Fantasy Football Draft Picks to Target in Every Round (2026)

Our two analysts each built a complete 14-round fantasy football roster, one drafting from the back of the first round, one from the tricky middle of the draft, picking the player they’d want at each range regardless of exact draft slot. Here’s the full round-by-round breakdown for both builds.

2026 Fantasy Football Draft Advice: Picks For Every Round

Round 1

Ashton Jeanty (RB – LV): One analyst likes him even better than last year’s rookie price, pointing to a significantly upgraded offensive line, including a healthy starting tackle and a highly regarded new center, plus a head coach with a track record of winning as a play caller. Jeanty already flashed real receiving usage and double-digit touchdowns as a rookie despite a rough overall offensive environment.

Amon-Ra St. Brown (WR – DET): The other analyst prefers a stable, top-tier receiver over a running back at this specific mid-first-round slot, pointing to three straight seasons finishing as a top-three fantasy receiver with guaranteed target volume. A favorable schedule, including a heavy dome slate, and a banged-up opposing-defense outlook for his own team support real top overall receiver upside this year.

Round 2

Kenneth Walker III (RB – KC): One analyst is excited about his move to a new team, noting he handled a full workhorse workload effectively during a deep playoff run last year. His new head coach has a strong history of productive running backs, and real screen-game usage is expected to boost his receiving role too.

Omarion Hampton (RB – LAC): The other analyst locks in her second running back here rather than risk a run on the position, believing he’s the clear lead back in his backfield despite public coach-speak suggesting a committee, with real workhorse volume and goal-line opportunity expected in an improved offensive environment.

Round 3

Emeka Egbuka (WR – TB): One analyst points to his hot start last year, when he was a top-three fantasy receiver over his first five games even while sharing time with two veteran teammates, as evidence of real wide receiver one upside this year as the clear top target.

Zay Flowers (WR – BAL): The other analyst calls him the unquestioned first read in his offense, citing two straight seasons with well over 100 targets and real touchdown upside with a new offensive coordinator and a healthy starting quarterback.

Round 4

Jaylen Waddle (WR – DEN): One analyst believes he’ll be the featured receiver in his new offensive coordinator’s passing game, pointing to that coordinator’s history of getting massive receiving seasons out of his top target at a previous stop and Waddle’s own strong per-target and per-route career efficiency.

D’Andre Swift (RB – CHI): The other analyst wants her second running back locked up by this point given a real cliff at the position, pointing to his strong per-game production last year and his team’s tendency to lean on him or a specific teammate rather than force volume to a lesser complementary back.

Round 5

Bhayshul Tuten (RB – JAC): One analyst wants a running back in a productive offensive scheme, pointing to real goal-line effectiveness last year and expanded passing-game opportunity with a teammate now dealing with injury.

Terry McLaurin (WR – WSH): The other analyst takes a value drop here, believing last year’s disappointment was more about a distracting contract situation and an injured quarterback than any real decline, with a return to full health for both players supporting another strong season.

Round 6

Jameson Williams (WR – DET): One analyst prefers him over a rising teammate’s teammate elsewhere, attributing his second-half surge last year to a real in-season usage change once his head coach took over play-calling duties, getting him more involved closer to the line of scrimmage rather than as a pure deep threat.

Parker Washington (WR – JAC): The other analyst is comfortable reaching slightly here, pointing to his emergence as a top-16 receiver once he took over a starting role late last season and a favorable schedule, with real belief he could be his offense’s true top receiver given how that team distributes targets based on matchups rather than a fixed hierarchy.

Round 7

Jonathon Brooks (RB – CAR): One analyst believes the incumbent starter’s job is his to lose from the start of the season, pointing to real positive camp reports and nearly two full years removed from his second ACL surgery.

Trevor Lawrence (QB – JAC): The other analyst is comfortable waiting at quarterback and pairing this pick with an earlier receiver pick from the same offense, pointing to his dominant finish to last season and real rushing upside on top of a deep receiving corps.

Round 8

Blake Corum (RB – LAR): One analyst likes him as a high-upside depth piece, useful as a bye-week fill-in at his current committee role, with real top-five weekly upside if anything happens to the back ahead of him on a team expected to score a lot of points.

Chris Godwin (WR – TB): The other analyst is buying into a healthy bounce-back season, pointing to his team’s transparency about his role in the slot and a realistic path to significant target volume alongside a teammate rather than competing directly with him.

Round 9

Bo Nix (QB – DEN): One analyst is comfortable waiting this long at quarterback, pointing to his team’s high pass-attempt rate despite a strong defense, a newly added receiver, and real rushing production on top of his passing volume.

Jacory Croskey-Merritt (RB – WSH): The other analyst is buying into real reported improvement in his pass-protection and receiving skills, which could be enough to keep him on the field on passing downs and unlock a true three-down role given his existing edge in short-yardage opportunity.

Round 10

Dallas Goedert (TE – PHI): Both analysts land on the same tight end here, the only round where their picks fully match. He posted a career year last year with real red zone dominance, including the most targets inside the five-yard line at his position, and a departed star teammate should mean even more red zone looks funneled his way this year.

Round 11

Wan’Dale Robinson (WR – TEN): One analyst believes he could actually out-target a more hyped rookie teammate this year, pointing to his familiarity with his current play caller from a previous stop and real target-earning history even in a crowded receiver room.

De’Zhaun Stribling (WR – SF): The other analyst is buying into his rising hype given real injury risk across his team’s receiver room, believing he’s shown enough in the preseason to earn a role in a historically reliable offensive system if he’s needed.

Round 12

Jalen Coker (WR – CAR): The analysts like him as the clear second read in his offense, especially with a teammate’s injury clarifying the picture further, projecting a real path to strong reception volume even if a teammate gets more of the big plays.

Round 13

Malik Willis (QB – MIA): One analyst wants a second quarterback here, pointing to his strong per-game rushing scoring pace across a small career sample and real improvement as a passer during his prior stop.

Denzel Boston (WR – CLE): The other analyst likes him as a genuine starter-caliber rookie receiver, believing he’s more likely to stay on the field in two-receiver sets than a teammate who profiles more as a slot option.

Round 14

Jonah Coleman (RB – DEN): Both analysts land on this pick to close out their rosters, pointing to real injury risk and inefficiency concerns surrounding the backs ahead of him on the depth chart, and a head coach with a track record of getting multiple fantasy-relevant backs out of the same backfield.

View the Best Fantasy Football Team Names