Fantasy Football Draft Strategy: When To Take Wide Receivers

Each year, the strategy going into a fantasy football draft is the same as the year before, as the "draft running backs early and often" theory continues to dominate the world of fantasy football.

Due to the popularity of this theory, going into any draft, almost everyone thinks you need to grab two running backs out of your first three picks. However, with running backs by committees becoming ever so popular in the NFL, Bruno Boys Greg is here to tell you that you may be able to go a different route this year in your draft.

One of the toughest positions to predict in fantasy football is the wide receiver position.

While you can pretty much guarantee the amount of touches a running back will be getting week in and week out, wideouts are a different story, as so many factors go into the actual passes they see come their way.

Thus, on any given week, a guy like Nate Burleson can easily out-perform the likes of Larry Fitzgerald. The inconsistency that comes with the wide receiver position has led many experts to condone waiting on wideouts, while you stack up on your running backs in the draft because the sleeper wide receiver is easier to find than the sleeper running back.

That philosophy, though, may not hold true this season. Looking at last season's numbers, there doesn't seem to be the depth at the wide receiver position that there used to be.

If you want to compete in the receiver category, you need a No. 1 guy. Look at the numbers from 2008. There were only six wide receivers with double-digit touchdowns, only three guys with over 100 catches, and just 10 players with over 1,100 yards receiving.

If you want a clear-cut No. 1 guy, you may want to target him earlier then you usually would as there are only eight guys you can consider a sure thing WR1 for 2009.

They are: Larry Fitzgerald, Andre Johnson, Steve Smith, Roddy White, Calvin Johnson, Reggie Wayne, Randy Moss, and Greg Jennings.

You could consider Anquan Boldin, but the problem there is that he isn’t even the best receiver on his own team. You could also make a case for Terrell Owens, but who knows how things will work out in Buffalo? There is also a young wideout on the rise in Brandon Marshall, but no Jay Cutler means his numbers could drop a bit.

Now, even if you're able to snag one of the top guys in the early rounds, waiting to shore up the rest of your wide receiver corps could prove a disaster. After the top guys, the depth behind them is weak. More than likely, you will be looking at guys who may be able to get you four to five catches a game for 50-75 yards; guys like Jerricho Cotchery, Bernard Berrian, and DeSean Jackson. They may be No. 1 guys on their team, but they’re not exactly worthy of a No. 2 spot on a fantasy roster.

So, why not mix up your draft strategy for 2009 and throw everybody off? Go ahead and get your star running back in round one, but then grab two of the top tier receivers in rounds two and three, then get your RB2 and QB1 in rounds four and five.

Not only will grabbing a couple of the big-name wideouts early give you an advantage at the wide receiver position, but you may also start a run, causing other owners to go for receivers as they see the talent dwindling, which may allow some solid running backs to slip into the fourth round.

Think of the possibilities. Let’s say you draft Matt Forte of Chicago in round one. Then, the next two rounds, while everyone is trying to feast on running backs, you draft receivers Andre Johnson and Reggie Wayne. Then, in round four you get Kevin Smith; followed in the fifth round by the selection of your quarterback, Tony Romo. 

That sounds like one heck of a squad. For one, no one will really touch you at wide receiver, as you have two of the best, making any production you get from your WR3 an added bonus. Plus, you get two solid running backs that will be able to compete with most other tandems in your fantasy league, plus one of the better quarterbacks in the NFL.

Thus, while it is tough to pass on a running back in rounds two and three, do yourself a favor and consider it. See where you are at on the draft board, see who is available, and consider your options. You may be very happy with the result come fantasy football championship time.

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