How Not to Lose Your Fantasy Football League in the First Round

Aug 24, 2026

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Your standard fantasy football draft consists of many rounds, whatever scoring format you choose. Every round gives you a chance to make your team better. None more so than the very first round. Given this, it’s something of a stretch to suggest that you can win your draft with whichever player you select with your very first selection. But, by Jove, you can certainly lose it.

Here are some top tips to prevent your first-round selection from sinking your team and condemning you to a winter of discontent in fantasy football.

Ignore Quarterback

You really do not need to think about drafting a quarterback in the first round. This is not a time-sensitive tip, either. You don’t really need to think about doing this in any season, not just in 2026. It is a comfort to have Josh Allen on your roster. You can sit easy thinking Lamar Jackson is prime for a bounce-back campaign. But the simple fact is, quarterback ADP makes it very likely a solid option at the position will be available much, much, later.

During our Perfect Draft series, it has been shown that players like Justin Herbert, Jared Goff, and even Patrick Mahomes are still on the board in the double-digit rounds. They may not have the ceiling of Allen or Jackson, especially without a strong rushing profile. But their floor will ensure that the shortfall between them and the elite can be more than made up by whatever running back or wide receiver you do take in the first 12 picks.

Don't Even Think About Tight End, Either

If quarterback should be out of your mind, then tight end deserves the same lack of consideration. There are probably only two players that warrant early-round attention at this, the most volatile position in all of fantasy sport. Namely Trey McBride and Brock Bowers. But while most fantasy rosters would no doubt enjoy a sizeable weekly boost at the tight end spot with either of these players on it, the question again comes down to opportunity cost.

The running backs and wide receivers later in the draft are not the same quality as those in the top 12. Whereas you can pick up Tucker Kraft, and I have strongly suggested you should, many rounds later, at a time when wide receiver and certainly running back pickings are a lot slimmer. The first round is just not a time for a onesie position.

Don't Get Cute With Early Picks

If you have been blessed with the 1.01 or 1.02, I beseech you to fight off the urge to get clever. Zigging while everyone else is zagging is a wonderful strategy later in drafts. But at the very top, it is merely a time to advertise to your league mates that they have a potential buffoon in their midst.

This year, especially in PPR formats, the first and second picks in your draft should be, in whatever order takes your fancy, Jahmyr Gibbs and Bijan Robinson. The workloads on offer to both of these players, plus a proven track record of production even whilst sharing a backfield, make them absolute smashes. While nothing is 100% guaranteed in life, or fantasy football, I can pretty much guarantee you will be sad if you take another player besides one of these two.

Lock in on One of The Stud Wide Receivers in The Mid Round

The consolation prize for losing out on Gibbs or Robinson at the three, four, or five spot is landing one of the true game changers at wide receiver. That’s not a bad silver medal; I can tell you for free. So, if the 1.03, 1.04 or 1.05 belong to you, make sure your pick is either Ja’Marr Chase, Puka Nacua, or Jaxon Smith-Njigba. All three offer something truly exceptional that puts them in a tier ahead of the likes of Christian McCaffrey, CeeDee Lamb, or whoever else is currently boasting a first-round ADP.

Be Realistic in Buying Into Bouncebacks in The Late Part of The Round

The back end of the first round and start of the second round boasts a heap of players who can, with a little flexibility, be pretty much interchanged depending on your flavour. There are a host of players who maybe were first-round locks a year ago, but circumstances have pushed them into “value” territory.

Bounce-backs do happen, but please consider the potential downsides before hitching your wagon. Justin Jefferson can't possibly endure similar quarterback play to what he had in the 2025 season…but does that mean it’ll be enough to return him to the top table of fantasy wide receivers? Saquon Barkley had to live through a banged-up offensive line and unimaginative play calling in 2025…but does his offensive linemen being a year older mean they can return to their 2025 people-moving days, and does not being Kevin Patullo automatically mean Sean Mannion is a needle-moving offensive play caller? We don’t know the answers yet, but they are questions you should ask yourself before making your late first-round pick something of a flyer.