One of the most important strategies to building a successful fantasy football roster is waiting on the quarterback position. There are so many quarterbacks that post great numbers in today’s NFL and the difference between them all is so slight, that reaching for one in the first, second or even fourth round is extremely unwise.
If one follows this strategy for years, the same group of consistent quarterbacks are going to fall into your lap in the seventh, eighth and ninth rounds. One of those signal callers in recent years has been Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo.
But after his worst statistical season (due to injury) since becoming a starter, it might be very hard to trust Romo as a true QB1 in 2016.
The Cowboys signal caller has suffered a slew of injuries over the last eight years. His first major injury came in 2010 when a sprained shoulder prevented him from playing in the final 10 games of the season. Practically every year since, whether it has been a bruised hand or herniated disc, something has gone awry with Romo’s healthy.
Last season, his fantasy owners’ worst nightmare came true, as he suffered a broken collar bone in Week 2. He returned to play two games, but Romo re-injured his collar bone on Thanksgiving and then missed the rest of the season.
The reason why Romo should still be on fantasy radars is because of his spectacular 2014 season, particularly his play during December of that year. If readers recall, Dallas was a run-oriented offense that year, as DeMarco Murray led the league in rushing, but Romo still threw for 3,705 yards and 34 touchdowns.
In December of 2014, he had 987 yards, 12 touchdowns and just one interception. During the most critical month of the fantasy season, Romo averaged 21.37 fantasy points in standard leagues. Dez Bryant was an absolute monster that season too. He led all wide receivers with 16 touchdowns, including six the final four games of the year.
But even in that special season, Romo dealt with injury problems. He fractured the transverse process in his back during Week 8 against Washington. Fortunately, he missed only one game, which was the worst outing for Bryant of the season. If Romo doesn’t gut out his back injury, there’s probably no fantasy championship for either his owners or Bryant’s that season.
Now at 36, it’s not realistic to expect Romo to stay completely healthy for the first time since 2012. And as he gets older, it’s only going to be harder for him to be productive at less than 100 percent. Because he’s coming off an injury-plagued year, it’s very likely owners can draft him late, but as previously stated, there are so many quality quarterbacks that it seems rather silly to put a championship in Romo’s hands and his ability to stay healthy.
That being said, Romo is a guy who can still provide value if paired with another middle-tier fantasy quarterback.
Fantasy Pros currently ranks the Cowboys quarterback No. 12 on its rankings list, which basically means the consensus considers him a eighth-round pick and a low-end QB1 in 12-team leagues. Even in formats that size or bigger, Romo’s injury past should make owners uncomfortable selecting him to be a starter. But if owners could also grab Derek Carr, Andy Dalton or Jameis Winston in either of the next two rounds as insurance, then drafting Romo as a starting quarterback is perfectly fine.
Again, in 12-team leagues, Romo likely won’t be drafted until the eighth round. If one waits that long for quarterback, then the first seven rounds can be used to fill the rest of the starting lineup and even some bench spots. If the entire starting lineup is already complete, taking quarterback in back-to-back rounds shouldn’t be a problem.
In smaller leagues (8 or 10 teams), a similar strategy can be used like this: Tom Brady and Philip Rivers are going a couple rounds ahead of the Cowboys quarterback. Grab one of those great quarterbacks and then draft Romo as a backup.
A Brady-Romo pairing could be extremely lethal this season. Brady’s value takes a huge hit because he is expected to miss four games, but Romo should be able to fill in nicely and then become the backup for your team once Brady returns.
As last year showed, Romo can get hurt at anytime, but counting on him being healthy for four weeks is a lot better than relying on him the entire season. Plus, Brady is as reliable as they come, as he hasn’t missed any games since 2008.
To summarize, expecting Romo to be a QB1 all by himself would be foolish, but selected late enough and paired in the right platoon, he can still provide a lot of value if healthy.
The post Target Tony Romo late in fantasy drafts, but not as QB1 appeared first on Today's Pigskin.
