David Phillippi looks at the Zero RB Countdown through a dynasty lens and provides a glimpse into how you can use this redraft resource to evaluate your dynasty squads.
I began building my modest but much-loved dynasty “portfolio” with two start-ups in 2015, and was nearing the double-digit league mark in 2018 when I launched a home SF/TE premium best ball league that I still haven’t won despite making up the rules. Now entering Year 9, I sit at 23 after adding two more orphans this offseason.
Along the way, I’ve tried to apply the principles of Zero RB to my roster construction, which hopefully leads to good exposure to Countdown Candidates by the time the list drops each year. It’s precisely because the Zero RB countdown is redraft focused that it is so useful as a last-minute crosscheck for dynasty managers who are preparing themselves to finally enter what I’m hearing more people call “the point scoring season.”
Yep, that’s how we’re talking about the actual football season now.
Note: I used RotoViz TriFlex FFPC ADP for the entirety of 2023 since I’m reviewing how I’ve handled these players even dating back to previous seasons, but in a few cases I drill down further to double check for recent changes.
Reshaping Your Dynasty Roster
No. 15 – Evan Hull
RotoViz TriFlex FFPC ADP: 211.9, RB67
Rostership: 34.8%, 8/23 teams
Offseason Moves: Drafted 4.02 (x2), 4.05, 4.06, 4.07, 4.08 (then traded + 5.08 for Israel Abanikanda + Tyquan Thornton), 4.11, 4.12, June waivers: $57 FAAB
When the original list dropped with Sean Tucker at the 15 slot, I was not off to a great start. But with Shawn’s update, a name I became a little too comfortable clicking in Round 4 across all formats just appeared, like a rabbit Jim Irsay decided to pull out of his hat.
I do think there were good reasons to load up on Hull even before this scenario played out (the athleticism and receiving profile, consecutive seasons with over 100 scrimmage yards per game), but I never imagined he could get so potentially close to the goal line in Week 1 while a maybe mostly healthy Jonathan Taylor holds out.
Thoughts/Next Steps: Where will we find next year’s Hull? RB contracts were in the spotlight going into the offseason and I consume a lot of football content, but I don’t recall much talk about Taylor’s situation being already potentially problematic for 2023. I suppose the takeaway here is that literally only the just-got-paid guys are safe? Often I was selecting Eric Gray (RV TriFlex 214.7 RB69, 7/23 teams) in this same range — if Saquon Barkley had truly soured on the Giants, maybe that play could have worked out the way this one might. At this point I’m certainly not looking to acquire more Hull — just watching for any news indicating that he might get a usable workload and checking if things are desperate enough on any of the rosters where he resides to possibly fire him up in Week 1.
David finished in the top 100 of Best Ball Mania 3. He makes his debut on RotoViz Overtime to help Shawn and Colm draft a juggernaut.
