The King's Fantasy Football Keeper Korner: Reader Q & A

In this installment of the King’s Keeper Korner, we give you the personal attention your fantasy team requires, with direct questions and comprehensive answers. You can always ask any keeper and dynasty questions you want on social media, @scotteTheKing.

The answers here do not just apply to the people asking them, though. The insights shared are widely applicable to many fantasy players and can be helpful in making decisions even if your roster composition is very different. You will get a feel for various strategies and player values in this space.

This week’s edition is dedicated to our friends in Major League Baseball, who enjoy fantasy football just as much as the rest of us. Those who work in MLB circles spend much of their recreational time preparing for fantasy football drafts and making keeper decisions at this time of year, too. Three of our questions come from those associated with MLB as Opening Week is here.

Andrews is Essential

Mike Vassallo, Director of Media Relations, Milwaukee Brewers: I am definitely going to keep Nick Chubb in the sixth round. I am leaning towards Mark Andrews in the eighth, but I am also considering Alexander Mattison in the 10^th. I have read many good things about him and he looked very promising when he did play last year. You never know with Dalvin Cook’s health, so I have to consider Mattison, who could be a fantasy star if Cook misses more time. I also have Darwin Thompson in the 16^th round.

Engel: Chubb is a terrific value in the sixth round. While some fantasy players do get concerned about Kareem Hunt eating into his workload, Chubb still finished second in the NFL in rushing last year and had four 100-yard games when Hunt came back. Hunt is also on a one-year contract and could be on another team in 2021, so the long term looks good in that regard for Chubb. It’s hard to pass on Andrews when you consider he went over 850 yards with 10 TD last season and is the third-best TE at the thinnest position in fantasy football.

Mattison did average 5.4 yards per carry last season and ran for 19-plus yards in five games. He may be the best pure backup RB in the NFL. But you cannot make a keeper decision based on “what if” Mattison gets to start. Andrews is in top-three territory at a very shaky position and he is another great value keeper for you. Thompson is not a consideration, as he will now be third on the Kansas City RB depth chart. If any fantasy player has Andrews with a fourth-round or later penalty, he must get prime consideration and he is easily the answer here.

Going Deep

Rusty Ryal, former MLB utility infielder for the Arizona Diamondbacks and 2009 Triple-A All-Star: We cannot keep a previous first-round pick, but I can keep Joe Mixon in the second round and we lose a pick one round higher than where the player was drafted. I can also keep Leonard Fournette in the second, Tyler Lockett in the third, Tyler Boyd in the fourth, Christian Kirk in the fifth, Will Fuller in the sixth, T.J. Hockenson in the 10th or DK Metcalf in the 12^th. I have the sixth pick in the first round, 0.5 PPR.

Rusty Ryal hits a bomb ... and then goes into the clubhouse to make a keeper decision. 

Engel: Mixon does make sense in the first round, and he is worthy of a No. 6 overall selection and a first-round sacrifice for the pick. You figure that Christian McCaffrey, Saquon Barkley,  and Alvin Kamara will surely be gone. Ezekiel Elliott will likely be unavailable, but it is not impossible for him to drop to No. 6. You will likely be looking at Michael Thomas, Derrick Henry, and Mixon among my top-seven overall players. I would prefer Henry slightly over Mixon, but it’s very hard to pass on Thomas even in a half-PPR. I would say you should not keep Mixon because you will likely have a choice between Thomas, Henry, and Mixon at your first-round slot. You can go with Thomas or Henry if they fall, and those are my preferences. The worst-case scenario could be to retain Mixon, but you should have a choice of three players rather than be tied to the pick before the draft.

You can then keep Metcalf as a no-brainer and have other options for a second keeper. Lockett would be my first choice outright but you don’t want to have two starting WRs from the same team. Kirk is tempting as a future fantasy WR3 and Boyd could be a WR3 for you this year. Fuller would be a consideration if he could stay healthy. Fournette is an underrated high-end RB2 but you can throw him back into the player pool and maybe land him later than the second round. Hockenson should start to show some signs of progress this year, and by 2021 he could be a quality fantasy TE1. Considering his potential and the thin nature of the position, I would keep Hockenson along with Metcalf. The Detroit TE comes at a real nice price tag. Good players at the position can be very valuable in keeper leagues.

Hang onto Julio

Rich Coutinho, ESPN New York 98.7 Mets beat reporter: I will certainly keep the NFL MVP, Patrick Mahomes. Julio Jones is likely my second keeper, but RBs are important and I have to consider Damien Williams and Marlon Mack. I will likely be drafting in the middle of the first round, too.

Engel: It makes sense to question keeping Jones at age 31, because you are looking to the future and the second keeper slot is a very valuable one. But a study by FantasyPros showed that most WRs tend to truly decline at age 32. At age 31, 7.1% of all WRs finished in the top-five over the past 13 years, and the number was actually lower at age 28. A total of 16.7% among 31-year old WRs finished in the top 12, compared to 15.9 and 16.0 at ages 27 and 28, respectively. So if you want to win this year, keep Jones again, as he finished second in the NFL in receiving yards last year and there were no apparent signs of an impending drop-off.

Williams may be the starter in Kansas City to open the season, but Clyde Edwards-Helaire was drafted to take over as the No. 1 RB and it’s just a matter of time before that happens. Williams is a postseason hero but has never proven himself as a lead RB over a full season. Marlon Mack is also going to eventually lose his job to rookie Jonathan Taylor. Both Williams and Mack could be on different teams next season as they are in the final years of their contracts and it is apparent they will be exiled in favor of two top rookies. Keep Jones and use your first-round pick on an RB for sure.

WR decline chart from fantasypros.com. View the full in-depth breakdown from Mike Tagliere here. 

Musing on Mostert

@TimLewis58 on Twitter: In a 12-team PPR keeper league I can retain two from Tyler Boyd, Michael Gallup, Raheem Mostert and Robert Woods. Who gets the spots?

Engel: I will eliminate Gallup from the mix right away. Fantasy players should not use a keeper slot on him. I do not want to be disrespectful to a 1,000-yard receiver, but CeeDee Lamb is going to quickly surpass Gallup on the Dallas depth chart. We will see Gallup become a luxury as a third WR for the Cowboys while his fantasy totals progressively fall off. I believe keeping Mostert would be a gutsy pick that can pay off handsomely. I think he is explosive, can score from anywhere on the field, and delivered a monster performance in the NFC Championship Game last season, which showed us a lot about him on one of the biggest stages. He is hungry and eager to prove he deserves a raise.

There is a lot of upside with Mostert, so keep him. Boyd and Woods are very similar in terms of production and it is a very close call, but Woods has been a near-lock for around 90 catches and 1,100-plus yards. Boyd is not far off at all, but you should get a little bit better of a quality floor with Woods and his QB is more proven. Keep Mostert and Woods.

Singling Out a Keeper

@djv128 on Twitter: Should I keep Devin Singletary for a 10th-round pick or Kyler Murray for a ninth-round pick? I am worried about Singletary, but I do see value keeping him at that cost. But not sure if it is better than keeping Murray.

Engel: Singletary is a viable keeper for that round penalty. The drafting of Zack Moss certainly poked a hole in Singletary’s appeal, yet he should still be useful as a flex option. You should see some improved numbers from his rookie season and he will be quite busy as a versatile RB. Over time, he should settle in as a PPR RB3 with some upside. He figures to be a good complementary piece for your other top players.

Murray, however, rushed for 544 yards as a rookie and no other fantasy QB other than Lamar Jackson has as much rushing promise. That makes him unique at the position and he is being considered a Top 5 fantasy QB already in his second year. QB is obviously deeper than RB, but Murray is a distinctive difference-maker who could eventually settle in as an elite player at his position, possibly top-three. He is a great value keeper and will be highly sought after very soon in his career. Murray is your pick.

A Saintly Roster

@evander420 on Twitter: I have a lot of Saints on my half-PPR dynasty team. What is my best route going forward with a roster that has Drew Brees, Michael Thomas, Alvin Kamara and Latavius Murray? I also have Josh Allen, Aaron Jones, Chris Godwin, DK Metcalf, Tyler Boyd, Tyler Higbee and David Johnson.

Engel: It is always advisable to not roster or start too many players from the same team. If the Saints have a low-scoring game, that could doom your fantasy outlook for the week. If the RBs dominate the offensive production that could impact the output of the pass-catchers. Having Kamara and Murray is acceptable, because the latter will obviously start if Kamara suffers an injury, and you should always have the top NFL backup for your RB starters. Your starting lineup is loaded and having Thomas gives you the best WR in the game. It’s hard to recommend moving him or Kamara, because they are both top-five players overall.

Unless you can get a superstar back in return with another quality player for either one you should simply keep them and overlook the fact that they both are on the same NFL team. Since you have Allen, though, you can be flexible at QB. You can either stream your QBs based on matchups or trade Brees to another team that has a need at the position if you can. Don’t break up your RB/WR combo unless the trade return is incredibly bountiful.

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