What is 'handcuffing' in fantasy football?

What is 'handcuffing' in fantasy football?

Gregg Rosenthal (Fantasy Sports Sr. Editor) gives expert video advice on: What factors should I consider when selecting the draft options for my fantasy football league?; Should I draft any rookies onto my fantasy football team? and more...

What you do with a starting running back is you handcuff their back-up running back to them at the end of your fantasy football draft. That's because, with running backs, it's all about how many rushes they get. One running back gets almost all the carry. If he gets hurt, suddenly you don't get any of the carry, so you want to have his backup in place on your fantasy football team in most cases. If you use a first round pick on a running back, you want to look to see who his real-life backup is. LaDainian Tomlinson is probably going to be the number one pick in the draft. His real-life backup might be Michael Turner this year. You want to draft his backup, Michael Turner, as a handcuff late in your fantasy football draft. Don't use an early pick on a handcuff, but take his back-up late in the draft, and that way it's like an insurance policy for your starter.