With CeeDee Lamb back in practice and Christian McCaffrey gone undrafted, he's an easy pick for me. Breece Hall and Bijan Robinson are also reasonable alternatives if you want to secure an RB1 with a big CMC-like potential. In my opinion, Lamb should be the pick. He's in great form in Dallas, as we saw last year. The Cowboys have given up on the run attack, and Lamb has the ability to drive his target share into the stratosphere as the unquestioned leader of this roster.
Lamb and Tyreek Hill (he's up for grabs here) are wide receivers I would pick over Hall and Robinson even in full PPR scoring, so if you start your draft with one of these quality receivers, how aggressive do you need to be targeting the RB position in the second and third rounds?
This is a 12-part PPR pick-by-pick series featuring six people — myself, Dan Schneier, Adam Eiser, Thomas Schafer, Jamie Eisenberg, Heath Cummings and Dave Richard — where we'll each build two of the 12 teams in this 14-round draft and showcase different strategies for each spot.
If I don’t get a running back with the potential to score 300+ PPR points early in the draft, I’ll usually wait at the position in 2024. The running backs I would classify as offering that type of potential outside of the obvious big three are De’Von Achane, Jahmyr Gibbs, Kyren Williams, and Josh Jacobs. In this draft, I took Achane in round three.
For reference, every touchdown in this league is worth 6 points, 1 point for every 10 yards rushing and receiving, 1 point for every 25 yards passing, and 1 point for every reception. The starting lineup is QB, 2 RBs, 3 WRs, TE, and FLEX (RB/WR/TE).
Here is my team, who placed 3rd overall:
1.03 — CeeDee Lamb, WR, Cowboys
2.10 — Nico Collins, WR, Texans
3.03 — Devon Ashen, RB, Dolphins
4.10 — Josh Allen, QB, Bills
5.03 — Kyle Pitts, TE, Falcons
6.10 — Najee Harris, RB, Steelers
7.03 — Xavier Worthy, WR, Chiefs
8.10 — Jackson Smith-Njiba, WR, Seahawks
9.03 — Blake Corum, RB, Rams
10.10 — Bucky Irving, RB, Buccaneers
11.03 — Curtis Samuel, WR, Bills
12.10 — Khalil Herbert, RB, Bears
13.03 — Carson Steele, RB, Chiefs
14.10 — Adonai Mitchell, WR, Colts
Nico Collins is elite. I detailed his journey to his massive yardage on FFT's “Beyond the Boxscore” with Dan Schneier (also featuring Matthew Berry). Collins' third-year breakout may have seemed like it came out of nowhere, but he's definitely a bona fide superstar.
Starting a draft with Lamb and Collins to start three receivers and score in PPR feels like a sneaky move. The Cowboys and Texans could be #1 and #2 in passing in 2024 and I have a quality young WR1 in each offense. I don't think there's any need to panic at the RB position if you start Collins, especially in a format where you have to start three receivers.
In the third round, they took a chance on Devon Achan's legendary upside in Mike McDaniel's cheat-code rushing scheme. Achan has additional upside beyond his incredible rushing efficiency. If his role as a receiver expands in Year 2, Achan could perform like a first-round pick in PPR formats.
I didn't draft a third receiver until the seventh round, but I did have four attempts to get a big-time prospect at WR between rounds seven and 14. Barring a possible lengthy turf to recovery for Curtis Samuel (you can read more about why I'm excited about his change of scenery here ), I'll be taking a closer look at three other receivers soon.
With Marquise Brown recovering from an injury, Xavier Worthy is likely to be available soon. He was on the field in Kansas City's first preseason play (the one where Brown was healthy) and was used as a pre-snap motion player. If you want a better look at the newest weapon available to Patrick Mahomes, you can watch the energetic rookie's full preseason route here:
Tyler Lockett missed practice with a foot injury heading into Week 1, so we may see the veteran gradually work his way back into the game. Even if Lockett plays the full game, I think we can fully expect to see Jackson Smith-Njiba on the field more in his second year.
Smith-Njiba could take a big leap in Year 2, when the offensive scheme will be significantly different.
My final pick was Adonai Mitchell, who was selected in the second round by the Indianapolis Colts. If you want to know what impact he will have on the Colts' offense, you can take a look at all of the preseason routes he ran. He pushed Alec Pierce off the field when the Colts went to two-receiver systems and was frequently used as a substitute slot receiver in pre-snap motions when Josh Downs was out. We'll soon see what role Mitchell plays in the regular season with a potential clash against the Green Bay Packers.
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There are plenty of fantasy managers who don’t like zero RBs and would prefer a safer running back option, but if zero RBs are your preference, you’d do well to follow this blueprint, especially if you’re selecting seventh overall.
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You can watch all of Bucky Irving's preseason plays here.
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Kyle Pitts offers great potential for gaining yards.
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