Should I draft running backs or wide receivers first in half-PPR?

Take the player with the larger edge over the replacement at his own position. Half-PPR narrows the receiver advantage that full PPR creates, so elite workload running backs return to play early, but high-target receivers still carry a real half-point-per-catch edge over their own replacement pool.

Do I need separate rankings for half-PPR?

Yes. The orderings differ from both PPR and standard in ways that follow each player's catch volume, and the differences are not a flat adjustment you can apply mentally. The half-PPR rankings page publishes the live top five under the setting.

Half-PPR draft strategy: drafting for the middle format

Half-PPR is not a compromise you can draft for by splitting the difference between two cheat sheets — it is its own format that pays half a point per reception, softening every PPR effect rather than removing any of them. The plan: quarterbacks stay irrelevant to the format question, exactly as in PPR and standard. Pass-catching running backs still gain over pure early-down backs, but by half as much, so workload comes back first. High-target receivers and volume tight ends still rise, but big-play receivers and touchdown-dependent tight ends lose far less ground than they do in full PPR. Draft half-PPR from boards built under half-PPR scoring, and treat the format's mildness as an argument for taking the best player rather than reaching for role.

What halving the reception does to each position

Quarterback: nothing, same as always — the passer never records the reception. Running back: the pass-down premium survives at half strength, which is usually enough to break ties in favor of the back who plays third down but rarely enough to jump him over a clearly better runner. Wide receiver: the position still rises relative to the others, but the rise is gentler, so the early receiver runs of full-PPR drafts are calmer and the rounds are more balanced. Tight end: the featured pass catchers still deserve a premium, but the punting strategy loses less than it does in full PPR because the top-to-replacement gap is narrower.

The half-PPR mistakes

The most common one is drafting from full-PPR lists because they are easier to find. That overpays reception-heavy players whose premium is only half as large here, and underpays the workload backs and big-play receivers who lose less ground in half-PPR. The mirror mistake — treating half-PPR as standard with a rounding error — underpays the high-target receivers and volume tight ends whose half-point-per-catch advantage is real and accumulates every week.

The second mistake is thinking the soft middle means no strategy. Half-PPR's narrower gaps are precisely why value-over-replacement discipline matters more, not less: when the players are closer together, the edge comes from consistently taking the better of two similar names rather than from one format-driven reach.

Turning it into a draft plan

Anchor on the best available player at the scarce positions, break ties in favor of passing-game role — third-down backs, high-target receivers, featured tight ends — and let the format's mildness keep you from paying full-PPR prices for role alone. During the season, the same logic governs waivers: half-PPR rewards a passing-down back or target leader more than standard would, and less than full PPR. The live half-PPR top five on the half-PPR rankings page, alongside the standard board for comparison, is the honest starting point for the ordered list.

The boards under each format

The live top five under each setting — and the position boards the format questions above are about — live on the ranking pages:

Half-PPR rankings — the live top five under half-point-per-reception scoring.
Standard scoring rankings — the live top five under non-PPR scoring.
Quarterback rankings, running back rankings, wide receiver rankings and tight end rankings — the position boards each format question moves.

Common questions

Is half-PPR closer to standard or full PPR?: For drafting purposes it behaves closer to standard at the extremes — pure early-down backs and touchdown-dependent tight ends lose far less ground than they do in full PPR — while still clearly rewarding target volume at receiver and tight end. Treat it as its own format, not a blend of two lists.
Should I draft running backs or wide receivers first in half-PPR?: Take the player with the larger edge over the replacement at his own position. Half-PPR narrows the receiver advantage that full PPR creates, so elite workload running backs return to play early, but high-target receivers still carry a real half-point-per-catch edge over their own replacement pool.
Do I need separate rankings for half-PPR?: Yes. The orderings differ from both PPR and standard in ways that follow each player's catch volume, and the differences are not a flat adjustment you can apply mentally. The half-PPR rankings page publishes the live top five under the setting.