Keeper League Mailbag. Should you keep Jonathan Taylor?

Preseason football is here! It’s certainly not the same as the regular season, but nevertheless, it’s exciting to have football back. While redraft leagues are almost upon us, other managers are struggling to make their keeper decisions for the year. Sam Wallace polled the Fantasy Life Community Discord for their most pressing keeper questions and broke them down.

When relevant, the cost to keep each player (either a specific pick or a round) is noted in parentheses.

Keeper Question #1: Cooper Kupp or Josh Jacobs?

Submitted by: RevTrev4 Kempner Sports YT

I’m starting off with an easy one. Full disclosure, he’s already keeping Justin Jefferson as his first keeper and needs one more. The preseason hamstring injury isn’t ideal for a wideout nearing the age cliff, but Cooper Kupp is the easy choice here.

It’s worth noting that Kupp finished the year as the WR1 in points per game (PPG) at 22.4 in PPR scoring. Jefferson came in second at 21.7. The elite upside is still there and Kupp has essentially zero target competition.

Jacobs certainly has workhorse appeal in redraft leagues, assuming his contract situation is resolved, but give me Kupp in both redraft and keeper/dynasty formats.

Imagine setting your lineup for the week and seeing that your opponent has both Jefferson AND Kupp…no thanks.

Keeper Question #2: Pick one of these five

Submitted by: Dollar Bill

Saquon Barkley (pick 1.12)
DK Metcalf (5.12)
Antonio Gibson (7.12)
Kadarius Toney (8.1)
Desmond Ridder (16.1)

This is a Superflex league, so my eyes immediately went to Desmond Ridder. However, a closer look at our rankings shows that he’s the consensus QB31. Only Baker Mayfield is ranked lower among starting QBs. I would rather plug a different positional player into the SF slot than roll with Ridder.

My focus then shifted to Saquon Barkley. He doesn’t carry a Round 1 grade for our rankers, so even though he’s immensely talented, this manager is actually paying a premium for him.

Dec 4, 2022; Inglewood, California, USA; Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf (14) celebrates after a touchdown in the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

The biggest value (and winner) here is DK Metcalf. He’s a Top 30 overall player for us this year which puts him in the middle of Round 3. Getting him a full two rounds later, coupled with his massive upside, makes him my choice.

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Keeper Question #3: Need one of the following…

DK Metcalf (6th Round)
Chris Godwin (7th)
Drake London (7th)

Submitted by: chrisdeville

Every year it feels like there are so many WR2s. We know who the top guys are (Jefferson, Chase, Kupp) but there seem to be 20-25 players who could all finish as a WR2.

With a nice linear progression of cost for each of these players, I’ll stay chalky and run with Metcalf. He’s the most expensive but also our highest-ranked (WR15) compared to Chris Godwin (WR30) and Drake London (WR22).

When looking at pass-catchers, it’s important to analyze their environment in addition to their cost. Metcalf has the best QB of the bunch, hands down. The other two wideouts are talented, but will have bottom-five passing offenses for much of the year. As mentioned in the previous question, Ridder and Mayfield are ranked 31st and 32nd respectively.

Keeper Question #4: Pick two of these studs

Jonathan Taylor
Derrick Henry
Tony Pollard
CeeDee Lamb
AJ Brown
Amon-Ra St. Brown

Submitted by: Chris S

So many great players, not enough keeper slots for all of them.

This one is going to hurt, but that’s why we do what we do. For the people.

I’ll get right to it and keep CeeDee Lamb and AJ Brown. Sure, it may not come across as a very high-T move by shelving elite RBs like Jonathan Taylor, Derrick Henry, and Tony Pollard, but I’m secure in myself.

Both Fantasy Life rankings and Underdog ADP have Lamb and Brown as Round 1 picks. None of the other players here can claim that.

In his first season with Philly, Brown finally got the volume we’ve been begging for. He turned 145 targets into 88/1496/11 and finished as the WR6. Right in front of him, Lamb (WR5) hauled in 107 of his 156 targets for 1359 yards and 9 TDs.

Elite players getting elite volume: You absolutely love to see it. You can figure out RB later with some of my favorite targets in Antonio Gibson and Cam Akers.

Keeper Question #5: Pick two of these high-ceiling studs

Jonathan Taylor
Kenneth Walker
Amon-Ra St. Brown
CeeDee Lamb
Travis Kelce

Submitted by: drhammond

It’s fun to see similar names pop up once in a while. It keeps me on my toes and ensures I’m properly valuing players across similar positions.

Travis Kelce is the easiest keeper of all time. He’s finished as the TE1 in six of the last seven years, and the one year he didn’t finish as the TE1, he was the TE2. So yeah, he’s #good.

Jan 21, 2023; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) runs the ball against Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Foyesade Oluokun (23) and safety Rayshawn Jenkins (2) during the second half in the AFC divisional round game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

I’m going back to the well here and will take Lamb as my second keeper. With no specific round/pick cost, give me the best overall player and that’s Lamb without hesitation.

Keeper Question #6: I can keep three of these seven

Davante Adams ($45)
CeeDee Lamb ($35)
Dak Prescott ($19)
Derek Carr ($9)
DeAndre Hopkins ($5)
David Njoku ($2)
Daniel Jones ($1)

Submitted by: Speert

This is the first auction league scenario which adds another fun element. In this example, it’s a 1QB PPR format with a $200 salary cap.

Normally I don’t worry too much about QBs in a 1QB league because I trust that I’ll be able to snag a later-round guy to plug in (or just stream the position altogether). However, seeing Daniel Jones listed at just $1 makes him the first keeper for me. Jones is our consensus QB13 and offers a rushing component to raise both his floor and ceiling.

Knowing I wasn’t going to be keeping more than one QB, and not being all that interested in David Njoku, it came down to deciding which two of Davante Adams, DeAndre Hopkins, and Lamb I was going to keep.

Call me crazy, but I’m leaving Adams on the sideline and rolling with Hopkins and Lamb. Lamb is the best of the bunch here (and cheaper than Adams) so the decision came down to the cost difference between Adams and Hopkins. Adams is rightfully ranked higher (WR8 vs WR25) but Hopkins is no slouch.

Last season, Hopkins finished as the WR9 in PPG and could thrive as the alpha WR in Tennessee. If the cost was closer between him and Adams, I would lean toward Adams. Give me the value on Hopkins and free up cap space for other assets.