GWTTKB Research

What the data actually says

17 findings, each one a question people actually ask, answered with a measured number and the sample it came from. Where the result contradicts the common view, the common view is stated first so you can check both. Free to read, no account, no paywall.

Advanced stats

Does rushing yards over expected predict fantasy football production?

RYOE is the most-cited advanced rushing metric in fantasy. Measured against what a back scores next, its correlation is 0.000.

The predictor ladder

What actually predicts fantasy football production — volume or efficiency?

Every stat field in the database tested against next-period scoring, five seasons, with the replication flag on each. Target share carries. Yards per target runs negative.

Regression

Do fantasy football touchdowns regress?

Last season’s receiving touchdown total is a negative forward predictor at −0.128. Red-zone target share is the single strongest ceiling factor for receivers at +0.187.

Risk

Is there a floor-versus-ceiling tradeoff in fantasy football?

Across 17,000+ scored player-stretches, the ceiling factors and the floor factors are the same list. At QB the relationship reverses.

The market

Do Vegas betting lines predict fantasy football scoring?

Across 7,141 player-weeks, consensus closing lines predicted weekly fantasy scoring at 4.96 MAE against 5.54 for the player’s own trailing average.

Matchups

Do defensive matchups actually matter in fantasy football?

Across 24,924 player-weeks, five defensive aspects were tested leakage-free. Only points allowed to the position works — and at receiver it is worth under half a point.

Coverage

Do some receivers really beat man coverage?

Tested as a player trait across 365 players at four positions. A first-half man-versus-zone split does not predict the second half anywhere — and at quarterback it inverts at −0.416.

Game script

Does strength of schedule matter in fantasy football?

Two claims wear the same jersey and only one survives. Preseason schedule strength fails; being favoured moves real production.

Injuries

Who benefits when a fantasy football player gets injured?

It concentrates on one player — but how hard depends entirely on position. 82% at running back, 96% at tight end, 63% at receiver.

Dynasty

Does the dynasty fantasy market anticipate breakouts?

Across 16,532 player-games, the correlation between a production spike and pre-game value movement is approximately zero. The repricing happens after.

Failures

Which fantasy football stats do not work?

272 stat fields tested across four positions. 41 replicated. This is the record of the other 231, including our own discarded ideas.

Breakouts

How do you tell a real fantasy breakout from a mirage?

When a player spikes, the market posts a fresh number on him within days. The ratio of that number to his new level is the tell.

Dynasty market

Is the superflex QB premium still worth paying in dynasty?

Six years of daily dynasty values. The median gap between a quarterback’s superflex price and his 1QB price has fallen from roughly 2,529 to 673 — and the decline is close to monotonic.

Dynasty market

When are dynasty rookie picks cheapest to buy?

Each pick measured against its own annual median, month by month. The calendar swing is worth several percent, in the same direction, every year.

Injuries

How much do fantasy players gain when a starter is ruled out?

Measured against a control group. In no-vacancy weeks the same players sit at roughly zero, which is what makes the effect real rather than noise.

Injuries

How long does a fantasy player take to recover from an injury?

Return curves by injury type across the first three games back. Hamstrings over-recover. Knees stay negative the whole way.

Injuries

Does a fantasy starter’s injury change how the whole offence plays?

An absence does not only move usage between two players. It moves the team’s play mix — and in opposite directions depending on who is out.

Every finding here is drawn from the full methodology report, where 272 stat fields were tested across four positions and 41 replicated.
The full report · 172 player studies · Methodology · Research index