You guys aren't going to believe this, but Arthur Smith is threatening to galaxy brain valuable touches away from his best players once again.

Yes, the man who famously derived more pleasure scheming up touches for Jonnu Smith instead of Kyle Pitts in Atlanta is ready to do it all over again in Pittsburgh with a familiar name.

Despite one of the better one-two punches in the league at RB in Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren, Cordarrelle Patterson hype is starting to bubble up from Steelers camp.

Now to be fair to Arthur–and I don't really want to be–the recent quotes about CPatt don't come from Smith (or Mike Tomlin), but we all know that Patterson is Smith's guy.

Patterson has previously self-proclaimed himself the "Joker" because he's up to do whatever is needed on the football field. 

The concerning quote actually comes from RB coach Eddie Faulkner: "We can use him in a lot of different ways, and I am sure we will dabble in that when we get going. He sits in my room, and the running back position encompasses all things, both in the backfield and out of the backfield, so it is probably the best room to be in right now.”

I'm only being slightly hyperbolic when pointing this out as a concern. A huge selling point of the Harris and Warren selections–and they are both priced favorably–is the fact that it is a clear 2-man backfield.

We know that two backs from the same team can hit (see: David Montgomery + Jahmyr Gibbs and Raheem Mostert + De'Von Achane) if a third isn't muddying the waters, so this is a development that demands our attention.. 

Unfortunately, there's only one safe bet in an Arthur Smith offense and that is bet on tomfoolery. Stay tuned.

What is in today’s newsletter?

  • Chris Allen walks you through the optimal draft strategy from 1.06.
  • Watercooler: Jordan Addison’s suspension?
Drafting from 1.06

Optimal Draft Strategy with the No. 6 Pick

Drafting from the sixth overall slot has a few perks that fantasy gamers miss.

Primarily, your first-round pick becomes easier to make. The folks in the fourth and fifth spots take two players off the board. With fewer options, your decision tree becomes a bit smaller.

Additionally, building from the middle of the pack gives you some control over positional runs. Most importantly, the 1.06 allows savvy managers a chance to harness ADP to their advantage.

From other slots, we’re waiting longer to draft our next player. As a result, we’re either forced to grab a player ahead of ADP or make bets on whether we can push them to the next round.

However, a reach from the six-spot typically doesn’t look as aggressive. In any case, let’s build a few teams from the 1.06 to find an optimal approach to building a team from the middle of the draft.

The First Round

Draft Settings: PPR, Standard Roster (1QB, 2RB, 3WR, 1TE, 1 FLEX)

I prefer WR-heavy builds from an earlier slot. Essentially, I want to make my strength stronger. However, the WRs available here aren’t as strong. You could talk me into an RB start.

So, I used our Draft Champion tool to give me some ideas:

The Draft Assistant’s top pick seems like a no-brainer. Detroit’s Sun God torched opposing defenders with the fourth-most points per game of any WR while setting career highs in every metric, from raw targets to YPRR. But the Lions ranked 25th in PROE and 30th in RZ PROE. Josh Reynolds earned more looks from inside the five-yard line. Consequently, I looked at the other available suggestions.

  • Garrett Wilson
  • Bijan Robinson
  • A.J. Brown
  • Puka Nacua

Surprisingly, Breece Hall (another Tier 1 RB) didn’t make the cut. Regardless, the larger takeaway was an RB start was viable, given who was on the board. Accordingly, I could start a mini-multiverse around the suggestions.

  • Team 1: Amon-Ra St. Brown
  • Team 2: Bijan Robinson
  • Team 3: A.J. Brown

However, our rosters aren’t solely defined by our first pick. Let’s plow through the rest of the early rounds and create a core to build around.

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Around the Watercooler

The latest fantasy nuggets, silliness, and NFL gossip from our merry band of football nerds:

🤔 Are you buying or selling a Year 2 breakout? Dive into JSN’s potential outcomes for 2024.

🏎️ The NFL’s newest elite wide receiver. How high is the ceiling on Maserati Marv?

🚑️ A health update on Xavier Worthy. Good news here.

⚖️ A legal mind weighs in on Jordan Addison. What to expect.

📆 The countdown to kickoff. So close, yet so far away.

👀 Jason Kelce still hanging around? Here’s the intel.

🤩 A rookie WR is already being comped to a superstar. And it’s not the WR in Arizona…