McFarland: Top-250 Fantasy Football Rankings

Utilizing tiers is the best way to ensure that you generate value with each pick in 2021 fantasy football drafts, especially throughout the early rounds. I'll break down how and why to target certain position groups in each tier, along with backup plans for those who choose to go another direction.

The following are my top 250 players in PPR drafts broken into tiers. All strategy is based on 12-team leagues. For those looking for rankings beyond the top 250, rankings in other formats or rankings by the rest of PFF's fantasy analysts, find those at our rankings page.

Last Updated: Aug. 25, 2021

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TIER 1: ELITE TALENT AND WORKLOADS

Rank	Position	Name	Team	Position Rank
1	RB	Christian McCaffrey	Panthers	RB1
2	RB	Dalvin Cook	Vikings	RB2
3	RB	Alvin Kamara	Saints	RB3
4	RB	Aaron Jones	Packers	RB4
5	TE	Travis Kelce	Chiefs	TE1
6	WR	Davante Adams	Packers	WR1
7	WR	Tyreek Hill	Chiefs	WR2
8	RB	Derrick Henry	Titans	RB5
9	RB	Ezekiel Elliott	Cowboys	RB6
10	WR	Stefon Diggs	Bills	WR3
11	RB	Saquon Barkley	Giants	RB7
12	RB	Austin Ekeler	Chargers	RB8

From the early position, focus on the dual-threat running backs and then pivot to the elite receivers and tight ends ahead of Henry and Elliott, who both are at or approaching the 1,500-attempt marker.

Barkley could start slow but provides RB1-overall upside once he is rolling. If you don't like the risk associated with Barkley, Diggs is the easy pick.