Ian Allan answers your fantasy football questions. In this edition. Superflex quarterbacks. Why should anyone believe Patrick Mahomes will rebound? Later-round receivers. Can Jayden Daniels run his way to stardom? And more.

Question 1

With SuperFlex leagues becoming more popular, there's been a lot of debate about them recently. Proponents (like myself) say they fix the problem of QBs, the most important position on the field, being an afterthought on draft day. Others argue that they go too far the other way, leading to bidding wars over bottom-10 guys. What's your preference, and is there any sort of middle-ground option that you've heard of?

Jacob Wilson (Heartland, TX)

Quarterback is the most important position in the real game. It’s not even close. There are 18 players with contracts averaging more than $35 million, and they’re all quarterbacks. So it feels right to me that they should also be the dominant figures in the fantasy game. The best way to do this, I think, is the Superflex. (Superflex is better than simply starting two quarterbacks, since it allows teams in a pinch to plug some other position into that spot.) I will concede, on the other hand, that I don’t have much personal experience playing in this format. I speak only in theory. You play in a game a few times, and perhaps some unanticipated consequences show up. In this type of format (with quarterbacks being upgraded) tight ends start to stand out as the anemic position. I’ve done a draft or two where tight ends get an extra half point per reception, and that seems like a nice adjustment.

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Question 2

I'm kind of curious about Patrick Mahomes being at the top of the QB rankings. I had him last season, and obviously it was a season of torture. I think that part of the reason that his stats were low was because the Chiefs actually had a nasty defense for a change, leading to the offense being content with settling for FGs. This season's Chiefs look fairly similar to last season's Chiefs, so wouldn't it be fair to assume that the offensive philosophy will be similar, as well?

Roland Deschain (IL)

Possibly. While I’ve got Mahomes as the top guy, I can’t say that I’d be excited about breaking the glass on the position. If I felt I could wait and round and get Joe Burrow, I’d do that. But all of the top quarterbacking prospects have troubling flaws. With Mahomes, you’re getting the best player in the game, and I think they’ve juiced up their receiving corps considerable. Rashee Rice has been around for a year now, and they’ve got a couple of speed guys who’ll be chipping in some plays (Worthy, Hollywood).

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Question 3

Long, long time subscriber. You helped me win again last year! I am likely going to be weak at starting WR's, so I would like to take a couple flyers later in the draft that could turn into top 15 WRs if things go right. Could you put any suggestions in order of preference?

Randy Newland (Sunrise, FL)

The biggest riser on my board on Monday was Tim Patrick. He’s a guy that I previously wasn’t even tracking. With him being an overpriced 30-year-old who’s missed the last two years with knee and Achilles injuries, I was operating under the assumption he wouldn’t make the team. But Patrick has been a first-unit receiver all along, starting both of the preseason games. He sure looked comfortable settling into the middle of the field last week, catching short balls. I think he’s going to be a starter, and I’m not sure he might not be about as good as Sutton. He’s not going to be a top-15 receiver, but I think he needs to be among the first 50 wide receivers drafted. I’m a Shakir guy; we’ve talked about him. And I will go with the Bad Ladd to lead the Chargers in catchers. But I don’t think they’ll still be about to be “late flyers”. How about Jordan Whittington? I’ve been impressed with his work for the Rams. If either Cooper Kupp or Puka Nacua got hurt, I could envision Whittington moving into one of those spots and doing a lot of the same things. And if we’re going down the injury path, perhaps Andrei Iosivas. Ja’Marr Chase or Tee Higgins is missing, and maybe you’ve got something.

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Question 4

I have the 4th pick in a 12 team PPR snake draft scheduled to tale place on September 1st. It's likely that the first 3 picks will be McCaffrey, Lamb and Hill. That leaves me to choose between Chase, Robinson and Hall. I had the 4th pick last year and chose Ekeler. They say you cannot win your league with your first-round pick, but you can lose it. My concern with Robinson and Hall is both the injury risk at the position and goal-line TD vulturing potentially from Braelon Allen and Allgeier. Am I over thinking this or is my reasoning sound?

Brian Boyd (Maple Grove, MN)

I’d be very comfortable with Robinson. The Falcons look like a team on the rise, and I think this new coaching staff will be feeding him the ball a lot more than the past group. He’s a run-catch guy.

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Question 5

I’m very intrigued by Jayden Daniels and some of these other rookie quarterbacks. Bo Nix and Caleb Williams have also looked good, and they can provide some rushing potential. I’m considering taking one of these guys and pairing them up with someone like Goff/Tua/Stafford. I am most intrigued by Jayden Daniels due to his rushing upside. I wanted to see what the numbers were for QB finishes for rookie quarterbacks.

Bill Copestick (Philadelphia, PA)

Typically, if a quarterback can run, he’ll have value. Fantasy scoring systems tend to be biased in favor of rushing production, with a 10-yard scramble worth twice as much as a 10-yard completion. Lamar Jackson averaged 51 rushing yards last year, and for fantasy purposes that’s the same as an extra 102 passing yards. Below see the top 30 rushing quarterbacks of the 32-team era. I’m using per-game stats on this one rather than season totals, putting the emphasis on what the guys are doing when they’re playing (rather than who happened to start the entire season). Of these quarterbacks, 70 percent finished with top-6 quarterbacking numbers (when compared to others who started at least half of that season). And 80 percent at least finished with top-10 numbers. I see five (out of 30) who ranked between 12th and 17th in per game production. Cam Newton (with that weird season in New England) bringing up the rear, at 22nd. There are four rookies on the list, and they’re tagged with black dots. Question, then, becomes whether you believe that Daniels and Caleb Williams will be viable runners. (And you can bring Anthony Richardson into this, if you wish). I think they will be. Both ran for 21 touchdowns in their final two years of college, and both have run for a touchdown in the preseason. Williams to me looks like the smarter scrambler of the two. I think he’ll be better at avoiding hits, and I think he’ll do a better job of keeping his eyes downfield, turning more scrambles into big completions. I think Daniels will be more apt to pull it down and run, perhaps making him a little more valuable for fantasy purposes (but more likely to get hurt).

In the chart below, quarterbacks are ordered by their average rushing production (using 6 for TDs and 1 for every 10 rushing yards).

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Question 6

Why are you guys so down on AJ Brown? Most people think the Eagles are going to rebound, and AJ Brown is one of the most talented WRs in the league. His ADP is around the 1st/2nd round turn, while you guys have him ranked #9 in WRs alone.

Tom Fini (Manhasset, NY)

In each of the last two years, Brown hasn’t even been the most productive wide receiver on his own team in the second half of the season. So while he’s had some big games, I don’t think he’s in the conversation with the top-5 guy. I’m not sure exactly what Philadelphia’s offense will be. They’ve got a new coordinator, and they haven’t played anybody in the preseason. In recent seasons, they haven’t used third and fourth receivers much at all. And they’ve underused Dallas Goedert. If those guys start catching more balls, it presumably will mean less involvement for Brown. And how is Jalen Hurts going to fit into this offense? If they’re asking him to more often stand in the pocket and work through progresses, it might go sideways. If you want to operate under the assumption that Philadelphia will be one of the top few teams in scoring, then have it. I’m not there yet.

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Question 7

Love your product. I'm in a 12-team PPR league where we get to keep one player from the year before. My best options this year aren't great: I can either keep Kamara with a 6th round pick or Anthony Richardson with a 10th. Initially, I was going to keep Kamara, but as I watch him to continue to drop precipitously in your rankings each week I'm thinking the upside with Richardson may be the way to go. What do you think?

Alex Konop (Northport, NY)

I’ve been scrambling on my projections with the Saints, with that offense looking like it’s going to be a lot different under Klint Kubiak. I think they’re going to run it more effectively and more often. I was very impressed by that 95-yard drive against the 49ers. With Kamara being the lead running back on a team that might be running the ball more effectively, that would seemingly be a good thing. But he’s 29. They’ll also be using other guys, I’m thinking, and Taysom Hill might lead them in rushing touchdowns. Seriously. For Alex Konop, in his PPR league, key is having Kamara continue to catch a steady stream of short dumpoff passes, with Derek Carr happy to stand back there, throwing checkdown balls. But if Kubiak’s taking this offense in a new direction, Kamara’s role in the passing game will be declining. I’ve lower on Anthony Richardson than most. He’s unproven, there may be durability issues, and there are a bunch of great players at the position. The idea of taking him before Joe Burrow, Jordan Love, C.J. Stroud or Lamar Jackson, to me, is crazy. But at the same time, there could be a bunch of weeks where Richardson goes in looking like a top-5 quarterback. If I were running your team, I would cash in that 10th-round pick for Richardson. In the draft, you’d have the flexibility to take another quarterback in the first nine rounds (if you really liked the value), making Richardson your No. 2. Or you could wait on the position, picking another one from the teens, figuring that the combo of Richardson and this other quarterback (Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Sam Darnold, Deshaun Watson, whoever) but adequately handle the position.

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Question 8

Wondering why with the popularity of dynasty football you do not add rookie draft ranking updates on your cheat sheets? Also, can you add a feature for custom cheat sheets to put in number of starting wrs, rbs, flex etc. I have a league that starts 2 rb, 3 wr, and flex. Ppr?

Mike Munson (Tracy, MN)

For dynasty rankings, we put those in every Thursday. I think they include about 75 running backs, 75 wide receivers and about 35 players at quarterback and tight ends. All of the notable rookies are in there, and to make them stand out, we’ve got them tagged with black dots. As for using the custom cheat sheets, the number of players who are starters isn’t important. Each team will start a kicker for example, but that doesn’t help in deciding how much Justin Tucker is worth. The same applies to the other positions. What’s important isn’t the number of players who’ll start, but the number of players who have meaningful value. To get your custom rankings properly set up, start by looking at your draft results from the last year or two. That will tell you how many players at each position will be selected. (If this is a startup league, then make your best estimate). After those numbers are in place, count up the number at each position that were selected in the first two thirds of the draft. That is, if it’s an 18-round draft, how many at each position will be selected in the first 12 rounds. Then go the custom scoring area, set up a scoring profile for your league and go to the “auction values” section of the setup page. Plug in the numbers for how many will be picked. And plug in those 12-round numbers where you see “How many will be purchased for more than the $1 minimum”. This will get you where you need to go.

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Question 9

Critique my Team Ian. Hint it could win a half million. Stroud, Gibbs, Montgomery, Puka, Flowers, Pittman, Shakir, Laporta. Notable bench Nick Chubb, K.Coleman, D.Mooney, K. Herbert, Tim Patrick, Braelon Allen. Pick 10. My best work so far on RT.

David Kennedy (Steamburg, NY)

It’s a nice-looking club. No surprise to see you taking Shakir; he’s a guy you (as a card-carrying member of the Bills Mafia) have mentioned multiple in the offseason. Flowers and Patrick; those are guys I expect to be picking on most teams. Coleman and Allen, I think, look like the first guys who’ll be released as other guys catch your eye in September. You follow Buffalo closer than I do, but I’ve been cooling on Coleman. They are currently listing three starting wide receivers on their depth chart, and he’s not one of them. (They’ve got him listed behind Mack Hollins.) They’ve tried to get him the ball on three short throws into the end zone, and they’ve missed on all of them. One was just never happening, with him needing to turn into a defensive back on the play to stop the interception. On another, he was unable to time his jump quite right as he was bumping into the defensive back, making him unable to box out the defender properly. And in the Pittsburgh game, there was a slant route that was there, but it looked like he made a business decision, short-arming the catch. All of those throws, of course, were with T-Biscuit at quarterback. Maybe he’ll be just fine. But my leaning at this point is that Coleman won’t have a notable rookie season.

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Question 10

What draft slot would you take in a 10 team league with Standard scoring and slots 3 and 7 were taken already?

John Shahpazian (New Providnce, NJ)

To answer this question, I take my projected points for each player, then consider how the draft will play out (if I were operating all 10 teams). After that, you go back in and look at which teams have the most projected points. Player stats need to be normalized across positions, and I looked at only the first four rounds. I do this every year, and every year the No. 1 draft position winds up coming out on top. I don’t see a lot of separation between the others. If I were picking, I would get some consideration to picking in the middle. That makes for a shorter wait between picks, increasing your odds of landing a player who’s sliding in the draft. (When you’re picking at the end, you’ve got back-to-back picks, with only about half as much of an opportunity to grab a sliding player.)

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Question 11

How much does fantasy playoff schedule impact your draft decision making? For example, the Dolphins are playing the Browns in Cleveland in Week 17 on Sunday night football. I'd imagine a lower-scoring game for the Dolphins playmakers who aren't used to the cold, plus a strong Cleveland D. Should that be a consideration?

Jeff Hornstein (Miami, FL)

I’m in a 12-team league, with six teams making the playoffs. In some years, I have chosen to operate under the assumption that I will make the playoffs. The object, after all, is to win the league. So it makes sense to start looking at what you’ll do once you get into that playoff tournament. At the same time, we have to concede that a bunch of defenses in December aren’t going to anything like what we were expecting. Guys guy hurt, and others are simply not what you were expecting. (The Browns, as an example, ranked 20th in scoring defense two years ago.) There’s also the issue of deciding on what portion of the schedule to key on. In our league, four of the playoff games participate in the Week 15 wild-card round. Then we’ve got the semis in Week 16 and the Krohn Bowl in Week 17. Which round as you keying on? I tend to focus on the semis, figuring that if I can get into that title game, it’s at that point a knife fight, with the added dimension of there probably be a notable player or two on the waiver wire with only two teams bidding. (And a couple of the starters on both of those championship teams, I think, will be players who’ve been picked up off waivers during the season.)

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Question 12

In a 5 player Keeper league. I get to keep the 5 players each year. The scoring is about 1/4 pt per reception along with normal scoring. This gives RB's a little more worth over time. Should I draft Marvin Harrison or Jaylen Wright? I think both players will have a chance to be stars.

JAMES DREHMEL ()

Wright caught my eye in that first preseason game. It’s tough grading him against Raheem Mostert (for 2024 leagues). Mostert has the experience and is the starter for now – presumably their main goal-line runner. But Wright is a lot younger and a lot more talented. He looks like he might be a big-time back. In your position, though, I’d be locked in on Harrison. He looks like a very safe choice – a building block kind of guy who’ll be the best wide receiver on his team for about 10 years.

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Question 13

8 team PPR, 1QB, 2RB, 2WR, 1TE, 1Flex, plus new for 2024: 1 "Super Flex". How early do I now prioritize QBs?

Steven Schipper (Brampton, ON)

You want three quarterbacks (maybe even four). You want to be using two quarterbacks every week. The third quarterback serves as an insurance policy. He’ll start in the two bye weeks, there’s a chance one of your main guys will get hurt or fizzle out. For valuing, I would use the process of comparing each player against what you think you’ll get if you wait to fill the spot later. For an 8-team league, perhaps the first 10 rounds. Identify the 80 guys you think should go in the first 10 rounds. The best guy at each position drafted after the first 80 becomes your baseline guy – the guy to use when using the supply-demand numbers at the website. (In the auction values section of the website, there’s that question, “how many will go for more than $1.00 minimum?” – those are the 80 guys going in the first 10 rounds, with some number of QB, RB, WR and TE).

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Question 14

10 team PPR, QB's get 6 points for passing TDs. Keeper question, K Murray 16th, J Ford 14th, Brian Robinson 9th or Kincaid 6th.

John Lesjack (Cranberry Township, PA)

I would keep Murray. He should be a serviceable second quarterback, with the ability to start some games, and you’d be securing that position at a modest cost.

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Question 15

I really missed the FI Auction and the offseason grades this year. I'm not to tell what to cut and not cut, but those were insightful segments I have loved for decades. Just my 2 cents, or 11 bucks actually.

John Macho (Elko New Mrkt, MN)

The Mock Auction can be useful. Let me see if I can get one of the guys to throw one together, putting the results on the website. The offseason grades are on the website. They can be viewed by clicking on the “resources” tab at the top of the page. Drag down to “free with magazine” content. They are also available in the “your products” area (click on the “hi John” link and drag down).

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