• Practice makes perfect: The more opportunities fantasy football managers have to run drafts similar to their actual draft, the more prepared they will be.
• Pay attention during the draft: While it’s great to have a plan when the draft begins, don’t be afraid to change it depending on what’s happening.
• Dominate your fantasy draft: Subscribe to PFF+ to get full access to PFF’s suite of fantasy football tools, including the fantasy mock draft simulator, live draft assistant, fantasy draft rankings, cheat sheets and more! Click here to subscribe!
Estimated reading time: 10 minutes
Whether you're a rookie or a seasoned pro, these 10 essential tips can guide you toward fantasy football success in 2024. While they're designed with newcomers and casual players in mind, even veterans might find a helpful strategy or two. Dive in and get ready to dominate your league.
1. Know your league settings
Understanding your league settings is crucial for draft preparation.
This includes knowing how many players you start at each position and the number of flex and superflex spots. While most leagues follow standard formats, superflex leagues make quarterbacks more valuable, leading to earlier picks. Commissioners often tweak settings to make their leagues unique, such as starting only one running back or two tight ends.
It's also important to know how points are awarded for each stat, especially for receptions. Points for receptions can vary widely: standard leagues award no points for receptions, PPR leagues give a full point, and Half-PPR leagues give half a point. Additionally, the number of participants in your league can influence your strategy.
PFF's fantasy football draft kit provides extensive research areas. While some content applies to all leagues, other sections are tailored to specific league types.
2. Practice, practice, practice
Just like anything in life, practice makes perfect, and fantasy football is no different. The more you practice before the draft, the more prepared you'll be on the big day.
Luckily, PFF offers a mock draft simulator to help you get the practice you need. You can sync your league settings if you use Sleeper or Yahoo! Fantasy, or you can manually enter your league details, such as the number of teams, scoring settings, and starting positions.
You can sync your league if you are playing from Sleeper or Yahoo! Fantasy to get your league settings, or you can manually enter them in. This includes the number of teams in your league, scoring settings and the number of players starting at each position.
You can also customize strategies for yourself and your fellow drafters. For instance, if you know someone in your league is a fan of a particular team, you can set the simulator to have them draft more players from that team.
The repeated practice allows you to experiment with different strategies. Try drafting a running back in the first round and see how it goes, then try another draft with a wide receiver in the first round. Comparing the results can help you decide which position to target initially. The mock draft simulator also provides suggestions for each pick based on my rankings, PFF's projections, and average draft positions.
3. Come up with a plan, but be prepared to abandon it
After you've done enough practice drafts, you should have a general plan of what you want to do heading into the real thing.
Mock drafts and our fantasy draft kit can help you create a strategy outlining the positions and players you aim to target in each round.
While having a plan is crucial, it's equally important to stay flexible. Drafts are unpredictable, and players you wanted might get picked earlier than expected.
Be ready to pivot if someone unexpectedly becomes available. The mock drafts and draft kit will prepare you to adjust your strategy on the fly.
4. Pay attention to positional runs
During a draft, you might encounter situations where multiple players at the same position are picked consecutively. For example, if two teams select a quarterback earlier than expected, it can trigger a rush on quarterbacks as others fear missing out.
This is another reason why it's crucial to adjust your strategy on the fly. Paying attention to tiered rankings is key. Tiers group similar players together, highlighting the gaps between different groups within a position.
If a positional run is happening and only one or two players within a tier are still available, it might be wise to grab one of them. Conversely, if an entire tier has just been picked clean, it could be a good time to focus on a different position.
5. Pay attention to nearby drafters' picks
If you're picking near the start or end of the draft, it's beneficial to note what the people drafting after you might need.
For example, if you're picking 11th in a 12-team league, you'll have one pick, then the 12th team has back-to-back picks, followed by your next pick.
Suppose you want to draft a quarterback and a running back with your next two picks. In that case, it’s wise to check the roster of the team picking 12th. If they already have a quarterback, you should probably pick a running back first, knowing they are unlikely to pick another quarterback. Conversely, if they haven't picked a quarterback yet, it might be best to draft one first to prevent them from taking the player you want.
This strategy is particularly useful for those picking early or late in the draft. It’s less helpful for those picking in the middle, but it can still provide an edge.
6. Draft a top-two quarterback if you’re picking early in the third round
There is a big advantage in having one of the top quarterbacks.
Last season, most of my perfect draft articles had either Josh Allen or Jalen Hurts as the best option in the mid-to-late second round. That’s around where they were drafted, and 62.1% of those who drafted Allen made their playoffs at ESPN, which was the best rate at the position. Hurts was second at 61.3%, with a big gap between them and third. They were similarly the clear top two on fantasy championship game teams.
They are capable of averaging 25.0 points per game, a mark only seven quarterbacks have hit in the last 20 years. It requires either elite passing (Aaron Rodgers in 2011, Peyton Manning in 2013, Patrick Mahomes in three different seasons), elite rushing (Michael Vick in 2010, Lamar Jackson in 2019, Hurts in 2022), or a combination of the two (Allen in 2020).
Only Mahomes and Jackson are capable of reaching the mark if everything goes right. The chances are close to 0 for all other quarterbacks.
While others are waiting for quarterbacks with high floors but lower ceilings, taking a quarterback here can ensure a more well-rounded team. For a more complete view of why Allen and Hurts are still safe draft picks, check out my article on league-winning quarterbacks.
7. Draft a top-seven tight end
It's essential to draft one of the top seven fantasy tight ends, as they offer more consistency from season to season compared to other positions.
For instance, in 2020, the top four tight ends had top-five average draft positions (ADPs). In 2021, five of the top seven tight ends had top-six ADPs, with the exceptions being Rob Gronkowski at age 34 and Dalton Schultz before his breakout season. In 2022, the top six tight ends in fantasy points per game all had top-nine ADPs. In 2023, five of the top six had top-eight ADPs, with Sam LaPorta being the exception.
If you aim for a top-five tight end, you likely need to draft them early or get very lucky later in the draft.
Travis Kelce, Mark Andrews and George Kittle have consistently ranked among the top six fantasy tight ends in points per game over the last five seasons, a consistency we don’t see at any other position. They have also earned the three highest PFF grades at the position during this period.
Great tight ends will always see targets because teams rarely have two elite players at this position. Meanwhile, less talented tight ends might get plenty of playing time but don’t earn enough targets.
Additionally, consider drafting Sam LaPorta, Kyle Pitts, Trey McBride or Dalton Kincaid. These four tight ends are all high draft picks, 23 or 24 years old, and have a top-12 fantasy finish. They are at an age where significant improvement from last season is likely. Pitts and LaPorta are already top-six in PFF receiving grade over the last six seasons, while McBride and Kincaid are at least in the top 18 despite neither having a full season as a starter yet.
8. Draft for upside late
When drafting late, focus on rankings rather than projections.
The goal with these late picks is to choose players who have the potential to be great, even if there’s some risk involved, rather than selecting players who are consistently good but unlikely to improve. Having a player on your bench who never starts isn't helpful. It's better to draft someone who, if things go well, could become a fantasy starter. If they don’t pan out, you can easily drop them and pick up someone else.
For example, last season, Robert Woods and Tank Dell of the Houston Texans were compared. Woods was projected to score more points because he was a starter, while Dell was a backup. However, Dell had more upside and was ranked higher. Dell lived up to that upside and proved to be the better fantasy option.
Blake Corum is another example of a player with a higher ranking than projection. He's expected to be the backup to Kyren Williams for the Los Angeles Rams. Head coach Sean McVay typically has one clear lead running back, which is great for the fantasy value of the starter. Corum might not score many points in most scenarios, but if he outperforms Williams or Williams gets injured, Corum could have top-10 potential. Draft him because those unlikely but possible scenarios could make him a valuable asset rather than relying on the most likely projection.
9. Only draft a kicker or team defense if you have to
If your league uses kickers and defense, it's best to wait until right before Week 1 to pick them up rather than drafting them. There isn't much advantage to drafting a kicker or defense early, so it's fine to delay as long as you remember to add them before the season starts.
Instead, consider drafting a player with potential upside, like Jaleel McLaughlin, in the last round. The Denver Broncos backfield is currently unpredictable, but we'll have more information by the start of the season. This will increase the value of some Broncos running backs while decreasing the value of others. If McLaughlin's value rises, keep him and cut someone else for a kicker. If his value decreases, drop McLaughlin for a kicker. The difference in value between the kicker you draft and the best available kicker is minimal. However, the potential value of a backup running back who gains significant value is much higher.
This strategy is less relevant if your draft is only a few days before the season starts.
10. Have fun
Whether you're playing for money or fun, it's important to remember that fantasy football is a game meant to be enjoyed.
While it might not make sense to draft your favorite player several rounds earlier than his average draft position (ADP), it's perfectly fine to choose your favorite player when deciding between two similarly ranked players.
Similarly, it's okay to avoid players from teams you dislike. If everyone in your league does this, someone will eventually get some steals in the draft. However, if two players have similar ADPs, avoiding players from teams you don't like is OK.
These decisions might slightly impact your team's performance, but the difference is usually minimal when players are close in value. Even at the top of the draft, there isn't always a consensus on who the best player at a position should be.
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