Players I Want in Every Fantasy Football Draft: Value in Round Two
It’s early, I get that. But some of the fantasy football draft ADP data is eye popping. I see guys going off the board at certain spots and I just want to scream at every owner in those leagues and ask “DO YOU NOT WANT TO WIN?!”. So I thought to myself: who are some guys that I want in every single league, if their current ADP stays the same? I bet I could make a whole team full of them.
And that’s exactly what I did. I’ll keep track of the full roster, and release them one player at a time until a starting lineup is built for week one. I’ll use ADP data from MFL and do my best to select a player in every single round so it’s a realistic idea of a team you could walk away with on draft day. We already covered round one and have our bell cow, Zeke Elliot. On to round two:
Current Roster:
| QB | |
| RB1 | Zeke (Rd. 1) |
| RB2 | |
| WR1 | |
| WR2 | |
| WR3 | |
| TE |
Second Round Selection: Melvin Gordon
The back that people love to hate, and arguably the least sexy pick in the top two rounds. His current ADP is right around pick 16, but I’ve seen him fall as far as the late second in a lot of best ball drafts. For some reason owners are doing everything they can to talk themselves out of grabbing Gordon early, and it doesn’t make any sense.
His less than ideal 3.9 YPC has followed him around since he was a rookie. It’s been the driving force for those suggesting you avoid him every season. It doesn’t scream efficiency, and it’s not something a real NFL team would be too excited about. I hear you, Melvin Gordon haters.
I now invite the anti-MG support groups to show me any league on earth that gives fantasy points for a healthy YPC. I’ll wait.
The truth about Gordon is that he flat out gets it done, and the Chargers continue to lean on him. In terms of consistency, there’s few backs in the league that have outperformed him the last two seasons. Not only is his YPC completely overblown, it’s a genuine outlier from a statistical standpoint:
Melvin Gordon – RB, Chargers
| NFL Ranking (2017) | NFL Ranking (2016) | |
| Rushing Attempts | #3 | #10 |
| Red Zone Rushing Attempts | #3 | #4 |
| TD’s | #6 | #7 |
| Rush Yards/Game | #9 | #8 |
| Fantasy PPG | #7 | #5 |
| Positional Ranking | #5 | #8 |
| YPC | #10 | #27 |
Gordon is a top ten back in every category possible except one. And it’s one that grants you absolutely no fantasy points. Stop using it as a reason not to lock him in as your RB1. He’s one of the most reliable guys in fantasy, and the above rankings could argue he’s actually trending up.
I make sure my first two picks off the board provide consistency and potential to explode on a weekly basis. Melvin Gordon is that guy. He currently carries a second round ADP behind backs like Dalvin Cook and Leonard Fournette, but carries much less injury risk and a larger sample size of being elite. Let other players draft these guys at their ceilings, I’ll take Melvin Gordon at his floor.
With an upgraded offensive line and a team looking to replace Hunter Henry’s red zone targets, Gordon can only go up from here. He’s an excellent pick in the late first round, and an absolute steal in the second.
Next: Ten Commandments Of Fantasy Champs
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