The theory of handcuffing fantasy football draft picks has been around as long as the game itself.  The idea is to limit the downside of a potential injury to a star player by drafting his backup.  It's an insurance policy usually reserved for the quarterback and running back position.

Handcuffing works best in leagues with large rosters where you have room to stash away a key backup in the event disaster strikes one of your horses.

Below are the top handcuff options heading into the 2010 season.  These guys have the talent to step in and produce at a high level if called into duty.  Most are also backed by an offensive system that lends to quality fantasy production.

Top Quarterback Handcuffs

Cotton Turner, Jr. (Houston)
Lead Dog:  Case Keenum
Why He's Worth a Look: Because it's the Houston offense, dummy.  While he wouldn't likely put up Keenum numbers, anything remotely close would still equate to fantasy gold.  Turner went 30-40 for 373 yards and 3 TDs in mop up time last year. 
Draftable? Keenum owners would be wise to snag Turner in deeper leagues.

Martevious Young, Sr. (Southern Miss)
Lead Dog:  Austin Davis
Why He's Worth a Look: Davis missed most of the 2009 season with a broken foot.  Young replaced him and impressed (1,861 passing yards and a sparkling 16-3 TD-INT ratio, 294 rushing yards).  This is a high-powered offense and Young has proven he can run it effectively.
Draftable? There is still a slim chance that Young could be named the starter in fall camp.  Even as a backup, expect Young to be drafted late in many leagues due to Davis's injury history.

Mike Glennon, So. (NC State)
Lead Dog:  Russell Wilson
Why He's Worth a Look: Glennon is considerd to be one of the top backup quarterbacks in the country.  This former stud recruit is not as agile agile as Wilson, but he has a cannon for an arm and would light up the statsheet if given the chance.
Draftable? Only in keeper leagues or deep BCS-only formats.

Taylor Potts, Sr. (Texas Tech)
Lead Dog:  Steven Sheffield
Why He's Worth a Look: Potts could win the starting job in fall camp.  If he doesn't, he will need to be ready to roll at all times as Sheffield has had problems staying healthy. 
Draftable? Potts will be drafted in most formats in the later rounds.


Others to Watch
These guys aren't worth handcuff consideration on draft day, but would become hot waiver wire pickups if the lead dog were to go down.
J.J. McDermott, Jr. (SMU) - likely backup to Kyle Padron
Shavodrick Beaver, So. (Tulsa) - backup to G.J. Kinne
Johnny Deaton, Fr. (Oklahoma State) - backup to Brandon Weeden
Drew Allen, rFr. or Blake Bell, Fr. (Oklahoma) - backups to Landry Jones
Chazz Anderson, Jr. (Cincinnati) - backup to Zach Collaros
Corey Robinson, rFr. (Troy) - backup to Jamie Hampton
 

Top Running Back Handcuffs

Trent Richardson, So. (Alabama)
Lead Dog:  Mark Ingram
Why He's Worth a Look: Some believe Richardson has more pure talent than Ingram.  He will get plenty of touches in the No. 2 role.  If Ingram were to miss time, Richardson could become one of the top fantasy RBs in the land.  It's debatable whether he falls under the definition of fantasy handcuff as he'll be drafted as a stand-alone player in most leagues.
Draftable? Absolutely.  Look for Richardson to go in the mid-to-late rounds of most All-120 drafts.

Darren Evans, Jr. (Virginia Tech)
Lead Dog:  Ryan Williams
Why He's Worth a Look: Evans was The Man in Blacksburg until injuring his knee prior to the '09 season.  Now he is back in the mix as a part of the 1-2 punch with Ryan Williams.
Draftable? Only as a late rounder.

Ray Graham, So. (Pittsburgh)
Lead Dog:  Dion Lewis
Why He's Worth a Look: Graham and Lewis were in the same recruiting class.  Graham was the more heralded prep star and many thought he would be the main guy in the backfield heading into last season. 
Draftable? We haven't seen him go in a mock draft yet, but I do believe Graham would be worth taking in the late rounds of deeper leagues.

Jermie Calhoun, So. (Oklahoma)
Lead Dog:  Demarco Murray
Why He's Worth a Look: Because Murray is always banged up.  Even if Murray manages to stay on the field for the entire season, the Sooners usually get fine production from their No. 2 guy.
Draftable? If you invest a high draft pick in Murray, I would suggest you snag Calhoun in the late rounds.

Matt Brown, So. (Temple)
Lead Dog:  Bernard Pierce
Why He's Worth a Look: Brown filled in for an injured Pierce last fall and looked outstanding.  In his two starts, he piled up statlines of 18-156-2 and 25-172-1.
Draftable? Only in deep All-120 leagues.

Montee Ball, So. (Wisconsin)
Lead Dog:  John Clay
Why He's Worth a Look: The Badgers churn out quality fantasy RBs each and every year. There's been a positive buzz about Ball and most think he could be plugged into the offense and produce.
Draftable? Only in deep BCS-only formats.

Mike Ball, So. (Nevada)
Lead Dog:  Vai Taua
Why He's Worth a Look: Nevada boasts one of the most potent running games in the country.  Including QB Colin Kaepernick, the Wolfpack had an amazing three 1,000-yard rushers in 2009.  Ball showed flashes of brilliance last fall (including 5 TDs vs. UNLV).
Draftable? Yes, he'd make a nice late round flier in All-120 formats.  Even as a backup, he holds fantasy value.

Others to Watch
Most of these guys are not worth a draft pick investment, but would become hot waiver wire pickups if the lead dog were to go down.
Kenjon Barner (Oregon) - backup to LaMichael James
Dillon Baxter (USC) - backup to Allen Bradford
Covaughn DeBoskie-Johnson (Cal) - likely backup to Shane Vereen
Tavon Austin (West Virginia) - expected to be feature back in 2011
Matt Asiata (Utah) - part of a powerful 1-2 punch with Eddie Wide
Caleb King (Georgia) - likely backup to Washaun Ealey
Edwin Baker (Michigan State) - part of a 1-2 punch with Larry Caper
Cyrus Gray (Texas A&M) - part of a 1-2 punch with Christine Michael
Rex Burkhead (Nebraska) - backup to Roy Helu
Jeremy Smith (Oklahoma State) - backup to Kendall Hunter
Jamie Harper (Clemson) - backup to Andre Ellington
Shawn Southward (Troy) - backup to DuJuan Harris