When preparing for your fantasy football drafts, knowing which players to target and which to avoid is important. The amount of information available can be overwhelming, so a great way to condense the data and determine players to draft and others to leave for your leaguemates is to use our expert consensus fantasy football rankings compared to fantasy football average draft position (ADP). In this way, you can identify players the experts are willing to reach for at ADP and others they are not drafting until much later than average. Let’s dive into fantasy football draft picks experts target in 2026 based on ECR vs. ADP.
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2026 Fantasy Football Draft Advice: Players Experts Target
| RK | TIERS | PLAYER NAME | TEAM | POS | BEST | WORST | AVG. | STD.DEV | ECR VS. ADP |
| 12 | 2 | Drake London | ATL | WR7 | 8 | 31 | 15.9 | 4.6 | 8 |
| 14 | 2 | A.J. Brown | NE | WR8 | 8 | 34 | 16.5 | 5.8 | 7 |
| 17 | 2 | Nico Collins | HOU | WR9 | 10 | 39 | 19.1 | 4.5 | 7 |
| 18 | 2 | Brock Bowers | LV | TE1 | 11 | 64 | 19.1 | 6 | 4 |
| 22 | 3 | George Pickens | DAL | WR10 | 10 | 47 | 23.3 | 5.9 | 3 |
| 23 | 3 | Chris Olave | NO | WR11 | 9 | 39 | 23.8 | 5.8 | 5 |
| 25 | 3 | Malik Nabers | NYG | WR12 | 9 | 54 | 28.9 | 9.5 | 4 |
| 26 | 3 | Rashee Rice | KC | WR13 | 11 | 52 | 29.1 | 8.6 | 6 |
| 27 | 3 | DeVonta Smith | PHI | WR14 | 17 | 50 | 30 | 6.6 | 6 |
| 29 | 3 | Zay Flowers | BAL | WR15 | 20 | 56 | 33.4 | 7.4 | 6 |
| 31 | 3 | Tee Higgins | CIN | WR16 | 19 | 52 | 36.5 | 6.1 | 7 |
| 33 | 3 | Tetairoa McMillan | CAR | WR17 | 19 | 65 | 37.4 | 6.7 | 6 |
| 36 | 3 | Garrett Wilson | NYJ | WR18 | 24 | 61 | 38.9 | 7.3 | 8 |
| 39 | 3 | Jaylen Waddle | DEN | WR20 | 26 | 70 | 40.1 | 8.1 | 8 |
| 45 | 4 | Terry McLaurin | WAS | WR22 | 34 | 75 | 48.4 | 7.1 | 11 |
| 46 | 4 | Davante Adams | LAR | WR23 | 35 | 74 | 49.9 | 8.2 | 12 |
| 52 | 4 | Jameson Williams | DET | WR25 | 36 | 89 | 53.9 | 10.3 | 8 |
| 57 | 4 | Christian Watson | GB | WR27 | 40 | 100 | 56.8 | 10.7 | 9 |
| 78 | 5 | Chris Godwin Jr. | TB | WR35 | 54 | 123 | 82.1 | 13 | 11 |
| 87 | 5 | Michael Pittman Jr. | PIT | WR37 | 61 | 122 | 91 | 12.9 | 22 |
| 89 | 6 | Quentin Johnston | LAC | WR39 | 63 | 134 | 93.9 | 13.9 | 16 |
| 94 | 6 | Josh Downs | IND | WR41 | 60 | 147 | 99.3 | 17.4 | 12 |
| 96 | 6 | Wan’Dale Robinson | TEN | WR42 | 64 | 133 | 100.6 | 15.5 | 26 |
| 98 | 6 | Stefon Diggs | WAS | WR43 | 59 | 230 | 103.9 | 32.2 | 13 |
| 99 | 6 | Brock Purdy | SF | QB11 | 62 | 132 | 96.4 | 12.9 | 8 |
Drake London was in the middle of a top-3 finish through 9 games before injuries cut short his 2025 season, finishing top-10 in fantasy points per game while dominating targets in Atlanta’s offense. The Falcons’ WR1 posted elite production alongside Michael Penix Jr., and there’s little threat to his massive target share entering 2026. Even if Atlanta opens the year with Tua Tagovailoa under center while Penix recovers, London’s role as the focal point of the passing attack should remain unchanged. With volume, talent, and red-zone usage all working in his favor, London profiles as a top-tier fantasy WR1 once again.
– Andrew Erickson
There are great expectations for Brock Bowers in his third NFL season following an injury-plagued Year 2. Bowers had five catches for 103 yards in the Raiders’ 2025 season opener against the Patriots, but he sustained a PCL injury and bone bruise to his left knee in that game, was clearly hampered over his next three games (with under 50 receiving yards in each) and was shut down for three games. Upon his return, Bowers scored seven touchdowns in eight games before the Raiders, looking to protect their star TE and also secure the No. 1 pick in the draft, placed Bowers on injured reserve, keeping him out of their last two contests. Widely considered one of the best TE prospects to ever enter the league, Bowers had 112 catches for 1,194 yards and five touchdowns on 153 targets as a rookie. With better health in 2026, he has a chance to match or exceed his rookie numbers. The Raiders are talent-starved at wide receiver, so Bowers is poised to be their alpha pass catcher. New head coach Klint Kubiak has been entrusted to repair the Las Vegas offense. No. 1 overall draft pick Fernando Mendoza offers hope at the QB position, and the Raiders also have TE-friendly QB Kirk Cousins, who was quarterbacking the Falcons last year in Week 15, when TE Kyle Pitts had 11 catches for 166 yards and three TDs. Bowers is worth a look in the back half of the second round or early in the third round of 12-team fantasy drafts.
– Pat Fitzmaurice
After a long offseason, Stefon Diggs is finally a Washington Commander. We’ve all speculated all offseason that Diggs would possibly land with Washington, and now it has come to fruition. Diggs had a strong 2025 season that proved that he has plenty left in the tank to post a strong fantasy season in 2026. Last year, he was the WR23 in fantasy points per game with only a 65.4% route share (62nd out of 109 qualifying receivers). Among 109 qualifying receivers, he was stellar on a per-route basis, ranking 22nd in target per route run rate (25%), 20th in receiving yards per game (59.6), and eighth in yards per route run (2.53) and first downs per route run (0.127, per Fantasy Points Data). Among the same sample of receivers, he was also 28th in overall separation score, 18th in separation versus man coverage, 22nd in route win rate against man coverage, and 11th in yards per route run against both man and zone coverages. Diggs didn’t show any falloff, so I’m not projecting that for 2026, being even further out from his ACL reconstruction. Diggs is a strong WR3 with upside this season. I expect the Washington passing attack to be funneled through Diggs and Terry McLaurin.
– Derek Brown
Chris Olave finally delivered the WR1 fantasy season managers had been waiting for, finishing as a top-10 WR after commanding elite volume in Kellen Moore’s fast-paced offense. The Saints wideout took his game to another level late in the year once Tyler Shough settled in at quarterback, finishing the fantasy playoffs as one of the highest-scoring receivers in football. Olave’s target dominance and downfield role give him a very strong weekly floor, especially with rookie Jordyn Tyson sidelined to start the season. Even if some touchdown regression hits, Olave remains a reliable WR1/WR2 option attached to one of the NFL’s more aggressive passing attacks.
– Andrew Erickson
Brock Purdy’s pass-catching corps will look a lot different in 2026. Free-agent addition Mike Evans is expected to be Purdy’s new No. 1 receiver, and the 49ers added WR Christian Kirk and Deebo Samuel in free agency as well. Ricky Pearsall is out for the year with a knee injury, and Jauan Jennings and Kendrick Bourne are gone. TE George Kittle is recovering from a torn Achilles and might not be full go at the start of the season. A nagging turf toe injury limited Purdy to nine starts in 2025. He threw 20 TD passes despite missing all that time, but he also threw 10 interceptions. Purdy has ranked inside QB1 range in fantasy points per game in each of his three full seasons as a starter. Consider him a low-end QB1 in 2026 fantasy drafts.
– Pat Fitzmaurice
Christian Watson got the bag this offseason and should be considered the clear WR1 for the Green Bay Packers. Watson deserved the pay day as a he proved that he can handle this role last year. Last season, in Weeks 8-18, he was the WR21 in fantasy points per game with an 18.2% target share, 61.1 receiving yards per game, 2.67 yards per route run, a 23.9% first-read share, and 0.122 first downs per route run (per Fantasy Points Data). His target share and first-read share should go up this season with Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks gone and Watson likely getting promoted into a full-time role. Last year, he was also held back by a 68% route share (56th out of 109 qualifying receivers). The increase in usage and playing time should make his ultra-efficiency per route even more deadly in 2026. Last year, among those 109 qualifying receivers, Watson ranked fourth in yards per route run, tenth in first downs per route run, and sixth in fantasy points per route run. Watson is a strong WR2 with upside for more in 2026.
– Derek Brown
There’s a world where Zay Flowers has the talent to be a top-5 fantasy WR if he can ever score TDs. Over 1,200 yards. 86 catches and 5 TDs (WR7) in 2025. WR3 over the last five games. 4+ catches in 13 of his 17 games: a testament to his reliable floor and consistent involvement. 5th in target share (28%). 11th in air yards share (35%). 4th in yards per route run behind Puka Nacua, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Luther Burden.
– Andrew Erickson
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