The following is an excerpt from the latest edition of Yahoo’s fantasy football newsletter, Get to the Points! If you like what you see, You can subscribe here for free.
Building the perfect fantasy bench might be 90% upside and 10% pragmatism. We should be thinking about recruiting players with high ceilings and game-breaking potential, but in practice we might have to field one or the other at some point during the year. We can’t just have a bench full of guys stuck on the sidelines.
This is my ideal six-player bench for a normal sized and shaped fantasy league composed entirely of players who are not in the ADP top 115…
Brian Thomas Jr., WR, Jaguars: He’s an explosive rookie with size and super-mutant athleticism. Thomas is set to play for the Jaguars right away, so he’s cleared for early-season fantasy play. We’re drafting him for upside, but he also offers a decent floor.
Blake Corum, RB, Rams: Another rookie, which may scare some of you. Corum should start the year as a rotational back in an offense that has repeatedly produced fantasy RBs that can impact the league under Sean McVay. The news that Kyren Williams will return punts is clearly a positive sign for Corum.
Khalil Shakir, WR, accounts: Of all receivers who had at least 40 chances last season, Shakir had the highest passer rating when targeted (133.6) and the third-highest YAC/reception (7.3). The Bills have over 240 open targets this season, so the situation is nearly perfect.
Kimani Vidal, RB, Chargers: Yeah, another rookie — and we’re not there yet. Vidal is coming off a great preseason and will enter the year as the No. 3 back on a Jim Harbaugh-Greg Roman team, behind a pair of veterans with high mileage.
Jaylen Wright, RB, Dolphins: Like nearly all Dolphins skill players, Wright is blazing fast (4.38), a threat to score on every touch. His situation is similar to Corum’s, as both rookies are tied to offenses that produced key fantasy backs last season.
Taysom Hill, QB/TE, Saints: I normally wouldn’t recommend taking a bench spot for a tight end, but there’s a good chance Hill actually ends up being the Saints’ goal linebacker, in addition to his various other roles. He might just be a position-suitability mistake, an outrageous cheat code. (Or he’s just the same old Taysom and you cut him in October. But hey, he’s fun.)
