Three of last year's biggest breakout players were quarterbacks Robert Griffin III, Russell Wilson, and Colin Kaepernick — mobile signal-callers that helped their fantasy football owners by putting up solid numbers on the ground in addition to their exploits through the air.

Somewhere, Cam Newton was smiling, happy to have company in the dual-threat category.

But heading into fantasy football drafts this year, there seems to two different schools of thought when it comes to selecting these rushing quarterbacks. Even within the top secret Fantasy Wired offices, our writers are debating the pros and cons of selecting a running quarterback to lead your team.

Two of them share their take on the debate below.

Running Quarterbacks: Draft Them or Stay Away?

The Case Against Running QBs (Frank Guest)

Are running quarterbacks worth the risk? Well, my esteemed colleague certainly thinks so, and some years I might actually agree with him, but 2013 is not one of those years. Running quarterbacks have increased injury risk, are inconsistent, lack viable receiving options, and have an over-inflated draft stock.

Since I don’t expect anyone to be stupid enough to depend on Michael Vick again this season, he will be taken out of consideration. Don’t be the guy that thinks Vick will turn it around in 2013 because he won't.

For the purposes of this conversation, we will stick with Robert Griffin III, Cam Newton, Colin Kaepernick, and Russell Wilson since they are the running quarterbacks that will some fantasy football owner will be counting on to lead their team this season.

As all of you should know, Griffin is currently recovering from knee surgery and will miss some time during training camp and the preseason. For those of you that think that this isn’t valuable time, you are sorely mistaken. He is only in his second season in the NFL, and “RG3” still has a lot to learn about playing quarterback. Though I’m aware of Adrian Peterson and his Wolverine-like healing ability, we’re not going to see if Griffin is 100% until he hits the field in Week 1 – if he takes the field in Week 1 – and that makes him a risky draft proposition for me.

Unlike Griffin, Newton, Kaepernick, and Wilson have never struggled with injury issues, but if you are constantly taking shots from linebackers in open space, then your chances of injury increase. This is not to say that other quarterbacks don’t face the same issues, just to a lesser extent. If a quarterback is in the pocket, he is protected by a litany of rules, but once they leave the pocket, they turn into a running back, and all bets are off.

Newton’s inconsistency is maddening at times. He can have weeks where he has 300 yards passing and 2 TDs along with 85 yards on the ground and another 2 TDs, but he can also have awful weeks where he’s out-performed by players that drafted far later or not drafted at all. I actually benched him after several poor weeks last season in favor of Andy Dalton.

On four different occasions last season, Newton threw two or more interceptions. Over the course of those same four games, only once did he have a rushing touchdown, and that was completely nullified by his three interceptions. It seems to me that the only thing that Newton can do consistently is be a boom or bust player.

Kaepernick’s 2012 numbers were impressive, but in his eight starts, he only faced three teams that had Top 10 defenses against the pass, and another three that ranked in the Top 10 against the run. He also had one of his worst games against the Dolphins, and they were ranked 21st in total defense. He had a very good run last year, but he’s started 11 games, so for now, I’m going to temper my excitement.

Russell Wilson is the one quarterback in the bunch that I actually like and would have on my fantasy team. His problems revolve around team philosophy. The Seahawks like to run the ball and play defense, and that meant Wilson was not able to produce number that would make me feel comfortable having him as a starter. Though I’m aware of Adrian Peterson and his Wolverine-like healing ability, we’re not going to see if Griffin is 100% until he hits the field in Week 1 – if he takes the field in Week 1 – and that makes him a risky draft proposition for me.

All of these players have question marks at the receiver position, which might hinder their ability to produce consistently as well.

RG3 has Pierre Garcon, but the only thing he tends to do on a consistent basis is get injured. The Carolina offense is a one-man show on the outside, and if opposing defenses shut down Steve Smith, who is Newton going to throw to?

Kaepernick just lost is favorite target (Michael Crabtree) for the season. While I do think that Anquan Boldin will be able to fill the role, he is still old and hasn’t had a 1,000-yard season since 2009.

Russell Wilson received a serious upgrade to his arsenal over the off-season, but Percy Harvin is now out for 3-4 months after having hip surgery. Last reports had Sidney Rice in Switzerland getting treatment for his persistent knee injury, and Golden Tate has yet to prove he’s a consistent NFL receiver.

And to get any of these four quarterbacks on your fantasy football team this season, you’re going to have to spend one of your first six picks to get them.

Newton leads the group with an ADP of 32.5, followed by Kaepernick at 42.2, Wilson at 51.6, and Griffin at 55.6. I don’t know about you, but that is a lot to give up for a quarterback not named Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, or Peyton Manning.

In a year where quality running backs are few and far between, you need every one of your early picks to secure the best available running backs.

Running quarterbacks are risk/reward type players. Last year, they were all the rage in fantasy football and rightfully so, but this year, because of increased game tape and their over-inflated draft stock, they are bound to disappoint.

The Case for Running QBs (E. Spencer Kyte)

RG3 is the concern.

More correctly, watching Robert Griffin III break the pocket, push for extra yardage over the middle, and get waylaid by Haloti Ngata is the concern. There’s also the obvious “Mike Shanahan does something ridiculous” worry, but I think he learned his lesson when his franchise QB suffered a torn ACL in the playoffs last season.

At least I hope he learned his lesson. Please have learned your lesson. You hear me, Shanny? Kid gloves. This guy is an amazing talent; don’t ruin him. Don’t turn into the Dusty Baker of the NFL.

As much as what I will officially call from this point forward “The Griffin Concern” lingers, I think the quartet of running quarterbacks that fall in the Top 15 (Top 12?) at the position are great investments and every bit worth the risk.

Both Griffin and Newton finished in the Top 25 in rushing in the 2012 season; RG3 at #20, Cam at #24. Kaepernick (#42) and Wilson (#35) both finished inside the Top 50 as well.

All four are projected to have at least 500 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns in the 2013 season. To me, those are points that I’m not leaving on the table.

I would understand if each of these players showed zero ability in the pocket. If they had Tebow-esque accuracy, I’d be telling you to stay away, but that simply isn’t the case. Newton was Top 15 in passing yards in 2012, and showed continued development from where he was as a rookie, while Griffin, Wilson, and Kaepernick all displayed strong skills from inside the pocket in their first season – or half-season in the case of Kaepernick – as an NFL starting quarterback. I would understand if each of these players showed zero ability in the pocket. If they had Tebow-esque accuracy, I’d be telling you to stay away, but that simply isn’t the case.

Listen – I’m not going to sit here and advocate taking one of these four above the Aaron Rodgers or Drew Brees because that would be silly, but I think you can make a case for taking Newton ahead of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning this season, simply because those two stalwarts have some question marks surrounding them heading into this season.

Newton does too – still no receivers beyond Steve Smith and Greg Olsen – but some of those worries are offset by the fact that he’s Carolina’s goal line back, and you can pencil him in for 700 rushing yards and 8 TDs. When you add that to his two-year averages of 3,960 passing yards and 20 TDs, you have nearly 4,700 yards and 28 TDs, and that is elite fantasy production.

While the other three probably won’t reach that same yardage total, they’re already part of the group of quarterbacks that fall just below the elite tier, and their upside is greater than anyone else in that collection.

You pretty much know what you’re going to get from the likes of Matt Ryan, Matthew Stafford, and Tony Romo – quality seasons, consistent point totals (for the most part), but the likelihood that they have a “Where did that come from season?” at this stage in their careers is slim.

But would it be a complete surprise if Kaepernick put up the same numbers as Newton? Would it shock anyone if Wilson delivered a handful of games with 300 combined yards and a couple of touchdowns as he continues the development he showed down the stretch last season? Remember, he didn’t have Percy Harvin then either, so it’s not like we haven’t seen him be successful with the weapons he does have at his disposal.

Through the first four weeks of the season last year, Griffin was the best player in fantasy football, racking up 1,304 combined yards and 8 TD. Naturally, his production tapered off, and it’s hard to project him returning to that incredible pace early this season, but you love the upside.

5,200 yards and 32 TDs? That’s nearing Drew Brees territory, and I would happily take even 75% of that production from RG3 (3,900 yards, 24 TD) over the course of a season, knowing – and I’m going to my favorite word again – the upside is there for him to exceed those projections.

I think that even at their baseline projections for 2013, I would prefer one of these running quarterbacks to the likes of Andrew Luck and Romo, and would rather pass on one of the elite QBs early in favor of drafting a running back, tight end, or wide receiver while adding one of these high upside mobile options later in the draft.

The risk is there, but in my opinion, their upside is greater than that of their more traditional counterparts in that second tier, and sometimes, you’ve just got to roll the dice and take a chance.

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