As Dalvin Cook’s direct backup, Alexander Mattison has been very valuable for fantasy football managers on occasion. As we pass the halfway point of the 2021 regular season, what is Mattison’s realistic fantasy outlook for Week 10 and beyond?
Alexander Mattison is an elite RB handcuff
Mattison has been an elite RB handcuff for nearly three seasons. In fact, a couple of months after the Vikings drafted him in 2019, I shared with readers that he was “absolutely worth drafting at his RB55 ADP, if for no other reason than he’s playing behind an injury-prone back.”
After all, Dalvin Cook had missed a whopping 53% of Minnesota’s games in his first two NFL seasons (2017 and 2018). Mattison was a third-round insurance policy for a franchise that only a year earlier had invested big money in hopeful franchise quarterback Kirk Cousins. While Cook has been more reliable health-wise, he’s missed two games each season since 2019. Despite this, Mattison’s preseason average draft position (ADP) was 151. By comparison, he was the No. 106 pick on my draft board.
Mattison has performed better than Dalvin Cook in 2021
I pushed Mattison on readers as a must-roster handcuff. Why? Because this year, he’s arguably as good as or better than Cook. What?! Blasphemous.
Except it’s true. The Vikings’ two best RB fantasy performances this year did not come from Cook. They came from Mattison when Cook was sidelined in Weeks 3 and 5.
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In those Week 3 and 5 contests, Mattison accrued 23.1 fantasy points and 26.3 fantasy points, respectively.
He single-handedly helped some managers win those weeks. If you could draft someone in a later round who could give you those types of numbers two or more times a season, wouldn’t it be worth it?
What is Mattison’s fantasy outlook?
As of Wednesday morning, Mattison was somehow available in 61% of ESPN leagues. It should be 0%. Like Tony Pollard and AJ Dillon — my two other must-draft RB handcuffs this summer — Mattison’s upside makes him a must-add option.
On the one hand, you might need him in the fantasy playoffs (or even earlier). On the other hand, you don’t want an RB-needy opponent starting him against you at the wrong time.
Given his RB1 potential whenever he earns a start, Mattison should be one of your top waiver wire or trade targets this week. Fantasy success isn’t just about having the best players. It’s also about stashing the best potential players.