Fantasy Football: How to draft from the seventh overall pick in 0.5 PPR leagues

The blueprint for drafting seventh overall in 0.5 PPR leagues

The No. 7 pick in a 12-team, 0-5-PPR league could be tricky. You will likely have the choice of a top-tier running back like Derrick Henry, Dalvin Cook, Joe Mixon, Alvin Kamara or Najee Harris. Or you could have a decision to make at wide receiver out of Cooper Kupp, Justin Jefferson or Ja'Marr Chase.

In this mock draft, the first six picks were Jonathan Taylor, Christian McCaffrey, Austin Ekeler, Kupp, Jefferson and Henry. This is a three-receiver league, so I went with Chase instead of a running back. And this was done with a purpose.

Based on Average Draft Position, I knew in Round 2 that a running back like Saquon Barkley, Leonard Fournette, Aaron Jones or D'Andre Swift would be there, and all of them have top-10 upside. Barkley and Fournette were on the board, and I paired Barkley with Chase, which is fantastic.

That duo started this team off on the right foot, and I was thrilled with how my team was built. This is our 12-part, pick-by-pick series where me, Adam Aizer, Heath Cummings, Dave Richard, Dan Schneier and Chris Towers all took part in a six-person mock draft. We each built two of the 12 teams in this 15-round draft to show you a different strategy from each spot.

Pick-by-pick 0.5-PPR strategy: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12

This is an outline that you can follow if you pick from No. 7 overall in your league. The key is to study the strategy and not necessarily the players to see if this works for you. 

As a reference point for this league, all touchdowns are worth six points, and we award one point for every 10 yards rushing and receiving and one point for every 25 yards passing. We also award 0.5 points for every reception. We feature a starting lineup of QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, TE and FLEX (RB/WR/TE). 

Here's my team from No. 7 overall:

1.7: Ja'Marr Chase, WR, Bengals
2.6: Saquon Barkley, RB, Giants
3.7: James Conner, RB, Cardinals
4.6: Diontae Johnson, WR, Steelers
5.7: Jerry Jeudy, WR, Broncos
6.6: Chase Edmonds, RB, Dolphins
7.7: Tony Pollard, RB, Cowboys
8.6: Brandon Aiyuk, WR, 49ers
9.7: Darrell Henderson, RB, Rams
10.6: Cole Kmet, TE, Bears
11.7: Isiah Pacheco, RB, Chiefs
12.6: Kirk Cousins, QB, Vikings
13.7: Mike Davis, RB, Ravens
14.6: Mecole Hardman, WR, Chiefs
15.7: Sammy Watkins, WR, Packers

I probably drafted one running back too many on this roster after getting Barkley in Round 2 and Conner in Round 3. But it was hard to pass on Edmonds, Pollard, Henderson, Pacheco and Davis at their respective values. All of those guys could be flex options, and it's probably not a bad idea to have depth at the position given the injury history of both Barkley and Conner.

My top four receivers are excellent with Chase, Johnson, Jeudy and Aiyuk, and I'm hopeful Aiyuk steps up with Trey Lance to be a consistent flex option. I would prefer better reserves than Hardman and Watkins, but both could play significant roles with quality quarterbacks. They were easy picks at the end of the draft.

Kmet is one of my favorite targets at tight end, and he should have a breakout campaign as the No. 2 option in the passing game for Chicago behind Darnell Mooney. And I loved waiting for Cousins in Round 12 since he has top-10 upside this season.

Favorite pick

Pollard will play a secondary role as a rusher behind Ezekiel Elliott, but Pollard should have the chance to catch plenty of passes for the Cowboys, who are thin at receiver behind CeeDee Lamb and tight end Dalton Schultz. Dak Prescott alluded to that recently, saying Pollard "can get out there and be one of our best pass-catchers, and just the way that he's grown, just with his route running from the time that we've asked him to take on that role is impressive itself." And if something happens to Elliott, Pollard could be a top 10 Fantasy running back if given the chance to start.

Pick I might regret

Conner was impressive last season, especially finding the end zone when he tied Damien Harris for second among rushing touchdowns with 15. He thrived in a featured role when Edmonds was hurt, scoring at least 12.5 0.5-PPR points in the six games Edmonds was injured or out from Week 9 on. With Edmonds in Miami, Conner doesn't have much competition for touches with Eno Benjamin and Darrel Williams not expected to take Conner off the field. But the reason I might regret this pick is I drafted Conner over receivers like Keenan Allen, Tee Higgins and Mike Williams, which could be a mistake. If I knew I was guaranteed to get breakout candidates like Edmonds and Pollard later in the draft then I would have drafted Allen instead.

Make or break player

We know the risks with Barkley. He's missed 18 games over the past two seasons with various leg injuries, the Giants aren't expected to be good and he might never get back to the glory days of his first two seasons in the NFL when he averaged more than 16.7 0.5-PPR points per game. But what if he does? What if, despite the Giant's limitations offensively, he's back as a star again? I love his motivation -- we can't print what he said on a recent podcast -- and he should have a significant role in the passing game. If he stays healthy, Barkley could again finish as a top five Fantasy running back. I'm playing to win my Fantasy league, and Barkley gives me a great chance to accomplish that goal if he's 100 percent this season.