Rookie Undervalued/Overvalued
One of the great things about fantasy football is the wide range of opinions on rookies coming into the NFL. This week I join fellow RSO writers Nick Andrews and Robert Cowper analyzing a few rookies my compatriots feel the fantasy community is too high on or is not getting the attention they deserve. Be sure to read the other great takes from Nick and Robert on Reality Sports Online.
Undervalued
Nick – Jamaal Williams, RB, Green Bay Packers
During the draft process, I read a one-on-one interview where Williams explained his 1-year leave from BYU as well as his misdemeanor charge. Needless to say, his actions were something that we all did as 19 and 20-year-old males and should not be held against his skillset. In fact, I think they refocused his passion for playing football. He’s ranked as the 29th rookie on DLF, behind players such as Wayne Gallman and D’Onta Foreman. He fits what Eddie Lacy was during his first two seasons as a physical runner that can dominate inside the red zone. Unlike Lacy, he has the ability to play on passing downs depending on what role Ty Montgomery has as the main passing down back. In a format like RSO where rookies are asked to produce more quickly because of the contract limitations, I have Williams ranked as my 11th player (pushing TEs further down). You can likely get him at a discount and wait until the middle of the second and early third. Don’t be afraid to pull the trigger at the start of the second though as I am predicting Williams to be this season’s Jordan Howard of value.
My take: Solid producer at BYU with average NFL size, bottom tier athleticism, and little passing game production. Williams displays more power than his size and athleticism dictates and very good running instincts on interior lanes. Opportunity exists with a wide open depth chart containing only former wide receiver Ty Mongomery and two other running backs drafted later than Williams. The Packer situation premium is overstated a little at this point though. Green Bay moved to a more Rodgers-centric passing attack trending downward in rushing attempts the last four seasons finishing 29th last year. Williams is going off the board as the 21st player in June MFL rookie drafts. This is about right for a solid but limited player with a good opportunity to assume a two down role on a high powered Green Bay offense.
Robert – Wayne Gallman, RB, New York Giants
My choice for the player currently being underrated and under drafted is RB Wayne Gallman from the Giants. I became a fan of Gallman’s during Clemson’s championship season last year. In my National Championship preview, I said that Gallman was a “slasher of a running back who I feel would be at home in a zone-running scheme.” Unfortunately, Gallman didn’t luck out with his destination’s scheme but I still think he can be successful. Gallman has good size at 6’0″ 215lb but had a disappointing combine which dragged down his real life and fantasy value despite great college production. He was essentially a three year starter and put up just under 4,000 total yards on 741 touches. He also stayed healthy and out of the headlines over those three years which is more than you can say about many of the more talented RBs ahead of him. DLF has Gallman ranked as the 22nd best rookie which is actually higher than the 25th that I ranked him. The surprising part though is his ADP: I had him at 25 in my mock draft but DLF’s ADP has him at 36.0. The hate has officially gone too far. That ADP has him behind question marks like Ishmael Zamora, Kenny Golloday and Aaron Jones. Gallman will start the season on the depth chart behind sophomore Paul Perkins. Perkins won the job late in the season, ending with four straight double digit carry games. His production in those games was disappointing though: 62 carries, 271 yards, 2 receptions, 9 yards, 0 TDs. That’s why the Giants invested a fourth round pick in Gallman, which is actually a higher pick than the fifth rounder used on Perkins in 2016. To my eye, Perkins is JAG (just a guy) and won’t last as the unquestioned starter in New York. I’ll be investing in Gallman with the hope that he realizes some value in 2017 and heads into 2018 atop the depth chart.
My take: Gallman brings virtually identical size and athleticism to Williams but plays with less power and shows more passing game skills. The Giants are another team with little on the depth chart which is currently fronted by Paul Perkins who did very little to impress last season with his opportunities. New York provides one of the least friendly running back environments in the league with a bad offensive line and an offense which relies heavily on the short passing game with heavy 3 wide receiver sets resulting in small rushing attempt totals under head coach Ben McAdoo. The Giants have also routinely used a deep committee under McAdoo which limits the carries for all running backs. Overall, this is a low-upside player in a low-upside committee situation. Gallman costs very little at his rookie ADP of 33 and makes for one of the cheaper rookie running gambles with a true opportunity for carries early.
Overvalued
Nick – Marlon Mack, RB, Indianapolis
I understand the excitement of having a young running back in an offense that has Andrew Luck and has been the hot topic landing spot for any rookie RB the last couple drafts. There are two main problems that I have with acquiring Mack in his current state: lack of draft value and scheme misalignment. Starting with the draft value, before being selected by Indianapolis Mack was ranked in with an ADP in the 30’s. Since then his value has risen to 20th on DLF but has been drafted between 17th and 13th in three of my RSO leagues. Every draft there are players that get pulled up after being selected based on land spot and lose any sleeper value that they had as a late 2nd or 3rd round pick because their acquiring price becomes a high 2nd or maybe even a 1st round pick. I would rather take two or three shots at drafting a valuable RB (such as Jamaal Williams) later in the draft than climbing the board to acquire what was a nice 3rd round pick in March.
The second reason I am avoiding Mack in drafts is that his skillset does not align with how the Colts offense is built right now. Mack was a player that could make big plays when he was able to move downhill and use his elusiveness to make defenders miss. Despite his elusiveness, however, he doesn’t break tackles and only gains minimal yards after contact. This is fine if you play behind Dallas’ or Oakland’s offensive lines that give 3-5 yards before contact. Instead, Mack is playing behind the Colts’ line which is one of the worst in the league and therefore will not be offering consistent holes for Mack to find. Mack also has an awful 54:1 fumble ratio in college that could limit his number of touches and plays until he can be more reliable. Overall I think Mack would be a good pick ONLY IF you can acquire him at the start of the 3rd round, which at this point is highly unlikely. He will become easy enough to acquire 12 months from now when owners are frustrated that he wasn’t able to usurp the ageless wonder, Frank Gore. For these reasons, I’m out.
My take: Mack displays breakaway speed and plus athleticism at a similar size to Williams and Gallman. Unfortunately, he also possesses the worst football skills among the group. He routinely misses rushing lanes forcing runs to the outside. Mack’s reliance on speed worked against low-level college competition but will find far less success in the NFL against much better athletes. Mack was not asked to do much pass protection in college. His small hands combined with atrocious ball security led to an abysmal fumble rate in college. Mack possesses the widest range of outcomes of any player on this list. His athletic ability could translate to a dangerous weapon for Indianapolis but his lack of ball security and pass protection skills are the type of deficiencies which lead running backs to short careers in the NFL if they are not corrected early. An ADP of 19 is on the high side for a player with so many question marks.
Robert – Samaje Perine, RB, Washington Redskins
My choice for the player currently being overrated and over drafted is RB Samaje Perine from Washington. According to DynastyLeagueFootball.com, Perine is the 14th ranked rookie and his rookie ADP is 10.50, meaning he’s a first round pick in most leagues. Personally, I ranked Perine as my 22nd rookie (10th RB); I did bend to consensus a bit and put him at 15 in my most recent mock draft. The situation in the Redskins backfield gives me pause. Last offseason, there were times when we thought Matt Jones, Keith Marshall and Rob Kelley each would start the year as the RB1. Matt Jones’ struggles with ball security and injuries are well documented but he does have the most draft capital invested in him of all these guys. A season ending injury was the death blow for 2016 combine workout warrior Keith Marshall but maybe he catches some attention again this training camp, or maybe he gets cut in July, who knows. “Fat Rob” is probably the least skilled of the bunch but his best ability might be his availability. None of this is even considering established passing down back Chris Thompson who will likely see about 100 touches of his own. Given the fact that all of the aforementioned backs are, currently, still on the roster, it makes me hesitant to draft Perine. I believe Perine is the most talented of the four every-down backs, but at this point they all have some reasonable chance to emerge as the starter so I’m going to stay away.
My take: It is not surprising that my colleagues selected all running backs for their choices in a deep class at the position. Each back chosen in this article was taken in the fourth round of the NFL draft but their rookie ADP varies from 33 for Gallman all the way up to 8 for Perine. Perine is easily my favorite back of the group. He brings true NFL power back size and incredible strength with nice agility for his mass. Where pass protection is a weakness for most rookies that limits playing time, Perine’s blocking is a strength. I have little doubt the former Sooner should receive 15 carries a game by the end of year given the Washington depth chart. As stated by Robert, though, the coaching staff may feel the need to mix in a variety of players. The problem for Perine is his 8th overall rookie ADP. This is an extremely hefty price point for a player who will never be even moderately involved in the passing game and will be heavily touchdown dependent in fantasy.
Bio: Bernard Faller has degrees in engineering and economics. He currently lives in Las Vegas and enjoys athletics, poker, and fantasy football in his free time. Send your questions and comments (both good and bad) on Twitter @BernardFaller1.
