It’s not just who you draft, it’s when you draft them. You’ve probably heard this or some variation 100 times, but it’s definitely true. Fantasy owners really need to be on their toes to guess when their competitors will take a certain player. There are a lot of things that can affect the general perception of a specific player. For instance, if every single “expert” is raving about the same guy as a great target in the middle round, you’re going to have to be very aggressive to pick him up.
Carlos Hyde ADP: Why Yahoo! fantasy football ranks him lower than ESPN
Carlos Hyde is set for a new role as the starting back. How should you approach drafting him in your fantasy football league based on your platform?
Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Additionally, the platform for your draft is going to affect the average draft position. Not all sites feel exactly the same, so there will be some discrepancy on the ADP. For instance, if Yahoo! ranks Player X at 25 and ESPN ranks him at 75, his ADP on Yahoo! will be much higher than on ESPN. If some sneaky commish wanted to, he could choose his platform based on the rankings alone. If ESPN has his favorite guys higher than Yahoo!, he would want to do it on Yahoo!.
One other thing worth addressing is that ESPN uses two receivers and one flex while Yahoo! uses three receivers and no flex. This has very little impact on the rankings, but it’s just something to think about.
San Francisco 49ers running back Carlos Hyde doesn't have a big difference, but let's take a look.
ESPN rank: 33Yahoo! rank: 43Fantasy Football Calculator (FFC) ADP: 42
Hyde is likely in good shape for when the 49ers are going to be in a running situation, but he could wind up losing playing time to Reggie Bush or Kendall Hunter. Hyde turned in a solid 4.0 yards per carry last season, but he did only have 12 catches. Meanwhile, Bush has been one of the better options in the passing game in his career.
Usually, that’s not a huge issue to lose work on passing downs, but the problem is the 49ers aren’t exactly set up to have a successful defense. If Hyde does in fact lose out on the passing downs, his ceiling is really just an RB3, which would mean you shouldn’t be taking him before 40.
Hyde’s ADP is also starting to slide a bit, so owners in Yahoo! leagues might be able to get him in the fifth. If you want him in an ESPN league, it might cost you a fourth, which is pretty steep.
