Handcuff or Not to Handcuff: Flex Rankings Week 8
Like a tight rope, working the waiver wire can be a death.. Or team defying feat for your fantasy football team. Majority of fantasy leagues are either 10 or 12 teams. This means majority of rosters are either 15 or 16 players. With a little college level math we figure (again, a majority) leagues are using between 150 and 192 players from the available pool.
Using Yahoo as a guide and measuring total fantasy points scored the #200 ranked player was Jordan Todman with 60.20 points. To add a little perspective, the 150th ranked player was Donnie Avery with only 15 more points scored. Now, Todman was a back up running back in Seattle and Avery was the #3 wide receiver in Kansas City. These where the guys who last season were barely on fantasy teams.
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What does all this mean?
I’ll tell you if you stop getting so fidgety.
It means there is a really good chance you have some less than stellar players on your team’s bench. Players you will more than likely never use in your starting lineup, but they rank high enough for you to notice them when you scour over your league’s list of free agents. I am here to ask you why? If you, let’s say own DeMarco Murray and Le’Veon Bell as your first two running backs why would you also own Bobby Rainey and Terrance West?
Forget your bye weeks for a second. Ask yourself this question; “What would happen if one or both of my starting backs got injured?”
If we use the formally mentioned players would have to hope and pray that you were the first one to get their backup or you have the number one waiver priority. Chances are you didn’t and you don’t.
I refer you to a recent article I wrote. In it I describe how one Sunday I was distracted away from football and lost one of my starting running backs. I lost my chance to obtain his back up and I lost the championship when I clearly had one of the best two teams in the league.Why didn’t I already own that players back up? Why didn’t I have the handcuff to ensure my success throughout the entire season.
This past week a lot of you lost either C.J. Spiller or Fred Jackson. I seriously doubt any of you owned Anthony Dixon or Bryce Brown before this past Sunday’s game. If you did then great, you get it. You can stop reading now. For the rest of you, take a long hard look at your roster. Do you own Marshawn Lych or Eddie Lacy? Why don’t you own Robert Turbin or James Starks? If Lynch or Lacy are lost for any significant amount of time Turbin and Starks would immediately become top 20 backs in fantasy.
Same goes for Murray and Bell. You should own Joseph Randle or LaGarrette Blount. I can list all the handcuffs here for you but let’s be real. That would be a long list and we still have flex rankings to get to. Instead, do yourself the favor. Take a look at your starters. Then go to ESPN or NFL or whatever site you like and look at the depth charts. Just your guys. If you own Matt Forte the you should probably own Ka’Deem Carey. Did you draft Arian Foster? Then go pick up Alfred Blue.
In the event you have a stacked bench and don’t want to drop anyone for your handcuff then trade. Yes, trade. Give away two pretty good guys, get a really good guy and then go pick up his handcuff.
Here are your flex rankings for week 8. Don’t be afraid.. Leave a comment below. You can gripe about the rankings or ask me handcuff questions. I’ll answer them all.. Maybe.[table id=26 /]