While I know a lot of you have already had your Fantasy Football drafts, the fact remains that the busiest draft weekend of the year is the weekend before Week 1. That means many of you have drafts coming up, and I wanted to share with you the players I keep drafting, and why.
At the very top of that list are two of my favorite Draft Day targets; Brock Bowers and Jerry Jeudy.
Bowers’ current CBS Fantasy ADP is 25th overall, which means in theory everyone in Round 2 could have a chance of drafting him. The reality is that if you are drafting with me or someone who follows my rankings, you will have to take him early in Round 2 if you want him on your team. I have Bowers ranked 13th overall in full PPR and project him for 113 catches, 1,290 yards, and six touchdowns. Some people would tell you that is his ceiling, and I would strongly disagree. It should surprise no one if Bowers has a 10-touchdown season.
The case for Bowers is obvious. He came into the NFL as one of the most highly touted prospects at tight end ever. In his rookie season, he smashed rookie tight end records. He got a significant upgrade at quarterback with Geno Smith and offensive coordinator with Chip Kelly. That last point is what causes people some consternation. Kelly is projected by many to go more run-heavy this year, especially after the team took Ashton Jeanty in Round 1 of the 2025 NFL Draft. If that happens, Bowers could make up for it with increased efficiency because his targets should be more accurate. But it is worth noting that in two of Kelly’s last three seasons as a play caller, his team threw more than 620 passes…in 16 games. If this year’s Raiders have 600-plus pass attempts and Bowers gets that efficiency boost? People will be wishing they had drafted him in Round 1.
Jeudy’s cost is much more palatable, with a Round 7 ADP on CBS that is even lower on Yahoo. Jeudy set career highs last year with 90 catches for 1,229 yards and he has Joe Flacco starting at quarterback early in the year. Flacco has been Fantasy gold for his pass catchers late in his career and has propelled Amari Cooper, David Njoku, and Josh Downs to starter production when he has been under center. Jeudy is still just 26 years old, and the clear WR1 on the team. He was also a top-10 wide receiver in the second half last year thanks to Jameis Winston. There is a real chance Dillon Gabriel or Shedeur Sanders torpedoes Jeudy in the second half of the season, but he may be a top-12 wide receiver until then.
Here are some short thoughts on six more players who are on at least a third of my redraft rosters this year.
Quarterback
Dak Prescott and Justin Fields are both available after Round 6 in CBS Fantasy drafts. Fields often fall to Round 10. If these guys play 17 games, they may be the leaders in passing yards and rushing yards, respectively. Prescott should benefit from the addition of George Pickens, who fits perfectly with CeeDee Lamb and Jake Ferguson. Also, with Javonte Williams as the lead running back Dallas may just lead the NFL in pass attempts. Fields’ Jets may be last in pass attempts, but he runs so much we don’t care. It is also worth noting that Fields has shown notable improvement in completion percentage, interception rate, and sack rate in each of his past three seasons. I am not sure he is quite as bad as a passer as he is made out to be.
Runnings Back
Kenneth Walker and D’Andre Swift are my two most drafted running backs, and their ADP makes it possible to draft both, depending on where you are in the draft order. I like Walker at the Round 3/4 turn and Swift is a Round 4 pick for me, though his ADP is early Round 5 on CBS and much later pretty much everywhere else. Both backs will benefit from new coaching staffs and Swift’s offensive line should also be better than it was last year. Walker is more likely to finish top-12 than Swift, but both have the potential. Swift is slightly safer because of Walker’s injury history and the fact that Swift doesn’t have any competition for touches that is anywhere close to the threat Zach Charbonnet is. I get more pushback on Swift than Walker, but I will remind you that Swift was RB15 per game the last time he was paired with Ben Johnson, even with Jamaal Williams scoring 17 touchdowns on the ground.
Wide Receiver
While Jeudy is my most drafted wide receiver, Cooper Kupp and Luther Burden are not far behind. Pairing them may make the most sense. That is because Kupp was still elite early last year, he was averaging 16 PPR FPPG through Week 14, but he is 32 years old and has been hurt a lot in the last few years. I think he will be good for as long as he is healthy. Burden is beginning the year behind DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, and Olamide Zaccheaus but I expect him to follow the familiar rookie path of seeing his role grow as the season goes on. I would not be surprised if Kupp was a top 24 wide receiver in the first half of the season and Burden was in the second half. The best part of this duo is their cost, Kupp’s ADP is 96th over all while Burden’s is 152nd.
Mapping this all out, it is possible to draft almost everyone I have highlighted above:
Round 1 Your favorite WR1
Round 2 Brock Bowers
Round 3 Kenneth Walker
Round 4 D’Andre Swift
Round 5 Your favorite WR2
Round 6 Jerry Jeudy
Round 7 Dak Prescott
Round 8 Cooper Kupp
Round 11 Luther Burden
The rest of your picks can be spent collecting handcuff running backs who could turn into league winners like Braelon Allen, Dylan Sampson, Trey Benson, Bhayshul Tuten, and Ray Davis. Or you could wait around on a couple of the names above, on certain sites they will probably still be there. Of course, I don’t expect everyone to be in love with every guy who dominates my roster.
Just pick the fits you have been convinced of and go win your league.
