Fantasy Football Risk/Reward: Be Cautious in Drafting Browns' Quinshon Judkins
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The Quinshon Judkins story has been so very unique that we truly do not know what is going to happen. He is dealing with a multi-faceted problem holding him back from playing. The first issue enlies with his impending suspension, that could be at least three games. The second issue is that Judkins is yet to sign his contract, and we do not know for sure why. This makes Judkins a highly risky player even though he can be an elite running back once he plays.
Impending Suspension
Quinshon Judkins has been with domestic violence accusations, but recently the prosecutors decided not to engage in charges against Judkins. That makes it so he is in the clear for now, but if the NFL gains cooperation from the accuser and they determine he was at fault, they may still suspend him. That is all very unclear at the moment.
Contract Dispute
His rookie contract has also not yet been signed. He is slotted for $11.4 million over four years once he signs, if he does. The issue is unclear as to why he has not signed. It can be due to the potential suspension, a pure money dispute, and/or political issues going on behind the scenes. Regardless, Judkins is off of the 53-man roster and is not playing for the indefinite future. The team is very optimistic that he will play at some point, but when — we do not know.
Fantasy Football Outlook
The running back depth chart currently has Jerome Ford and Dylan Sampson running the show. The team is optimistic in their backfield, but neither player is necessarily viewed as an all-world player. They are just solid options on a poor offense. When Judkins comes back, he should carry a notable workload after a quick ramp up.
Our current Fantasy On SI rankings list Quinshon Judkins as: RB43 - STD, RB45 - Half and Full-PPR. This puts Judkins just behind Braelon Allen, Trey Benson, Cam Skattebo, and ahead of Tyjae Spears, Najee Harris, and his teammate, Dylan Sampson.
As far as drafting Judkins, I view him as a last round, or undraftable type. His risk is way too much more my liking. At this point, you can chase top-15 upside that he may have when healthy or stash him if you play in a dynasty setting. He is absolutely a dynasty steal right now. In final rounds of fantasy football drafts, upside is all you should be going off of. Judkins has it, so he is not a total wash, but do not expect him to play anytime very soon.
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Thomas Carelli is a sportswriter based on Northern New Jersey. He is a massive New York Jets and Mets fan, but that is not where is sports fandom stops. He loves to watch and play golf, all things football, baseball, and much more. If he can watch it, he will. Thomas graduated from William Paterson University in 2018 with a Bachelor's Degree in Sport Management. He spent 4 years working at a local golf course, volunteered past PGA events, and spent some part-time experience with the New York Jets events team. His passions for sport runs deep and his articles show for it.