I’d make a lot of changes if I was King of the season-long fantasy football world. But my No. 1 priority would be eliminating the default rankings from the online draft applets.
These default rankings are the enemy of hard work and preparation. If the defaults are solid, owners can just show up the day of the draft, use the site’s rankings as their “research” and emerge with a reasonable team.
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At a minimum, we know our opponents use the default rankings as a crutch. That means they may be afraid to pull the trigger on X guy in the second round because he’s listed as a fourth-rounder in the applet. Or maybe they take Y guy earlier than they should because his name is on top of the applet. Even auto-drafters can have success if the draft applet rankings are solid.
The good news for us is that these default rankings are not particularly efficient. So there are edges for us to exploit against opponents who are relying on them. The best process for us is to draft off of our own personal rankings, but also be aware of and adjust to what’s going on the applet.
Below is what you should be aware of heading into drafts on ESPN:
* These rankings were found within ESPN PPR draft applets as of Thursday, August 20.
ESPN
PLAYERS LISTED HIGHER THAN EXPECTED
26. Adam Thielen
32. Courtland Sutton
60. Deebo Samuel
67. Tarik Cohen
84. Zack Moss
107. T.J. Hockenson
ADJUSTMENTS: We can steal Adam Thielen in Round 4 of a lot of leagues. Sadly that’s unlikely to happen in ESPN, someone will reach because of this default ranking. … Courtland Sutton listed a round before Odell Beckham, A.J. Brown and Calvin Ridley types is great news for us. The Broncos have added a ton of target competition. … ESPN already had an aggressive ranking on Deebo Samuel. Then he got hurt and they still didn’t move him. Let’s hope someone
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