When and How to Draft Running Backs in Extreme Zero RB Builds
Image Credit: Zach Bolinger/Icon Sportswire. Pictured: Nyheim Hines.

Our writers are drafting in real events and breaking down the player picks and draft tactics for readers. In this edition, Shawn Siegele and Blair Andrews get to Round 11 of their Main Event draft without a single running back on the roster. Where will they go from here?

It’s an unfortunate reality of most fantasy football leagues that running backs are a requirement. As the Win the Flex tool shows, in FFPC scoring, there is never an ADP level at which wide receivers do not outscore their RB counterparts.

Points Implied by ADP in FFPC Leagues – 2017-2019

If the goal were simply to score as many points as possible, with no regard for positional allocations or filling specific starting lineup slots, you would take a WR with every pick.[1]

Shawn and I started our FFPC Main Event draft along exactly these lines. To review, here’s our board through 10 rounds:

Alas, the FFPC is a format that does require RBs. So how do you attack the RB position if you’ve already gone 10 rounds without taking one? Keep reading to find out how Shawn and I approached this problem.

The Running Back Picks

When we decided to take Mecole Hardman in the 10th, we knew we probably weren’t going to be able to get Kerryon Johnson. But we had already begun feeling the pressure of being stuck without any good RB options to start the season, which meant that in the 11th, with two TEs and seven WRs already on the squad, RB was a top priority.

Footnotes

Footnotes
1 At least with every non-QB/non-TE pick.

Please subscribe For Full Access to all RotoViz content and tools!

 

What’s included in your subscription??

  • Exclusive Access to RotoViz Study Hall
    • A treasure trove of our most insightful articles that will teach you the metrics that matter, time-tested winning strategies, the approaches that will give you an edge, and teach you how to be an effective fantasy manager.
  • Revolutionary Tools
    • Including the NFL Stat Explorer, Weekly GLSP Projections, NCAA Prospect Box Score Scout, Combine Explorer, Range of Outcomes App, DFS Lineup Optimizer, Best Ball Suite,and many, many, more.
  • Groundbreaking Articles
    • RotoViz is home of the original Zero-RB article and continues to push fantasy gamers forward as the go-to destination for evidence-based analysis and strategic advantages.
  • Weekly Projections
    • Built using RotoViz’s unique GLSP approach.
  • Expert Rankings
  • And a whole lot more…

Blair Andrews

Managing Editor, Author of The Wrong Read, Occasional Fantasy Football League Winner. All opinions are someone else's.

Is Brock Bowers the Most Undervalued Player in Both Reality and Fantasy?

Sportskeeda’s Tony Pauline recently dropped a sort of bombshell that brings some good news for those who like to approach dynasty rookie drafts in the RotoViz way: In speaking with a few teams, they believe the most underrated player at the top of this draft is Georgia tight end Brock Bowers. While some have mocked Bowers into the middle part of Round 1, no team…...

Small-School Dynamos Add Intrigue to a Surprisingly Deep Running Back Class: 2024 Backfield Dominator Ratings

Since 2018 we’ve been using the backfield dominator rating (BDR) to find undervalued running backs and to evaluate the top backs in the class. BDR is a key stat we report in the Box Score Scout, and it’s also a central component of some predictive models in the RB Prospect Lab. We’ve used it and related precursor metrics such as Workhorse Scores to find hidden…...

How to Build a Contrarian March Madness Bracket: Win Probabilities, Potential Upsets, and Advanced Strategy for the 2024 NCAA Tournament

NFL free agency may be winding down, but our favorite prospects are getting ready for pro days, and best ball drafts are heating up. Yet I have only one thing on my mind: winning my friends and family March Madness pool. The key to winning, as RotoViz readers will already know, is not simply to pick the teams most likely to advance. It’s to pick…...

Is Brock Bowers the Most Undervalued Player in Both Reality and Fantasy?

Sportskeeda’s Tony Pauline recently dropped a sort of bombshell that brings some good news for those who like to approach dynasty rookie drafts in the RotoViz way: In speaking with a few teams, they believe the most underrated player at the top of this draft is Georgia tight end Brock Bowers. While some have mocked Bowers into the middle part of Round 1, no team…...

Small-School Dynamos Add Intrigue to a Surprisingly Deep Running Back Class: 2024 Backfield Dominator Ratings

Since 2018 we’ve been using the backfield dominator rating (BDR) to find undervalued running backs and to evaluate the top backs in the class. BDR is a key stat we report in the Box Score Scout, and it’s also a central component of some predictive models in the RB Prospect Lab. We’ve used it and related precursor metrics such as Workhorse Scores to find hidden…...

How to Build a Contrarian March Madness Bracket: Win Probabilities, Potential Upsets, and Advanced Strategy for the 2024 NCAA Tournament

NFL free agency may be winding down, but our favorite prospects are getting ready for pro days, and best ball drafts are heating up. Yet I have only one thing on my mind: winning my friends and family March Madness pool. The key to winning, as RotoViz readers will already know, is not simply to pick the teams most likely to advance. It’s to pick…...

The Blitz

Connect
Support

rotovizmain@gmail.com

Sign-up today for our free Premium Email subscription!

Data provided by

© 2021 RotoViz. All rights Reserved.

Welcome Back to RotoViz...

– IF YOU HAVE ISSUES LOGGING IN PLEASE CONTACT ROTOVIZMAIN@GMAIL.COM

– PLEASE NOTE THAT ROTOVIZ USES WORDPRESS FOR ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT. IF RESETTING YOUR PASSWORD YOU MAY BE FOWARDED TO A WORDPRESS PAGE.