Get ready for your dynasty draft with our Dynasty Draft Primers! Pat Fitzmaurice provides his dynasty draft advice, rankings, and tiers for each position in his Dynasty Draft Primers. Below you can find his dynasty draft advice for each position and how to access his full Dynasty Draft Primers to prepare for the 2025 NFL season.
Dynasty Draft Advice
Let’s dive into my dynasty draft content to help you prepare for your drafts!
Dynasty Draft Advice: Quarterbacks
The value gap between quarterbacks in Superflex dynasty leagues and quarterbacks in 1-QB dynasty leagues is massive. We’re talking Grand Canyon here.
In Superflex, you can start a second quarterback in a Flex spot designated as a Superflex spot. You’ll almost always want to start a quarterback in the Superflex spot – even a mediocre one – because quarterbacks generally score more points than running backs, wide receivers and tight ends.
There is an insatiable demand for starting NFL quarterbacks in Superflex leagues. In a 12-team Superflex league, there are typically 24 quarterbacks in starting lineups every week and just 32 NFL teams. That means several of the teams in a 12-team Superflex league don’t have a third starting quarterback and could be crushed by quarterback injuries, benching and/or bye weeks.
Demand for quarterbacks plummets in 1-QB dynasty leagues. Sure, it’s still advantageous to have a high-scoring signal-caller such as Lamar Jackson, and having a high-scoring young quarterback such as Jayden Daniels is even better.
But 1-QB dynasty leagues often have more than one Flex spot in starting lineups. The more lineup spots, the more the impact of a high-scoring quarterback is muted. Also, you can more easily justify not having a high-scoring quarterback in a 1-QB league if you have a young quarterback capable of becoming a high-scoring quarterback.
Check out my Dynasty Draft Strategy, Rankings & Tiers: Quarterbacks 
Dynasty Draft Quarterback Notes
Jordan Love (GB)
Expectations were high for Jordan Love in 2024 after he went nuclear down the stretch in 2023 and bounced the Cowboys from the playoffs with a masterful performance. But Love sprained his MCL in the 2024 season opener against the Eagles and missed two games. Green Bay also became one of the run-heaviest teams in the league. The Packers were one of only three teams to run the ball on more than half of their offensive snaps last year. Love finished with 3,389 passing yards, 25 TD passes and 11 INTs. He averaged 16.3 fantasy points per game, ranking QB17 in that category. Love figures to play much of the 2025 season without Christian Watson, who tore his ACL late last year, but the Packers spent a first-round pick on WR Matthew Golden to give their offense a dose of speed. Love profiles as a high-end to midrange QB2 in fantasy.
Dynasty Draft Quarterback Rankings
Dynasty Draft Advice: Running Backs
In the fable The Three Little Pigs, the least astute of the three pigs built a house made of straw, and his slightly less dim brother built a house made of sticks.
If those little pigs had dynasty teams, they would have built their teams around running backs.
That’s not meant as a slight against NFL running backs. Those brave, underpaid souls hurl themselves at bloodthirsty defenders time and time again. Like crash-test dummies, their raison d’être is to absorb physical punishment. And that’s one of the reasons not to build a dynasty team around running backs.
Because of the nature of their work, running backs tend not to have long NFL careers.
There are exceptions, of course. Derrick Henry is a Sherman tank in shoulder pads. He’s entering his 10th NFL season and has shown no signs of slowing down.
But Henry is an anomaly.
Nick Chubb had five productive seasons before a gruesome Week 2 knee injury ended his 2023 season and put the rest of his career in jeopardy.
Javonte Williams seemed to have a promising career ahead of him. He tore his ACL early in his second season and has struggled to get back to his rookie form.
The Panthers drafted Jonathon Brooks in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft even though he tore his ACL the previous fall while playing for the University of Texas. Brooks returned to action last November and re-tore the same ACL in his third game back. He has already been ruled out for the 2025 season, and his NFL future is in doubt.
Not every running back sustains a major injury, of course. But the value of running backs can be fleeting, even for the ones who stay healthy.
Travis Etienne and Rachaad White were valuable fantasy assets in 2023, finishing as top-five PPR running backs. Both had disappointing 2024 seasons in which they were partly usurped by younger teammates. Now, you’d be lucky to get a second-round rookie draft pick in 2027 and a tuna sandwich for either Etienne or White.
The running back position is less predictable than the quarterback, wide receiver and tight end positions. We often see running backs come out of the ether and become major contributors even though they were afterthoughts in dynasty rookie drafts.
Take Bucky Irving, for instance. The Buccaneers drafted Irving in the fourth round last year. He eventually stole Rachaad White’s job and is now considered a top-10 dynasty running back.
Winning dynasty teams need productive running backs. The dream is to be able to land wildly talented young running backs such as Bijan Robinson, Jahmyr Gibbs and Ashton Jeanty in rookie drafts. But if you aren’t able to do that, you might have to acquire quality running backs in stealthier ways. The goal of the shrewd dynasty manager is to build running back strength without making sacrifices at other positions.
In a dynasty startup draft, avoid the temptation to spend multiple early-round picks on running backs. It’s OK to draft an anchor running back while paying proper respect to other positions. And if you want to capitalize on a couple of bargains in the first 5-6 rounds, that’s cool. But don’t build your dynasty team around a collection of running backs taken in the early rounds of a startup. Your team will be a house of straw.
Draft running backs opportunistically in a dynasty startup. Take value where you can find it in the middle and later rounds. Seek discounts on young runners with good athletic profiles but uncertain roles. And don’t be afraid of older veterans who still have roles.
If you fall so far behind at the running back position in your startup draft that you can’t dig out of the hole, don’t panic. You’re playing in a dynasty league. People make a lot of trades. There are few things in this world more overrated than positional balance in dynasty leagues.
You can trade your way out of a hole. In neglecting running backs, you undoubtedly loaded up at other positions and will have areas of strength from which you can deal.
Check out my Dynasty Draft Strategy, Rankings & Tiers: Running Backs
Dynasty Draft Running Back Notes
Quinshon Judkins (CLE)
The Cleveland Browns took Quinshon Judkins early in the second round of this year’s draft and will probably use him as their lead back, though he’ll have to fend off competition from veteran Jerome Ford and fellow rookie Dylan Sampson. A powerful, decisive runner with good contact balance and nifty feet, Quinshon Judkins had 1,567 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns as a true freshman at Ole Miss. His last two seasons were good but not quite as awe-inspiring. Judkins shared touches with TreVeyon Henderson last fall, but Judkins had 274 and 271 carries in his two seasons at Ole Miss, hinting at his NFL workhorse potential.
Dynasty Draft Running Back Rankings
Dynasty Draft Advice: Wide Receivers
Wide receiver is a critical position in dynasty leagues — it’s probably the most important position, with the possible exception of the quarterback position in Superflex leagues.
Most dynasty leagues use full-point PPR scoring, and most require you to start at least three wide receivers. With those league settings, it will be hard for you to win games if you don’t have at least average production from the wide receiver position. If you’re able to amass an outstanding group of receivers, you’ll have a major competitive advantage.
Quarterback and tight end are easier positions to solve because you only need one or two good ones. And you can sometimes get away with taking shortcuts at running back due to the unpredictable nature of the position. Every year, we see running backs emerge from obscurity to become significant fantasy contributors. If you luck your way into a few such players, you’ll be OK.
There are no shortcuts at the wide receiver position.
Wide receivers are more predictable than running backs. Running back value can fluctuate wildly as roles change. A previously unheralded running back can quickly become a valuable asset due to injuries to the running backs in front of him. Those types of value spikes are rare at the wide receiver position since each team plays several receivers, making an ascent to the top of the depth chart more difficult.
Receivers also tend to age more gracefully than running backs. Productive 10-year careers at the wide receiver position are not uncommon, whereas few running backs maintain a high level of productivity into their 30s.
In short, you generally get what you pay for at wide receiver. Therefore, it’s wise to spend vigorously at the position.
In a dynasty startup draft, drink deeply from the wide receiver well because it will eventually run dry. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that the WR position is deeper than it is. Yes, there are a lot of usable wide receivers, but there aren’t many young receivers who have either achieved stardom already or have a good chance to attain it.
You must get your fair share of good young wide receivers in the early rounds of a dynasty startup. If you short yourself at the wide receiver position, it could take years to catch up.
Remember: You start at least three wide receivers every week in most dynasty leagues, maybe more. You need depth — especially when you factor in inevitable injuries.
Get yourself plenty of wide receiver firepower in your dynasty startup. You won’t regret it.
Check out my Dynasty Draft Strategy, Rankings & Tiers: Wide Receivers
Dynasty Draft Wide Receiver Notes
Emeka Egbuka (TB)
An NFL-ready slot receiver, Emeka Egbuka is an advanced route runner who gets into his routes quickly and makes sharp cuts. Egbuka isn’t really a burner, but he’s a shifty fellow who consistently makes yardage after the catch. Bonus: Egbuka was able to assert himself at OSU even though the Buckeyes had an abundance of WR talent throughout his time in Columbus, suggesting that he can be productive even on a team with other good pass catchers. The problem is that not only did Egbuka land on a team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, that has other good pass catchers, but he landed on a team with two other receivers who do their best work in the slot — Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan. It’s probably best not to expect a big rookie-year impact from Egbuka when he has to share targets with Godwin, McMillan and the great Mike Evans. But Egbuka is a solid long-term investment in dynasty leagues and a worthwhile depth piece in redraft.
Dynasty Draft Wide Receiver Rankings
Dynasty Draft Advice: Tight Ends
In the 2024 version of this article, we talked about the promise of a brighter future at the TE position. That was before the Raiders’ Brock Bowers shattered the yardage record for a rookie tight end, and before the Cardinals’ Trey McBride produced 1,146 yards on 111 receptions.
Two tight ends were taken in the first round of this year’s NFL Draft. The Bears selected Colston Loveland of Michigan 10th overall, and the Colts took Tyler Warren of Penn State 14th overall.
The infusion of young talent has spruced up a position that has long vexed fantasy managers. You no longer have to go dumpster-diving when acquiring tight ends in a dynasty startup draft.
But that doesn’t mean you have to splurge.
Sure, you could draft Bowers or McBride and feel as if you’re set at tight end for the foreseeable future. But those guys are expensive. Bowers is a first-round pick in most 1QB dynasty startups, McBride a second-round pick. If you play in a TE-premium league, you’ll really have to pay through the nose for one of those aces.
But there might be a case for cutting corners at tight end — even in TE-premium leagues.
Some dynasty leagues use TE-premium scoring. If you’re in a TE-premium league, you might want to place greater emphasis on the position — but not necessarily.
In the TE-premium format, tight ends are awarded more points per reception than players at other positions. If RBs and WRs get 1.0 points per reception, tight ends might get 1.5. If running backs and wide receivers get 0.5 points per reception, tight ends might get 1.0.
Check out my Dynasty Draft Strategy, Rankings & Tiers: Tight Ends
Dynasty Draft Tight End Notes
George Kittle (SF)
George Kittle continues to string together outstanding seasons. He cleared 1,000 receiving yards in 2024 for a second straight year, finishing with 78 catches for 1,106 yards and eight touchdowns despite missing two games. A model of efficiency last season, Kittle established new career bests in catch rate (83.0%) and yards per target (11.8). Kittle was also a gem in last season’s fantasy playoffs, producing two of his four 100-yard games in Weeks 16 and 17. Since his second NFL season, Kittle has finished TE3, TE2, TE3, TE4, TE2, TE5 and TE1 in half-point PPR fantasy points per game. Kittle turns 32 in October, and his violent style has led to some injuries over the years, but he has shown no signs of slowing down, and he has a bright 2025 target outlook for a 49ers offense that might not have a clear alpha wide receiver.
Dynasty Draft Tight End Rankings
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