Bargain Basement Prices

Starting your season at Seattle, against the Jets, and at Detroit is not exactly a soft landing in a new season for any running back. But this is what awaited Eddie Lacy (GB) at the beginning of the season.

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Leaving the opener early at Seattle with a concussion, Lacy only managed 34 yards on 12 carries. The Jets allowed him 43 yards on 13 carries. Detroit gave up 36 yards on 11 carries. One thing all these opponents have in common, a strong run defense. He has had a total of 6 catches in these games for 38 yards as well, which isn't adding much value to his stock.

This presents fantasy football players with an opportunity: Get Lacy on the relatively cheap. And if this suits you, the time is now. Starting next week the match ups start to look much better for Lacy. He will suit up against Chicago and Minnesota in the next 2 weeks. If you want to acquire him, it has to be before those games. If Eddie Lacy is going to improve, those are his chances.  If he does improve, the price of getting him will go up, if you can get him at all then.

If you happen to find yourself with a surplus of wide receivers it may behoove you to make an attempt to trade one of them for Lacy. I found myself, after another trade, with a plethora of quality talent at the wide receiver position, and a chance to use one of those guys to get a player that was a first round pick in most fantasy drafts. I offered the Lacy owner in my league Alshon Jeffery, the 3rd or 4th best wide receiver on my team, and a deal was made. This deal may be a little risky, but if you have the talent to spare, this is one of the better gambles to make in my estimation.

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This same strategy can be applied to the other top running backs. Matt Forte (CHI) has had a slow start, and LeSean McCoy (PHI) had a disappointing game last week against Washington. If the owner of these players in your league is frustrated you may be able to get a heck of a value on a player that is primed to go off. And if they don't like what you offer, counter and see if you can come to an agreement. Bargain basement prices on talented players can only be found if you try.

The Zero Running Back Strategy And Mid-round Pass Catchers

I personally play in 4 fantasy leagues this season. Three of the four are PPR (point per reception) leagues. I like this format as it is a higher scoring format, and makes some selections during draft time require more finesse and strategy.

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In preparing for my leagues last season I came up with the idea that I wanted to get 2 or 3 high volume wide receivers and forgo running backs in the first few rounds. Three depends on the presence of a flex spot in your leagues. My main goals were: Get Calvin Johnson as often as possible, Get someone like Demarius Thomas, Dez Bryant, A.J. Green. Basically to get two of the most highly ranked receivers that catches a high volume of passes. These guys are usually match up proof and get between 85-100 catches a year. In a PPR format this leads to 85-100 more points, making someone like Calvin Johnson have a similar value to Peyton Manning last year during a record setting season.

Now to your running backs. If you take 2 wide receivers in a row, you will still find some teams starting running backs in round 3. These guys won’t be the bell cow workhorse guys for their team, but a starting running back has value in any fantasy league. The key is the round 4 through 6 picks. This is the area where you need to have an idea about what the people in your draft like to do, as well as the average draft positions of the players you want to take. I don't mind a small reach to get a guy I really want on my team if I am certain he won't come back to me at my next pick. At the same time, if there are a few players you like in this portion of the draft, reaching may not be your best option. This year I did lots of mock drafts, from every possible draft position, to make sure that I had an idea of where the guys I really liked went. Your league, like mine, will be filled with the “average” player. Some better than others, but you can get a general idea about where players are going.

These rounds are where I like to target my pass catching running backs. Players like Danny Woodhead, Darren Sproles, and Joique Bell were going in this range this season. While Woodhead is off to a slow start, I wouldn’t be surprised if he had a surge now that Ryan Matthews is out for a while. And we have all seen what Sproles has done the first few weeks of the season. I have a feeling Joique Bell is about to explode in that Detroit offense. I think he is the best back on that team, and I think they figured that out week 1. If you can land one or two of these guys in a PPR league and they get you 3-5 catches a week and a TD every 2-3 weeks, you will be a happy camper. Back fill with some running back depth, another wide receiver, and a solid late bye defense and kicker, and you have a recipe for success.