PPR draft slot: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12
You might spend about 10 minutes settling on who to take at No. 2 overall. You'll spend hours sweating out how the rest of the draft will go.
The nice thing about picking second is that you're locked into a top four running back. Someone from Alvin Kamara, Saquon Barkley, Christian McCaffrey and Ezekiel Elliott will be there. Find the one you like the most, then the one you like second-best, and boom, your prep work for Round 1 is done.
Once that's done, the focus should shift to what you'll do in Rounds 2 and 3. Two very good players are guaranteed, but you'll have to figure out how much pass-catchers mean to you in order to gauge the situation accurately.
Answer these questions before you draft:
- How badly do you want a stud tight end?
- How important is it for you to have two really good receivers?
- Might you fear what's left at running back by the time Round 4 comes around?
Obviously, you'll have to sacrifice at least one of these three positions -- and that's without even thinking about quarterbacks. Once you answer those three questions, you'll be better suited to pre-rank your top-30 players and go off that list in Rounds 2 and 3.
Last year I felt like there was a drop-off in talent in Rounds 4 and 5. Not this year -- that drop-off will happen closer to the end of Round 5 and into Round 6. This is a nice advantage built into your draft slot.
One more tip: Pay close attention to the Fantasy manager picking in the No. 1 slot. You should be able to base a handful of decisions on their needs. Examples to follow.
Here is my team from No. 2 overall:
- 1.2 Alvin Kamara, RB, Saints
- 2.11 Zach Ertz, TE, Eagles
- 3.2 Amari Cooper, WR, Cowboys
- 4.11 Chris Godwin, WR, Buccaneers
- 5.2 David Montgomery, RB, Bears
- 6.11 Dante Pettis, WR, 49ers
- 7.2 Darrell Henderson, RB, Rams
- 8.11 Matt Ryan, QB, Falcons
- 9.2 Courtland Sutton, WR, Broncos
- 10.11 Jaylen Samuels, RB, Steelers
- 11.2 Justin Jackson, RB, Chargers
- 12.11 Jamison Crowder, WR, Jets
- 13.2 Adrian Peterson, RB, Redskins
- 14.11 Mike Davis, RB, Bears
- 15.2 Patriots DST
Taking Kamara was a personal choice at the top of my draft. Already a hyper-efficient running back in a stellar offense, Kamara gets an obvious boost in PPR formats. There wasn't much thinking to do.
Let's go back to those three pre-draft questions. I knew before I even took Kamara that I wanted a top-three tight end. They're lineup differentiators who erase any headaches about who to start at the thinnest position in Fantasy. I wanted that spot covered, so when Ertz was the last of the three to make it to 23rd overall, I didn't hesitate to grab him. I passed up Antonio Brown, Nick Chubb and Amari Cooper to do so, but I knew I'd also get one of those three on the way back in Round 3.
Let's say you didn't want a tight end that badly. If you're starting three receivers, you'd probably pivot to Antonio Brown in Round 2 and one of Amari Cooper, A.J. Green or T.Y. Hilton (or Ertz) in Round 3. And if you didn't want to be caught without two stud running backs, Nick Chubb would have made perfect sense in Round 2 with the best-available pass-catcher in Round 3. Navigating those rounds truly depends on your preferences ... but don't be a dummy and pass on someone super-obvious if they slip.
My balanced start opened up every possible direction in Round 4, so when I noticed that Jamey Eisenberg at draft slot No. 1 had two running backs and one receiver, I figured I'd pluck a receiver before he could. My pick was Chris Godwin with eyes on David Montgomery coming back to me in Round 5, which happened.
I kept up with balanced drafting in Rounds 6 and 7, taking my highest-ranked receiver (Dante Pettis) and the highest-upside running back (Darrell Henderson) left on my board. Round 8 was a little more challenging -- I thought about gambling on getting Matt Ryan in Round 9, but with the next-best quarterback on my board being Kyler Murray, I opted for the safer quarterback. The decision cost me a decent bench running back in Jordan Howard, who Eisenberg took, so I settled for Courtland Sutton on the way back.
I want to bring up the built-in benefit to picking in the No. 2 slot: So long as I have at least four names on my wish list when I am up in the even-numbered rounds, I'm guaranteed one of them with my picks in the odd-numbered rounds. The decision to pick Ertz and let a bunch of receivers slide to me in Round 3 and the decision to go with Godwin before taking Montgomery were examples of using my opponent's needs against him in making my pick in the even-numbered rounds. But I also couldn't risk losing Ryan in Round 8 since I knew Eisenberg also needed a quarterback. That made the decision to take him easier.
I spent most of my remaining picks taking chances on running backs in case Montgomery doesn't play to my expectations. But if he does, I'll feel real good about this team's chances to compete.
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I love waiting for quarterbacks, and this year I'm focused on getting one of my top six signal-callers at a great price. Taking Ryan in Round 8 checked off all the boxes -- a great passer with great Fantasy potential at a steal of a value when there was no one else I really wanted to take. Even if quarterbacks fly off the board in your drafts, don't be afraid to wait for yours.
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I feel really good about Cooper's chances to establish some much-needed consistency now that he's a fixture in Dallas. He meshed nicely with Dak Prescott in the second half of last season and remains the Cowboys' best receiving threat this season. He should also benefit from the uptick in caffeine being put into this offense by new playcaller Kellen Moore. But if he turns into the same ol' Cooper from Oakland, he'll hurt my score more often than help. It's a lot to put on him as a WR1.
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What would I need out of Montgomery to make him worth the 50th overall pick? At least a top-20 finish with close to 1,000 total yards and seven touchdowns. That may sound like a lot given the Bears' depth at running back, but that's actually less than what Howard delivered for the Bears in 2018 (he had nine touchdowns and nearly 1,100 total yards). Most people agree that Montgomery is a better fit for the Chicago offense than Howard, and if Tarik Cohen's touches don't increase significantly, there's plenty of potential for the rookie.
