Friday night was a real mixed bag for dynasty owners scouting the next great rookie running backs. On the plus side, a whopping eight runners went between picks 54 and 97. That's great, but which of these players will start in 2014? It's unlikely any of them will be much more than a handcuff or situational back until the quality starter ahead of them gets hurt.

Carlos Hyde went to San Francisco (Frank Gore, Kendall Hunter, Marcus Lattimore). Terrance West went to Cleveland (Ben Tate, Dion Lewis, Richardson-favorite Edwin Baker). Jeremy Hill went to Cincinnati (Giovani Bernard, BenJarvus Green-Ellis). Charles Sims went to Tampa Bay (Doug Martin, Mike James, Bobby Rainey). Tre Mason went to St. Louis (Zac Stacy). Bishop Sankey was the first back drafted and he at least went to Tennessee, but he'll still need to get by Shonn Greene and Dexter McCluster.

Your first thought -- my first thought while watching the draft -- might be, Aside from perhaps Sankey, which of these rookies is going to be draftable in redraft leagues, and which won't have his dynasty value severely blunted by a young and talented player in front of him? Hyde, West, Hill, Sims and Mason are five of the top running back talents coming out of college. In 2014, the most likely scenario for all of them is "handcuff."

But the gloomy initial outlook provides opportunity in dynasty leagues -- a chance to get a really talented rookie with a later pick. In a rookie draft six years ago, with picks 9 and 11, I drafted Chris Johnson and Ray Rice, seemingly stuck behind quality young starters in LenDale White and Willis McGahee. It didn't take long for talent to win out.

Both of those rookies would have gone earlier had they been drafted into seemingly more favorable situations. Daniel Thomas and Beanie Wells spring to mind as backs selected early in rookie drafts in recent years, under the idea that they were drafted into great situations. How'd that work out?

Looking at the first round of my rookie draft -- and I'll mock it at some point this week -- I now expect receivers to dominate the early picks. Sankey will probably be the first back taken; maybe Hyde next.

But those of us picking at the back end of the first round and with multiple second-round picks will have our choice of these "handcuff" rookies who probably won't do much this year. But in 2015? Or when Ben Tate gets hurt, BenJarvus Green-Ellis gets cut, and other incumbents either get hurt, struggle, or simply lose out to a superior, hungrier talent?

So don't despair. Today's backup is tomorrow's starter, especially at running back. And now, just like in the NFL, they'll be available later in drafts.