Should You Play in a Standard Scoring or PPR Format in Fantasy Football?

Let's start with this: there is no “best” scoring format for fantasy football. Some will tell you that standard scoring is the best way to play fantasy because it is the original way the game was played, and others will say that PPR is the way to go because it gives extra weight to those players who catch the most passes, and in such a passing league, those things matter more than they did when fantasy football was in its infancy.

Still, some say that the half-PPR format is the way to go because it matches the best of both worlds, staying closer to the OG style while giving some credence to the evolving sport and importance of the passing game. If anyone says their favorite format is THE way to play and the only possible answer for best choice, they are wrong; it's all a matter of preference and opinion.

Let's look at some of the benefits of each format and how to decide which is best for you and your league. You'll see a little contradiction below, but that's life; you'll never escape it.

For the latest player updates, be sure to head to FantasySP to utilize the real-time player news engine for all sports. The player news engine is the most robust and fastest player news system in fantasy sports. Signing up for a FantasySP membership can help you track all your fantasy players.

Benefits of Standard Scoring

There's something to be said for tradition and the “standard;” it's in the name. Standard scoring puts everyone on equal footing, counting the contributions of running backs, wide receivers, and tight ends all the same. Passing yards and touchdowns are worth fewer points, but that's because QBs rack up so many more of each than the skill positions. Standard scoring is easy.

One argument for PPR is that players should be rewarded for their catches. What about the running back who carries the ball 20 times? Or 30 times? Doesn't the same logic say that the RBs who touch the ball more should also get rewarded?

Many would argue that it's harder to catch a pass than it is to take a handoff. That's true, but not all passes are created equal. When a guy makes a contested catch 25 yards down the field, he gets one point. When the receiver on the other side catches a quick bubble screen with no defender near him, he gets…one point. It would be too complicated to try doing fractional points based on air yards, nearest defender, etc., but there are flaws to the simple “every catch is worth a point” rule.

For a long time, I was a staunch supporter of playing standard leagues rather than PPR. Part of it was being “the way we always did it,” but I also saw it as more of a fair system; why should we reward some players extra for doing their main job? I have come around on PPR, though, and see both formats as equally worthy now.

Benefits of PPR Scoring

Catching a pass is harder than taking a handoff. Even if I demeaned the idea a little bit in the last section, it's true that there is something to the art of running a route, getting open, and hauling in a pass amongst a sea of defenders. Guys like Puka Nacua, for example, who are regularly involved on pretty much every drive deserve more recognition, both in fantasy and real life.

For a long time, running backs were unquestionably the most valuable players in fantasy football. I still see that as the case, but PPR scoring has helped close the gap for receivers. It even brings tight end, the lowest-value fantasy skill position, closer to everyone else, making another spot on your roster more important.

PPR also makes those running backs who catch a lot of passes some of the best players you can find. Take Alvin Kamara of the Saints: Kamara was suspended for the first three games in 2023, something that helped push him down to a RB24 finish in standard scoring. In PPR though? Kamara finished as RB11 because he caught 75 passes in the 13 games he did play, 5.8 receptions per game.

He had individual games with seven, 12, and 13 receptions. He received 12 or fewer rush attempts in six of those 13 games. Kamara was undoubtedly a big piece of the offense in the passing game when he played. He also averaged a career-low 6.2 yards per reception that season, so the pro-standard group could point to him racking up easy receptions without adding as much value as it seems.

There are positives and negatives to every aspect. For everything you point to as a plus in your favorite format, someone else could throw shade in another area. That makes the compromise an interesting idea, especially in a league whose owners are split on the best way to play.

Benefits of Half-PPR Scoring

If you can't decide, then why not just go right down the middle? Once I came around on PPR scoring, I then, for some reason, thought that leagues should pick one or the other. If you like the standard format, use it; if you prefer the new-age way of rewarding receptions, then play PPR. I'm not sure why I was so rigid. (We all hate change and new things, right?)

Half-PPR scoring is a nice middle ground that rewards players who catch more passes while not giving an outsized impact to someone who gets a ton of short receptions, like Kamara or Evan Engram in 2023. Engram caught 114 passes on 143 targets that year, both by far the biggest numbers in any of his eight seasons. He also gained a career-low (until 2024) 8.4 yards per reception, two full yards per catch less than any other season except 2021 (again, until 2024).

It's not a bad thing to reward Engram for being his quarterback's safety outlet, but it seems much fairer to give him half a point for each reception rather than a full point. That season, Engram was sixth among tight ends in standard scoring, second in PPR, and second in half-PPR. The difference between the latter two is that he was about 11 points higher than third-place Travis Kelce in PPR but only 0.4 points higher in half-PPR. Things were normalized and, in my mind, a little more realistic.

Half-PPR formats find the best of both worlds, realizing that the league is more focused on passing than ever before but not allowing a guy who goes off for 17 receptions to single-handedly win a week, even if he barely cracks 100 yards. If you can't find a consensus among your league-mates, or if you're torn between which public league to join, consider this great compromise.

Which Format Should You Play?

Again, there is no right answer here. Everyone is different and has different preferences. I've often found that the PPR crowd is louder in screaming that they are right and everyone else is wrong, but don't be bullied by someone who won't listen to other opinions (that's great advice for life in general, not just fantasy football).

Get everyone's thoughts, see if you can find what works best for your group, and if you can't, then consider taking the middle road. It's not worth fighting with your friends and family; all formats are created equally, and it's all about fun in the end, right?