A half a dozen years ago or so, the world of fantasy football was
introduced to a drafting strategy called “Zero-RB”.
The heart of which suggested that waiting multiple rounds to take
your first RB would allow you to stockpile top prospects at other
key positions such that having starting running backs with a lower
profile was not a hindrance, but a formula for success. Since that
time, drafters have tested the theory to varying degrees of success
with specific RBs being labeled each year as possible “Zero
RB” targets.
This movement got me thinking sometime during the past year,
“could you apply the same principles to the WR position
and formulate a strong team in the process?” In other words,
does a “Zero WR” theory make any sense and if so,
what would it look like? Just to clarify, zero does not mean that
you don’t draft wide receivers or that you wait until the
second half of a draft to address the position. It simply means
that you don’t pick a WR until at least the fourth round
or possibly the fifth.
With this in mind, I am going to put together a mock team using
this strategy and will then use FFToday projections for players
drafted to see how it turned out. For the sake of argument, we’ll
go with a draft pick in the middle of a 12-team re-draft. So,
1.06 to begin…
First Four Rounds:
So, WRs are off the table in these rounds which will be a difficult
fit for those who believe in drafting the best player available.
Also, for the sake of argument, we’ll make this a PPR draft
to increase the level of difficulty. Obviously, there are no QBs
or TEs this season worthy of a first-round pick, so we’re
talking RB or bust in Round 1 and probably the first two, establishing
the running back position as the foundation of our team.
1.06 - In a PPR league, one of Bijan Robinson
or Breece Hall should be available. But, that is by no means a
given. If both are gone, it comes down to who you like best between
Jonathan Taylor, Saquon Barkley, and Jahmyr Gibbs. We’re
going to assume that Robinson will fall to this spot with CeeDee
Lamb, Tyreek Hill, and Ja’Marr Chase taken prior. Bijan Robinson, join the squad.
2.07 - It’s RB again here and depending
on how WR-happy your league-mates are, that could mean Kyren Williams,
Derrick Henry, Travis Etienne, or Isiah Pacheco. If all four are
gone, which is not likely, but possible, you could swing for the
fences here with a pick like De’Von Achane who pairs nicely
with Robinson. The guess here is that, Henry and Pacheco would
both fall to this spot, so we’ll roll with Derrick Henry
as our ideal RB2 pick.
3.06 - This is where the Zero WR strategy really
begins as plenty of drafters take two RBs right off the bat, particularly
in home leagues in which a third RB can serve as your flex option.
Those drafters would then almost certainly turn to WR at this
pick, but that would eliminate possibly getting a top QB or TE
at this spot or even a third RB for flex purposes. Yes, QB is
a deep position this year (and most years actually) with up to
14 players being bona fide fantasy starters. With that in mind,
getting a top tight end here would be the focus of a Zero WR drafter
and that could mean Sam LaPorta or Travis Kelce are top options.
Sure, both could be gone and you’d then shift to another
RB or maybe a Jalen Hurts or Patrick Mahomes at QB, but for the
sake of our exercise, let’s say that Sam LaPorta makes it
here.
4.07 - Taking our theory to greater extremes,
let’s go one more round before looking at WRs. If you are
in a league that allows for 3 RBs in the starting lineup via a
flex spot, taking a third RB here probably makes the most sense
considering the quality QB depth. However, if two RBs are the
maximum in your weekly lineup, grabbing a bench player prior to
a WR makes no sense, so going ahead with your QB selection would
be the play. We’re going to make a 3-RB lineup a possibility
here and thus take that position to fill the flex role. Most leagues
will not have a top-16 RB available at this point, but solid options
like David Montgomery, James Conner, and Aaron Jones should be.
Since we already have one Lion in the starting lineup (LaPorta),
we’ll go with James Conner here.
As in Zero RB theory, these are the rounds to take at least two
of the position you’ve been skipping. In this case, however,
with 3 RBs and a TE already secured, this is all-in WR territory.
What you’re looking for are wide receivers with solid floors
so that their scoring, while not dynamic, will complement the
scoring base that has already been acquired. One of the three
could be a dynamic, risk-reward pick, but at least two cannot
be. A Zero WR drafter can simply not afford to have starting receivers
with high bust potential. With that in mind, here are some ideal
targets for keeping our theory afloat.
Top WRs who might still be available include Zay Flowers, Terry McLaurin, Christian Kirk, George Pickens, and Diontae Johnson.
Flowers, Pickens, and McLaurin may not be available at 5.06 and
certainly would be gone by 6.07. Christian Kirk should be there
at 5.06 for sure and could be around at 6.07 also. Playing for
the NFL’s worst team last season, Diontae Johnson will certainly
still be on the board at 6.07 and could even make it to 7.06.
All of these receivers are considered to have “safe”
floors and operate as the No.1 WRs on their teams. Certainly,
each face competition for that top role, but are expected to be
target leaders.
Also worthy of consideration would be WRs who are not necessarily
top WR options for their respective NFL teams, but play in pass-friendly
offenses that raise their floors also as a result. Examples of
these players would be Jayden Reed, Rashee Rice, and Tank Dell.
Dell would likely be the first of the three to be drafted, so
acquiring him would likely cost you a pick at 5.06. Reed could
fall further, but not necessarily Rice as his suspension risk
has slowly been decreasing the last couple weeks.
Finally, there are WRs who are clearly WR2s on their respective
teams and don’t play in high octane offenses, but have a
significant history of production at the WR2 spot. Included in
this short list are Chris Godwin, Calvin Ridley, and Keenan Allen.
All three will last almost certainly until 6.07 and could even
be there for you at 7.06.
For our Zero WR team, let’s then pick one player each from
these three categories. So, Zay Flowers, Rashee Rice, and Chris Godwin at 5.06, 6.07, and 7.06 respectively.
Round 8: QB Time
The last order of business then in rounding out the starters
for your Zero WR team is to dip into that deep pool of capable
QBs. The top ten will all be taken by this point and someone will
likely have bitten on the upside of Tua Tagovailoa and Caleb Williams,
so what would these options be? Jared Goff, Brock Purdy, and Trevor Lawrence all come to mind as possibilities. Even Kirk Cousins
would be a decent option given the weapons he has at his disposal
in Atlanta. Of these options, we like stacking Sam LaPorta with
Goff and would make him the pick.
Round 9 and beyond would include adding a second QB fairly quickly
since we waited so long on our first and obtaining at least one
promising rookie WR to add some upside to the high-floor WR room.
In terms of starters, though, our team would look like this coming
into Week 1 of fantasy season:
Projected total points using FFToday projections for that starting
lineup would be 1,317 points this season with individual value
reflected above in parentheses. Sounds pretty good, but how would
it compare to a team assembled from the 1.06 draft position using
ADP as a guide? Here’s what that team would look like:
Is that a better team than the one we selected using a Zero WR
approach as defined within this article? Well, using FFToday projections
we get 1,344 points scored for the season which is slightly better
(+27 FPts, 1.58 FPTs/ per week) than our Zero WR team.
While Zero WR theory might not be optimal, there is a legitimate
path to making it work if you follow the guidelines suggested
here. If you’re looking to try something different this
year, or get behind the eight-ball on the WR position early in
your draft, don’t panic. There is a way out.
