Generally, the consensus is that there are three different types of teams in dynasty fantasy football. The first is the championship contender. The team that has some studs and is consistently near the top of points for every year. The second is the middle of the pack pretender. This team has a good player or two, hangs around every year, and fights for the last playoff spot. The final type of team is the rebuilder. Not much talent, not much of a shot to make the playoffs, and in dire need of rebuilding.
In my opinion, there should only be two types of teams. Either you are a contender, or you are rebuilding. If you are the middle of the pack team, you are just donating your yearly buy-in to the teams who contend. You are unable to gain better players through the draft, as you are always picking in the middle of the round. Don’t be this team. Let’s talk about the basic principles of a rebuild.
When Should I become a Rebuilding Team?
Take an honest look at your team, and your teams finish the last two seasons. Have you won your division? Have you made a title game? Are your players reaching their age peak? Dynasty fantasy football is a three-year game. Honestly, does your roster for the next three seasons have a chance to win it all?
If the answer is no, it is time to start your rebuild. Owners who lie to themselves about their team’s status and their winning window look like the Chicago Bears. Go out and acquire Khalil Mack, draft your QB of the future and give up valuable assets for the foreseeable future. Sure, the Bears won the NFC North and hosted a playoff game. That was 2018. Guess who is still holding on to the notion that they are close.
Now, the NFL and fantasy football are very different in terms of roster construction, but this is a good example of a team that thought they could win it all. They bought in, paid up, and failed. Just two years later, the Bears are struggling with cap space, the play of their franchise QB, and play calling.
Do not be the Bears. Fantasy football is more fluid in the ability to acquire or trade pieces on your team. Do not be the team always “close.”
How Do I Go About Rebuilding My Fantasy Football Dynasty Team?
Every league is different but start by identifying players on your team that you believe will not help you in your three-year window. If you have a 28-year-old WR, the chance that he is producing at the same level in three seasons is low. It could happen, sure. But that WR is more valuable to a team who perceives they are one piece away from a title. By identifying teams that are legitimate contenders, you may be able to drive the price for your players up. There is nothing sweeter than winning the championship, and these owners may “overpay” for an asset that won’t be on your championship roster in three years.
After you have stripped away the aging players or players that will lose value, take a look at your studs—the players who hold the most value. For example, if you wanted to rebuild and owned Sanders (who has seen his ADP rise into the first round of startup drafts), you may be able to jump-start your rebuild by getting a TON for Sanders.
Be careful with this strategy, as you do not want to make your team completely devoid of talent. Sanders is a semi-proven player in the NFL. If you flipped Sanders into three 2021 first-round draft picks, you may be trying to acquire a player that *could* become Miles Sanders. It may be more advantageous for you to hold Sanders.
I Know Who to Move, Now What?
Once you’ve determined which players on your team you can move, you have to get the best return. Youth is king in dynasty fantasy football, but not all youth is created equally. A young player that would fetch an impressive return right now is D.J. Moore.
Moore is 23 years old, entering his third NFL season, and just had a 1,100-yard receiving season. He could realistically return multiple first-round picks. But this is the dangerous part of dynasty fantasy football. Moore is an established star. He’s 23 years old. He will still be producing three years from now.
You may be able to draft the best WR in the 2021 Draft class if you traded Moore, but why take that risk when you already have one the best WRs in the NFL who fits your three-year plan?
If your league has a trade deadline, this is a great time to extract maximum value. Contenders looking to solidify their title run or a team who thinks they can win it all if they can sneak into the playoffs will pay a premium for your team. Again, those teams who are contending want to taste the title, and your 28-year-old WR can get them over the hump. Remember when you bought your first used car? Channel, that salesman. Sell that owner that Marvin Jones Jr. is the missing piece to their title journey.
Don’t Make These Mistakes
The two biggest mistakes during a rebuild are to fall in love with draft picks and to become impatient. Draft picks are dart throw lottery tickets. You can absolutely utilize the tools, rankings, and insight provided by YardsPer Fantasy to help you determine the best pick, but we are all guessing We do it better than most, check out our rankings. It is an educated guess, and if you know of anyone who has been 100% on their projections and rankings, let us know.
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You should take advantage of teams that love draft picks. As you rebuild, you should be acquiring these lottery ticket picks. If you can flip these unknowns into a proven player that fits your three-year window, you should! Like the D.J. Moore example, if you can acquire a young stud, you should!
You need to understand where you are in your rebuild, though, and this plays into the second most common mistake, impatience. If you strip your team down and a week later go out and spend the draft capital you acquired for one player (like Moore), you may not be helping your team in the long run. Be patient. Losing, in this case, helps you get a higher draft choice.
What a Rebuild Looks Like
I was lucky enough to chat with @StowEzFantasy on Twitter this week, and he asked me to practice what I preached in this article on a team he believes should be looking to rebuild. Here is his roster and draft choices.
First of all, I’d get rid of the K and DST slots. Now that that’s out of the way.
You have some legitimate talent with Carson Wentz. Some could argue he’s a top ten player. Teddy Bridgewater is a nice QB2, and I love how you are only starting Bridgewater until Tua Tagovailoa is ready to roll. Jameis Winston provides a significant upside as well. If Winston is a starter next year, you are in a really good spot with your QBs.
At RB, I think you have a bunch of solid RB2 types. David Montgomery has been capped by poor play calling and horrid QB play (remember what I said about the Bears earlier). Jordan Howard has his ceiling capped by Matt Breida in the receiving department. I love J.K. Dobbins, perfect for a team that is looking to be a contender in two to three years. Justin Jackson and Justice Hill are handcuffs, nothing to write home about.
The Weakest Position on This Roster
Your weakest position is WR. Headlined by John Brown, Curtis Samuel, and Robby Anderson… These guys are all fine WR3’s, but none of them are reliable. By Brown adding Stefon Diggs, this offseason really hurt your WR room. With notable depth of Kenny Stills, Albert Wilson, Devin Funchess, and Greg Ward, I think you need to find a way to upgrade this room. I do like the young WRs you have stashed with Steven Sims, Jr, Laviska Shenault, Jr, Jalen Reagor, Denzel Mims, Van Jefferson, and Quintez Cephus.
At TE, I think you are solid. Jonnu Smith is my choice to be the “breakout TE” that turns heads. Backing him up with O.J. Howard, a supremely talented player who should be on a new team soon, and Ian Thomas is a nice blend of youth.
As far as draft picks are concerned, you’ve done an excellent job by acquiring two additional first-round selections and two additional second-round selections in the 2021 draft. Three first-rounders and three second-rounders allows you to move up for your guy, or take a bunch of guys, hoping multiple hit.
Do I Rebuild?
Honestly, this team doesn’t scream rebuild to me. This appears to be a team that is working through a rebuild and is a couple of steps from completion. I think your core at QB, RB, and TE are solid. You really need to address the WR room, but you have six of the top 24 selections in the coming draft, which is better at WR than the 2020 class was.
The youth you have at WR could be used to package up for a bonafide WR1. You could try to take one or two of your 2021 picks and pair them with Reagor or Mims to get a stud like Allen Robinson or D.J. Moore.
If I were you, I would stay the course, keep your young studs on your taxi squad, and get a high draft pick. Let the board fall to you. I would be sniffing around big time, young WRs to see what package you could throw together to get a bonafide stud WR.
If you want to rebuild, I would see what Carson Wentz, Jameis Winston, or Teddy Bridgewater would get you. Next, I would look at selling your best WR out of Brown, Samuel, and Anderson mid-season to a contender. These WRs are reliable, but shouldn’t be a part of your future plans. You may be able to move O.J. Howard to a believer, but I believe you are better-suited holding onto him.
Hopefully, this helped @StowEzFantasy! Thanks for reaching out!
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