My Grind on Handcuff Rankings
Okay, let me tell you how I got into this whole ‘handcuff rankings’ thing. It wasn’t because I read some fancy article. Nope. It started a few seasons back when my star running back, the guy I built my whole fantasy team around, went down in Week 3. Done for the year. And guess what? I hadn’t bothered grabbing his backup. Someone else scooped him off waivers, and my season basically went down the toilet right then and there. That sucked. I told myself, never again.
So, the next summer, I decided I needed a plan. I started digging into depth charts. Not just looking at the official team websites, ’cause sometimes those are just guesses, right? I tried to figure out who the real number two guy was behind the main starters.
My process went something like this:
- Identify the clear starters: Easy enough. Who are the bell cows, the guys expected to get most of the work?
- Look at the backups: Who is listed as RB2? Is there an RB3 who looks more talented or fits the system better if the starter goes down?
- Consider injury history: Is the starter known for getting banged up? If yes, that backup becomes way more important.
- Think about the offense: Does this team lean heavily on one back? If so, the handcuff has huge potential. If they use a committee anyway, maybe the backup isn’t worth as much.
- Watch preseason (if possible): Sometimes you see how they use guys. Who gets the goal-line reps when the starter sits? Who plays on passing downs? Little clues.
It wasn’t straightforward, let me tell ya. Some teams make it obvious. You know if Player X gets hurt, Player Y is the next man up, getting almost all the work. Perfect handcuff scenario. But other teams? It’s a total mess. Maybe they have two guys behind the starter, and you don’t know who’d get the main job. Or maybe they’d just sign some veteran free agent instead of trusting their own backups. That makes ranking them a real headache.
So, I gathered all this info, mostly just scribbled notes, watched some highlights, read training camp reports – you know, the usual obsessive stuff. Then I tried to put them in order. Who would I want most if the starter went down? It wasn’t just about talent; it was about the guaranteed workload they’d likely get. Opportunity is key in fantasy, right?
I made my list. Ranked maybe the top 10 or 15 guys I thought were the most valuable handcuffs. Felt pretty good about it, like I had some secret knowledge for my draft.
Putting it into Practice
Come draft day, I kept my list handy. Towards the later rounds, when people are grabbing flyers or defenses, I started looking at my handcuff rankings. If the backup to one of my main running backs was still there, and ranked high on my list, I grabbed him. Yeah, maybe it felt like a ‘wasted’ pick to others, just grabbing an insurance policy. But after getting burned before, it felt necessary.
One year, it paid off big time. My second-round RB got injured mid-season. But I had his handcuff stashed on my bench, thanks to my list. Plugged him right in, and he finished as a top-15 RB the rest of the way. Saved my season, probably won me the league, actually.
Another year? The starter stayed perfectly healthy. The handcuff just sat there on my bench, taking up space I could have used on someone else who broke out. So, it’s definitely not a guaranteed win every time. It’s a strategy, a bit of a gamble.
But honestly? I still do it every year now. I spend a bit of time before the season making my handcuff rankings. It’s part of my prep. It takes effort, sure, and it’s not always clear who the right guy is. But I’d rather spend that time and have a plan, even if it doesn’t always work out, than get caught flat-footed when an injury inevitably happens. It just feels smarter, being prepared for the worst.
