Players I Want in Every Fantasy Football Draft: Strike Gold in Round Five

Players I Want in Every Fantasy Football Draft: Round Five

We’ll continue the exploration into the players you want in every round, but let’s establish something first. Not every strategy follows the same pattern and your league will throw you curveballs. That’s not just an assumption, it’s a fact. Everyone plays differently and that’s what makes it so much fun. As previously established, one of the most important keys to fantasy success is knowing your league. Always be ready to pivot if things get a little wild and never ignore great value.

Let’s move on to the fifth round. We’ve selected three running backs and solidified Doug Baldwin as our WR1. It’s time to look at another reliable PPR option with some upside who’s being completely ignored.

Current Roster (Click on a player’s name to see why he was selected):

Fifth Round Selection: Golden Tate – WR, Detroit Lions

Golden Tate will never be a sexy pick. He will never be the reason you win a league or someone to brag about. You know what else he won’t be? Someone to worry about. Or someone unreliable. Or someone you should let fall past the fifth round. You will never go into work on a Tuesday morning telling your coworkers “yeah, Tate cost me the week”. And for that reason alone, he’s a phenomenal pick at this spot.

Is Tate Worth His Draft Price?

Tate currently carries an ADP of WR24. If you’re able to show me twenty-three receivers in the NFL that will produce at a higher level than Tate in fantasy leagues, feel free to send the list to @RobCPRffb on Twitter and tell me I’m wrong.

Since 2014 Tate has finished as the WR11, WR23, WR17 and most recently, the WR12. He’s as consistent as they come and hasn’t finished below his current ADP since Calvin Johnson was in Detroit. As a matter of fact, in the last two seasons alone he’s ascended in every relevant category except one…. his draft price:

I would normally address the opposing side and try to understand his potential risk … but I can’t think of one. For the sake of being thorough, I’ll do my best to lay out the two biggest arguments that someone could make against the golden boy in Honolulu blue. Cause we all know, Taters gonna Tate.

Rumor #1: Marvin Jones and Kenny Golladay are Trending Up, Devaluing Tate

The first part of this is true to an extent. The hype surrounding second year wideout Kenny Golladay is very real, to the point where it’s excessive. He was barely involved last year but a couple of flashy go routes have a lot of people excited. Tate and Jones are two borderline elite receivers in a great offense and they aren’t going anywhere. Golladay may have an increased role, but his ceiling is very low.

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The most important factor that leads to deflecting this viewpoint is simple. Golden Tate plays the slot. Marvin Jones and Kenny Golladay don’t. Neither pass catcher will cut into Tate’s target distribution at all and he makes a living after the catch. That skill is severely undervalued in today’s NFL, and Tate does it better than anyone.

Rumor #2: He Lacks Upside

When evaluating upside it’s important to ask: What’s changed with this players situation? In this case, the only thing that has changed is the 86 vacated targets that were given to Eric Ebron last season. There’s a good chance those get distributed evenly in Detroit, but Tate is bound to see a few more by default. It’s easy to get lost in potential and ignore production. Don’t do it here. Tate may not have league winning upside but he gives you a WR1 floor week in and week out, at a WR3 cost.

Next: The Ten Commandments of Fantasy Champs

Stay tuned to Fantasy CPR for all the latest Fantasy Football news and analysis as we get you set for your Fantasy Football draft and the start of the NFL season.