I have the No. 3 overall pick in my fantasy draft, and I am just not sold on Maurice Jones-Drew. His schedule just looks way too tough, and I'm worried about his knee problem. What are your thoughts on MJD this season? - E. Recknor, Tampa, Fla.
Michael Fabiano: If you have some doubts about Jones-Drew, I would pass on him and draft Ray Rice instead. But if I have the third overall pick and MJD is the best running back on the board, I'm taking him. The Jaguars are giving him several weeks to rest his knee (he didn't require surgery, which was rumored), and he should be good to go when the Jaguars host Denver in Week 1. In terms of his schedule, Jones-Drew actually has one of the more favorable slate of games among running backs. He'll face the Colts (2), Titans (2), Broncos, Chiefs, Raiders, Chargers, Browns and Bills among his opponents. Four of those teams were in the top five in allowing the most fantasy points to running backs last season. If you do decide to draft Jones-Drew, I'd also grab Rashad Jennings as insurance in the late rounds.
I have Ray Rice as my No. 1 running back and picked up Willis McGahee in the late rounds as a handcuff. However, running backs like Montario Hardesty, Fred Jackson and Laurence Maroney are available on the waiver wire. Should I keep McGahee? - P. Burbank, Canada
M.F.: The art of the handcuff is a popular and important draft strategy, but if you're in a smaller fantasy league I think it holds a little less value. If you can land a potential sleeper like Hardesty, who I think will end up starting ahead of Jerome Harrison for the Browns, I would make the move. I think handcuffing is far more prevalent in leagues with 12-plus teams, where running backs are few and far between in the late rounds. In those cases, it makes a lot of sense to land McGahee if you have Rice. I'd even draft someone like Javon Ringer to handcuff Chris Johnson or Bernard Scott to insure Cedric Benson in larger fantasy leagues.
I have the No. 2 overall pick in a 12-team league. It seems that everyone is in love in Arian Foster, and I like him more than some of the other running backs ranked ahead of him. Would it be a stretch to take Foster in the third round? - A. Richard, Canada
M.F.: I admit that I have also developed some fantasy love for Foster over the last few weeks. Once Ben Tate went down for the season, Foster went from a deep sleeper to someone who I thought would warrant early- to middle-round consideration. I actually landed Foster in the sixth round of the recent NFL Network draft. What's more, he's now owned in 83.4 percent of NFL.com leagues. I do think that the third round is a little too soon to draft him, but you're also right that he'll likely be gone by the time it's your time to pick in Round 4. While I have a total of 16 backs ranked ahead of him, I wouldn't argue if you took Foster ahead of Grant, Knowshon Moreno or Pierre Thomas. I'll also tell you the same thing I tell everyone else - at the end of the day this is your team, and if you like Foster that much you should take him.
I'm in a standard league that awards one point for every 25 rushing and receiving yards and a four-point bonus for every 100 yards. We are required to retain three players, and I'm definitely keeping Aaron Rodgers and Chris Johnson. Who do you think I should keep with my final spot between Jamaal Charles, Matt Forte, Greg Jennings and Sidney Rice? - T. Mann, Canada.
M.F.: I would retain Charles from this list of players. Forte is being undervalued a bit in seasonal drafts, but I don't think he has the same level of statistical upside this season (and beyond) as the Chiefs running back. I also wouldn't keep Jennings or Rice ahead of Charles, who should still put up good numbers even with Thomas Jones in the backfield mix. With Rodgers, Johnson and Charles on your final roster, you'll need to focus solely on wide receivers in the first two rounds of the re-draft.
Do you think it's better to load up on running backs and wide receivers in the early to middle rounds, even at the expense of missing out on an elite tight end or defense? Using this philosophy, I drafted Matt Schaub at quarterback, Rashard Mendenhall, Moreno, LeSean McCoy and Forte at running back and Calvin Johnson, Dwayne Bowe, Hakeem Nicks, Johnny Knox and Malcom Floyd at wide receiver. What do you think? - P. Wimblett, England
M.F.: I've actually utilized a similar strategy in most of my fantasy drafts, but I've waited on quarterbacks rather than tight ends and defenses. With so many good signal-callers around the league, I don't see any reason to reach at the position. While I would love to have someone like Rodgers or Drew Brees (who wouldn't?), I find that I almost always end up being disappointed in my running backs or wide receivers if I use a first-round pick on a quarterback. In an experts draft that was held a few months ago, I took Tom Brady in the third round and ended up with Fred Jackson as my No. 2 running back. If I knew then what I know now about Jackson, of course, I would have never made the move. But if I had passed on Brady, I could have landed someone like Jahvid Best or McCoy and still drafted a pair of quarterbacks like Matt Ryan and Kevin Kolb. In terms of the tight end position, I think you can get someone solid like Jermichael Finley or Tony Gonzalez in the middle rounds and still have a good backfield and solid wide receivers. I never take a defense until one of the final three rounds, so that wouldn't even factor into my draft strategy.
I'm currently in a 10-team standard league with a core of receivers that includes Andre Johnson, Michael Crabtree and Nicks as my starters. I also have Terrell Owens and Bernard Berrian, but Jabar Gaffney is on the waiver wire. Should I drop either T.O. or Berrian to add him? - J. Robinson, Azusa, Calif.
M.F.: I do like Gaffney as a late-round sleeper in most fantasy leagues, but I wouldn't add him at the expense of Owens or Berrian. While I don't expect T.O. to re-emerge into one of the elite wideouts in fantasy football, it's hard not to like what he's shown in the preseason. He's actually seen more targets, caught more passes and had more yards than Chad Ochocinco. He truly looked like Batman to Ochocinco's Robin while the two have been on the field together. As for Berrian, he is also a better commodity than Gaffney now that Rice is going to miss at least the first six games of the season. In fact, he should emerge into one of Brett Favre's best options in the pass attack.
I have Adrian Peterson, Steven Jackson and Shonn Greene in my backfield with Reggie Bush (our league rewards points for return yards) and Chester Taylor as backups. I couldn't pass up Greene in the re-draft, but it left me thin at wide receiver. As it stands, I'll be starting Wes Welker and Josh Cribbs with Nicks, Mike Wallace, Mike Williams and Rice behind them. Should I try to move Peterson for someone like Andre Johnson? I've also received an offer of Foster and Finley for him. Chris Cooley is my current tight end. Would you pull the trigger on anything or wait until the season starts and see what develops? - F. Mitchell, Rhinebeck, N.Y.
M.F.:Â First off, I wouldn't trade Peterson for Foster and Finley. I think you're fine at the tight end position with Cooley, who should rebound and have a very nice season in coach Mike Shanahan's offense. I wouldn't deal A.D. for Johnson, either. However, I would try and trade Jackson and one of your wideouts (Wallace, Nicks), to land A.J., but I'm not sure that's enough to get him unless the other team is desperate for a running back. While the scoring system does make Cribbs more valuable, I can't imagine that the points rewarded for return yards and touchdowns would be great enough to make him a viable No. 2 fantasy wideout. In fact, I think you'll be better off starting Wallace and Nicks ahead of him in most weeks. Wallace, who has shown flashes of brilliance in his short NFL career, has a ton of sleeper potential this season. The same holds true of Nicks, who should emerge into a nice fantasy option with the Giants. I also like Williams as a deep sleeper, and Rice could be valuable in the second half of the year.
I'm in a 12-team PPR league and as the defending champion I have the last pick in Round 1. My plan is to take a running back and a wide receiver with my first two spots. In mock drafts, the running backs available at those picks are almost always Ryan Grant, DeAngelo Williams and Thomas. When I've looked at PPR rankings, Thomas jumps ahead of the others. I like Grant because he is the Packers workhorse, but he doesn't catch the ball. Williams shares the workload with Jonathan Stewart in Carolina, which kind of scares me. Do you think I should go with Thomas? - A. Michaels, Newark, N.J.
M.F.: If this is a seasonal league, there's no reason one of Ryan Mathews, Mendenhall, Steven Jackson or Charles shouldn't be available at the end of the first round. At least one quarterback (and maybe two - Rodgers, Brees) and a wide receiver (likely Andre Johnson) will come off the board before you're up, so I don't think more than eight running backs will be taken in the first 11 spots. Overall, I would take one of the aforementioned quartet of runners (Mathews, Mendenhall, Jackson, Charles) ahead of Grant, Williams and Thomas. I also like your strategy of going running back, wide receiver with those first two selections.
I saw your final roster in the NFL Network league, and people are killing you in the comments section! Any reaction? Personally, I think you have a very solid team as long as Kevin Kolb pans out like you think he will. - L. Meers, Pittsburgh, Pa.
M.F.: I actually talked to Rich Eisen about his draft, and he said his Twitter followers were killing his picks as well. Hey, it happens! Everyone has their opinion. I'm actually pleased with my team. I like Kolb as a sleeper, and Ben Roethlisberger should be solid once he's back from suspension. I was also able to grab Matthew Stafford off waivers, so I can play the match ups between Kolb and Stafford. At running back, Frank Gore, McCoy and Foster should be solid starters - I'll use Foster in my flex spot. My wide outs are strong with Larry Fitzgerald, DeSean Jackson and Ochocinco. I also landed Vincent Jackson, who could be a steal (if he ever comes back this season). I'm not thrilled with Winslow, but he's still a low-end No. 1 fantasy tight. If you want to keep tabs on this league throughout the season, you can do it right here on NFL.com.
This is my first year player fantasy football, and the auto-draft picked a nice core of running backs (Jahvid Best, Pierre Thomas, Forte, Greene), but as a Chargers fan I was hoping to get Ryan Mathews. Would you deal any of my current backs to get him? Also, I have Miles Austin, Greg Jennings, Pierre Garcon, Derrick Mason and Kenny Britt at wide receiver, but Jabar Gaffney and Dwayne Bowe are both available on waivers. Should I drop someone? - B. Griffen, Australia
M.F.: I would actually deal any one of those running backs to get Mathews. I've pretty much been on the Mathews bandwagon since he was drafted by the Chargers, and he's shown nothing but positive signs during the preseason. He'll see a good majority of the carries for coach Norv Turner, who has helped other running backs like Gore, LaMont Jordan and Ricky Williams have their best fantasy seasons. Mathews should also see more than his share of the goal-line work, which just adds to his value. At wide receiver, I would run to your computer right now and pick up Bowe. I have no idea how he's a free agent in your league, but you should be getting him now. I'd drop Mason to acquire the Chiefs wide receiver. He has little chance to post another 1,000-yard season with Anquan Boldin in the mix, and Britt has more upside for this season.
Michael Fabiano is an award-winning fantasy football analyst on NFL.com. Have a burning question for Michael on anything fantasy football related? Leave it in our comments section or send it to **AskFabiano@nfl.com**!
