For many, the fantasy football draft is only days away. The preseason is finishing and the rankings have been dissected ad nauseam.
Hopefully you have a strategy ready by now, but if not, there’s still a few more cram days left. Once you have those starters filled, it’s a good idea to try to get lucky a few times on your roster and find a handcuff running back or two.
Here’s my three favorite handcuffs heading into the 2017 season.
Derrick Henry, Tennessee Titans, ADP: 86
Shhhh…don’t tell anyone, but I really like Henry.
I’ve been hopping off the DeMarco Murray bandwagon as soon as the 2016 season ended. Murray and LeSean McCoy have the most carries of any active running back that started their careers after 2008.
And Murray has been injured before…as seen last year when he stumbled down the stretch. In 2016, he had more single digit fantasy days than double-digit ones, going for three efforts of less than 10 points in the final five games.
Murray is a prime injury risk that I’m not willing to take in this year’s draft. Henry is ready to be a starter, and once he gets that chance, you won’t have to worry about him not getting goal line work. If Henry plays, he has top-six fantasy running back potential. His ADP is high for a reason, but I’m not passing on him based on the likelihood of him seeing major minutes at some point this season.
Jamaal Williams, Green Bay Packers, ADP: 142
I’m targeting Green Bay’s starter Ty Montgomery, but even I have my doubts. This will be Montgomery’s first full season as a starting running back, not only in the NFL, but in college, too.
We don’t know how well he can handle the punishment on a weekly basis. That leaves me to believe Williams will have some prospective value.
When playing at BYU in college, Williams was a very productive running back when on the field. During his senior season, he rushed for 5.9 yards per carry and 12 touchdowns. He’s worked his way up the depth chart and there’s opportunities to score in Green Bay’s offense. His draft number is a decent level where you won’t have to mortgage your roster to pick him up.
I’m all in on Montgomery’s value. But there should be some doubt whether he can keep it up all year. That’s why it makes sense to have Williams on your roster as a handcuff.
Alfred Morris, Dallas Cowboys, ADP: 201
He’s a deep sleeper and a third-stringer, but with Ezekiel Elliott likely out for much of the first half of the season, it makes sense to have an insurance policy on Darren McFadden.
McFadden is no spring chicken and he’s been known to succumb to injury. And I don’t really care who you put behind that offensive line in Dallas — they will be productive. If McFadden goes down with injury or doesn’t produce at a level necessary to start for the Cowboys, Morris is a nice first-half weapon you could deploy.
He’s a no-brainer to at least take a flier on in the later portion of the fantasy football draft. With Elliott out and McFadden’s injury history, Morris could be a borderline RB1 for a few games in 2017.
