Next Pats: When to take Damien Harris in your fantasy draft

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Sony Michel being traded from the New England Patriots to the Los Angeles Rams will have a significant impact on both real-life and fantasy football.

While it may hurt the fantasy value of Rams running back Darrell Henderson, the deal undoubtedly boosts the stock of Patriots RB Damien Harris. Harris already was expected to be the bell-cow in New England's backfield, but the absence of Michel makes the Alabama product an even more attractive option in fantasy drafts.

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On a brand new Next Pats Podcast, Underdog Fantasy's Josh Norris joined Phil Perry to explain how the Michel trade affects where Harris should be drafted in fantasy leagues.

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"He's still going as the RB29 overall. That's after so many other ambiguous and split backfields ... I have Damien Harris all the way up at RB22," Norris said.

So, what's a good spot to take Harris in your fantasy draft as a result of the Michel news?

"There's a top 14 running backs that kind of ranges from Christian McCaffrey all the way down to Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Joe Mixon. That's the 14 group that almost certainly in your leagues will be gone by the end of Round 2. Then there's this other tier of backs that includes JK Dobbins, David Montgomery, Chris Carson, heck you could throw in James Robinson now over the last 48 hours in Jacksonville.

"And then, there's the top of that next tier: Miles Sanders, Josh Jacobs, Mike Davis. If you want to take Damien Harris at the top of that group, I'm not getting in your way of that. ... It seems everyone just has in their brains, 'I've invested in the Patriots backfield in the past and it's burned me.' I'm just telling people to get over that. And, it's this added element where if Cam Newton is not the starter, guess how many goal-line opportunities open up. ... Damien Harris has potentially all of those opportunities as well."

Check out the latest episode of the Next Pats Podcast on the NBC Sports Boston Podcast Network, or watch on YouTube below:

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