I drafted Jonathon Brooks as my RB1. I actually did that quite a bit this summer when I felt more optimistic that Brooks might be able to contribute at some point in the first four weeks. We now know that the RB1 from the 2024 NFL Draft class will miss at least the first four weeks, and there may be a "ramp-up period" that follows his reinstatement from the PUP. Brooks will be a full 11 months past his surgery date after missing the first four weeks.
I definitely selected Brooks as the first running back on a handful of teams that I drafted early. Anyone who has been following me on Twitter or SportsLine or in the FFT Newsletter might find themselves in a similar situation. If I haven't been able to grab an RB with the upside to post 300+ PPR points early in the draft, I'm usually waiting for the position in 2024. Beyond the obvious big three, the running backs that I classify as offering that type of upside are De'Von Achane (I also created an article detailing a draft where I took Achane as my RB1), Jahmyr Gibbs, Kyren Williams, and Josh Jacobs.
Running backs went pretty early in this draft. Dan Schneier sniped me on Gibbs at the beginning of Round 2, and so I ended up making this a zero-RB team with Brooks as RB1. I wanted to provide an example of how to build around the stud rookie.
This is our 12-part, PPR pick-by-pick series where me, Dan, Adam Aizer, Thomas Shafer, Jamey Eisenberg, Heath Cummings, and Dave Richard all took part in a six-person mock draft. We each built two of the 12 teams in this 14-round draft to show you a different strategy from each spot.
As a reference point, all touchdowns in this league 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 FLEX (RB/WR/TE).
Here's my team from No. 9 overall:
1.09 - Garrett Wilson, WR, Jets
2.04 - Deebo Samuel, WR, 49ers
3.09 - Trey McBride, TE, Cardinals
4.04 - DK Metcalf, WR, Seattle Seahawks
5.09 - Anthony Richardson, QB, Colts
6.04 - Jonathon Brooks, RB, Panthers
7.09 - Raheem Mostert, RB, Dolphins
8.04 - Brian Thomas Jr., WR, Jaguars
9.09 - Ray Davis, RB, Bills
10.04 - Jaylen Wright, RB, Dolphins
11.09 - Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Cowboys
12.04 - Kimani Vidal, RB, Chargers
13.09 - Jalen McMillan, WR, Buccaneers
14.04 - Sione Vaki, RB, Lions
I ended the draft with six rookies and one Ezekiel Elliott sandwiched in between them. If Zeke is a nonfactor in 2024, a lot of my Brooks teams are probably in for a slow start. I recognize that I'm making a hilariously bad first impression to anyone encountering me for the first time -- hello, I'm Jacob, I'm insane and willingly decide to place the fate of my Fantasy football season in the hands of Ezekiel Elliott.
It's good to consider other perspectives! You may totally be justified in considering me a fool after reading this draft recap, but at least you will now have an idea of what it's like to have stepped into the sick mind of a zero-RB drafter for a moment. I bet that the end of my draft stands out as unusual, too. Maybe there's something new to learn, here!
Sione Vaki, Jaylen Wright, and Kimani Vidal all have multiple paths to playing time. That's my way of saying that they are third-string running backs. It's another perspective to think about, though! If David Montgomery misses time, Vaki likely will fill a relevant role in an offense that prints Fantasy points. If Jahmyr Gibbs misses time, Vaki would probably contribute on passing downs. The Lions are in win-now mode and used a Round 4 pick on Vaki!
I was impressed with each of these rooks this preseason. If you want to see for yourself, I provided preseason cut-ups for over 40 rookies on Twitter.
Sione Vaki footage
Jaylen Wright footage
Kimani Vidal footage
You also can search my Twitter name and any player's name with the 'latest' designation and you'll find plenty of content if you want to learn more about the rookies that I took late in this draft. Just like this:
For the purpose of analyzing this draft, I want to focus on Brooks and the rest of my early picks. Just know that there's tons of content for you to dig into on Twitter.
The first four picks that I made in this draft empowered me to feel prepared to take some risks in the middle rounds. Three rounds in, I already had all three WR spots filled. In a full PPR format, my start was Garrett Wilson, Deebo Samuel, Trey McBride, and DK Metcalf. That group provides a super solid floor projection in addition to understated upside. Wilson could lead the NFL in receiving touchdowns in 2024. If Brandon Aiyuk is traded, starts slow, or misses any time, Samuel has the upside to finish as a top-five Fantasy WR in San Fran's high-powered offense. We've seen that from him before. And, as a reminder, Deebo did outscore Aiyuk straight-up when both players were on the field in 2023.
I'd be really surprised if any of Wilson, Samuel, McBride, or Metcalf failed for non-injury-related reasons. I felt really secure with those four, and I wanted to swing for some league-winning upside to complement that massive gob of PPR points that I had secured.
I almost landed Lamar Jackson. Jamey took him one pick ahead of me. Drafting with the legends from CBS Sports is no joke, I was getting sniped left and right in this draft! That's fine. Anthony Richardson is an awesome consolation prize. If you want to watch Richardson's 21 preseason dropbacks, you can do that right here. It's not perfect! Growing pains are likely going to be a part of the ride with the inexperienced young QB at the wheel for the Colts. Jelani Woods and Josh Downs were expected to play a large role for this offense, and both missed the preseason (Woods is out for the season). Richardson and new starting tight end Kylen Granson were clearly not on the same page on the pick-six that was thrown.
There were several plays that wow-ed me, though. It's only a 21-play cut-up! There's so much good to be excited about with Richardson and this young Shane Steichen-led offense.
In Round 6, I reached for Brooks. This was before the news that he was officially hitting the PUP, so the reach looks even worse after the fact. If drafting a real team, I would have waited. I have plenty of Brooks and recognize that he can be found later in drafts. I wanted to make sure that I got him on this team, though. I wanted to show a team where he was drafted this early. Because I think you can still make it work, even with a sixth-round pick sunk into a player who will miss the first four games and may not contribute until midway through the season.
Why am I so enamored with Brooks? This is a full-PPR league, and the fit with offensive coordinator Dave Canales is a dreamy one for the young dual-threat RB. Brooks was very close to matching Bijan Robinson's efficiency metrics step for step as his replacement at Texas in 2023. The improvements made to Bryce Young's supporting cast seem to have positioned the 2023 number one overall pick for a big-time bounce-back in Year 2 (you can watch every dropback from his one preseason appearance), and if things are clicking when Brooks returns, we could see some massive weekly PPR outputs from the rookie RB during the most important part of the Fantasy football season.
Raheem Mostert and Ezekiel Elliott will be tasked with keeping this team on track until that point. And if Mostert misses time, I have insurance.
It's about dang time that Brian Thomas Jr. entered the chat. Dave Richard posed the following question on Twitter, and I was torn between Jacksonville's Round 1 rookie WR and one other player. I went with the second player, because he is a Round 3 rookie and the one who has surprised me the most. Also, I have been gushing about BTJ seemingly every day. I can't help myself. He's so exciting.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie Jalen McMillan has stayed open 24/7 this preseason. He was my Round 13 pick in this draft. Between McMillan and Thomas Jr., I have access to flex upside in this PPR format. It may be a slow start for both, but I do see realistic early-season upside. Both will be on the field immediately. Thomas Jr. draws a projected shootout in Week 1. He'll face a Miami Dolphins defense that lost a ton of talent in free agency this offseason. You can watch BTJ's preseason routes, if you want to see the otherworldly movement ability that I can't stop raving about. Both he and McMillan (check out his preseason opportunities here) are so smooth out there, McMillan with decent size at six-foot-one and Thomas with unfair size and speed at six-foot-three and a 4.33-second 40 at the NFL Combine. They're both winning their routes so often! I think that Thomas Jr. is a totally viable flex play in a matchup against Miami that Vegas expects to be one of the highest-scoring Week 1 contests.
McMillan has a winnable Week 1 matchup, and if he plays well, I would consider starting him in a potential Week 2 shootout against the Detroit Lions. I just need this team to not start 0-4. If I can sneak out of the first month with a 1-3 or 2-2 record without having to sell off any young talent, this team has the potential to turn into a wrecking machine as the year progresses.
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Is this how I'd recommend that you draft out of the nine spot? No, not with the news that Brooks is on the PUP. I would have grabbed James Conner in Round 6 if this was a real draft. Then, instead of Mostert, I would have selected Diontae Johnson in Round 7. That's an incredible start from a projections standpoint. A team with Johnson as the WR4 in a PPR start-three receivers format could score so many points. In Round 8, I would have grabbed either Mostert or Brooks. If both were gone, I would have taken Tyjae Spears. He looks like a potential PPR monster. Brooks probably is going to be there in Round 8 of most drafts. I'm fine grabbing him there as an RB2, even with the news that he's going to start on the PUP. If you want to roll the dice on landing him in Round 9, you might be able to get him that late.
McMillan is the actual pick that belongs in this space, but I already highlighted him. So, let's talk about my favorite sleeper at any position, Buffalo Bills rookie Round 4 RB Ray Davis. The Bills have tried to find a cheap short-yardage back to complement James Cook -- none of Damien Harris, Latavius Murray, or Leonard Fournette were the answer surprisingly -- Ray Davis is the answer. Buffalo could have drafted weight-room warriors Braelon Allen or Audric Estime to fill the role, but instead, Davis was the choice. Why? He's got the juice! Davis can contribute as a pass-blocker or pass-catcher, he's a bowling ball in short-yardage situations, and he has the vision to cut early-down runs outside and create explosive plays with second-level tackle avoidance and yardage after contact creation ability. He's a stud. Davis may play a meaningful role on short-yardage opportunities right away, and if James Cook misses time, the rookie could fill an every-down role in one of the NFL's best offenses.
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This one's easy. Brooks wouldn't have been the pick if not for the exercise of building a team with him. And if we had done the draft after the PUP news, it's possible that I could have waited until Round 7 or 8 to enact the same exercise.
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I dug into Rico Dowdle's collegiate career (link below), and to say that I was underwhelmed is truly to put it kindly. Many responded to that information with the notion that all that mattered was if Dowdle was better than Ezekiel Elliott. It seemed to be a foregone conclusion in many minds that Dowdle is better than Elliott. Maybe! He's an undrafted player who has yet to reach 100+ combined rush attempts across four pro seasons. Zeke isn't as old as you might think (29 years) and an NFL team decided to give him the ball 235 times last season. We might be overthinking this. Zeke might just be close to an every-down player next to Dak Prescott in this backfield. If he is, this team can make it even with all of the inexperienced players that I surrounded Zeke with on my roster. If Dallas splits the backfield, maybe Dowdle runs away with the job and I'll have to trade some of my WR talent or downgrade at TE to make the RB position work.
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