Perfect Fantasy Football Draft: 1st in a 10-Team ESPN PPR League

Aug 27, 2026

IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Having the very first pick in a draft has its ups and downs. You have the whole player pool at your disposal, and no one can stop you from selecting the absolutely unquestioned stud of studs with your first click. NO ONE. But then a long wait ensues: you have to sit through another 19 picks before you pick again. But when you do, you get two picks at once!

10-team leagues also mean you will still have plenty of talented players to choose from, often far earlier than you can get them in 12- or 14-team leagues. It can be worth the wait, I assure you.

In this article, I will walk through my favorite players in each round that should be available to me based on ESPN ADP from the No. 1 spot in a 10-team PPR league.

The 4for4 staff uses the Draft Hero software for all of our leagues. Draft Hero syncs directly to your league and optimizes each pick using projections and value-based rankings from 4for4. Draft Hero lets you customize your draft experience with settings on which rounds you want to draft a position, how many players you want at each position, and players to target or avoid.

For those new to Draft Hero, be sure to explore this walkthrough of the app.

Click here for more Perfect Drafts!

My Plan of Attack When Drafting 1st

Roster Settings: 1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 1 Flex (WR/RB/TE), 1 Kicker, 1 DEF, 6 bench spots

Grab one of the stud running backs - no need to get cute. This year the top pick is between two candidates. I’m grabbing one of them.
Target workhorses or touchdown demons - I want players who are either going to command the bulk of their team's targets/carries or have a monopoly on the work near the goal line. In an ideal world, players who fit both bills.
Leave Kickers and Defenses until the very end of the draft - these are not positions of high priority in fantasy, and a strong case can be made that weekly streaming at these spots is a viable strategy for success. You should ensure that all of your starting spots and at least a few of your backup players are filled before you even contemplate picking a kicker.