PodcastFrom Fantasy Football Today
Players You Can’t Leave Your Draft Without! + Our Favorite Drafted Teams (09/03 Fantasy Football Podcast)
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
45 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Sep 3, 2026
Published
Thu, September 3, 2026
74
Player insights
53
Players mentioned
Topics
Zay FlowersDeVonta SmithJustin JeffersonSam LaPortaBrock BowersCeeDee LambChristian McCaffreyColston LovelandD.J. MooreDavid MontgomeryGeorge PickensJaylen WaddleJonathan TaylorJosh Allen
Player analysis
Player insights
A.J. Brown
PositiveValue4:54
The source suggests A.J. Brown as a primary wide receiver target for a wide receiver-heavy strategy at the back end of the draft.
Insight pageAmon-Ra St. Brown
PositiveValue4:21
The source highlights Amon-Ra St. Brown as a preferred starting point for a wide receiver-heavy draft strategy.
Insight pageBlake Corum
PositiveRole31:05
The source targets Blake Corum in late rounds, noting that the Rams' dominant defense could lead to game scripts that favor running the ball. While Kyron Williams is the 1A, the source believes Corum's increased explosiveness and quickness could lead to a larger snap share, providing a high-reward path if he earns more touches.
Insight pageBrock Bowers
PositiveValue7:06
The source identifies Brock Bowers as a huge favorite at the tight end position, though they personally prefer Trey McBride in full PPR formats.
Insight pagePositiveValue8:25
The source considers drafting Brock Bowers in two-wide receiver leagues if he falls to a favorable spot.
Insight pageBrock Purdy
PositiveValue23:06
The source highlights Brock Purdy as a value pick who finished as the QB1 in fantasy points per game through week 17 last year. With an improved receiving corps and a potentially weaker defense forcing more pass attempts, the source believes Purdy has more upside than commonly perceived and is a perfect target for those waiting on a quarterback.
Insight pageCaleb Williams
PositiveValue6:29
The source considers Caleb Williams part of a tier (alongside Justin Herbert, Dak Prescott, and Trevor Lawrence) that represents a significant value if drafted in round nine.
Insight pageCeeDee Lamb
PositiveValue4:54
The source suggests CeeDee Lamb as a primary wide receiver target for a wide receiver-heavy strategy at the back end of the draft.
Insight pagePositiveValue17:31
The source ranks CeeDee Lamb 11th overall in full PPR formats, noting that while it is rare for two wide receivers on the same team to finish in the top 12, the Cowboys' situation is a rare exception where both Lamb and George Pickens could provide high-end production.
Insight pageChase Brown
PositiveValue3:25
The source identifies Chase Brown as a viable running back target in the first round or as a value pick in the second round.
Insight pageChris Godwin
PositiveValue39:35
Chris Godwin is being moved up in rankings as ADP adjusts to Emeka Abuka's injury status; he is a strong candidate to beat his ADP if he stays healthy, having reached week one with no issues.
Insight pageChristian McCaffrey
PositiveValue3:25
The source considers Christian McCaffrey a primary running back target if picking in the seventh or eighth spot of the first round.
Insight pageNegativeProjection3:44
The source notes that while Christian McCaffrey is among the top 11 running backs with workhorse potential, there are still debates regarding the pros and cons of drafting him.
Insight pageColston Loveland
PositiveRole7:10
The source likes Colson Loveland as the top target in Chicago and is willing to draft him in late round three, provided the league format rewards catches.
Insight pagePositiveValue8:25
The source ranks Colston Loveland ahead of Trey McBride, leading to a preference for drafting Loveland.
Insight pageD.J. Moore
PositiveValue2:48
The source identifies DJ Moore as a player they love to target in drafts.
Insight pagePositiveValue4:08
The source highlights DJ Moore as a desirable wide receiver target available in the third or fourth round when employing a running back-heavy early draft strategy.
Insight pageD'Andre Swift
PositiveUsage37:55
DeAndre Swift has top-15 upside, potentially top-12 if Kyle Mononga misses time; he has consistently finished as a top-24 back and is expected to see a feature role in the current offense.
Insight pageDak Prescott
PositiveValue6:29
The source considers Dak Prescott part of a tier (alongside Justin Herbert, Trevor Lawrence, and Caleb Williams) that represents a significant value if drafted in round nine.
Insight pageDavid Montgomery
PositiveValue5:14
The source identifies David Montgomery as a solid second running back option for their roster.
Insight pageDe'Von Achane
NegativeProjection3:44
The source includes De'Von Achane in the group of top 11 running backs with workhorse potential, though acknowledges there are debates surrounding his draft profile.
Insight pageDerrick Henry
NegativeProjection3:44
The source includes Derrick Henry in the group of top 11 running backs with workhorse potential, though acknowledges there are debates surrounding his draft profile.
Insight pageDeVonta Smith
PositiveValue2:48
The source identifies DeVonta Smith as a player they love to target in drafts.
Insight pagePositiveValue4:08
The source highlights DeVonta Smith as a desirable wide receiver target available in the third or fourth round when employing a running back-heavy early draft strategy.
Insight pagePositiveValue36:41
Devontae Smith is a priority target in round three; he has a proven track record of success without A.J. Brown or Dallas Goedert, averaging 17 PPR points per game in those 20 instances with a 65% hit rate.
Insight pageDrake London
PositiveValue4:54
The source suggests Drake London as a primary wide receiver target for a wide receiver-heavy strategy at the back end of the draft.
Insight pageGarrett Wilson
PositiveUsage10:56
The source highlights Garrett Wilson as a strong full PPR asset expected to receive a high volume of catches.
Insight pageGeorge Pickens
PositiveValue4:23
The source identifies George Pickens as a target for the second round in a wide receiver-heavy draft strategy.
Insight pagePositiveProjection17:16
The source notes that the Steelers have averaged 618 pass attempts over the last three years, providing enough volume for a concentrated passing attack. If Pickens has a big touchdown season, he has top-five wide receiver upside. The source is encouraged by reports that Pickens has moved past previous baggage and that the team is prioritizing a contract extension, which may lead to more consistent usage.
Insight pageIsaiah Likely
PositiveSleeper8:40
The source frequently drafts Isaiah Likely as a fallback option when waiting on the tight end position.
Insight pageJ.K. Dobbins
NegativeInjury34:56
Despite being fun to root for and productive when healthy, J.K. Dobbins has a concerning injury history, having missed at least four games in almost every season of his career except his rookie year.
Insight pageJahmyr Gibbs
PositiveValue0:50
The source identifies Jahmyr Gibbs as the best player in fantasy football, justifying a first-overall draft pick to secure him despite the long wait between subsequent picks.
Insight pageJalen Coker
PositiveSleeper41:48
Jalen Coker is an undervalued sleeper who outscored Ted Aro and McMillan by nearly five PPR points per game over the final five games of last season; he is expected to see increased slot usage, which could boost his target rate.
Insight pageJavonte Williams
NegativeProjection10:53
The source includes Javonte Williams as their RB2, describing the pick as 'all right'.
Insight pageJaxon Smith-Njigba
PositiveValue4:21
The source highlights Jaxon Smith-Njigba as a preferred starting point for a wide receiver-heavy draft strategy.
Insight pageJayden Daniels
PositiveSleeper5:50
Heath Cummings identifies Jayden Daniels as a high-value target who can be drafted in round eight, making him a prime candidate for those waiting on the quarterback position.
Insight pageJayden Reed
PositiveProjection40:33
Jayden Reed is a high-floor asset who should benefit from a more pass-heavy Packers offense; he has a strong track record of production when targeted, with 17 of 18 games with 6+ targets resulting in 10+ PPR points.
Insight pageJaylen Waddle
PositiveValue2:48
The source identifies Jaylen Waddle as a player they love to target in drafts.
Insight pagePositiveValue4:08
The source highlights Jaylen Waddle as a desirable wide receiver target available in the third or fourth round when employing a running back-heavy early draft strategy.
Insight pageJoe Burrow
Jonah Coleman
PositiveBreakout34:53
Jonah Coleman looked outstanding in the preseason and fits Denver's offense well; while he won't be a three-down back due to R.J. Harvey's role, he is a high-upside bench stash who could pay dividends if J.K. Dobbins misses time.
Insight pageJonathan Taylor
PositiveValue3:25
The source considers Jonathan Taylor a primary running back target if picking in the seventh or eighth spot of the first round.
Insight pagePositiveValue10:19
The source views Jonathan Taylor as an unpassable value at the ninth overall pick, citing his high PPR scoring potential.
Insight pageJosh Allen
NegativeValue5:33
The source advises against drafting Josh Allen in the second round in a one-quarterback league, noting it goes against their strategy.
Insight pageNegativeValue5:33
The source advises against drafting Josh Allen in round two, noting that his current ADP is too high for a one-quarterback league. While he averages 25.6 fantasy points per game, the source argues that waiting for later-round quarterbacks who can provide 22-23 points is a better strategic value.
Insight pageJustin Herbert
PositiveValue6:29
The source considers Justin Herbert part of a tier (alongside Dak Prescott, Trevor Lawrence, and Caleb Williams) that represents a significant value if drafted in round nine.
Insight pageJustin Jefferson
PositiveValue3:49
The source notes that Justin Jefferson is a player to target if he slips to the middle of the second round, regardless of the first-round pick.
Insight pagePositiveValue4:54
The source suggests Justin Jefferson as a primary wide receiver target for a wide receiver-heavy strategy at the back end of the draft.
Insight pagePositiveProjection10:27
The source expects a bounce-back season from Justin Jefferson after drafting him in the second round.
Insight pageKyle Pitts
PositiveValue7:46
The source targets Kyle Pitts early, ranking him back-to-back with Sam LaPorta and willing to draft him immediately if LaPorta is off the board.
Insight pageLadd McConkey
PositiveValue5:02
The source highlights Ladd McConkey as a successful third-round pick in their recent draft.
Insight pageLamar Jackson
NegativeValue6:41
The source advises against drafting Lamar Jackson in rounds three or four, labeling it as too soon and suggesting drafters wait for better value at the position.
Insight pageLuther Burden
PositiveBreakout20:29
Despite an injury tag, the source is aggressively targeting Luther Burden in the early fourth round. Burden ranked third in yards per route run among wide receivers with at least 50 targets last year. With DJ Moore and Olamide Zaccheaus gone, Burden is expected to see a significant increase in his four-target-per-game average, with the source projecting a major breakout season.
Insight pageMatthew Golden
NegativeDepth Chart11:01
The source identifies Matthew Golden as a potential third wide receiver option for their roster.
Insight pageMichael Wilson
NegativeDepth Chart11:01
The source identifies Michael Wilson as a potential third wide receiver option for their roster.
Insight pageParker Washington
PositiveSleeper28:26
The source is a strong proponent of Parker Washington, citing his 14.4 PPR points per game from week seven on last year. Despite concerns about the backloaded nature of his production, the source believes Washington is a smash pick in the top 60 because he is versatile, has chemistry with Trevor Lawrence, and is expected to remain on the field.
Insight pageRashee Rice
PositiveValue4:23
The source identifies Rashee Rice as a target for the second round in a wide receiver-heavy draft strategy.
Insight pageRhamondre Stevenson
PositiveValue5:17
The source identifies Rhamondre Stevenson as a solid third running back option for their roster.
Insight pageSam LaPorta
PositiveValue7:21
The source targets Sam LaPorta early, noting they recently drafted him in round six and consider him a top-tier tight end option.
Insight pagePositiveValue8:12
The source targets Sam LaPorta if he is available at a draft spot where other top tight ends might be taken before the next pick.
Insight pagePositiveUsage22:32
The source is high on Sam LaPorta due to the Lions' high-powered offense and a defense that has suffered significant losses, which may force the team to be more pass-heavy. LaPorta is expected to benefit from offensive coordinator Drew Petsing's tendency to utilize tight ends in the short-area passing game, similar to the Trey McBride usage pattern.
Insight pageSaquon Barkley
NegativeProjection3:44
The source includes Saquon Barkley in the group of top 11 running backs with workhorse potential, though acknowledges there are debates surrounding his draft profile.
Insight pageTravis Etienne
PositiveValue5:05
The source notes Travis Etienne was available in the early fourth round, providing value for their roster build.
Insight pageTrevor Lawrence
PositiveValue6:29
The source considers Trevor Lawrence part of a tier (alongside Justin Herbert, Dak Prescott, and Caleb Williams) that represents a significant value if drafted in round nine.
Insight pageTrey McBride
PositiveValue7:08
The source prefers Trey McBride over Brock Bowers in full PPR formats, though they note they have not drafted him in their 25-30 drafts this year.
Insight pageNegativeValue8:32
The source has not drafted Trey McBride once this year, preferring Colston Loveland as a higher-priority tight end.
Insight pageTucker Kraft
NegativeValue7:21
The source groups Tucker Kraft with Sam LaPorta as a tight end option in the round five range.
Insight pageTyler Warren
PositiveValue11:09
The source notes obtaining good value on Tyler Warren at the tight end position.
Insight pageZay Flowers
PositiveValue2:48
The source identifies Zay Flowers as a player they love to target in drafts.
Insight pagePositiveValue4:08
The source highlights Zay Flowers as a desirable wide receiver target available in the third or fourth round when employing a running back-heavy early draft strategy.
Insight pagePositiveValue4:26
The source identifies Zay Flowers as a target for the third round in a wide receiver-heavy draft strategy.
Insight pagePositiveBreakout19:06
The source views Zay Flowers as an elite alpha number one wide receiver whose production was limited last year by a low-volume Ravens passing offense (420 attempts). With a new offensive coordinator and potential for a touchdown spike, the source projects Flowers could see 30 more targets if pass volume increases to 500 attempts. Flowers was already top-five in route participation and yards per target last year.
Insight pageFull transcript
Episode Transcript
0:00We're almost to the final weekend for drafts. And we're going to get you ready with all the last minute tips that you need.
0:06Welcome to Fantasy Football Today. I'm Jamie Eisenberg. That's Dave Richard.
0:09That's Heath Cummings. We're going to talk about players that you do not want to leave your drafts without.
0:14But before we get to that, we're going to talk about some draft strategies.
0:17We're going to show one of our favorite teams, each that we did.
0:21We're going to talk about our favorite spots to pick in the first round.
0:24And we're going to start right there. So, we know a lot of people get a chance to pick their favorite spots.
0:30You get a chance to pick your draft spot.
0:32You might get stuck with your favorite draft spot.
0:34You might get stuck with a draft spot that you hate.
0:37What is your favorite draft spot to take if you're just looking at it as, okay, I get an opportunity to pick my spot in the first round.
0:44What's been your favorite selection that you have? And maybe just for people that are just listening that are picking in that spot.
0:50Well, I want to get Jameer Gibbs on my fantasy team.
0:53So, that probably means I got to pick first.
0:55So, I'm going to go with the first spot.
0:57And I know that means that I've got to wait until my turn at the 2-3 and then the 4-5.
1:02I don't mind it one bit. I think there's going to be enough players there that are going to be really good
1:08at the 2-3 turn, at the 4-5 turn. And I've got the best player in fantasy in Gibbs.
1:12Am I supposed to say something different? Because I don't have anything different.
1:16Like, Jameer Gibbs does make – and it's funny because I think three or four years ago, we always talked about how
1:21it's such an advantage to have the first pick.
1:24And in the last three years, it hasn't been at all.
1:26The first pick is like sixth in win percentage over the last three years.
1:30It feels like first again – I'll say the other thing is I really like 12th.
1:34That's the other end. Yes. I like drafting on the ends.
1:37And one of my favorite things about it is it frees you up from thinking about average draft position.
1:42You get picked two picks in a row. You don't have to worry about if these guys are going to make it back to your next pick.
1:48You just take the guys you want. All right.
1:51I was going to say picking at the end because I – and I'll talk about draft strategies as well.
1:56We can tie those two things in for me at least because I love the opportunity right now.
2:00This is not something I think I've said in a very long time, but taking running back, running back.
2:05And you can do that at the back end of the first round.
2:09Yeah. You can do that at the back end of round one.
2:12We know that those top 11 – you still want to put Ashton Gentry and then there's 12.
2:16But we know that those top 11 running backs are all – all have the opportunity to be special, to be dominant,
2:22to be workhorses, to do everything that we look for.
2:24There are some questions. I mean, you know, we can debate Christian McCaffrey and Devon Achan and, you know, Saquon Barkley, Derrick Henry, some of those guys.
2:31You know, there's pros and cons for all of them.
2:34But I think when you get two of them – you said this on a recent podcast – you get so excited
2:39when you see those wide receivers in round three and round four.
2:42We talked about it a little bit more today on Fantasy Football today on our YouTube show and podcast as well.
2:48We're like you get potentially Devontae Smith and Zay Flowers and DJ Moore and Jalen Waddle and all those guys that we
2:53love, which we'll talk about a few of them coming up later in the show.
2:57It's just so easy to pick at the back end.
2:59But I guess so we're at both ends here.
3:02Let's just help people that are picking in the middle.
3:04And this may be your strategy, but like what's your strategy if you're picking in the middle of the first round?
3:10How are you approaching it wide receiver running back?
3:12Like what's the way fantasy managers should tackle that spot?
3:14You need to draft for value and you want to draft the players that you absolutely love.
3:19So for me, if I'm picking – let's say it's fifth or sixth, I'm probably looking at one of the top four wide receivers there.
3:25If it's seventh or eighth, it's probably going to be a running back like Jonathan Taylor, maybe Christian McCaffrey, maybe Chase Brown, somewhere in there.
3:31If I take a wide receiver first, I'm probably going to lean toward taking a running back second.
3:36And if I take a running back first, I'm probably going to lean toward taking a wide receiver second.
3:41But I'm not going to pass up value in round two.
3:44If I'm there in round two and a running back that I really like is there, Chase Brown is there in round
3:49two, for example, or a wide receiver like Justin Jefferson just for whatever reason slips in the middle of round two, I'm
3:55going to take him even if I take a wide receiver or a running back in round one.
3:59So he just mentioned something that I think we all would love to do if you take a wide receiver in the
4:05middle of round one, get a running back in round two.
4:08But we may not see those guys there. So you've talked about this, and I totally agree, not opposed to going wide receiver, wide receiver.
4:14No, I think both of our pick by picks and my FSGA draft, I had the sixth or the seventh pick.
4:19And I think all three of them, I started with a Munra, St.
4:23Brown, or JSN. And then it was Rashi Rice or George Pickens.
4:26And then it was a Flowers in round three.
4:28I think that's the one point in the draft.
4:30If you don't take Taylor or McCaffrey where you go wide receiver, wide receiver, wide receiver, there's still going to be a
4:36starting running back most likely there for your round four and round five pick if that's the way you want to go at it.
4:42Or you can just draft an elite quarterback and draft an elite tight end.
4:45And I think the middle of the draft is the best place to play the semi-zero RB game.
4:50And I did something similar just to go back to picking at the back end.
4:54You could also go wide receiver, wide receiver at the back end if you want to go CeeDee Lamb, Justin Jefferson, Jefferson
4:59in London, Lamb in London, Lamb in A.J. Brown.
5:02And then I did the same thing. I took Ladd McConkie in round three.
5:05Thankfully, Travis H.M. was there at the early part of round four.
5:08And so it kind of makes you feel a little bit better about that.
5:12My next two picks worked out as well, too.
5:14This is our St. Jude draft that we did the other night.
5:17Got David Montgomery as my second running back and Ramondre Stevenson as my third.
5:21So running back core of Travis H.M., Montgomery, and Stevenson, and then those three wide receivers.
5:25So there's lots of different ways you could build your roster.
5:28I think one thing in particular that we'll say just as an overall strategy, when's the earliest you're going to take quarterback?
5:33Because we see Josh Allen come off the board in round two based on ADP.
5:37That's not something any of us would do in a one quarterback league.
5:40When's the first spot in your draft, Heath, that you start to look at quarterback?
5:44So if I'm drafting with normal people, it'd probably be late round three.
5:47When I'm drafting with you guys, it's never before round four.
5:50And a lot of times I don't take one there because there's going to be Jaden Daniels in round eight or something ridiculous like that.
5:56But I would say the 3-4 turn is the spot.
5:59The whole point of waiting on a quarterback is to, number one, get a steal.
6:03And number two, take advantage of all the other players at other positions that are there that can help your team before
6:08you find the quarterback who might not be as good as Josh Allen.
6:12Josh Allen has averaged around 25 fantasy points per game and six point.
6:15But you can find a quarterback that can get you to 22, 23, and maybe even closer to 25 if the season breaks right for them.
6:22And there's a lot of those guys this year.
6:24I look at quarterbacks, those first 10 in our rankings, all guys that I really love to have on my team.
6:29And if I can get one of them, say, quarterback 7 through 10, it's that Herbert, Dak, Trevor Lawrence, Caleb Williams tier.
6:35If I can get one of them in round nine, I feel like that's just such a ripoff from the rest of the league.
6:41And especially the people that are taking Josh Allen in round two and Lamar Jackson in round three or round four.
6:46That type of range. It's too soon for those guys.
6:49Wait a little bit and get a steal. All right.
6:51One more question in regards to strategy. What's your strategy for tight ends?
6:54It's almost the exact same thing, except I do want to prioritize tight end a little bit more.
6:59And I'm OK getting a fair value when it comes to the elite guys.
7:03And it's also format dependent for me on who you take at the top.
7:06Brock Bowers is a huge favorite. I still like Trey McBride better in full PPR.
7:10I really like the idea of Colson Loveland being the top target in Chicago.
7:13And I'm willing to take him in late round three as long as catches count for something.
7:18After that, I'm looking into round five. Tyler Warren is still my guy.
7:21Sam Laporta, Tucker Craft, they're in that range. And then after that, there's another group of tight ends, kind of like that
7:27group of quarterbacks I mentioned, that you can get in round eight plus and feel good enough to start those guys.
7:32They're just not going to be the same as Brock Bowers and Trey McBride.
7:36If I can get one of those first three tight ends, I'm going to try and do it in every draft.
7:41I just draft Sam Laporta in round six. You love Laporta.
7:44Well, you have two guys that you target and you target early, right?
7:47Or earlier than they go. You target Laporta and you target Pitts.
7:50Right. And I think that's important because you're going to let somebody else, understandably so, take those first three or four guys.
7:56And you're going to sort of have to look, once you see Laporta come off the board, if you don't get him, how soon do you draft Pitts?
8:03The next pick. Yeah, I have those guys back to back in my projections and my rankings.
8:07I like Laporta just a little bit more. But if one of them has been taken, I'll take the other one.
8:12Or if I'm at a spot where I think they might both be taken before I pick again, I'll just go ahead and take Sam Laporta.
8:19Now, I say that in a two-wide receiver league, there are times where Bowers or Loveland falls to a spot while I'll draft him.
8:25I've done 25, 30 drafts so far this year.
8:27I've not drafted Trey McBride once. Right, because you'd have him behind Loveland as your third tight end.
8:32So it makes sense you'd rather take Loveland first.
8:34I find myself drafting a lot of Isaiah Likely just because I wait long enough that he's kind of the fallback option.
8:40If you miss on him, there's still Kelsey, Goddard, Andrews, Kincaid, a lot of good potential still top 10 guys, but not
8:45as high end as some of the other tight ends that we mentioned.
8:49All right, just in terms of strategy, doesn't matter where you pick.
8:52Is there something specific that you like to do?
8:54RB, RB, you know, hero RB, is there something?
8:56It doesn't have to, look, we're going to always say be flexible.
8:59Yes. But if you go into it, I'm picking fifth.
9:02I'm going to try and do this, or I'm going to hope to pull off this.
9:06Like, what's your approach when you know what your draft spot is?
9:09See, I was going to go in a different direction and say the thing that I like to do in every draft
9:14is just load up on running backs from the midpoint in the draft on.
9:18I really want to spend all of my bench spots, except for maybe one or two, on running backs that have a
9:24pathway to impacting their teams in the NFL, my team in fantasy, within the first three weeks of the season.
9:29But do you do that if you take two running backs early?
9:32I do that no matter what. Whether I take two running backs early or I go zero RB and my first running back is round five.
9:38Yeah, I like hero RB the most. I've done all three.
9:41I've done no running backs until round five. And I've done three running backs in the first three rounds.
9:46But the teams that I like the most usually have a running back in round one, wide receivers and tight ends for
9:51the next three rounds, and then a fifth or sixth round running back or both.
9:55All right. Let's take a look at some teams that both the three of us have built for different leagues.
10:00I don't think we're in any of these leagues together, right, of the drafts that we're going to show?
10:05One of them was a pick-by-pick that we did.
10:07A pick-by-pick. Okay. So this is something you can read on the site and see it.
10:11This is the team that I would love to recommend other people try and emulate.
10:15Okay. So what spot were you picking in the first round when we did this?
10:19Ninth. Ninth. Jonathan Taylor fell to me in its full PPR, and I couldn't wait to plug him in as my first pick.
10:25I have Taylor as my main running back after that.
10:27Justin Jefferson fell to me in round two. And that's just an example of taking the value when it falls to you.
10:33Not that I had the intention of starting my draft with Jonathan Taylor, but the fact that he fell to ninth overall,
10:39that's unpassable for me for somebody who in wins was averaging 30 PPR points per game last year, averaged over 20 PPR
10:44points per game for the season, and then Justin Jefferson we expect a bounce back from.
10:48I'm going to give you the starting lineup. Joe Burrow at quarterback got him at a great value.
10:53Jonathan Taylor, Javante Williams at running back. Javante at running back, it's all right.
10:56Wide receivers, Justin Jefferson, Garrett Wilson in full PPR, he's going to get a ton of catches.
11:01My third wide receiver, I don't think it even matters because we have a flex, but it could either be Michael Wilson or Matthew Golden.
11:07David Montgomery is my flex. Tyler Warren at tight end, I got a good value on him.
11:11And you can see my bench. I've got one receiver, whether it's Wilson or Golden.
11:15One of those guys won't start. A lot of running backs.
11:18And then Bo Nix, a steal late in the draft, just in case he ends up playing as well as he did last year.
11:24And you like to take a backup quarterback. I know you take Patrick Mahomes a lot, so you're one of those drafters.
11:29Now it's Jared Goff. Now I'm starting to find myself taking Jared Goff when he slips late.
11:34If you get good value on a quarterback, you're going to take it.
11:37All right, Heath, what spot and what league was this that you did your team?
11:41This was my FFT Open team. And so this was a 12-team league where you only start two wide receivers, kind of thin rosters.
11:47So I took a few more shots, and this is in the order they were drafted.
11:51If you were to ask me, like, Heath, draw up your perfect hero RB team, this would pretty much be it.
11:56Jameer Gibbs in round one, Pickens and Bowers, Abuka and Burden.
11:59I don't know how in the world they were both there at the 4-5 turn, but I loved it.
12:04Jaden Daniels at the end of round six. I still think he has as much upside at the position as anybody.
12:09The offensive line's terrible. It might just mean more rushing yards for him.
12:13And then the RB2 candidates for now, Tony Pollard, Kyle Monongai, Zach Charbonnet, and Isaiah Pacheco are going to create two more
12:18spots for me to add backup running backs onto this team because they'll be in IR slots.
12:22Braylon Allen, I'm kind of surprised with the big preseason run that he had and the briefs hole injury that he's just
12:28there in the last round of almost every draft I do.
12:31It's because he's on the Jets, but it's a great pick.
12:34Yeah. And I like Quentin Johnston a lot as a wide receiver for, but mostly I agree with Dave.
12:38As many running backs you can get in the double-digit rounds, the better.
12:42So if we could just put that back up for a second.
12:45I just have some questions because of this build, because I think it matters a little bit when you're doing this.
12:50And I know you did this probably at a time when maybe Monongai's situation wasn't as bad, but you knew Charbonnet was
12:56going to be out and Pacheco, his situation. Do you feel like you have enough running backs here?
13:00Well, I think I'm going to add two more as soon as waivers open.
13:04Okay, but two more guys that aren't going to give you a lot of touches.
13:08Right. So if Pollard gets hurt or, God forbid, Gibbs gets hurt, you're in trouble.
13:11Oh, yes. Well, hopefully if Gibbs gets hurt, it's after Pacheco comes off of the IR.
13:15Right. Or maybe I add Jacob Saylor's, I guess.
13:18But no, I think... Like, did you go too far with it?
13:21Well, I could have not taken Quentin Johnston. Or I could have not taken Jaden Daniels.
13:25I was really in this type of tournament, and I'm getting ready to do a couple of big gorilla drafts, and it's kind of the same thing.
13:32It's like you want to win your league, but then you have to play against all these teams that just won their league.
13:38Yeah. I'm not worried so much about what if this goes wrong.
13:41I'm trying to target the highest upside if everything goes right.
13:43Makes sense. All right, the team that I'm going to show you was from the seventh overall pick.
13:48This was an analyst league I did with Michael Fabiano of Sports Illustrated.
13:51It's super flex and tight end premium. So got a little bit better value on some players than you would expect because the quarterbacks got pushed up.
13:58But as you see here, just to give you the starting lineup, it's going to be Dak Prescott at quarterback.
14:03Jared Goff will be the super flex. The running backs will be James Cook and David Montgomery to start, but also have
14:09Jadarian Price who could be a flex. We do play a flex and three receivers.
14:12The receivers I love getting Puka Nakua to start.
14:15Devontae Smith, Ladd McConkie. Love that trio of wide receivers.
14:17And then if I want to, I could play Dallas Goddard as a flex, but Travis Kelsey will be the tight end to start.
14:23I have my Mononga issue, as you do also.
14:26And this draft was done prior to the Josh Jacob news, which is why I got Marshawn Lloyd in the 13th round.
14:31But he is probably my most rostered player, him or DeAndre Swift at this point.
14:35Swift more lately, Lloyd more of the early drafts.
14:37But this was kind of a balanced roster that I like a lot, and I'm excited to see how this one's going
14:43to play out, especially getting the quarterbacks. Would have liked to get a third quarterback in Superflex, but I think this will
14:48hopefully work out well and be competitive in this league.
14:51So there's three of our teams that we built, showing you different strategies, talked about some draft strategy.
14:56We have a lot of strategy information, articles you can read on the site.
14:59So getting you ready for your upcoming drafts for Labor Day weekend.
15:02We're going to take a break right now. We come back.
15:05We're going to get into the players you do not want to leave your draft without.
15:09Heath's got five guys. I'm going to tell you, you could probably guess a couple of them if you've been watching us religiously throughout the offseason.
15:16We're going to talk about those guys next year on FFT.
15:18I recently took a trip to Memphis for the FFT Draftathon.
15:21While we were there, we also got to experience a little bit of what makes Memphis so special, including some of the food the city is famous for.
15:28We had Memphis-style barbecue with pulled pork, ribs, and all the classic sides.
15:32It was an incredible trip, especially getting to spend time with everyone involved, enjoy some great local food, and support a cause
15:37that means so much to all of us. And while I was away enjoying the trip, my place back home was just sitting empty.
15:43It got me thinking. If you're going to be away anyway, why not put that space to use?
15:48While you're traveling or taking off for a long weekend, you could list your space on Airbnb and earn some extra cash while you're gone.
15:54And when big events come to your city, like a major game, concert, festival, or convention, travelers are looking for places to stay.
16:00Listing your space on Airbnb can be a way to welcome those visitors to your city while putting your space to work
16:06and earning some extra cash that you can put toward your next trip.
16:09Your home might be worth more than you think.
16:11Find out how much at Airbnb.com slash host. Welcome back to Fantasy Football Today.
16:15We're talking about players you do not want to leave your draft with.
16:18And we're looking at five guys that Heath Cummings has been drafting.
16:21Leave your draft without. Leave your draft without. Excuse me.
16:24Leave your draft without. I do want to leave my draft with.
16:27Going to be a completely different segment. Hey, welcome back to Fantasy Football Today.
16:30Here are five players you do not want to leave your draft without.
16:33We're talking about Heath Cummings, five guys that he has been drafting a lot and he's very excited about.
16:38Let's show that list of the players he does not want to leave his draft without.
16:42George Pickens, Zay Flowers, Luther Burden, and three wide receivers that we all love.
16:46Sam Laporta and Brock Purdy. You've been very high on both of these guys.
16:49Let's start with Pickens. You're looking at him in the round two range.
16:53Yes, I do. I never draft him earlier than round two.
16:55I often find him in round three and throw it like I did in the FFT Open and get really excited and have a party.
17:02But I do think that both he and CeeDee Lamb are going to finish as top ten wide receivers.
17:07We saw them both last year after Lamb came back from injury.
17:10They were both in the top 12 range. They both had some pretty rotten touchdown luck.
17:14This is an offense with Dak Prescott and Brian Schottenheimer.
17:16The last three years they've averaged 618 pass attempts per season.
17:19There is enough to go around. It will be super concentrated.
17:22And if Pickens has one of his big touchdown seasons, he might be a top five wide receiver.
17:26You know, I was thinking about one of our recent conversations on our podcast about the Cowboys guys.
17:31And you brought up a few times about how we haven't seen consistently two guys in the top ten finish in the top ten draft.
17:37Top 12. Yeah. They love George Pickens. Yeah. Dak Prescott loves George Pickens.
17:41CeeDee Lamb cannot say enough good things about George Pickens.
17:43And it feels like all the stuff that we heard in Pittsburgh, everything that, you know, sort of followed him any baggage, that it's gone.
17:49And it may resurface at some point. Not that he's going to do anything off the field, but just some of the antics on the field.
17:56But they are very excited to try and get him a contract extension.
17:59And I think that lends itself to, hey, I'm okay in terms of CeeDee Lamb sacrificing a little bit so that we
18:05make sure he's here and he stays. That made me a little bit more encouraged about Pickens.
18:09What's the earliest that you drafted him? I've got him 15th overall.
18:12I don't think I've ever had to take him quite that early because London or H.A.N.
18:16falls. And I'm so probably 16 or 17. And where do you have CeeDee Lamb overall?
18:2011. Okay. Wow. So you've got two Cowboys wide receivers.
18:23Yes. In your first 15 overall. I do. Yeah.
18:25In full PPR. Yeah, sure. And that makes sense to do that.
18:28And in non-PPR, of course, those guys, I would assume you'd have them lower.
18:32But just to bring up your point, since 2014, one duo of wide receivers on the same team finished top 12 in
18:37PPR points per game in consecutive seasons. It was the Minnesota guys, Diggs, Thielen.
18:41And it was a long time ago. The Bengals wide receivers, Chase and Tee Higgins, they were both top 13 last year and the year before.
18:48So it's rare when it happens. But if there's ever a situation for it to happen, it's this one and down.
18:53I'm pretty sure if you A's or Statted, the Bengals guys have done it multiple times.
18:57Yeah, probably so. I try to. And you're still top 13.
19:00I think if you get top 13 production, you'll be okay with those guys.
19:03All right. Have you changed your middle name to Zay yet?
19:06Or is it just, you know? One of the saddest things that has happened to me this season is that every time
19:12I draft in a league that you're a commissioner of, I have picked 10, 11, or 12.
19:16And Zay Flowers is sometimes gone by the end of round three.
19:19And so I don't have as much Zay Flowers as I like.
19:22Do it on purpose. I only have three Zay Flowers teams.
19:25I'm going to do everything I can to change that in this final week.
19:28That's why I'm adding some more leagues so I can draft more Zay Flowers.
19:32No, my position is that he is already an elite alpha number one wide receiver.
19:36People didn't totally notice that because the Ravens threw so few passes last year, 420, which is laughably low even for a Lamar Jackson offense.
19:42And Flowers hasn't had the big spike touchdown season yet.
19:45We've got a new offensive coordinator. We've got reasons to believe they won't be as successful running the ball as they have been in the past.
19:51Their center's gone. Their fullback's gone. I think there's a chance for a touchdown spike season.
19:55And if Lamar throws 500 passes, we could be looking at 30 more targets for Zay Flowers.
20:00He was top five last year in route participation, yards per target, and targets per route run.
20:04What's the touchdown number you need to justify your love for him?
20:07Well, last year he was wide receiver seven with five touchdowns.
20:10In a down year for wide receivers. In a down year for wide receivers.
20:13It doesn't need to be that high. Six or seven.
20:16I got him at wide receiver 12, which is about where he was per game last year.
20:20So I think the number of touchdowns will not matter as much if the pass volume goes up like it should.
20:25If the pass volume stays low, then he probably needs to score 8 to 10.
20:29The next guy that we have here is someone that you said, which I think a lot of us agree with.
20:35You were happy that the injury happened when it did because it saved you from drafting him too soon.
20:39Now we've seen Luther Byrne fall dramatically. Again, injuries play a part in that.
20:43He was going in the 3-4-ish range. Now his ADP was early round six.
20:46We're seeing him creep back into round five. You're willing to take a chance on him though in round four.
20:51I'm happy to take a chance on him in round four.
20:54And I'm talking early round four if I have a pick in that part of the draft.
20:59This is a guy who amongst wide receivers who saw at least 50 targets last year was third in yards per route run.
21:04The only two guys that were better than him, Pukunakua, Jackson Smith, and Jigba.
21:08This team lost DJ Moore and Olamide Zaccheaus. They combined for 150 targets.
21:11He won't get all of those. He might get 100 of those.
21:14Ben Johnson said he's buying stock in Luther Burden.
21:17I am also buying stock in Luther Burden. Dave, we did our tiers show or did a tiers show today on our podcast.
21:22And I was watching the comments when Luther Burden's tier was up.
21:25I think it was tier four. Why the hype for Luther Burden?
21:29We see it. Right. Explain a little bit more in depth because Heath did a good job.
21:33Just sort of hammer home the point about what he could do.
21:36I think casual fantasy drafters see that Luther Burden averaged over only eight and a half PPR points per game last year.
21:41They look at the Chicago Bears offense and they know that Romo Dunzey is still there.
21:45Colson Loveland is there. And that injury tag is still next to Luther Burden's name.
21:49That doesn't have to be there because he's practicing.
21:52Should be good to go for week one. But they've got questions.
21:55I think his role in this offense is going to be outstanding.
21:58Someone who can win at all three levels. And you've heard me talk about this with a bunch of receivers this offseason.
22:03But he can win at all three levels. He can line up across the formation.
22:07They can find matchups for him. And he can come through and get a much higher target share than the four per
22:13game that he had in 16 games last year.
22:15I think we could see a really big breakout season from Luther Burden.
22:18Don't hate the idea of him as a top 50.
22:21You have a lot more connections than I do here in the building.
22:24So if you could just get him to leave that injury tag on.
22:27One more week. One more week. That'd be great.
22:30It's a lot of fun to draft Luther Burden.
22:32Sam Laporta is, again, somebody you've been drafting a lot of.
22:35Is it because of him? Is it because of the offense?
22:37Or is it because of the offense coordinator? Or just all three?
22:40Yes. It's all of those things. It's one of the best offenses in football that I think might even be more pass-heavy.
22:46Because that defense has suffered some serious losses. Almost their entire secondary from last year is either gone or on the pup to start the year.
22:53Drew Petsing has orchestrated the Trey McBride breakout. He smashes the easy button tight end targets because he comes from the Kevin Stefanski tree.
22:59And that's what Stefanski does. I think Sam Laporta is going to see more of those short area targets.
23:04And Sam Laporta is an awesome football player when he's healthy.
23:06He's healthy. Brock Purdy is somebody you've come around on.
23:09You've obviously been very high on him. The reason you've come around on him is because Heath has been very high on him.
23:15You've quoted that. You've said that quite a bit.
23:17Well, I mean, he's made a very compelling. Well, no, I'm saying.
23:20And look at what the 49ers have done this offseason.
23:23Dave hasn't come around on him far enough, though.
23:25No, not as much as you have. No, I think people look at Brock Purdy a lot like Jared Goff.
23:30It's like, yeah, he's probably going to beat ADP, but there's not any upside.
23:33And I just think people should know that he was number one in fantasy points per game through week 17 last year at the quarterback position.
23:40He's top four over the last three seasons. They've got Mike Evans.
23:43George Kittle is getting on a plane and going to Australia.
23:46He's there. He might be there already. Christian McCaffrey is on the team.
23:49De'John Stribling is the best rookie wide receiver we've ever seen.
23:52And I'm not sure that defense is that good.
23:54So I do think, like Jackson and like Goff, we could see more pass attempts for Purdy this year.
23:59He's a, as soon as Dak's gone, I'm looking to draft Purdy.
24:02It's a repeat of last year with better receivers in San Francisco.
24:05Brock Purdy averaged 25 fantasy points per game in his last seven games last year.
24:09And you can get him well past the midpoint of your draft.
24:12If you like to wait on quarterbacks and get just past that middle group of guys.
24:16So it's Jaden Daniels, Jalen Hurts, that type of guys.
24:19And you don't necessarily think that Trevor Lawrence, Justin Herbert, Caleb Williams, those guys have more upside than Purdy or Goff or any of those other quarterbacks.
24:25Perfect guy to wait for. And Brock Purdy should have another great season.
24:29Gives you a little bit of rushing production as well, which never is something that we, is something that we always like to gravitate toward.
24:35All right. So the five guys that Heath is not leaving his draft without.
24:39George Pickens, Zay Flowers, Luther Burden, Sam Laporta, and Brock Purdy.
24:41We're going to take a break. When we come back, it's Dave's turn.
24:45The players that he is planning to draft and draft quite a bit.
24:48That's next on FFT. Welcome back to Fantasy Football Today.
24:51It's Dave's turn to talk about the players he is not leaving his draft without.
24:54And those five guys for Dave would be Jalen Waddell, Parker Washington, Blake Corum, Casey Concepcion, and Jonah Coleman.
24:59Dave, Jalen Waddell, now the new, we hope, number one wide receiver for the Broncos.
25:03Round four is basically the range where he's going to go.
25:06It was great for like a, up until like a week ago, he was going around five.
25:10I mean, it was just crazy. Yeah, I like that better than round four.
25:14Yeah, but I know you were looking at him though at one point in round three.
25:18Yeah, late round three in full PPR. If I really want a wide receiver that I think could finish top 12, and
25:23most people do want that, then Jalen Waddell is the guy for it.
25:27Denver didn't acquire him for him to be second fiddle to Courtland Sutton or Pat Bryan in that offense.
25:31And it's his versatility that stands out and his ability to win at all three levels.
25:35And it's been a long time since we've seen that from Jalen Waddell because of factors that affected him in Miami.
25:41Playing behind Tyreek Hill, playing with Tua Tagovailoa. Well, Tyreek Hill isn't even playing anywhere in the NFL this year, and Bo
25:46Nix is a better thrower than Tua Tagovailoa. We saw this.
25:49You have to go back four seasons, 13 games when Tua was a better thrower, and then it was in a progressive
25:55offense like Denver has now, 16.8 PPR points per game.
25:57And people are going to say, well, we haven't seen that, so we don't know if he can do it.
26:02I think he can. He's healthy. He's going to get the volume to do it.
26:06I'm expecting a big-time bounce-back year after many seasons where he was never good whenever Tyreek Hill and Devon H.M.
26:11were on the field in Miami. And you're Waddell over Flowers.
26:14You're obviously Flowers over Waddell. Why the difference for both of you?
26:17Because I'm a little bit worried about the touchdowns for Zay Flowers, also the target volume.
26:21Zay Flowers, two years. He's been just below seven targets per game.
26:24I think Waddell can score more touchdowns. I believe he could be just as efficient as Zay Flowers has been, and I
26:30think he'll see a few more targets than Zay Flowers will.
26:32Yeah, I don't think I have enough confidence in Sean Payton to just throw the ball to.
26:37I know we had the Michael Thomas years, and those were great.
26:40But with this offense to just throw the ball to Jalen Waddell enough, I think the target share is going to be strongly in Flowers' favor.
26:46And I'm expecting the Ravens to throw a lot more than they did last year.
26:50We kind of already talked about that in the last segment.
26:53And Bo Nix led the NFL on pass attempts last year.
26:56Right. I'm not sure that that – I think that probably comes down a little bit.
27:00So I think you're probably seeing a much smaller share of the targets going to Jalen Waddell than Flowers, who had a 29% target.
27:06That was kind of my concern initially when Waddell went there was 614 pass attempts, top three in the NFL last year.
27:11It's not going to be that high. No, I don't think so.
27:15And I know you like Jonah Coleman because you think they'll run the ball a little bit more too.
27:19We'll get to that in a second. But just looking at it as the distribution of targets.
27:24Like this was one of those teams we talked – you made the joke the other day about the Packers when Jordan Love had this 2023 season.
27:30It was 130-some-odd targets for Cortland Sutton. The next guy was 100.
27:34I think last year was Pat Bryant. No, not Troy Franklin last year.
27:37The year before that was Evan Ingram. I'm sorry, the year before that was the running backs.
27:41It's just like are they going to continue to do this?
27:44I think you're right. I don't think they bring in Jalen Waddell to say, okay, you're just going to be part of the Pack.
27:50You're going to lead the Pack. Right. And that's why he's not going to get like eight and a half.
27:55Right. It's not going to be anything else. I'd be surprised if it got to that high.
27:59And so like you're seeing on the screen here, his projection, which I think is way too low.
28:04Like 114 targets might be the number, but I think he does a lot more with it that he's better than wide receiver 24.
28:10So I think round four is the perfect spot for him.
28:13I think it was when you were taking him in round three.
28:16I was like, oh, I don't know if I want to do that, but I can understand why you were so aggressive with it.
28:22You are going to be aggressive with Parker Washington based on what his ADP is.
28:26Round seven crept into round six a little bit depending on what site you look at.
28:30You're taking him in round five. Yeah, I am a big fan of Parker Washington.
28:34You guys are tired of hearing me talk about Parker Washington, but I am not tired about talking about him.
28:39From week seven on, 14.4 PPR points per game.
28:41That's on seven targets per game. That was as good as CeeDee Lamb was as a whole in 2025.
28:46I think he takes a step forward. I watched him practice against Tampa Bay.
28:49He was dominating that secondary. Trevor Lawrence and he are on the same page.
28:53I think Brian Thomas Jr. will be a good downfield threat for Jacksonville.
28:56Jacoby Myers will play a role. I don't think Travis Hunter is going to play much of a role on offense.
29:01Parker Washington is super versatile. And again, just like I talked about Luther Burden.
29:05He can line him up anywhere. He can run inside or outside.
29:08He can win down the field. We've seen him do that.
29:11I think he's absolutely a smash as a top 60 pick in fantasy drafts.
29:14These are the types of guys every year that I bet against.
29:17And more often than not, these are the types of guys that don't live up to what they did at the end of the year last year.
29:24The drum beat's been so strong for Parker Washington that I've just kind of moved his ranking along with ADP.
29:29And I'll move his target share up a little bit every once in a while.
29:33But I do think like a lot of times we talk about what percentage of a guy's fantasy points came from one or two or three games.
29:40The 14.4 points per game from week seven on is heavily backloaded.
29:43A large percentage of Parker... The final four games, yeah.
29:46A large percentage of his career receiving yardage happened in those final four games.
29:49It's true. His games were not good when Jacksonville blew out an opponent.
29:52It's when Jacksonville was in a high-scoring competitive game or playing from behind when he would do well.
29:57And that's pretty consistent with a non-elite wide receiver.
29:59I love Parker Washington, too. I think the concern would be is almost all of his numbers came after Travis Hunter left the field.
30:05A hundred percent. Or got hurt, excuse me. And so Jacoby Myers, a full offseason, a full year now.
30:10Hopefully a better Brian Thomas because he was awful last year for people that are buying Brian Thomas.
30:15And then it's that wild card of what Travis Hunter does.
30:18The nice thing is it doesn't sound like Parker Washington is coming off the field.
30:21So I think... And it doesn't sound like Travis Hunter is going to play a lot on offense either.
30:26He's going to play some. And so again, it's what...
30:29Maybe ten snaps? When he's on the field, do you think he's on there just to block?
30:33I mean, he was on there... They can't put him on there and throw him the ball every time.
30:38Oh, totally. Totally. But he's not out there just to be a traffic owner.
30:41A blocker. He's out there to make plays. So it's just a matter of do they throw enough?
30:46Is there enough targets? The start of the schedule is absolutely brutal.
30:49After their bye week, it gets great. But I do think Parker Washington is worth taking.
30:53I would take him in round six. But round five is probably where you're going to have to get him if you want to be aggressive with it.
31:00Blake Quorum is somebody you would be taking. You said on the show, round eight on our podcast this morning.
31:05I would. Round nine is essentially kind of where he's going.
31:08Round 10 is basically his ADP. What do you like about Blake Quorum?
31:11I like that the opportunity could be there for him to see more snap share than he did last year.
31:16And this is a Rams team. You look at that defense.
31:19It looks like one of the best defenses that we're ever going to see in this era of the National Football League.
31:25Aaron Donald coming back. Miles Garrett at pass rush.
31:27They improved their secondary. They're going to get a lot of turnovers.
31:30And that's going to lend itself to L.A. having a bunch of big leads, running the ball, not putting too much on Matthew Stafford.
31:36Remember, Stafford's an older quarterback at this point in his career.
31:39They don't want to have him go out and throw the ball 35 times a game.
31:43Kyron Williams should be the 1A to begin the season.
31:45But Blake Quorum is going to be that 1B.
31:48And last year, when he was playing 30% of the snaps, 11 of his final 14 games, he averaged just 8.8 PPR points per game.
31:54But if he's going to get more playing time and more touches, that number is going to go up.
31:59Every report out of L.A. talks about how he's added explosiveness and quickness to his game.
32:03These are things he didn't have before. He's going to play without thinking as much.
32:07I think there's a pathway where he could actually overtake Kyron Williams.
32:10I see Kyron Williams with a round 3 ADP.
32:12I don't want anything to do with that. Kyron in round 4, okay.
32:15Could Kyron score more touchdowns? Yeah, probably. But I think there's going to be some weeks where Blake Quorum goes off.
32:21I want to take him with one of those picks where the risk isn't that bad.
32:25And the reward is huge. And that's why I want to have Blake Quorum on my team, not as a starter.
32:30I might even draft some starters after Blake Quorum.
32:32But if I can get him in late round 8 or round 9, happy to carry him on my team all year long.
32:38You know how close we're getting to the start of the season that we've reached the somebody's going to take Kyron Williams' job part of the offseason.
32:45I am very excited about that. I like Quorum in round 8.
32:48I don't think he's taking Kyron Williams' job. I don't think he's taking his job.
32:52But I do think that it's a – Kyron Williams has a problem.
32:55You know, it's not a small problem at this point.
32:58You know, we did hear this last year and it did come to fruition at the end of the season.
33:03Luckily, Kyron was still productive. And I think your point, though, their defense is going to be so dominant.
33:08Their run game could be special. It takes a little bit off Stafford.
33:11I know we kind of all agree about that.
33:13I think both guys could be great. And that's the fun part of it is that you get some great production from
33:19an early round player like Kyron and then you still get some quality production from Quorum as well.
33:23Casey Concepcion is one of your favorite rookies. He said something on the show today that was eye-opening.
33:28You would take him over Cardinal Tate at this point.
33:30I would. I think he's going to get more targets.
33:33I think he'll do more with them. I think this is Cleveland's number one wide receiver over the bounce of the year.
33:39I could see him getting seven targets per game.
33:41And speaking of game script, this is one where Cleveland's going to be trailing in a lot of games this year.
33:46They're going to have to put the ball in the air.
33:49And I think that Casey Concepcion is the most QB-proof wide receiver the Browns have.
33:53They can scheme him up on screen, slants, short throws.
33:55And he can win there. He can also win a little bit further downfield.
33:59But because those short throws are going to be available to him, I don't know if the efficiency is going to be a home run.
34:05But I think the target volume will be. And in full PPR, I think he's worth that round eight, nine range pick.
34:11You're giving the Browns QBs too much credit that there's somebody that's QB-proof to them.
34:15There's nobody that's QB-proof to them. They can complete short, quick throws.
34:18And that's what I'm counting on with Concepcion. To which team?
34:20Allow them to Concepcion. Yeah, I think Shador can complete short, quick throws.
34:24He did less. I don't trust Deshaun Watson to do anything at all.
34:27But hopefully that doesn't last long. I mean, given his range, I know you take him earlier than he's going.
34:32Given his range and what he should be able to accomplish.
34:35I mean, Casey Concepcion is the easy guy to take later in drafts.
34:38It's just a matter of like, at what point are we going to get so frustrated with the Browns?
34:43And then if Shador comes in, then Fannin becomes more relevant.
34:46And we'll see what happens with Denzel Boston. So it could be a little bit of a mix and match type of thing with the Browns receivers.
34:53But I know you love Concepcion, understandably so. And you love Jonah Coleman as well.
34:56By the end of the season, I think you will because I don't know if J.K.
35:00Dobbins can handle more than... I don't know. Last year he played a lot of games and he was really good.
35:06He was on pace for 1,000 rushing yards. And then he got hurt.
35:09And I hate betting against J.K. Dobbins because he's so much fun to root for.
35:13But Jonah Coleman looked outstanding to me in the preseason.
35:15I think he's a great fit for what Denver wants to do.
35:18He dominated in short yardage situations at Washington. He was in a pro-style offense in Washington.
35:22And I think once he actually took a deep breath in preseason games and ran with a little bit more patience, he
35:28gave the Broncos exactly what they wanted in that offense.
35:31And I think he can do a little bit more than that.
35:34He's not necessarily a bad pass protector. I think he can make improvements there during the year and maybe even catch a few balls on top of it.
35:41He'll never be a three-down back. R.J. Harvey's going to handle most of the third downs work for Denver.
35:46But in the event that J.K. Dobbins misses time, and maybe even in certain situations when Dobbins is healthy, we will see
35:51Jonah Coleman, nice guy to put on your bench.
35:53One of those players you're going to have to be patient with.
35:56And hopefully you don't get too impatient and drop him too soon.
35:59But could pay big dividends as the season goes on.
36:02And again, J.K. Dobbins has missed at least four games in almost every year of his career except for his rookie season.
36:08All right, we're going to take a break. We come back.
36:10It's my turn to give you the players that I'm not going to leave the draft without.
36:15That's next here on Fantasy Football Today. Welcome back to Fantasy Football Today.
36:18We're talking about the five players that I do not want to leave my draft without.
36:22And we're talking about some guys that we've mentioned quite a bit.
36:25We said that during the break that we've, you know, rehashed these guys over and over again.
36:29But that's the point. We love these players, and we want you to make sure – we want to make sure that
36:35you guys draft them if you can. So for me, it's Devontae Smith, DeAndre Swift, Chris Godwin, Jaden Reed, and Jalen Coker.
36:41And Devontae Smith – stop me, you've heard this before.
36:43There's no A.J. Brown. So Devontae Smith has a great opportunity here.
36:46Three-game sample size is a very small sample size, but we love when we get target opportunities.
36:50And in those three games, he had nine or more targets in all of them.
36:54He averaged 16 PPR points per game. And I think what we're going to see is a Jalen Hurts that's reinvigorated because
37:00of the new offense and all the criticism that he received this offseason and sort of a wide-open canvas for the receivers.
37:05But Smith is the most proven guy. Mekhi Lemon, Dontavian Wicks, those are probably the next two options.
37:10We'll see how Smith handles this role. I think he's going to be special.
37:14I would be drafting him in round three. Does anybody disagree with it?
37:17No. I love the idea of Devontae Smith in round three.
37:20I'll give you a bigger sample size. In the 20 games he's played without a primary pass-catching teammate, this is either A.J.
37:25Brown or Dallas Goddard, he's averaged 17 PPR points per game.
37:28He's scored 14.9 PPR points 13 of 20 times.
37:30That's a 65% hit rate. He begins the season against the Commanders, the Titans, the Bears.
37:34Three secondaries that are very beatable. It's the great type of early-season slate that Philadelphia can lean into with their new offense.
37:40And by the time they get to the Rams in week four, they should be hitting on all cylinders.
37:45No, I think I've got him at 27th overall.
37:47I would rather have Zay Flowers, but both of those guys I love in round three.
37:51Yeah, same. I like Smith better than Flowers, but understandably so, in terms of liking both.
37:55DeAndre Swift, I get more and more excited about him with every report that we get about Kyle Mononga missing weeks.
38:00You know, who knows how long this is going to be an absence for him.
38:04You brought up on the show this morning on our podcast that there will be somebody else.
38:09Yes, it could be Roshon Johnson. It could be somebody else that they decide to use in tandem with Swift.
38:14But by all accounts, he's had a fantastic camp.
38:16They're excited about the outlook for him this season.
38:18And we sort of have gone through the last couple of years of, oh, DeAndre Swift.
38:22Oh, he's never been this. Oh, he's never done that.
38:25He always finishes as a top 24 running back.
38:27And in some cases, better than that. And I think just given the offense that he's in, knowing that he could have the feature role.
38:33We always say this. We just got through saying this about Blake Horne.
38:37Well, if Kyron Williams missed his time, Blake Horne's going to be a star.
38:40There's never really talk about the flip side of that.
38:43If the backup missed his time, the starter can be an absolute monster.
38:46And I think that might be the case for Swift.
38:49So I'm looking at him late round three at this point.
38:51I think there's top 15 upside for him. Might be top 12 upside if Benonga is there.
38:56I know you said you're a little bit concerned about Swift just from taking him too soon.
39:00But when's the right spot for him for you?
39:02For me, it's round four. But it's got to be toward the back of round four.
39:06And I've never been the biggest fan of DeAndre Swift.
39:09But even I can't look at him and say, oh, you've got to stay away from him because it's DeAndre Swift.
39:14No. Last year, he was really good the first five games.
39:17Averaged 17 touches per game, 15.1 PPR points per game, even 12.1 non-PPR points per game.
39:21So he's really earned it. And if he's got a pathway to being the guy that gets the majority of touches in
39:27this offense without Kyle Mononga on the field, because I think that'll be the case, watch out.
39:31He can get off to a great start. Heath, you mentioned this in regards to Parker Washington.
39:35I wonder if you feel the same way about Chris Godwin, because there's been this sort of steady drumbeat of everybody's moving him up a little bit.
39:42ADP is starting to recognize that Emeka Abuka with his toe injury might not be ready for week one.
39:47But if he is, he's not going to necessarily be 100% of Emeka Abuka.
39:50Are you doing the same thing with Godwin? I am moving Godwin up.
39:54I was way behind early, even when everybody else was kind of doubting him.
39:57And so I've kind of stayed behind. I think I'm probably still around behind you.
40:01I think if he stays healthy all year, then he's probably going to beat his ADP.
40:05I question whether he has the upside, if Abuka's healthy for most of the year, to really be a difference maker.
40:10And I think if I was ranking the wide receivers amongst the most likely to miss time, Chris Godwin would probably be near the top of that list.
40:18But you did say recently that when the old guys get to week one, it's a good sign.
40:22He's gotten to week one with no issues. And again, a lot of positive reports out of Tampa Bay.
40:27All right, I'm going to lump these two wide receivers together because you're getting them late in the case of Jayden Reed
40:33a little bit sooner than Jalen Coker. But the situation for both these guys for me is very positive.
40:37For Jayden Reed, you have the Josh Jacobs situation, which I think will allow the Packers to throw the ball more.
40:43One time in Jordan Love's career, he's been over 30 pass attempts.
40:46It was 2023. They threw over 500 times that season.
40:48I think we get back to seeing that this season for them.
40:51Christian Watson should benefit. Matthew Golden should benefit. Tucker Kraft should benefit.
40:54Jayden Reed, when he's healthy, has been absolutely awesome.
40:57Last year was a very frustrating shoulder injury, foot injury.
40:59But he's healthy now. I think we're going to see him go over 13 PPR points per game or be in that
41:05range because he'll get five or more targets. Dave, you got a very fun stat on Jayden Reed as well.
41:10And the battle between you and I on Matthew Golden versus Jayden Reed lasted about one day because I found this stat on Jayden Reed.
41:16It blew me away. 18 games, including the postseason, where he's had at least six targets in a game.
41:2117 of the 18 with at least 10 PPR points.
41:23Okay, that's a nice, safe floor. 13 with at least 13 PPR points.
41:27Now we're talking. And seven games with 19.2 or more full PPR points.
41:30And most of those games, he played on a Packers team where they couldn't run the ball effectively.
41:35Jacobs would be active, but they just couldn't run the ball.
41:37He's a changeup for them. So if anything happens here where Marshawn Lloyd doesn't play to green-based expectations or they're trailing in
41:43games, this is going to open the door for Jayden Reed.
41:46It's absolutely worth taking him with a late pick.
41:48And then, Heath, you and I tend to fight over Jalen Coker.
41:51You took him in a draft recently. I wanted to reach across through the screen and punch you.
41:56Last five games. He's right here. No, no, he's too far.
41:58Too far. And I got over it. Last five games last season, including the playoffs, same amount of targets for Ted Aro, McMillan, and Jayden Coker.
42:05Coker outscored him by almost five PPR points per game.
42:08How much do you like Coker this year? I like him a lot.
42:11I wish somebody would listen to us because Coker and Downs are the two wide receivers that I feel like for the
42:16last four months, every time one of us puts together a sleepers article, one of those guys is in it.
42:22And every time I look at their ADP, it's still way too low.
42:25So I do think that I really like the fact they're talking about putting both he and Ted Aro, McMillan, in a higher slot usage this year.
42:32I think that'll help his targets per route run because the target rate last year wasn't very good.
42:36He was just very efficient on the targets that he did get.
42:39If he gets up to a 20% target rate this year, he could easily be a top 36 wide receiver.
42:44We love concentrated targets, and both McMillan and Coker are going to get them.
42:48So we just like to see a better quarterback or at least better quarterback play and maybe a little bit more volume for the Panthers.
42:54All right, we're going to take a break right now.
42:57We come back and get to a few of your questions.
43:00So we'll get to some of your Ask FFT next here on Fantasy Football Today.
43:03All right, quick ending to the show here with some questions that will help you with your draft.
43:0810-team league PPR got Trey Tucker and Krosky Merritt late.
43:10Najee Harris, Algier, and Chris Brooks are still on the waiver wire.
43:13Would you drop Trey Tucker or Krosky Merritt to pick up any of those guys, Dave?
43:18Definitely not Krosky Merritt. And Tucker, if you're really loaded at wide receiver, you don't necessarily have to carry him into the year.
43:23You could pick up Algier or Najee. I would do that especially with Jeremiah Love a little bit banged up.
43:28Next question. All right, Heath, huge fan of the show.
43:31Down 10 pounds this summer listening to you guys every day.
43:34So glad that we could help somebody lose weight.
43:36Hopefully we'll help you with fancy teams as well.
43:38Three receivers, two running backs, two flex, and a half PPR league.
43:41What would your ideal strategy be? Would you start five stud receivers?
43:44I would be okay. Oh, half PPR, probably not.
43:47I would really like to have a great tight end in this format.
43:50And I know a lot of times, whoa, it didn't have to try to tight end.
43:54You have to use a tight end. Good grief, this is crazy.
43:57Half PPR, running backs, I think it's understated how much that format helps them versus full PPR.
44:01Get at least one good RB. It'd be great if you got two of the top 12.
44:06Yep, here RB in a 10-team league would be a good strategy.
44:09Next question. Rate this team full PPR, 12 teams.
44:11Trevor Lawrence, Hampton, you can see the roster, Dave.
44:13What would you rate this team? I like this team.
44:16As I go through it, I see a bunch of players that I would take in round five or round six, usually
44:21when you see more than two of those guys.
44:24It's a good thing. I'm going to give it an A-.
44:26Love the receiving core. St. Brown, Rice, McConkie, Christian Watson, Chris Godwin.
44:30That is awesome. Last one for us today. Good running back depth, too.
44:33Nice job, Irving. You didn't get a symbol. Oh, that was the last one.
44:36I'm sorry. All right, that'll do it for us here on Fantasy Football Today.
44:40Good luck with your drafts this weekend. Make sure you check out our Fantasy Football Today podcast, wherever podcasts are found.
44:45We are helping you dominate your fantasy. We've got a mailbag at 10.
44:4930 p.m. Eastern tonight, you can watch live on YouTube, and you'll hear that on Saturday.
44:53And we're going to get you all your stuff needed for week one, starting early next week.
44:57It's here. Good luck with your drafts this weekend.
44:59For Heath Cummings, Dave Richard, and our great production staff, I'm Jamie Eisenberg.
45:02Thanks for watching Fantasy Football Today.
