2 QB Or Not 2 QB

  Posted 8/6 by Jeff Pasquino - Exclusive to Footballguys.com

If you have been playing fantasy football for at least a few years you have seen how each position affects the performance of your team. You know how valuable starting running backs are in your league. Some leagues and owners that dislike the minimization of wide receivers implement a point per reception, or "PPR", rule to increase receiver values. Other leagues give bonuses to tight ends, such as two points for a catch or more points per yard, while others just drop the tight end requirement altogether. All those leagues seem to have the same shortcoming - a depressed value on the quarterback position.

So what is the answer? How do you bring the value of Pro Bowlers like Drew Brees and Tom Brady back to the top? Consider changing your starting lineup requirements by requiring every team to start two quarterbacks.

Are Two Heads Better Than One?

There will most assuredly be opposition to this change (unless you are starting from scratch). I have heard many of the arguments for and against making the switch.

The arguments for going to a "Start 2 QB" system begin with the idea that it accentuates the most important position in the NFL - starting quarterback. Why should 20-30 running backs be worth more than the overwhelming majority of NFL signal callers? Starting two quarterbacks brings the position back to its rightful status as a crucial element to your fantasy roster.

Another case for starting two quarterbacks is a comparison of the scarcity of starting quarterbacks and starting running backs. There are only 32 starters at each position, so why not have two starters from each? Proponents of this idea like to mention that 64 different quarterbacks started at least one game in 2007, an NFL record, and in both 2008 and 2006 there were at least 50 unique starters. That is a fair point, but on a given week in the NFL the number of quarterbacks that played is usually equal to the number of teams in action. The names may change due to injury, but for the most part you know a few days in advance who will be calling plays in the huddle for every team in a given week.

The analogy of quarterbacks to running backs continues to fall apart under closer scrutiny. Running backs are often exchanged for one another during a given game, yet it is rare for an NFL quarterback to not finish a game aside from an injury replacement. You can get away with starting the second or third running back on a team for a week, knowing that he will get a few chances to give you at least a few points. That does not translate over to the quarterback as the QB stat line for most NFL games usually consists of one entry per team.

Opponents to switching to a two quarterback lineup mention that there are not enough starting quarterbacks in the NFL to go around, especially in leagues with 12 teams or more. With so few options, rostering any depth becomes rather difficult. Injuries and bye weeks create difficulties in fielding two starters each and every week. However, I believe that this adds to the challenge - can you handle all these issues and be competitive to win your league?

There is one more thing to consider when deciding on using two starting quarterbacks. If you want to have a league that emphasizes in-season trading, then this option is really for you. Redraft leagues that start one quarterback rarely see trades that include a quarterback. Even if a trade is brokered, sadly the low value of quarterback is put on display yet again as a solid NFL passer may be traded for a marginal talent at running back or wide receiver. The reason for this is that starting quarterbacks are often available on the waiver wire and in free agency. All of those conditions change dramatically in a league that doubles the number of quarterback starters.

Death, Taxes and....

Some quarterbacks just seem to be more durable than others. When you are starting two quarterbacks, it is a huge boost to your roster if you can find a capable starter that can be inserted into your lineup week after week without worrying if he will be available. Only four quarterbacks - Eli Manning, Brett Favre, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees - have become their team's perennial starter and not missed a game in over four seasons (and Philip Rivers has not missed a game in three years either). Of course, Brett Favre is retired (as I type, might want to check on that) so let's scratch his name off the list - leaving Brees, Rivers and the Manning brothers. The value of having stalwart signal callers like these four represent more than just their performances week after week - stabilizing your roster also adds value.

There are a number of other quarterbacks that are likely to start 16 games this season provided they are healthy. Some teams, however, are having a competition for the starter role or have young talent chomping at the bit to get under center in 2009. With so much turmoil at quarterback, we need to see just who would deserve to be selected in a two quarterback league draft.

Draftable QBs

With that in mind, it becomes very important to know the NFL quarterback depth charts, and who is worth of selecting on Draft Day. Here is my view on who is available and their viability for this year:

• Arizona Cardinals - Kurt Warner, Matt Leinart
• Atlanta Falcons - Matt Ryan
• Baltimore Ravens - Joe Flacco, Troy Smith
• Buffalo Bills - Trent Edwards
• Carolina Panthers - Jake Delhomme
• Chicago Bears - Jay Cutler
• Cincinnati Bengals - Carson Palmer
• Cleveland Browns - Derek Anderson, Brady Quinn
• Dallas Cowboys - Tony Romo, Jon Kitna
• Denver Broncos - Kyle Orton, Chris Simms
• Detroit Lions - Daunte Culpepper, Matthew Stafford
• Green Bay Packers - Aaron Rodgers
• Houston Texans - Matt Schaub, Dan Orlovsky
• Indianapolis Colts - Peyton Manning
• Jacksonville Jaguars - David Garrard
• Kansas City Chiefs - Matt Cassel, Tyler Thigpen
• Miami Dolphins - Chad Pennington, Chad Henne
• Minnesota Vikings - Sage Rosenfels, Tarvaris Jackson
• New England Patriots - Tom Brady
• New Orleans Saints - Drew Brees
• New York Giants - Eli Manning
• New York Jets - Mark Sanchez, Kellen Clemens
• Oakland Raiders - JaMarcus Russell, Jeff Garcia
• Philadelphia Eagles - Donovan McNabb
• Pittsburgh Steelers - Ben Roethlisberger, Charlie Batch
• San Diego Chargers - Philip Rivers
• San Francisco 49ers - Shaun Hill, Alex Smith
• Seattle Seahawks - Matt Hasselbeck, Seneca Wallace
• St. Louis Rams - Marc Bulger, Kyle Boller
• Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Luke McCown, Byron Leftwich, Josh Freeman
• Tennessee Titans - Kerry Collins, Vince Young
• Washington Redskins - Jason Campbell

That's 26 quarterbacks that will likely be starters (BLUE), 15 more that are competing for playing time or likely to see action (GREEN), and another six that are flyers that may see playing time in certain situations this year (PURPLE). Players in BLACK have little chance of seeing time unless an injury occurs. I could see 45-50 of these names being drafted in a typical 12-team, 20-round redraft league employing two starting quarterbacks. That translates to all the quarterbacks in BLUE and GREEN above and a few of those in PURPLE.

Keep in mind that things change quickly in the NFL, and a few names that are out of the league such as Michael Vick or (dare I say) Brett Favre could return.

Draft Day

I ran a mock draft for twelve teams using just the auto-draft option, but that did not tell me very much beyond what I expected - that you cannot wait too long to select your quarterbacks. So I decided that I needed to do a more hands-on mock, pretending to be the owner of all 12 teams, and see if I could come up with competitive teams at each draft position.

Here are the results:

Looking over the teams, I noticed:

• There were 45 QBs taken, with every team taking at least three.
• Teams definitely take QBs much earlier in this system. Three teams took a QB in Round 1, and six more by the end of Round 3.
• All teams had at least one QB by the end of Round 4, with two teams grabbing two with their first four picks.
• Eight of 12 teams had two QBs by the end of Round 6. Teams 4, 7 and 9 addressed the shortfall in Round 7 as they grabbed their second starters, but Team 1 waited until Round 8, approaching the problem in more of a committee approach with both 49ers QBs.
• Rounds 9-10 seemed quite popular from a value standpoint for a QB3 run
• Handcuffs were not that difficult to secure.
• Bye weeks are a definite factor.
• Being one of the first teams with 3 QBs was advantageous - Team 11 had Jay Cutler, Eli Manning and Marc Bulger in Round 8, for example.
• From Round 14 onward, 6 of 7 quarterbacks were handcuffs for their respective owners.

Putting Our Two Heads Together

Some lessons learned from the mock draft:

• It is OK to wait on picking your first quarterback, but be one of the first to get your second and third QB.
• With 45 QBs selected, teams taking 4 or 5 quarterbacks are at a disadvantage. Depth on your roster may suffer at other positions if you have to use 20-25% of your team for QB. While quarterbacks will likely score a good number of points for your team, the issues of depth at running back and wide receiver may present themselves later in the year.
• There was no overall trend to a quarterback run - only Round 4 had more than four QBs within the round, and they exceeded that number by only one signal caller.
• Selection of two solid starters early with later bye weeks allows for a team to build depth at other positions and wait on a midseason injury replacement to cover bye weeks. Team 12 employed this strategy and can hope that a waiver wire pickup opportunity arises for Pittsburgh's and Seattle's bye weeks.

Conclusions

Now your draft is over, you have some good quarterback starters, and there are some teams that have issues in your league at the position. These teams will be hungry all year for improving their team if they are to have a chance to compete. Be sure that your commissioner has set up your league for these owners to get back into the mix by implementing these supporting rules.

• Trades - These have to be permitted and encouraged. Any rules that might stifle trade activities have to be looked over and possibly scrapped. Quarterbacks now have much more value, and trading for QBs will promote trades amongst all the other positions. Consider this an added benefit of starting two quarterbacks, as your owners should now be far more active during the season
• Roster Depth - This should be done BEFORE the draft, but at the very least you need to allow for additional player room. As shown by the mock draft above, having 3-4 QBs on a roster is common, so adding 1-2 more roster slots would be warranted
• Waiver Wire - This is a critical step. Every owner will be after the next second-string quarterback that will be thrust into a starting job when the starter goes down with an injury (just like a starting running back). Determining how to claim players in a reasonable fashion such as blind bidding or a closed market until Tuesday or Wednesday would be prudent maneuvers.

I hope that many of you consider the positives of running or joining two quarterback leagues. They are a lot of fun to play in, and I make a point of joining at least one per year. The strategy and entertainment value alone are worth the effort to find one, and I encourage everyone to try this alternative league style.

As always, feedback is welcome at pasquino@footballguys.com.