalvin Cook and running backs not getting paid what they deserve, you have to start to wonder if this trend will continue in the future. It’s noticeable that GMs are unwilling to pay premium price for a position they feel is dispensable in a pass heavy league. Every year, we see more and more teams electing committees to share the backfield duties and split carries. It is very rare in today’s NFL to find a 3-down workhorse. So, how does this effect fantasy football?
Well, you know and I know, since the day fantasy football launched in 1996 on ESPN, running backs hold the most value out of any position. Just about every draft I did growing up, the entire league took RBs in the first round; it was a given, an unwritten rule if you will. However, in recent years, I’m seeing more and more top WRs and even a TE go in the first round. Now this year, two out of the top three projected draft picks are WRs, so something is definitely shifting in the fantasy realm as well.
Now, I am in no way saying RBs don’t have value anymore in fantasy football. I will still be targeting a few backs in the first round; however, I think we are hitting the point where it isn’t necessary to draft a RB in the first round. With the majority of NFL teams electing to use RB committees, plenty of depth can be found in the later rounds of the draft.
Another cause of the recent shift in the NFL is due to the emergence of mobile QBs and the emphasis on the passing game. We already said the game has shifted from a ground and pound to a pass frenzy league, but in today’s NFL these QBs can use their legs as well. Yes, we’ve seen guys like Michael Vick in the past, and you can make the argument guys like him started this movement, but it wasn’t until recently that the entire NFL started to adopt to this style of play and speed up the game. It seems like every team nowadays is looking for their own version of Patrick Mahomes and boy has it been fun to watch. Guys like Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, and Jalen Hurts bring a whole new dynamic to the game, which will definitely start to make you questioning your QB draft strategy going forward.
In the past, we were always taught to wait until the later rounds to draft a QB (specifically 1 QB leagues), and focus on skill position players in the first four to six rounds. Throughout history, this fast-paced, college-ish style dual threat offense, didn’t find much success in the NFL until teams started changing their playbooks. QBs of today’s game put up stats like we used to put up in Madden; and if we are talking from a fantasy football stand point, put up the most points period. So why wouldn’t you reach for them early?
Trust me, you can find another WR or 3rd running back later on when everyone else is scraping for a QB in the 7th round. At the end of the day, it feels a lot better to have a QB you’re confident in week after week, rather than riding the waiver wire trying to figure out who has a better matchup that week, Daniel Jones or Russell Wilson…? Public hates to hear it but, don’t sleep on QB’s, especially dual treat studs.
So, is fantasy football changing?
Yes, it is. Just like the game of football is constantly changing, fantasy football changes with it. Between the decline of the RB position, WR talent at an all-time high, and mobile QBs taking over, we suggest updating your strategy come draft night. Draft pools in todays fantasy leagues are just too deep, chances are there will still be studs left for the waiver wire week 1. If you aren’t keeping up with the latest changes and adopting as you go, you’re always going to get left behind. Don’t be the guy who drafts like its 2008, be a Dollaboy and draft like it’s 2023.