How Recent NFL Trends Have Drastically Changed Fantasy Football Strategies

The National Football League has never been more compelling. High-octane offenses have become increasingly more dominant over the past five years, and the role of the quarterback has never been more important.

What does this all mean for fantasy owners? It means a drastically revised strategy heading into fantasy drafts this summer.

Training camps are now kicking into high gear, and drafts are quickly approaching.

Here's all you need to know about recent NFL trends and how they will affect the world of fantasy football.

Running Back by Committee

It used to be common knowledge: Running Backs were the most prized possessions of fantasy owners, and thus, selections of elite runners would dominate the early rounds of drafts. 

Now? Elite quarterbacking has shown to be far more valuable to fantasy owners looking for consistent sources of points week after week.

The logic is simple: Quarterbacks don't share touches and running backs do. In a league that has become so quarterback-centric, players like Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady and Drew Brees have become the hottest fantasy commodities.

Looking around the NFL it's hard not to notice that a majority of teams are dominated by the dreaded running back by committee.

Of the 32 NFL teams, very few have the treasured feature backs that fantasy owners salivate over.

Aside from your household names like Arian Foster, Ray Rice, LeSean McCoy, Maurice Jones-Drew, Steven Jackson, Adrian Peterson and rookie Trent Richardson, there are few true feature backs remaining in today's game.

There are also borderline feature backs like Darren McFadden, Ryan Mathews and Matt Forte, but these players' stocks have been too volatile over the past few seasons to ensure a great deal of trust from owners.

With a slew of teams like New England, Green Bay, New Orleans and Carolina implementing timeshares in their backfields, there aren't many safe picks remaining at running back.

For owners, there are really two options when approaching the running back position:

1) Hope you're in a position in the first few rounds to scoop up as many feature backs as possible and address stacked positions like receiver and quarterback later on. 

2) Grab an elite quarterback early, draft as many running backs in timeshares as possible, and hope that a few will explode for breakout seasons.

Emphasis on Tight Ends

As NFL passing games continue to evolve, so will the role of the tight end.

The 2011 season saw two tight ends in particular really step up and single-handedly win owners championships.

Both Rob Gronkowski and Jimmy Graham were off the charts in 2011, finishing sixth and seventh respectively in receiving yards amongst all receivers and tight ends.

Gronkowski (1,327 yards and 17 touchdowns) and Graham (1,310 yards and 11 touchdowns) were both aided by stellar quarterback play, but they also represent the future of NFL tight ends.

As the position continues to change, I think it's quite likely that we will see more receiver-tight end hybrids who are comfortable lining up not only on the line, but on the outside and in the slot, where they will be capable of producing greater yardage and touchdown totals.

According to FFToolbox.com, the average draft position (ADP) of both Gronkowski and Graham is skyrocketing. As it currently stands, Gronkowski (13.80 ADP) and Graham (14.26 ADP) are being selected at the end of the first or beginning of the second round, depending on the size of your league.

While there's a significant drop-off in ADP for tight ends after Graham and Gronkowski, there's a growing sense among fantasy owners that tight ends can make or break your season.

Other tight ends that could be worth reaching for in drafts include Vernon Davis, Jermichael Finley, Aaron Hernandez and Antonio Gates.

Once an afterthought on fantasy rosters, the tight end position is now more skilled and deeper than ever.

Depth at the Quarterback Position

Running backs are becoming more obsolete and tight ends are emerging as great new weapons.

The reason is clear: Elite quarterback play has taken over the NFL.

Now, more than ever, we're seeing a league that is dominated by signal callers, and not just a few of them. There's depth at the quarterback position, which is great news for fantasy owners.

In 2011, we saw three quarterbacks top 5,000 yards (Drew Brees, Tom Brady and Matthew Stafford) and seven others top 4,000.

Both Eli Manning and Aaron Rodgers narrowly missed out on the 5,000 yard mark, and are certainly candidates to top the impressive feat in 2012.

While those stats may seem impressive, injuries limited several starting quarterbacks in 2011, many of whom could top 4,000 yards in 2012.

Matt Schaub, Jay Cutler and Michael Vick all finished under 4,000 yards passing a year ago, and if they're able to stay on the field in 2012, they could help boost an already impressive group of quarterbacks.

Rookies Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III should help their teams and receivers immensely in 2012, and both have the potential to top 3,500 yards through the air.

As far as touchdowns go, three quarterbacks topped 40 scores through the air last season (Rodgers, Brees and Stafford), while Brady finished with 39.

For a position that was once considered fairly thin in fantasy circles, quarterbacks are now available in all varieties throughout drafts.

The only question is: Do you want a sure thing in the early rounds, or are you willing to wait and rest the fate of your team on the shoulders of a riskier quarterback in the later rounds?