We held a 10-team, 0.5-PPR mock draft on Monday with our CBS Sports staff, and for the first time this season, I started my team going RB-RB. It felt weird. But it also might work out great.
Picking at No. 6 overall, I drafted Bijan Robinson in Round 1 and Saquon Barkley in Round 2. Now, based on the CBS Sports Average Draft Position data, it might not be realistic to select those two running backs (Robinson's ADP is No. 4 overall and Barkley is at No. 9), but not every draft follows ADP.
Robinson is my No. 3 running back behind Christian McCaffrey and Breece Hall, and I have Barkley at No. 5 behind those three and Jahmyr Gibbs. I'm more inclined to use this strategy in 0.5- and non-PPR leagues, especially in a 10-team format.
And it worked out great since my next three picks were Drake London, Brandon Aiyuk and Malik Nabers. We start three receivers in this league, and that's a standout trio to pair with Robinson and Barkley.
Dalton Kincaid was an easy choice in Round 6, and I liked the value of Rashee Rice as my fourth receiver in Round 7. From there, I took a best-player available approach with Joe Burrow in Round 8, Tyjae Spears in Round 9 and Jonathan Brooks in Round 10.
You want difference makers in a 10-team league, and Burrow has top-five upside at quarterback. Spears could be the No. 1 running back in Tennessee, and I have enough depth to wait for Brooks (knee), who could be out for the first month of the season. When he returns, he has the potential to be a top-20 running back in his rookie campaign.
The rest of my roster was filled with players who could be lottery tickets during the season, including Blake Corum and Jaleel McLaughlin at running back and Rome Odunze, Brian Thomas Jr. and Dontayvion Wicks at receiver. I'm very excited about this team.
I likely won't be drafting RB-RB often this year, especially in PPR and 12-team leagues or larger. But here, in this 10-team league, it worked out well, and Robinson and Barkley could lead this squad to a championship.
In 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 one point for every reception. We feature a starting lineup of QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, TE and 2 FLEX (RB/WR/TE) with six reserves for a 15-round draft.
Our draft order is as follows:
1. Adam Aizer, FFT Podcast Host
2. Meron Berkson, CBS Sports HQ Producer
3. Brandon Howard, Fantasy Editor
4. Scott Engel, SportsLine Fantasy Analyst
5. Heath Cummings, Senior Fantasy Writer
6. Jamey Eisenberg, Senior Fantasy Writer
7. Jake Grogins, CBS Sports HQ Production Staff
8. Daniel Schneier, Senior Fantasy Editor
9. Zach Brook, FFT Social Media Coordinator
10. Robert Thomas, FFT Facebook Moderator