2019 Fantasy Football Draft Prep: Picking at No. 3 overall in non-PPR leagues
No complaining if you're picking third overall! You're guaranteed three top-31 players, and one of them will be a stud running back as the cornerstone of your title-hoisting squad.
By
Dave Richard
•
5 min read
Non-PPR draft slot: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12
Picking third is great. You're guaranteed a stud running back in Round 1 and you're a cinch for three top-30 players and five top-51 players.
You can also keep tabs on what the scallywags who pick at No. 1 and No. 2 overall need and use their needs against them when you pick. In the draft we did, that exact tactic helped me land Derrick Henry and Alshon Jeffery at attractive values.
Before you draft, make sure you know which elite tier running backs you're targeting. You're guaranteed one of them. You also should have a real good idea of which top-12 receivers and top-20 overall players you covet, including whether or not you want to lock away a top-three tight end. The good news is that your second-round pick (or maybe your third) is prime real estate to get one of George Kittle or Zach Ertz.
You also don't have to wait for a quarterback unless you want to, but you'll probably base the timing on when to take one on how the drafters at Picks 1 and 2 approach their passers.
Frankly, this might be the very best spot to pick from in any snake draft regardless of format. Here's how the team shook out for me at No. 3 overall:
- 1.03 Alvin Kamara, RB, NO
- 2.10 George Kittle, TE, SF
- 3.03 Antonio Brown, WR, OAK
- 4.10 Cooper Kupp, WR, LAR
- 5.03 Derrick Henry, RB, TEN
- 6.10 Tarik Cohen, RB, CHI
- 7.03 Alshon Jeffery, WR, PHI
- 8.10 Jarvis Landry, WR, CLE
- 9.03 Peyton Barber, RB, TB
- 10.10 Darwin Thompson, RB, KC
- 11.03 Parris Campbell, WR, IND
- 12.10 Mark Andrews, TE, BAL
- 13.03 Drew Brees, QB, NO
- 14.10 Mike Davis, RB, CHI
- 15.03 Patriots DST
There's not much to talk about with the first pick -- the best available running back from Ezekiel Elliott (if he's not holding out), Saquon Barkley and Alvin Kamara is probably who you'll take in non-PPR (the order changes and includes Christian McCaffrey in PPR).
So let's move right into Rounds 2 and 3. I am a big fan of not settling for a tight end -- I don't want to stream them or hope for just a touchdown and a couple of catches from one each week. I want a difference-maker, so getting George Kittle at 22nd overall was an easy decision for me. It was an even better move since I figured a good receiver would escape the turn and be available for my squad in Round 3, which was precisely the case with Antonio Brown. Beginning with one rusher, one receiver and one tight end is perfectly fine.
The fun began in Round 4. A healthy Derrick Henry is worth a pick here, but at the time of drafting he was in a walking boot. Also, my rivals picking after me in Round 4 and before me in Round 5 each had two running backs. I knew they'd start swiping receivers, so if I wanted a nice second one, I had to take one in Round 4. I also had a pretty good feeling Henry would fall to Round 5 (and if not him, Mark Ingram or Phillip Lindsay would have been OK). Sure enough, after I took Cooper Kupp, four receivers went right off the board. The plan worked.
Successful manipulation worked again in Rounds 6 and 7. I probably needed a third receiver before a third running back, but the only rusher on the board I was really into was Tarik Cohen, so I took him figuring there would be a good chance a receiver I was OK with would be there in Round 7, or if not, a quarterback. Two running backs, one quarterback and a receiver were taken before I was up again, and I selected Alshon Jeffery. This wasn't quite as exciting as the previous example, but it worked out.
In fact, I based my picks in Rounds 8 and 9 based on the needs of my swing-pick enemies as well. It goes without saying that if you're up and a player you have to have is there, then take him. But paying attention to those neighborly drafters' needs will pay off for you.
I was so enthralled with picking receivers and running backs that I waited until very, very late to take a quarterback. Getting Drew Brees was more of a by-product of drafting with my fellow resident analysts, but the concept in waiting is still really good. Even if you end up with Philip Rivers or Ben Roethlisberger, you're still collecting an outrageous value by taking a quarterback in the double-digit rounds. There's no need to rush into a quarterback in drafts this year.
Favorite Pick
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Do you even realize how hard it is to find a starting-caliber player deep into the double-digit rounds?! It's mission impossible at running back, and next to impossible at receiver. Maybe you can find a tight end you can begin the season with as a streamer. But a quarterback as good as Brees? Sign me up for this all year long. If I knew I'd get him this late in every draft, I'd probably wait for him.
Pick I might regret
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This is less about Cohen and more about Austin Ekeler, who I passed on in Round 6 when I took Cohen (and in Round 7 when I took Alshon Jeffery). If Melvin Gordon's holdout continues into the season, I'll have wished I had Ekeler on my team. If Gordon comes back, I'll breathe a sigh of relief. Cohen is definitely a better option in PPR than non-PPR but my other options were James White, Darrell Henderson or Lamar Miller. If I'm going to go with upside, might as well be someone with blazing speed in an offense where his path to playing time is blocked by a rookie.
Make or break pick
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On the same day I took Henry, it became known he would miss two weeks of training camp with a calf injury. It's never good for anyone to miss time ramping up for the season, but Henry is supremely valuable to the Titans offense and probably doesn't need a whole lot of reps to do what they'll ask him to do. Drafting him in Round 5 is totally safe, though it probably would have been a decent idea to find Dion Lewis later on (he went in late Round 9).
