Khalil Mack's correct position DE or OLB

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Khalil Mack's correct position DE or OLB

The LA Raiders list Mack as a DE but RotoWorld insists Mack is an OLB.  The problem is this.  Mack's output as an LB in IDP FF is average to below average. As a DE he is likely a top 5 fantasy producer.

Last year My Fantasy Football League got it right. They say they base positions on RotoWorld's position data, which currently lists Khalil Mack as an OLB.

I've tried to escalate this through Rotoworld and I'm getting the Heisman.  Please advise.

   
theidpguru theidpguru
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Re: Khalil Mack's correct position DE or OLB

Eric Breeze over at Rotoworld is the one who determines the position eligibility. He watches a ton of game film and reviews where players are lining up and determined that Mack was technically a linebacker.

He laid out his reasoning way back in February. I've included a snippet from that article below.

"Brace yourselves Mack owners. In Weeks 11-14, the Raiders used Mack at outside linebacker on 127-of-137 base snaps (92.7%) in a 3-4 alignment. This was not pretty for Mack's future IDP value, but it worked on the field. Mack ended up playing outside linebacker on 84% of snaps in eight games post-bye (including Oakland's Wild Card loss) and the Raiders did not let a single opponent hit the 400-yard mark. An eye-popping stat is that in Week 5, the 4-3 Oakland defense surrendered 423 yards at home to the Chargers, yet completely dominated Philip Rivers in a Week 15 matchup in San Diego while playing 3-4, allowing a season-low 262 yards. Looking at the season as a whole, Mack played linebacker on 63% of base defensive snaps.
 
Mack's IDP position designation is far from safe, and all fantasy owners need to take note. Add in the fact that the Raiders brought in 3-4 mind John Pagano as assistant head coach/defense, and it’s not only a possible scenario that Mack will be moved to linebacker for IDP in 2017, it’s the most likely one."


He's been pretty adamant that his position won't be changing (unless something changes with Oakland's scheme)...

http://www.rotoworld.com/articles/nfl/69311/72/position-review-pass-rushers 
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Re: Khalil Mack's correct position DE or OLB

Guru,

Thanks for taking the time to post Eric Breeze's February article for me.

I've read it.  However, I am still confronted with CURRENT sites from the foremost Reality sources (The Oakland Raiders and NFL Fantasy)  which are telling the public that Khalil Mack is a Defensive End!

Game film of current preseason games 1, 2 and 3 show this too.  

Rotoworld seems to be stuck on using some fantasy metric between seasons vice looking at today's Oakland Raider depth charts and the Oakland Raider's roster.

When will you guys and RotoWorld take a good look at these sources and make the correct call.        
theidpguru theidpguru
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Re: Khalil Mack's correct position DE or OLB

Just to be clear, I have nothing to do with this decision, so not sure what you mean by "you guys." This is a Rotoworld/MFL decision. I can only do my best to guide people on Mack's value depending on how he's classified in their specific leagues.

To be fair, team's depth charts are often "unofficial" and don't necessarily align with reality. Weird, but true.

This is obviously a controversial subject and I don't think there's necessarily a "correct" call as I could make an argument both ways. Trust me, we've had many conversations over at Footballguys on how to approach this problem and there's really not a great solution that makes everyone happy.

It sucks that you are likely stuck with Mack now at linebacker. That's the risk in drafting a player that switches between positions and doesn't have a clear cut designation. So that's something I always factor into my draft strategy when looking at guys like Mack, Clowney, etc.

Perhaps Rotoworld will change his position designation once the season starts if he truly is playing defensive end a majority of the base snaps. But I know Eric is pretty dead set on keeping things as they are for the time being.