As we gear up to the start of the NFL season, Football Absurdity is going to bring you a comprehensive breakdown of every notable player that will be available in fantasy football drafts. Saquon Barkley is on the short list of players who entered the league as promised fantasy football superstars without disappointing. What is his value like for 2020 fantasy football leagues?
Saquon Barkley ADP and AAV:
Standard Scoring ADP: RB2, 2 overall
PPR Scoring ADP: RB2, 2 overall
Average Auction Value: $73
Saquon Barkley Statistics:
| Year | 2019 | 2018 |
| G | 13 | 16 |
| GS | 13 | 16 |
| Ru Att | 217 | 261 |
| Ru Yds | 1003 | 1307 |
| Ru TD | 6 | 11 |
| Tgt | 73 | 121 |
| Rec | 52 | 91 |
| Yards | 438 | 721 |
| TD | 2 | 4 |
| Touches | 269 | 352 |
| Opp | 290 | 382 |
| Total Yards | 1441 | 2028 |
| Year | 2019 | 2018 |
| YPC | 4.62 | 5.01 |
| Ru Att/G | 16.7 | 16.3 |
| Ru Yd/G | 77.2 | 81.7 |
| Tgt/G | 5.62 | 7.56 |
| Rec/G | 4.00 | 5.69 |
| Catch% | 71.2% | 75.2% |
| Yds/Tgt | 6.00 | 5.96 |
| Yds/Rec | 8.42 | 7.92 |
| Touches/G | 20.69 | 22.00 |
| Opp/G | 22.31 | 23.88 |
| Yds/G | 110.85 | 126.75 |
| Year | 2019 | 2018 |
| Std Pts | 192.1 | 294.8 |
| HPPR Pts | 218.1 | 340.3 |
| PPR Pts | 244.1 | 385.8 |
| Pts/G | 14.78 | 18.43 |
| HPPR Pts/G | 16.78 | 21.27 |
| PPR Pts/G | 18.78 | 24.11 |
| Pts/Touch | 0.71 | 0.84 |
| Pts/Touch (HPPR) | 0.81 | 0.97 |
| Pts/Touch (PPR) | 0.91 | 1.10 |
Saquon Barkley Overview:
Saquon Barkley is already one of the best running backs in the league, and one of the best fantasy football commodities in all of the land. Last season, he missed a few weeks with an ankle injury and returned way too early, which made him pretty bad for a few weeks. In his first four weeks back from his sprained ankle, Barkley averaged 2.58 yards per carry and didn’t look too hot trying to run the football. Luckily, Barkley was still able to get going in the open field and averaged 46 receiving yards per game in the same timeframe, so it wallpapered over his rushing struggles.
Barkley was on pace for over 2,000 total yards last year before injuring his ankle, and 2,000 after he healed a bit from his ankle injury. There’s a lot to like about Saquon packed in his 2019 season, with an unfortunate ankle injury in the middle that gummed up the works for the overall numbers. Saquon is now set up for a big 2020, and there aren’t really two ways about it. The Giants ranked middle-of-the-pack in run blocking last season (#17 according to profootballfocus.com), and added two great blockers in Andrew Thomas and Matt Peart in the draft.
Saquon Barkley Draft Strategy:
Saquon Barkley Auction Value: $69 (nice)
Draft Ranking: Find out for your league settings in a Beersheet! (coming late June)
Barkley is my #3 running back on the season, but I fear that might be too low. He’s not leapfrogging #1, Christian McCaffrey, but he’s arguably on par with my #2, Alvin Kamara. Kamara and Barkley both suffered from ankle injuries that derailed their 2019 seasons, and both should be recovered entering 2020. It’s really difficult to make a wrong pick at #2 or #3 between Barkley and Kamara, but I am taking the Saints offense over the Giants for 2020, explaining the razor-thin difference there.
To be fair, if CMC is off the board, there’s no bad time to take Saquon Barkley. Kamara is one of my favorite players in the league, but Barkley is one of the best running backs, so it’s dealer’s choice insofar as which one you take. If you love nose rings, go with Kamara. If you love giant, meaty quads, then Barkley is probably your guy.
In an auction draft, Evan Hoovler’s Barbecue Strategy leaves you with enough money leftover to snag another WR1 or RB1 after getting Barkley, so you can go out and get him and still have a path to building a good team around him.
Best Case Scenario:
Saquon Barkley scores fifteen touchdowns, goes for 2,000 yards and enters the discussion as the #1 in 2021.
Worst Case Scenario:
Strapped for cash, Saquon Barkley discovers an extremely niche method of making money and pursues that avenue forward.
[Statistics are sourced from pro-football-reference.com and airyards.com]
