It’s that time of year—the NFL season is less than a month away, and it’s time to dive back into Fantasy Football research. So, we decided to make things easier by breaking down some of our favorite players by position to help simplify your draft day. We’re giving you a handy cheat sheet to reference, so when the countdown begins and you’re frantically searching for another WR, you won’t end up with a dud!
This cheat sheet was made for a league with 10 to 12 players playing half PPR without a super flex spot. If you’re in a two QB league or have a different number of players, this probably isn’t the best sheet for you to use.
| Round | Tier 1 | Tier 2 | Tier 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ja'Marr Chase WR | ||
| 1 | Saquon Barkley RB | ||
| 1 | Bijan Robinson RB | ||
| 1 | CeeDee Lamb WR | ||
| 1 | Jahmyr Gibbs RB | ||
| 1 | Derrick Henry RB | ||
| 1 | Justin Jefferson WR | ||
| 1 | Brian Thomas Jr. WR | ||
| 1 | Christian McCaffrey RB | ||
| 1 | Jonathan Taylor RB | ||
| 1 | Puka Nacua WR | ||
| 2 | Nico Collins WR | ||
| 2 | Malik Nabers WR | ||
| 2 | Amon-Ra St.Brown WR | ||
| 2 | Ashton Jeanty RB | ||
| 2 | Drake London WR | ||
| 2 | De'Von Achane RB | ||
| 2 | Brock Bowers TE | ||
| 2 | Josh Jacobs RB | ||
| 2 | Trey McBride TE | ||
| 2 | AJ Brown WR | ||
| 2 | Josh Allen QB | ||
| 2 | Kyren Williams RB | ||
| 3 | Bucky Irving RB | ||
| 3 | George Kittle TE | ||
| 3 | Lamar Jackson QB | ||
| 3 | Ladd McConkey WR | ||
| 3 | Jalen Hurts QB | ||
| 3 | Davante Adams WR | ||
| 3 | Garret Wilson WR | ||
| 3 | Tee Higgins WR | ||
| 3 | Chase Brown RB | ||
| 3 | Jaxon Smith-Njiba WR | ||
| 3 | Mike Evans WR | ||
| 3 | Tyreek Hills WR | ||
| 4 | Jaylen Daniels QB | ||
| 4 | James Cook RB | ||
| 4 | Breece Hall RB | ||
| 4 | Kenneth Walker III RB | ||
| 4 | Alvin Kamara RB | ||
| 4 | Terry McLaurin RB | ||
| 4 | DJ Moore WR | ||
| 4 | Terry McLaurin WR | ||
| 4 | Chuba Hubbard RB | ||
| 4 | James Connor RB | ||
| 4 | Omarion Hampton RB | ||
| 4 | Joe Burrow QB | ||
| 5 | Marvin Harrison Jr WR | ||
| 5 | DK Metcalf WR | ||
| 5 | Zay Flowers WR | ||
| 5 | David Montgomery RB | ||
| 5 | Jameson Williams RB | ||
| 5 | Xavier Worth WR | ||
| 5 | Courtland Sutton WR | ||
| 5 | DeVonta Smith Wr | ||
| 5 | Rashee Rice WR | ||
| 5 | Tetairoa McMillan WR | ||
| 5 | Calvin Ridley WR | ||
| 6 | D'Andre Swift RB | ||
| 6 | George Pickens WR | ||
| 6 | RJ Harvey RB | ||
| 6 | TreVeyon Henderson RB | ||
| 6 | Kaleb Johnson RB | ||
| 6 | Jaylen Waddle WR | ||
| 6 | Rome Odunze WR | ||
| 6 | Isiah Pacheco RB | ||
| 6 | Tony Pollard RB | ||
| 6 | Mark Andrews TE | ||
| 6 | Sam LePorta TE | ||
| 6 | Aaron Jones Sr. RB | ||
| 7 | Patrick Mahomes II QB | ||
| 7 | Joe Mixon RB | ||
| 7 | Chris Olave WR | ||
| 7 | Chris Godwin WR | ||
| 7 | Jerry Juedy WR | ||
| 7 | Jakobi Meyers WR | ||
| 7 | Bo Nix QB | ||
| 7 | TJ Hockenson TE | ||
| 7 | Stefon Diggs WR | ||
| 7 | Travis Kelce TE | ||
| 7 | Evan Engram TE | ||
| 7 | Kyler Murry QB | ||
| 8 | Jordan Addison WR | ||
| 8 | Brian Robinson JR RB | ||
| 8 | Dak Prescott QB | ||
| 8 | Baker Mayfield QB | ||
| 8 | Justin Fields QB | ||
| 8 | Jauan Jennings WR | ||
| 8 | Jaylen Warren RB | ||
| 8 | Travis Hunter WR | ||
| 8 | Tyrone Tracy Jr RB | ||
| 8 | Deebo Samuels Sr WR | ||
| 8 | Ricky Pearsall WR | ||
| 8 | Travis Etienne Jr RB | ||
| 9 | Brock Purdy QB | ||
| 9 | Khalil Shakir WR | ||
| 9 | Justin Herbert QB | ||
| 9 | Jayden Reed WR | ||
| 9 | David Njoku TE | ||
| 9 | Drake Maye QB | ||
| 9 | Josh Downs WR | ||
| 9 | Rhamondre Stevenson RB | ||
| 9 | Jared Goff QB | ||
| 9 | Jordan Love QB | ||
| 9 | Michael Pittman JR WR | ||
| 9 | Zach Charbonnet RB | ||
| 10 | Cooper Kupp WR | ||
| 10 | Najee Harrions RB | ||
| 10 | Caleb Williams QB | ||
| 10 | Jake Ferguson TE | ||
| 10 | Tank Bigsby RB | ||
| 10 | Jordan Mason RB | ||
| 10 | JK Dobbins RB | ||
| 10 | Tucker Kraft TE | ||
| 10 | Javonte Williams RB | ||
| 10 | Dallas Goedert TE | ||
| 10 | Trevor Lawrence QB | ||
| 10 | Emeka Egbuak WR |
When discussing quarterbacks, four will stand out most this season: Josh Allen, Jalen Hurts, Jayden Daniels, and Lamar Jackson. Allen is likely to be the first quarterback taken in any fantasy draft, but if you’re searching for the best quarterback in the league, don’t hesitate to pick Allen in the mid to late second round. If he’s gone, Jackson or Hurts are also excellent options. Daniels is an impressive second choice after a fantastic rookie season, though he may be a bit riskier since we haven’t seen him perform this consistently over the long term.
After these four, you should probably wait until around the sixth round to draft a QB. Mahomes or Burrow will usually be among the next QBs, but don’t worry about prioritizing Mahomes. In fantasy football, he’s been disappointing over the last two years, so it might be best to let him slide this year.
With last year’s fantasy season being dominated by RBs, this year might see a shift back towards WRs. Still, there are some elite options at RB if you’re looking. With an amazing RB rookie class this year, considering picking up Omarion Hampton or RJ Harvey later in the draft around the sixth round.
As for top players, it’s the usual suspects up top with Barkley, Henry, Bijion, and Gibbs looking like excellent first-round pickups. Christian McCaffrey is going to be the make-or-break first-rounder this year.
With so many usable WRs this year, some standouts still shine through. Notably, at the top of the list, Ja'Marr Chase will probably be the first player selected. Other excellent choices include Justin Jefferson, CeeDee Lamb, and Amon-Ra St. Brown in the first round. Some late-round names to watch are Xavier Worthy on KC or George Pickens on Dallas, both offering high upside midrange options. Beyond that, there are plenty of reliable WRs in the league this year. So, drafting RBs might be a smart move this year.