2QB and superflex leagues have become more common in today’s fantasy landscape. Playing in fantasy leagues that start only one signal caller has become boring based on the lack of creative draft strategies surrounding the position. If you are similarly bored and looking for a way to add oomph to your league you might want to consider a 2QB league.
To show you a glimpse of what life is like in the world of 2QB leagues, below you will find a 2QB mock draft recap. This particular mock draft was of the 10-team variety and gives you an idea of how draft strategies differ between 1QB and 2QB leagues.
Settings of note: 10 teams, 4 points per passing touchdown, .5 PPR. You can view the full draft results here and final rosters can be found here.
The participants in this draft are experienced 2QB and superflex drafters and represent the fantasy football writing industry. Listed by draft order, they are: Salvatore Stefanile (me), Jim Sannes, Joshua Lake, Joe Siniscalchi, Greg Smith, Anthony Amico, Ben Cummins, T.J. Calkins, TJ Hernandez, and Josh Hornsby.
Round 1
Round 1 Analysis:
If we view 2QB ADP data from TwoQBs.com for the month of July, we find only two quarterbacks have a first round ADP: Cam Newton and Aaron Rodgers. You might think with Newton coming off a 2015 campaign where he dominated, and with rushing touchdowns worth more than passing touchdowns, he would be the surefire QB1 of this draft. While that may be true in most drafts, and you could make the case for it here, Rodgers isn’t that far removed from his overall own overall QB1 2014 season.
The important debate here shouldn’t be whether to draft Aaron Rodgers or Cam Newton as the first overall quarterback, but whether or not you should draft a quarterback at all with the first overall pick?
The depth of the position, coupled with the high scoring nature of the position, has led to a devaluing of signal callers even in 2QB leagues. Drafting from the 1.01 forces you to decide between an elite quarterback early or to wait on the position. While someone like Rodgers won’t be available at the tail end of round two, there’s a strong chance another high-end quarterback will be there. That means bypassing QB at 1.01 and going with Antonio Brown or Le’Veon Bell is an attractive proposition and one that makes more sense. However, for the purpose of this draft, I wanted to see how my team would turn out if I went with a quarterback first overall.
Round 2
Round 2 Analysis:
By the time round two was over, only four quarterbacks were off the board (Rodgers, Newton, Wilson, and Luck). They happened to be drafted by two teams, meaning only two owners decided to attack the quarterback position early in this draft, leaving the remaining eight teams to load up on other skill positions.
Whether you’re a Zero-RB zealot or harken back to the dominant RB-RB strategy of yesteryear, 2QB leagues will see plenty of first round talent slip to the second and third rounds of draft. If quarterbacks shoot up the board then running backs and wide receivers will fall. How often do you see the likes of Lamar Miller or Rob Gronkowski fall to the late second round of a traditional fantasy league? Rarely if ever, but they both fell that far in this draft. If you’re new to the 2QB format get used to seeing elite talent drop to make room for early quarterbacks.
My Pick:
I mentioned earlier how the possibility of a top-tier quarterback talent would be on the board at my 2.12 pick and that’s exactly what happened. Andrew Luck, who was in the 1.01 overall debate just last year, slid to me at the end of the second round. Pairing him up with Aaron Rodgers means I’ll most likely have the best quarterback tandem in the league. Through 16 games last season, the duo combined for 13 weekly QB1 (top-12) finishes out of a possible 23 games, and both finished inside the top-12 in fantasy points per game.
TJ Calkins’ Cam Newton and Russell Wilson combo are also in contention for quarterback dominance.
Zero-RB and WR-early strategies have become the en vogue move in traditional 1QB leagues and they have found their way into 2QB drafts as well. QB-QB was the dominant draft strategy of 2QB leagues of yesteryear, but could be a league-winning move in leagues that tend to wait. Rodgers and Luck could be the highest scoring players in the league this year and having both will be a nightmare to face in head-to-head matchups.
Round 3
Round 3 Analysis:
Drafting in a room full of industry analysts who have grown accustomed to the late-round quarterback draft mentality will see a fewer number of quarterbacks drafted early than in your home 2QB league. That’s what happened here with Drew Brees going off the board at pick 3.04 as the fifth quarterback taken. For a player of Brees’ caliber, who has the potential to be the highest scoring fantasy quarterback, that’s a value pick compared to where Rodgers and Luck went. A round or two difference in value may not seem like a whole lot, but bypassing quarterback early allows you flexibility later on in the draft.
My Pick:
With both of my starting quarterbacks locked up, this pick came down to running back or wide receiver. If Rob Gronkowski was still on the board he would have been the pick, but he was drafted five picks earlier.
Zero-RB might be the cooler draft strategy, but there’s a deeper pool of talent at the wide-out position, and if I didn’t go running back here there’s a good chance the well would be dried up by the time my fourth round pick came.
Adrian Peterson was the overall fantasy RB2 last year behind a surprising Devonta Freeman. The Vikings look to be a run-dominant team again in 2016 and Peterson is as good a bet as any high-drafted back to return his draft day cost. In a typical fantasy draft he would be considered a first round pick, which gives you an idea how quarterback drafting shifts the dynamics of not just the quarterback position but all positions in 2QB leagues.
Round 4
Round 4 Analysis:
Round four is about the time the high-end running back talent dries up in a 2QB league, evidenced by 14 backs selected by the end of the fourth round. For drafters who haven’t bought into Zero-RB, you could go RB-RB to start and then focus on the quarterback and wide receiver slots the rest of the draft.
My Pick:
Tyler Lockett has been getting a lot of love from the fantasy community as a breakout wide receiver candidate, even earning the praise of Matt Harmon via his #ReceptionPerception metric. The Lockett hype has made Baldwin an afterthought of sorts, but we shouldn’t forget about him.
If you think Russell Wilson is line for a monster fantasy season then his #1 WR should be in line for a similar performance, no? Baldwin was a top-10 fantasy wide-out in both standard and PPR leagues last year, and ended the season on a tear. He averaged 7.9 targets, 6.1 receptions and 90.5 receiving yards, and caught a total of 12 touchdowns from Week 10 to Week 17. In the mid-rounds, Baldwin is an ideal WR2 but can be considered in the WR1 mix.
Round 5
Round 5 Analysis:
The fourth round saw a lull in quarterbacks drafted and only one came off the board in round five (Carson Palmer - 5.03). If you’re keeping track at home, that’s six quarterbacks drafted through five rounds. Four of them were taken within the first two rounds, making this a very QB-light draft.
While this most likely will not happen in your home league, it does bring up an interesting scenario you could face. If you’re drafting in a 2QB league for the first time and you see quarterbacks aren’t drafted early and often, what do you do? Do you follow the herd and wait or do you go against the grain and draft a quarterback?
The answer will depend on your drafting philosophy, but if your league mates are bypassing the quarterback position you should too. It’s much easier to make up production at quarterback later in the draft than it is other positions. Just make sure you don’t get caught up in a quarterback run. Keep tabs on each team’s draft, especially their QB1 and QB2 slots, so you can find the right time to target signal callers. It may be in round seven, it may be in round eight. Each 2QB draft is unique but if you’re prepared you’ll be able to handle any quarterback run that comes your way.
My Pick:
Knowing I wouldn’t pick again until the end of round six, the choice, yet again, came down to running back and wide receiver. With an RB1 in Adrian Peterson already solidified, teaming up Baldwin with Maclin made the most sense. With the #1 WR of two teams leading my wide receiver depth chart it gives me more flexibility to pair them up with either target volume or boom/bust pass catchers, depending on how the draft falls.
Maclin was far and away Alex Smith‘s top target last season. He led the team in targets (124), receptions (87), receiving yards (1,088) and receiving touchdowns (8). Those are all highs during the Andy Reid-era in Kansas City.
Round 6
Round 6 Analysis:
The luxury of starting a 2QB draft with two quarterbacks is that you don’t have to worry about the position for a very long time. However, it also means you probably missed out on an elite back or receiver, which are harder to find late in drafts compared to serviceable passers.
For instance, instead of starting my draft with Aaron Rodgers and Andrew Luck, I could have gone with Antonio Brown and Alshon Jeffery. Pair those two up with Adrian Peterson and you’re looking pretty dominant at the non-quarterback spots. With the likes of Eli Manning and Philip Rivers still on the board when I was on the clock in round six, waiting on quarterbacks would have been the sensible course of action to take.
Of course, most home leagues will draft heavier at the quarterback position than this particular draft, but reliable QB2s will be available in the middle rounds.
My Pick:
Jordan Matthews was a target hog in the Eagles’ offense last year and that doesn’t look to change this year. With Baldwin, Maclin, and now Matthews in the fold, I can start three dependable, every-week WR2s in my three starting wide receiver slots. This helps make up for not drafting an elite WR1. I mentioned earlier that wide-out is deeper than running back, and being able to grab Matthews at 6.10 gives you an idea of the type of receiver you can have later in drafts.
Round 7
Round 7 Analysis:
In 2QB leagues the only onesie position is usually tight end. You might play in a league where you can flex a tight end (like this draft), but unless you play in a TE-premium league you’re not going to worry much about the position. Like 1QB leagues, it goes Gronk and then everyone else in 2QB leagues. By the time round seven began, only three tight ends had been drafted: Gronk, Jordan Reed (5.08) and Greg Olsen (5.09).
My Pick:
I added Travis Kelce at 7.01 to make it four. If you’re a TE-early believer this should give you an idea of when to target the position. It’s either Gronk in the first two rounds, Reed/Olsen in rounds three-to-five, the likes of Kelce, Coby Fleener, and Tyler Eifert in the middle rounds, or stream the position with later round targets such as Zach Miller and Julius Thomas.
Round 8
Round 8 Analysis:
Round eight marked the first time more than two quarterbacks were drafted in a single round: Kirk Cousins, Philip Rivers and Tyrod Taylor. At pick 8.08, Taylor was the 12th quarterback taken, which is insane value for someone who averaged the eighth-most fantasy points per game last season. Tack on that it’s a 4-point/passing touchdown league and Taylor (568 rushing yards, 4 rushing TDs last season) becomes even more valuable. Now that we’ve entered the QB2 tier of drafting it becomes even more important to keep track of quarterback drafting in your league. Take stock of who has quarterbacks on their roster, but more importantly, keep an eye on the teams that don’t.
By the end of round eight, two teams (Amico and Hornsby) have yet to take a quarterback. If they don’t want to miss out on grabbing a couple of viable QB2s to play each week then they’re likely to attack the position fairly soon. With Amico starting his draft with five RBs, two WRs and a TE in his first eight picks, quarterback should be addressed soon. Same for Hornsby, who went with three RBs and five WRs to start his draft.
My Pick:
I may not have gone full Zero-RB in this draft, taking Peterson at 3.01, but I did punt my RB2 slot. Feeling comfortable with my quarterback and wide receiver depth, plus Kelce at tight end, going with Melvin Gordon at 8.10 made sense.
It’s rare to find a team’s RB1 in the eighth round of fantasy drafts, but Gordon’s inefficient rookie season (he had the 22nd most running attempts but scored a measly 0.41 fantasy points/attempt) and his offseason microfracture surgery may have helped his draft stock plummet. Gordon is in line to lead the Chargers in carries this season and getting that type of workload this late negates any risk with the pick.
Round 9
Round 9 Analysis:
I warned you earlier to be wary of quarterback runs and round nine saw four of them drafted, with both of our Zero-QB teams each taking their first quarterback. Amico went with Blake Bortles (9.06-QB15) and Hornsby drafting Jameis Winston (9.10-QB16). Bortles finished the 2015 campaign as the fantasy QB4, while Winston was QB13. Yet they were both drafted in the ninth round. Quarterback is deep, and in 2QB leagues of 10 teams or less it’s routine to see weekly starting options at the position available this late, giving more credence to the LRQB strategy.
My Pick:
Drafting DeAngelo Williams here helped fill my RB2 slot with multiple options and drafting based off the Le’Veon Bell suspension news. If Bell does indeed miss the first four games of the season, Williams is line for an RB1-type of workload. I no longer have to worry about starting Gordon at the RB2 spot, but can pivot to Williams if the matchup is right.
Rest of Draft Analysis:
Rather than bore you by continuing with round-by-round feedback, now seems like a good time to take stock of the draft as a whole.
With each team having at least one quarterback by the start of round 10 you have a sense of where the top quarterbacks are going. Sixteen signal callers were selected in the first nine rounds, and 21 by the time each team had at least two quarterbacks after 11 rounds of drafting. In total, 29 quarterbacks were selected, which is a standard number for a league of 10 teams.
Below is the QB depth chart of each team, which helps give you an idea how each team attacked the quarterback spot and the variety of draft strategies centered on the position.
Whether it’s QB-QB (me with Rodgers and Luck), Studs and Streaming (Siniscalchi with Brees at QB1 and a Romo/Cutler streaming pair at QB2) or LRQB (Hornsby with Winston and Flacco), there’s no one standard quarterback drafting strategy in 2QB leagues. It’s what makes 2QB leagues more challenging than traditional fantasy leagues where you start only one quarterback.
In your typical 1QB league, most owners will wait until the last rounds to draft a quarterback and still be rewarded with a potential top-12 signal caller. There is no such guarantee in 2QB leagues. If you wait too long in a 2QB league your starting quarterbacks could be Brock Osweiler and Teddy Bridgewater, for example. By studying 2QB ADP, participating in mock drafts, and creating your own set of tiered QB rankings you will be prepared for any draft day madness that awaits.
If you want to learn more about 2QB leagues or have any questions don’t hesitate to reach out on Twitter @2QBFFB or visit TwoQBs.com.
