What is a vulture in fantasy football?
A vulture is a player — usually a backup or short-yardage specialist — who steals a goal-line touchdown that the lead back did the work to set up.
A vulture touchdown is when a backup or specialist punches in the score after the starter moved the ball downfield, robbing the starter of the six points.
Imagine your running back grinds out a 12-play drive, then a bruising backup comes in to score from the 1-yard line. The backup 'vultured' the touchdown — your starter did all the work but got none of the fantasy payoff. Vulture backs can have real standalone value precisely because they hoard valuable goal-line opportunities.
Vultures are one of fantasy's great frustrations: they cap an otherwise productive player's ceiling by siphoning off the highest-value touches. Knowing which teams use a dedicated short-yardage back helps you anticipate the touchdown split.