2026 Fantasy Draft Sneak Peek - Top 36 - Early Look at the First 3 Rounds

The first three rounds decide your season, and the early 2026 board is already full of landmines and league-winners. We break down why dual-threat running backs still set the market, where elite target earners provide safety, and how coaching changes quietly rewrite value before ADP catches up. From Bijan, Gibbs, and CMC to Puka and Chase, we map the cleanest paths to weekly points and show where to pivot when risk piles up.

We go deep on the mid-first debate around Jackson Smith-Njigba and explain why anchoring a roster on a one-year outlier can backfire if scheme and usage shift. Prefer certainty? Amon-Ra St. Brown and CeeDee Lamb offer volume and red-zone roles you can bank on. We also examine Jonathan Taylor’s price versus Indy’s QB clarity and why Devon Achane’s role must be proven in a new ecosystem before you spend a first.

Round two is loaded with leverage. Trey McBride at the 1-2 turn flattens the tight end curve with true WR1 usage. Malik Nabers is a smart swing on separation and vertical juice if the play-caller hire hits. Ashton Geanty’s after-contact production hints at a volume-fueled breakout once the line and scheme stabilize. We lay out a practical plan for Justin Jefferson versus Drake London based on draft start and roster balance, then flag George Pickens as a round-two trap when game scripts and target competition normalize.

Round three becomes your build’s backbone. Derrick Henry finally prices in age yet still offers goal-line dominance. Chris Olave and AJ Brown make ideal WR2s with top-8 weeks. Josh Allen remains the ultimate luxury—crush your league without overpaying in round one. We close with a clear, step-by-step draft blueprint: secure stable roles early, use McBride to win positional advantage, buy RB value in the third, and avoid paying premiums for one-year stories. Subscribe, share with your league, and drop your current 101 in the comments—we’ll feature the best arguments on our next show.

Transcript

Opening And 2026 Draft Plan

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hey guys, today we are doing a sneak preview into the 2026 fantasy football draft. We're just going to take a look at the first couple of rounds. We're going to talk about any guys that you need to be looking into in the offseason. So let's do it, guys. Let's go. Alright, alright, all right. Welcome to the show. This is the Franklin Fantasy Football Podcast. We are your hosts, Frankie and Johnny. Frankie today, welcome in, my friends. It is the last episode of Teaching for Us. Oh. It's hard to believe we did 40 videos this year, just in this. No big deal. No big deal. Wrapping it up strong. We want it today, guys. We just want to give you let's take a little peek. It's the week before the Super Bowl. Everybody's gearing up and excited. We're going to take a little bit of a peek into next year's fantasy draft. We're going to look at the first three rounds, and we're just going to see what the early projections are in these rounds here. Talk about some guys that maybe we're surprised to see there, some guys that we think maybe will drop, maybe they have offensive coordinator, coaching changes, quarterback changes. There's going to be a lot of that too. Oh, yeah. We're going to take just a peek at some of these guys. Now keep in mind, not include rookies. We'll be doing our rookie review as our first episode coming into 2026. And then we're also going to look at new faces, new places, a free agent. So it doesn't take this into consideration. If some of these guys are going to be free agents next year, we'll talk about that and maybe speculate on where they might go too. All right, Frank, you ready, baby? Let's do it. All right, let's do it. Let's take a look at our first round right now. Got up a beautiful graphic here created by the Franklin Fantasy Football graphic design team. Yes, that is the guys you're looking at right here on this. Screen. All right, let's take a look at the first round. This is from Rotoballer Rankings. We went through, looked at a bunch of different rankings. These ones seem a little more aligned with what Frank and I are kind of thinking. You know, we might put out our own rankings next year as well, so keep an eye out for that. But looking at this early first round, I'll just run down real quick and then Frank, give me some ideas on these first couple of guys of what you're thinking. Do they belong there? What's happening? Number one overall right now, Bijan Robinson. Number two, Jameer Gibbs. Number three, Puka Nakua. We got a receiver right there. Number four, Christian McCaffrey. And number five, Jamar Chase. Now I want to point this out, and I'm gonna say from my own personal uh advice here or personal thoughts, these five guys, really to me, Frank, can be interchangeable. If you want to take any of these guys as the 101 or anywhere in the top five, have that, I see absolutely zero issue with that. Some people like to go receiver first and receiver heavy. Puka, Jamar, go at it. You know. I do think, though, to me, Frank, and maybe your opinion's a little different, the big three running backs. We talked about this in our our our fantasy finishes for running back. These guys are just so valuable, man. Bijan, Jameer Gibbs, Christian McCaffrey. The reason I'm saying that is because you're getting a top five running back. Almost certainly, if these guys are healthy. And you're also getting a top 10 receiver with these guys, with their receiving. So talk about that a little bit. How you feel, just these first five guys, break it down to what some of your thoughts are.

RB Versatility And Early Draft Philosophy

Coaching Changes Shaping Elite RB Value

SPEAKER_01 3:32

Well, I think it's interesting, John, because guys, when we're looking at this, first off, I completely agree with you. Any one of these could be 101, 102, 103, 104, 105 in any way. So if you're to your point, if you're like, no, I'm a believer in Puka, we just found out Matt Stafford's coming back full time, then take him 101. Nobody's gonna have a problem with it. But here's what's fascinating within these top five. First and foremost, there's been a lot of shakeup. So we know immediately with the Falcons, right, that they brought on Stefanski, now they have Tommy Reese. So that offense dynamic is gonna change. And here's what's really cool. I actually agree with Bichon being number one. The reason is because knowing we're Browns fans, knowing the hell we went through, but we've seen Stefanski's schemes, guys, he is run first play action all day, every day. And so with that, opens up a ton for Bajon Robinson. In addition, guys, you got to remember Tyler Algier is also a free agent this year. Now he could certainly be re-signed back, but the reality is there may be a team that wants to pluck him and actually put him as their starter. So all of that bodes very well for Bajan. And then you also look at Jameer. What's interesting about Jameer, man, again, he could certainly also be the 101. Um, but for me, it's looking at his new OC. So the guy coming over, Peter from um uh from that of Arizona, the previous OC over there, is now coming to the Lions as of just a few weeks ago, guys. So it's a really run-heavy style of offense. So this bodes well to Jameer, also bodes well to Montgomery. So it's gonna be interesting to see how this new OC really leverages Jameer Gibbs' skill set, not just from a rush perspective, but certainly from what you were even acknowledging from the receiving aspect. And that's a lot of times where these backs are gonna make their payday for you. Meaning those target share. I mean, we looked at CMC, man, for example. I mean, he was number one running back, and in a lot of cases, maybe number two behind Jonathan Taylor in some aspects. Um, but when you look at his receiving output, it was nasty. It was absolutely incredible. And there's no reason to believe that that's gonna actually slow down. If anything, based on the construction, based on what's going on from San Francisco's perspective, they're more than likely gonna need another style of season like that from CMC. And I know he's getting up there in age, he's getting closer to 30, right? But again, I see another one or two seasons of absolute awesome output from him. So for me, man, there are some coaching things kind of happening, but again, level setting all expectation, a lot of these coaching changes will actually help some of these uh top-tier uh backs or receivers as well.

Mid-First Controversies And JSN Debate

SPEAKER_00 6:12

Agreed, man. All right, now let's look. We get down here. This is where you're gonna get some controversy, and you're gonna have a lot of different opinions of where these guys belong, middle first round and on the turn in the back of the first round here. Let's just go right through it. Number six, Jackson Smith and Jick, but JSN. Controversial, I know. Number seven, Jonathan Taylor. Number eight, Devon Achan. Number nine, James Cook. 10, Amon Ra, the Sun God, 11, CeeDee Lamb. And rounding out first round right now is looking like Rasheed Rice. All right, I know there's a couple of guys in here you want to talk about, man. Let's just start with JSN. He's the next guy on there. Preface this with you and I, we're not believers in JSN. Right. He did not draft. He was off of our boards. Yep. Obviously, that was a huge mistake, but there were reasons for that. And it was Sam Darnold. Yeah. Was Sam Darnold going to be that guy or was he a product of Kevin uh O'Connell's offense in Minnesota? Apparently he is that guy. Yeah. Now, we looked at it though. Sam Darnold's numbers were not gaudy. He had very, very pedestrian numbers. They were good and very efficient, but they weren't crazy high with fantasy points. He just was very efficient and got the ball to JSN. Yeah. What are you thinking about him next year? I mean, as of right now, there's not really any changes. This team's going to the Super Bowl. Yeah. Um, you know, so are they going to attract some more wide receiver talent? Is that going to cut into JSN? Is it too early to even make a determination on JSN?

Achan, JT, And Situational Risk

SPEAKER_01 7:38

John, I'll be honest here. I am still a little nervous of JSN. And the reason being is because number one, any time that we have really seen this level of output from a receiver, um, outside of a few names like Puka or Jamar, there's always been a slight come back to earth moment. And what I mean by this is JSN was so high up there throughout the entirety of the season. And knowing where you actually drafted him, whether it was round three, four, five, et cetera, you got back insane value. So put your fantasy football cap on, guys. We're not talking NFL, we're talking fantasy football. For me, drafting JSN in the middle of your first round screams risk, right? Let's talk about Clint Kubiak. Clint Kubiak, a dynamic, incredible offensive coordinator, is more than likely not going to be the OC there next year. He's probably going to be. There's a lot of rumors going on about him potentially being the Raiders' head coach. They can't do anything until the Super Bowl's over. But again, if you lose that particular piece, that's a big problem. And then in addition, yeah, man, Sam Darnold has looked really good. I mean, for the first for the last two seasons, it's it's really an anomaly, in my opinion, from what we've seen. And maybe it's just his development is actually getting there and he's really looking well. But I still there's a part of me that struggles and fully believing it from a fantasy football standpoint. Meaning, right, moving forward, is he gonna be able to continue to feed JSN to this level? Right. And so to your point, they look they brought in Rashid Shaheed. Is he gonna start taking additional steps? Are they gonna end up looking to bring on additional receiver assets? Knowing Cooper Cup is is significantly old and and quite honestly lost his step this year, in my opinion. So they need to bolster that. Again, if you look at it in a vacuum, they also had their rookie tight end, uh Elijah Herrero, who was hurt most of the season. So AJ Barner. And then they brought on, yeah, and then AJ Barner was the other that was a part of that tight end room, and he kind of looked to explode a little bit. So for me, man, there's a lot of questions surrounding this offense, primarily focused on Clint Kubiak. Now, with that being said, if we're looking at JSN, John, and he was back of the first or in the second, different story. I would actually say, yeah, you know, go with that, because then you could come back around and you could get a Malik Neighbors or somebody else who we'll talk about to where now you're part pairing JSN with another top-tier guy. And so even if one slightly underperforms, you're covered with the other. Versus you're taking this dude at six, your whole team is anchored on him, then. That is my problem. So for me, it's at your own risk. He certainly told me to shut the fuck up, right? Because I was off my board. Yeah. But the reality is, again, thinking about the the value that you were able to get him last year versus the lack of value this year, you're all in on JSN.

SPEAKER_00 10:38

It's difficult because he was a third round pick last year, so it was a huge, at least third, third, fourth round pick last year. So it was huge value to have an outlier season. The key phrase is outlier season. Exactly. We haven't seen him do this before. This is the first time. Is this sustainable? Is it repeatable? Maybe. Maybe, maybe he's another Puka. When I anchor my team, I really try to stay away from those guys who break out and have that outlier season when I don't know for sure if it's gonna happen again. And you're right, the Seattle offense, I don't know if it's gonna happen again. Charbonnet took a bad injury at the end of the season, not sure if he's gonna be ready to go. And Kenneth Walker's a free agent, if I'm not sure. Yeah, he is. So that whole backfield could change there, which could change the dynamic of the team. So keep an eye on that. Early, I know, and we're gonna talk about JSN a lot in the preseason leading up to the draft, but one of those guys that's gonna be controversial. As of right now, middle of first round, I'm a little nervous, man. I'm going for one of those running backs, or I'm taking an Amon Ra or CD Lamb for him. Same for sure. For sure. Yeah. What about some of these other guys? How about some of the backs here, like JT and Devon H.N. and uh James Cook?

SPEAKER_01 11:44

I'll tell you what, JT, I think that you're you're drafting him at his peak. And I'm fine with that. Now, just be cautious though, because it was really a tale of two different tapes when you looked at Danny Dimes being the quarterback versus then Phillip Rivers and uh uh Riley Leonard and a few of the other guys. I mean, things changed dynamically. He went from being a surefire MVP candidate to completely falling off and actually doing your fantasy team a disservice heading into the playoffs. So for me, guys, we gotta make sure from Indy's standpoint, again, super early, this is gonna be figured out, but we gotta really see who's gonna be at the helm. Are they gonna bring back Danny Dimes? If so, yeah, you definitely draft JT there. If not, what is the backup plan? Who are they bringing in? What does this offense look like? What's gonna happen with Michael Pittman? Is he gonna get traded? Is he staying? Is Alec Pierce still gonna be there who was able to take off the top, who's now a free agent? So, how is that dynamic gonna change? For me, John, JT is one of the safest bets if they figure out the quarterback position. Now, real quick, I also want to talk about Devon A-chan, because for me, knowing that those two are right back to back, like Devon A-chan is also in an uncomfortable position. Meaning, right, he's a smaller uh frame kind of guy, a scat back, and is very dynamic and excellent. However, was that a product of Mike McDaniel offense? Mike McDaniel is now at the at the Chargers. So, what happens then when they get this new OC or excuse me, new uh head coach, which probably is gonna be a new OC? And does this change a ton of stuff? I mean, what we've seen is they have no quarterback. Like, let's pause there. Who's their starter, John? I mean, it's not two uh ewers, ewers, quinners? I mean, you know, so you got ewers. Who the who the hell knows what's gonna happen with Tyreek Hill, right? He could be a trade candidate. So then you have Jalen Waddell, then you have that's it, Waller who's not even signed. I mean, you know what I mean? Yeah, and so then Devon A-chan. So if you're looking for a volume play, maybe that's the guy. For me, though, I'm actually staying away from A-Chan in the first round because of so many uncertainties. Now, as the year kind of goes, John, and we start seeing maybe they get a pretty, pretty serious badass. I know they got Jeff Halfley, the defensive coordinator for the Packers, who's now his head coach, but from the offensive coordinator standpoint, oh man.

Late-First WRs: Safety Versus Ceiling

SPEAKER_00 14:13

So we got to figure this out and see how this unfolds. Yeah. The Dolphins are gonna be difficult. I mean, you've got two players really that you're gonna use right now in fantasy, Waddle and A-Chan. Yep. And until I know what's happening around them, they're absolutely off my board. Definitely. I want to get A-Chan because A-Chan is a light version of the big three. Definitely. His receiving is insane. Amazing. But is he gonna be able to do that? Is that a Mike McDonnell? That was a very specific, very unique offense. It was he had A-Chan came on with Mosterd, that the way that they ran the ball with all the motion and all of the eye candy, you know, Jalen Wright with Dare getting involved, Ollie Gordon. It's going to change. Yeah. So what does that mean? Is it going to be a traditional type offense? That could really hurt A-chan. I think he needs that creativity and needs somebody with him to be able to do that. So more on HN. We'll talk about that. All right, look at uh James Cook, Amon Ross, CeeDee Lamb, Rasheed Rice. What do you want to talk about there?

SPEAKER_01 15:12

So for me, guys, James Cook, super safe. He was uh he was off my board because I didn't think he could replicate what he did the previous year. And boy, oh boy, did I put my foot in my mouth there. So knowing that Joe Brady now is the head coach who was the offensive coordinator, guys, this is great. This is all great for James Cook. So draft him, know that you're probably safe there. Same thing with Amon Ra. John, for me, man, he's actually receiver three, in my opinion personally. I'm taking him as receiver three. Love him. He's super safe. CeeDee Lamb as well. I actually look at CeeDee Lamb as very safe, even though George Pickens is there. In my opinion, CeeDee Lamb was banged up. There was a lot of kind of goofy shit that happened. He's trying to figure out where he fits with this new offensive coordinator and the new head coach with Schottenheimer. So for me, man, I love CeeDee Lamb back half of first. I think that's fantastic value, in my opinion. And lastly, Rasheed Rice. This is what I want to hit on for a second. Rasheed Rice is gonna cause a little bit of mayhem because let's assume Patrick Mahomes is good to go. Everything is pointing to him being rocking and rolling for week three or week one, excuse me. But Rasheed Rice was also banged up. He's also had a few other uncomfortable situations pop up with domestic stuff and you know, charges and all this kind of shit. So there is some risk there from a fantasy perspective, especially back half of first. Now, here's the thing though, when he did play, he averaged 15.5 points a game, John in half PPR. So again, looking at this, I personally am not going to take Rasheed Rice in the in the first round. I think that there's a few other guys that I would actually put above him that to me would be a little bit higher of a floor. Now, people could say, yeah, you're crazy because look at what he did when he was playing. Uh, I agree. Yeah, you're right. That he he looked amazing, but there's also just a lot of the intangibles that I really don't like. And so, again, from a fantasy output standpoint, are you can certainly go Rashi Rice and then get you a Trey McBride. Or you could do something along the lines of get you your running back if a couple of these guys fall a little bit, maybe James Cook falls or some of these other guys, and then you go and get a Trey McBride second round. I'm more leaning that direction, trying to hit gold a little bit further on the receiver aspect as well.

SPEAKER_00 17:26

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SPEAKER_01 18:06

Here we go. We're diving in with Trevian Henderson higher than only 9.5 yards rushing, and we're gonna pair that with his teammate and Stephon Diggs, higher than 39 and a half yards receiving.

Round Two Starts: McBride And Neighbors

SPEAKER_00 18:20

I love that so much. What are you waiting for? Download the app today and use the promo code Frankly to score$75 in fantasy bonus entries when you play your first five dollars on fantasy. That's promo code Frankly. Underdog. Make picks, win money. Must be 18 plus. 19 plus in Alabama, Nebraska, 19 plus in Colorado, some games, 21 plus in Arizona, Massachusetts, and Virginia, and president of state where Underdog Fantasy operates. Terms apply. See assets.underdog fantasy.com slash web slash plane at turns underscore DFS underscore. Offer now valid in Maryland, Michigan, Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania. Concern with your play call 100 gambler visit www.ncp gaming.org in New York. Call them 247 Hope Line at 2778 Hope NY. Or text Hope NY, 467 369. Alright, let's get to round two here, man. Let's take a look at these guys here. Pop this guy up. All right, let's just go through. All right, first, I mean, round two is super interesting. Loaded. Loaded in round two, man. I mean, these round two has guys that we drafted in the first round, first five, six picks even last year. So wonder if we're gonna get any value on some of these guys that we're a little nervous about. Let's talk about 13, right on the turn here, Trey McBride, tight end popping into the turn of the first, second round. You gotta love that. Uh Trey McBride, guys, don't overthink this. Don't overthink this. The offense runs straight through Trey McBride. Yeah. Yes, there's gonna be change on this team. Kyler Murray may not be there. I don't think it matters. Trey McBride is any quarterback's cozy blanket and best friend. Yep. If you want to draft Trey McBride in the first round, I have no problem with that at all. The guy came in as uh what'd we say? He was receiver like six? Yeah. Yeah. Something like that. He was crazy. He was top seven. Right. So absolutely, man. There's no issues there, guys. He's done it two years in a row. The touchdowns came. I think they're gonna continue to come as well. All right, let's get to a couple of guys here. We haven't seen a lot of. Okay. We got Malik Neighbors right off the right off the rip. Malik neighbors, Omarion Hampton, second year guy, Josh Jacobs still holding strong, early second round. Saquon Barkley and Josh Jacobs back to back. They're gonna be back to back. I guarantee it, all draft season. I'm telling you, it's gonna be a difficult decision. Justin Jefferson, Drake London at 19, Ashton Genty coming in at the end of the second, little value there, I think. Nico Collins, Chase Brown at 22, George Pickens at 23, Brock Bowers, another tight end in the second round, rounding out the end of the second. All right, what do you see in there and some of those early picks in the second?

SPEAKER_01 20:41

Guys, I am okay. Let's hey get it out, get it out of the way with go ahead and make fun of me because I'm gonna say it again. I'm salivating. I am salivating, foaming at the mouth to draft Malik Neighbors in the second round. Guys, what are we talking about? Like, I get it. I get it. He got a big time injury, like ACL tear, all it. I understand. But we're talking John Hardball. We're talking Jackson Dart. We're talking the the step, right? Get his ass back on that field. You gotta do it.

SPEAKER_00 21:14

Did you see who they're looking at for potential OC as of today? Tell them, John. Cliff Kingsbury, potentially coming from the commanders. He was head coach in Arizona. To that high flying offense, what he was able to do with Jaden Daniels, he can do that with this team with John Harbaugh as the head coach. Dude, that could be exciting for these guys.

Hampton Hype And Scheme Fit Questions

SPEAKER_01 21:34

Crazy excited. We've seen Cliff Kingsbury elevate guys even in college, man. When we look at what he did at USC and stuff, I mean Cliff Kingsbury is the real deal. If they can get him with John Harbaugh, I mean, guys, we're this is crazy. And then you look at Wandale Robinson when he took that step. And what that means is it's gonna help neighbors. This is all helping Malik neighbors. We didn't get to see Malik. With basically with Jackson Dart. Like, and we didn't get to see him when Scat came in. So, what I'm saying is target him. When you think about his rookie season, when he had that massive target share, when you think about when he was able to play his sophomore year and what he was able to do, it was incredible. Guys, target Malik neighbors. I certainly will be. He is a guy I am drooling over in that second round, man.

SPEAKER_00 22:24

I am too. I finally got him last year, too, and I was so happy. Thea. That's how it works, man. That's how it works. Definitely a little cocktease. I liked it.

SPEAKER_01 22:34

John, so the other, the other big guy out of all these, because there's a ton, but what Omarion Hampton, listen, yeah. I want to dig into this for a second because Omarion Hampton is right in a perfect position, knowing that Mike McDaniel is now the offensive coordinator for the Chargers. We just talked about it. That's so so much, man. Especially when you look at what he did for Devon Achan, what he did for Mostert, what he did for Ollie Gordon, right? Being able to figure out these incredible schemes and all this motion and misdirection. Guys, Omarion Hampton is phenomenal. Now, here's the thing. I also, as much as I'm saying this, I'm not drafting him in the in the beginning of the second round. When you start looking at Ashton Genty, Justin Jefferson, Drake London, Saquon Barkley, in my opinion, I personally, even though Chase Brown, man, is I mean, yeah, Chase Brown versus Omarion Hampton.

SPEAKER_00 23:33

That's a would you rather that I could do right now, and I still will have a hard time figuring an out come August of this year. You know what I mean? 100%.

SPEAKER_01 23:41

Yeah. So so for me, man, I think that Omarion's probably gonna drop, in my opinion. When we get closer to drafts, I could see him push down more towards the back of two, early three. And even in that, it makes me uncomfortable because we saw Kamani Videll really perform well. So are we gonna see kind of a two-back tandem there for Mike McDaniel offense? In addition, Omarion was banged up. He got hurt his rookie year. So let's I you're not planning on an injury, but all of these things, man, I don't know if I would draft a Marianne Hampton that early in the second round. I would go Ashton Gente, I would go somebody else from that perspective.

SPEAKER_00 24:18

It'll be interesting. I mean, yeah, you get excited because Mike McDaniel's going over there and they might do some really cool shit. But Mike McDaniel was a speed guy. Yeah. You know, I mean, Mostert and A-Chan, that's not who Amarian Hampton is. So fast. Marian Hampton is more like Ollie Gordon. Yeah. They're more similar backs. He's got that skill set of get of catching the ball out of the backfield, but it's not at all like getting a guy into space like a Devon A-chan. You know, so it it will be a different offense. It'll be interesting. What about Josh Jacobs and Saquon, man?

SPEAKER_01 24:47

I'll tell you what. Like, this is what do you do?

SPEAKER_00 24:49

You flip a coin with the floor. We flip a coin. You flip a coin.

Jefferson Versus London Draft Strategy

SPEAKER_01 24:52

I mean, seriously, my my perspective on it, I would lean Saquon. I just think his floor is a little higher. I think with Josh Jacobs, we saw the floor completely fall out uh towards the end of the year. And whether it was injury, whether there was something up with the OC, I don't really know. You know what I mean? So, like, that makes me a little uncomfortable. So, but yeah, flip a coin. If you're a Packer believer, they they just extended LaFleur. So you know he's gonna be there for a while. Jacobs isn't going anywhere. The difference for me though is, man, is that this team, the all the Eagles offense, they're gonna have a new OC. They're more than likely gonna lean on Saquon Barkley a bit more. So I want to see Saquon have a bounce back type of year. That's way uh that that's the reason I'm leaning slightly towards him.

SPEAKER_00 25:36

All right, well, let's get to some of these receivers here in this second round. I mean, these guys are not without controversy in this past season. You know, so where are you kind of ranking and thinking about? I mean, Justin Jefferson in middle of second round now? It and even that I go, I don't know. You know, I don't know. Do I just pass on Justin Jefferson and take a Drake London or a Nico? Maybe. I at this point, I don't know, man. I mean, it really depends. Are they gonna roll with JJ McCarthy next year? That's you know, I so I'm nervous about Justin Jefferson.

SPEAKER_01 26:12

I'm really super nervous. I'm super nervous about him. Dude, he's arguably the most talented receiver in the NFL. Sure. In my opinion, he's arguably that on a team to where we thought he was quarterback proof. He was until this year. And John, his target share went down, yardage went down, touchdowns went down. I mean, it was it was really brutal to watch. And then on the flip side, you see Drake London, who was literally top four receiver until he got hurt. I mean, he was on a completely different playing field this year than a lot of other guys, and then he got hurt and he still finished what top 25, top 30, whatever it was. Um, but thinking about then Stefansky coming in here, that is different. I don't know how I really feel because for Stefansky, there were times that he was targeting the hell out of receiver one, but a lot of it was going to tight end as well. So, do we see a slight downtick in that of Drake London and versus a massive uptick for Bajan and Kyle Pitts? And therefore, then you lose some of the value drafting him in round two versus you're just gonna go with the surefire guy, big name value. You know, there's trade capability with that of Justin Jefferson for your fantasy league, but also at the massive risk that JJ McCarthy is there. So, for me, man, personally, looking at this in the way too early realm of the spectrum leading up to the drafts, I am probably willing to still take the risk of Justin Jefferson in round two if I am taking a receiver in round one. If I am taking a running back in round one, I am not going to anchor my receiving core on Justin Jefferson. I would go then Drake London. And the reason being is because I think that I can diversify enough to where my running back can hold it down. Let's say it's CMC, for example, from the receiving aspect. And then I have the ceiling plays of that of Drake London. That's where my mindset is. Again, end of January, early February, guys, leading into the offseason.

Gentry Value And Volume Outlook

SPEAKER_00 28:12

Yeah, but it's good to think about these strategies saying, and you know, if I draft, and I agree with you with that as far as draft strategy and team, how you're uh building your team. If I take the running back and you do want to take Justin Jefferson as your anchor, I'm coming right back with another receiver. Another receiver round. Definitely. Yeah, just to make sure I've got that heavy, top heavy depth of receiver just in case. And just in case. All right, what else here? Look at kind of the bottom half here of the second round. Is Ashton Genty now of value in fantasy drafts at number 20? Yes. I think so too. Yeah. If he's at the end or middle of second round, I'm all over him. I'm all over him.

SPEAKER_01 28:52

Dude, definitely. I mean, guys, there's a graphic out there, and God, I wish we could show it. But there was a graphic out there, John, that basically showed what his total yardage was and then what his yardage was after contact. Guys, it was I'm not even it was literally like a hundred or eighty yard difference. Meaning Hes Jin Jensi's getting hit at the line every damn play, and he still had over a thousand yards rushing. Guys, this is gonna be revamped. You look at it, like let's just put our hats on. If Clint Kubiak or another very good style offensive guy comes in and is now the head coach, let's assume it's Clint. Look at what Kenneth Walker did. Look at what Zach Charbonnet did. Look at the sets that they put these guys in, and then look at the way they constructed the offensive line. They went out, home grow those big boys, meaning they drafted them and then they brought in a couple free agents and bolstered that. That only helped Sam Darnold, that only helped the rushing attack. So for me, man, knowing that they have first overall pick, they're probably gonna go Fernando Mendoza. So then you look at, okay, well, what are the assets outside of then Fernando Mendoza? It's Brock Bowers, who I think is a phenomenal uh pick at the end of uh round two, early round three, by the way. And then they also have Trey Tucker and Ashton Genty. Guys, they need more than this. Like they definitely do. So right now, I'm thinking volume. I'm thinking if they can get Fernando Mendoza, and then if they can get a couple good big brutes in the uh on the line, then you bolster this to open it up for Genty, and then you can start piecing together on the outside. So to answer your question, yes, I think he's a value in the end of the second uh round.

Pickens At The Two-Turn: Pass Or Play

SPEAKER_00 30:34

I love it, man. And Nico and Chase Brown, I think they're right where they belong. I think super safe picks. I agree. Nice floor, ceiling opportunity. Take him in the second round. I love it. Controversial one here, though, George Pickens. End of the second round. Is that too high? Is this another outlier year again? We talk about it. New face in a new place, and the guy fucking blows up. But CeeDee Lamb missed five games. Yeah. He was banged up. He was a decoy for at least two or three. Definitely. For sure. What do we do with George Pickens next year? I mean, am I when these second receivers on the teams like this pop off? It's usually because of something. And we know that there's some reasons there with CeeDee. What do you do? I mean, do you confidently take him? I probably pass him. I have to be honest. I probably pass. I don't like anchoring because it's at this point, it's round two. You're anchoring your team.

SPEAKER_01 31:23

Definitely.

SPEAKER_00 31:24

He could be your receiver one on the number two target. He could be your receiver one. That's what I mean. Yeah. So that makes me uncomfy.

SPEAKER_01 31:32

It does. It totally does. Guys, here's the deal. I'm not willing to take George Pickens in round two. And this could be a situation of JSN last year, I'll be honest. But again, when we talk about the he he freaked out. He had one of those incredible years. And yeah, we've seen him be very good. Like, let's be honest. Like, just like JSN, we've seen him be very, very good. But again, there were a lot of different factors that came into play this year. So for me, when we look at this, what's going to happen in the backfield? Are they re-signing Javante Williams again? Like, what's going to happen with CeeDee Lamb? They're probably going to start targeting him more. They're bringing back Jake Ferguson, right? They're it's just for me, man. Also, the other key factor in all of this, the offense was behind quite often. And very like, so they got to throw the ball more because their defense was so bad. You know damn right that they're going to get that defense at least bolstered up from what it was. I mean, Quinnen Williams, they made that trade, and they're going to get some guys in the draft. So for me, if they're not playing as much behind, then that lessens the target share ability for George Pickens. So for me, I'm with you. Guys, I'm not saying don't draft him. I'm saying you're getting no value for George Pickens. Yeah, I know he finished fourth overall, but go ahead. Let's see if he repeats that. And I don't think he will. So that's the point. So for me, man, I agree. I think honestly, he's off my board unless he drops to end of third. Yeah.

Round Three Highlights And Values

SPEAKER_00 32:55

Yeah, I'm with you on that as of right now. All right, let's take a look at round three here. We're gonna go through this last round just to give you some ideas. Round three is crazy. Crazy three is crazy. I mean, there's guys we drafted in the first round in round three this year. So it's wild. All right, let's just pull it up here. Let's go right through it. Right off the top here, right on round three. You got Derrick Henry, man. You got the king. Round three value for Derek Henry. Maybe. Yeah. Maybe. I think I probably. I don't know. For sure. Uh AJ Brown, 26, 27, Chris Olave. Then you got Trevion Henderson, Devonta Adams, Josh Allen, first quarterback on there, Bucky Irving, Kyron Williams, RJ Harvey, T. Higgins, Cam Scattaboo in round three, and Brees Hall. Okay. Now we don't want to take up too much time. We just want to give people a little taste. We don't want to. It's a real long episode because we're going to we could talk about this list of people for two hours. Yeah. Give us a little taste of some of these guys and what you're thinking, man.

SPEAKER_01 33:54

Okay. I'll start with the top four. So we'll go Derek Henry to Trevion Henderson. Guys, number one, Derek Henry, big value in round three. Finally a value on Derek. Finally a value there. And again, realistically, he may move up the board a tad into back half of two by the time the season hits. But if you can get him in round three, guys, I just think that this is absolute steal. I get Todd Munkin's gone. I get that John Harbaugh's gone. I get that Jesse Miner's now the head coach, right? And things are changing at light speed, if I'm being honest. But the thing is, the constant is the king. Now, what we also saw is this past year, nobody else was even close behind him. There was nobody else. Keaton Mitchell didn't take a step. Justice Hill was gone. There was nothing really there. So for me, I think we can see one more great year from that of King Henry. And if you can get him in the third, love the value. Now, AJ Brown and Chris Olave. This is very interesting.

SPEAKER_00 34:50

Yeah.

AJ Brown, Olave, And QB Anchor Talk

SPEAKER_01 34:50

AJ Brown underperformed or actually performed exactly where his projection was the prior year. I think he finished 10th overall and he was projected 10th overall and half PPR. Guys, I don't foresee AJ Brown being an Eagle. I just don't. I everything screaming inside. I just don't see him there. So we gotta stay in touch or what's going on from a free agency standpoint. If he gets traded and he becomes a receiver one on a team that will feed him the rock constantly, he's gonna move up into the second round. If he stays though with the Eagles, I think a round three, AJ Brown is great. I think that there's some value there, man. I mean, I would rather take an AJ Brown in round three than a Justin Jefferson, who I just said I'd probably take, if depending on my draft strategy, in round two, if I'm being honest with you. So for me, I like where AJ Brown's at. Same with Chris Olave. Guys, this is great. Sneaky, sneaky great value, snickethnicky, because guys, he performed as a top six receiver, right, this past year. And in addition, there's nobody else behind him. There's literally nobody else behind him. Now, realistically, they'll end up potentially bringing on another receiver this year, something like that. But when you got Tyler Shug, a young quarterback who's hyper-targeting, a dynamic, a very good receiver who's very good in getting in uh open space. Guys, that's great. And you can get him as your receiver too. Why would you not? So, AJ Brown, Chris Olave, love both those guys. Now, here's the thing: I want to get to Trevion. No, I'm gonna say no. There's no way you take Trevion Henderson in the third round. Guys, Ramondre is the lead back. Like we hate to say it, you hate to say it. The fantasy community, it drives him nuts. The reality is he's under contract. He looked incredible.

SPEAKER_00 36:40

He looked great, incredible.

SPEAKER_01 36:41

But they're not going to go away from him. No, he looked great. It's a one-two punch-ish with the one being Ramondre, and then the two is a little bit down here with Trevion. Now, you're gonna have big boom weeks with Trevion because that's just what's gonna happen.

SPEAKER_02 36:55

Sure.

SPEAKER_01 36:55

But he's not gonna get the line share of the load. So for me, man, you got guys, don't even don't do this to yourself. Like it would be miserable because you may need to take Trevion then. If you go receiver, receiver, he's gonna be your running back one. You feel good about that? Is he since he's a running back two on his team today? No. So, guys, go away from Trevion at this point in time.

SPEAKER_00 37:17

Way too high. Then you got how do you feel about these receiver twos? I think they're obviously you put Pickens up there, but you got Pickens, Devontae Adams, T. Higgins. I think all those guys are round three, including George Pickens. I agree. I mean, that that's where I would put them all. And I love them. They're all fantastic. I love them all there. They're all gonna give you super value here. Totally. They could be your receiver two paired up with an absolute stud. No issue with those guys at all. None. Josh Allen, same. Love. Wherever you want to get Josh Allen. You can take him in the first if you wanted to. I don't care. Think about it, guys. It's the number he's the number one fantasy scorer in fantasy football. And has been one or two every year, but his first year playing year. So, guys, there's no reason to think otherwise. If you want to take Josh Allen in the first round, go ahead. I don't care. I wouldn't, because you can get him in the third. But take him. Bucky Irvin, Kyron Williams, RJ Harvey, Cam Scattaboo, Brees Hall. Wow. We got a lot of running backs there that Yeah, I mean, some of them I think are slam dunks in round three, and some of them I'm like, yikes, man. Is this just recency bias because they're just played in the playoffs? I don't believe RJ Harvey belongs in the first four rounds. No, greed. Agreed. I just don't. I don't. Uh Cam Scattaboo, love him. He could be a wonderful RB2 for you. It's it's early. Yeah. That's early. He's coming off injury. You're talking the third round, so you're gonna have maybe a running back, receiver, and then Cam. It's not perfect for me. It's not perfect. Um, Kyron, I think, Kyron and Bucky, I do think are slam dunks in the third round. These are guys that you could anchor as your RB1 if you needed to, but you would be super happy with them as your RB2 if you agreed. Receiver running back or something like that. What about Brees Hall?

QB Timing, Mid-RB Tier, And Jets Uncertainty

SPEAKER_01 38:58

Brees Hall is so sketch. It's so sketchy. Guys, if he if he if they find a way to keep him on the Jets, I mean, you could, you could, yeah, you know, but I don't like it. I don't like it. I don't like it. They're terrible. There's absolutely nothing redeeming about the Jets right now. They have no quarterback. They they only have Garrett Wilson and then Brees Hall. Their offensive line is trash, their defense is even worse. Guys, I don't know. I I really don't think there's anything redeeming about the Jets other than Brees Hall and Garrett Wilson at this point in time. So let's assume, let's say if he doesn't, because he's an unrestricted free agent, let's say he is not a Jet, then that changes everything.

SPEAKER_00 39:40

Yes, it does.

SPEAKER_01 39:41

Because let's just say, hypothetically speaking, we've been talking about this for the last few times for the last year, pretty much. You are going to will this in the Chiefs. It's going to be the Chiefs. If the Chiefs do not draft Jeremiah Love from the Notre Dame Fighting Irish guys in the in this draft, in the NFL draft, they are going to make a play for a running back. They tried to get him in free agency last year. It didn't work out because the asking price, in my opinion, Judge should have made it anyways. For me, if he goes to the Chiefs, guys, he is a surefire second round pick and don't even think twice about it, in my personal opinion, assuming Patrick Mahomes is healthy and the rest of the team is good. What we saw with Andy Reid, man, is awesome.

SPEAKER_00 40:26

Isaiah Pacheco is a free agent. He is not going to be there. It's unlikely they're not going to that they're going to sign him. Yeah. Injury issues. He seems to have lost his step. He's not going to be able to do that. Kareem outperformed him.

SPEAKER_01 40:37

You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_00 40:39

Brace Hall goes to the Chiefs.

SPEAKER_01 40:40

It's maybe he's got some tread on the tires, too, John. That's the thing. Like, you know, because the Jets also have some state guys to where they got Braylon Allen in the whims, who we've seen outside of a couple fumbles. He is big, he is bad. He's a mean dude behind that line. So for me, knowing that you got that, why sign Brees Hall? Let the dude walk. That's why I thought they would trade him.

SPEAKER_00 41:03

But and it's going to be interesting to see what happens. Now, there's two special mentions I want to bring up here because I do think you're right about Brees Hall. It all depends. I want to want Brees Hall. I do. Totally. I think the talent's there. I think he can do just about anything on the field if he's got the right situation. It's Brees Hall and it's Garrett Wilson. Garrett Wilson will be a round three pick. I think he will be. Everybody just needs to see what the hell this New York Jets team is going to do. If they can show us some semblance of maybe some competency, Brees Hall, Garrett Wilson will be in the third round somewhere. I agree with that. What about Tetaroa McMillan? Garrett Wilson and Tetaroa McMillan are just right outside of that third round looking in. Is there any chance that Tetteroa McMillan T Mac may get into that third round?

T-Mac, Evans, And Youth Versus Floor

SPEAKER_01 41:51

Here's the thing. There is a chance. But for me, I just I he he just screams middle four, middle four, back of four. And I think if you can get him there, it's a great value. Because I think that he's going to be a thousand-yard guy, no question about it. I think his uh touchdowns will probably uptick a bit, knowing sophomore year. I also think that his synergy with Bryce Young is going to continue to grow, which I absolutely love. And what we saw is they're targeting this dude. And throughout the year, they they continued to increase that target share. So for me, John, yeah, you could make an argument if you are a Panthers fan, for example, or you're just a tech fan in general, then yeah, you could end up taking him back at three. For me, he's just screaming middle four back of four. And then if that's the case, then he performs like a you know top 15 guy, top 20 guy. Then it's like then you got value there and you're happy with it. So that's where my mindset is. What are your thoughts? I'm curious. Would you take him in the third?

SPEAKER_00 42:49

I would probably take him at the end of the third, assuming Garrett Wilson doesn't have a situation that I'm really in love with. I think he's very, very safe with some upside potential. So I wouldn't mind him. I think Would you take him over T Higgins?

SPEAKER_01 43:03

No. Knowing that he's a receiver one versus T is a receiver two, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 43:08

But you got Burrow and I trust it much more. We've seen T. Higgins do this and perform as a top 24 receiver every single year. He got paid. Jamar misses three games. He's a he'll finish top five that week. You know what I mean? Like that kind of thing. Uh, Tedaroa McMillan doesn't quite have the. He doesn't have that ceiling or that opportunity or or injury opportunity around him to even step up. You know, I don't trust Bryce Young as much as I trust Joe Burrow to support multiple receivers.

SPEAKER_01 43:33

What about Mike Evans? Let's say Mike Evans comes back. He's healthy to start the year. He wants to run this back with the Bucs, get into the playoffs for one last year. Are you taking Ted Tetaroa or are you taking Mike Evans?

SPEAKER_00 43:45

I think they have similar floors. I don't think there's that much difference. If I'm trying to decide between two guys like that that I think will perform about the same, I always go youth. There's just exponentially amount. Mike Evans really has a hard time finishing an entire season. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 43:58

You know what I mean?

Closing, Offseason Roadmap, And Season Six

SPEAKER_00 43:59

So that would be the difference. Difference for me, but I I I think they're both very safe guys. A little boring to me, Mike Evans. I just I never see that. I like ceiling plays. Especially with Buca and Godwin and McMillan. Right. And if I do draft Mike uh Mike Evans, like as my wide receiver two, I'm going all upside for the rest of my receiver trying to get some you know gold, trying to find something there that's gonna be shocking to me and and and increase that. Alright, guys, that is a little preview, a little taste, a little sneak peek there, a little taste of uh next year's fantasy draft first three rounds. Again, it doesn't include rookies, which I can't wait to talk about that. It doesn't uh take into consideration free agency, which we touched on some of the guys that would be potential free agents. There's a few in there. Frankie, what do we have coming up? Last episode of the year, we're gonna be starting again right around 4th of July. What's it gonna look like, brother?

SPEAKER_01 44:52

Guys, listen, we're gonna be doing a ton of research. So when this rookie review drops after the NFL draft, heading into July, right? We're gonna be dropping this, we're gonna dive into it, we're gonna dissect it. Really get ready if you're a dynasty player, because these are the things that you need to know. By the way, guys, we hit on a ton of our rookies last year. Go back and check it out. I promise, it's not just us plugging anything. It truly was we were right, uh, probably about 65-70% of the time, which is really good. So check it out. In addition, guys, throughout the year, though, I will and we will be posting multiple things on Instagram, on Facebook, on TikTok, just about random shit happening. You want to stay up to date with uh new coaching signings or different trades that are happening, guys. Those are gonna be on the story. So continue to check it out. We're gonna be there every step of the way. So we got a lot of stuff still coming. But as always, John, we're wrapping up season five, right? This is crazy the growth that we've seen. Guys, the love that we get from you guys, the hate that we get from you guys. Shit, I love it. So, guys, we thank you being a part of the Frankly Fantasy community. We are so grateful for what this has become. And so we want to make this happen, and we can only do it with you guys. So we love you, thank you. We're wrapping up season five, and damn it, we're so excited for season six.

SPEAKER_00 46:10

Let's go, baby. It's gonna be beautiful, man. You ready for the last time this year? Let's do it. Smile upon you. Bye.