Perfect 2024 fantasy football draft strategy, round by round for 12-team leagues: Pick No. 12

• Add young talent early: Anyone picking later in the first round will miss out on the top talent in the league, but there will be plenty of opportunities to add up-and-coming young players in the first few rounds.

• Difficulty finding value at tight end: For managers with the 12th overall pick, securing a top-seven tight end at a reasonable value is challenging.

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Estimated reading time: 14 minutes

The perfect draft series combines current ADPs from expert and casual drafts to see who should be available at each pick and make the best picks given that information. This draft is designed for 12-team PPR leagues for anyone picking 12th.

Last updated: 7:15 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 31

Round 1, Pick 12: Draft a running back

Most of the time, the top three running backs and top six wide receivers are off the board. If one of them falls, then go ahead and pick them. If not, Puka Nacua and Jahmyr Gibbs are generally the two best available players, and both of their ADPs have fallen to the second round. Because of that, it’s possible to end up with both players.

Top Target: Jahmyr Gibbs (Player Profile)

Gibbs consistently excelled in ideal situations. On perfectly blocked plays, when he could follow his intended point of attack and against seven or fewer men in the box, he ranked between the 95th and 99th percentile in PFF rushing grade. He finished eighth in PPR points last season. It’s hard for him to reach the Christian McCaffrey level without more rushing attempts per game, but there is reason to believe his fantasy points can improve with either more touches, improved production in the receiving game and/or the offensive line helping him even more than before.

Possible Targets: Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley, Kyren Williams, De'Von Achane, Isiah Pacheco

Round 2, Pick 13: Draft a wide receiver

Top Target: Puka Nacua (Player Profile)

Nacua finished with the fourth-most fantasy points among all wide receivers last season, making it one of the best rookie seasons by a wide receiver of all time. His situation this year is very similar to last year, with Sean McVay as his head coach, Matthew Stafford as his quarterback, and Cooper Kupp as his primary competition. It is certainly possible that Nacua will have an even better sophomore season. Still, he has a one-year sample size of excellent play compared to the wide receivers selected ahead of him who have been clear elite options for multiple seasons.