Dynasty Rookie Draft Primer: Rankings, Tiers, Strategy & Advice (Fantasy Football)

It’s the weekend! What better way to spend it than drafting a fantasy football team? You can always do that using our FREE mock draft simulator, but maybe you also have a dynasty rookie or startup draft to prep for. In that case, let our dynasty rookie primers guide you through the process of considering first-year NFL players. Derek Brown breaks down each position, including his rankings, tiers, and overall strategy.

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Dynasty Rookie Draft Primer

I’ll run through each skill position (QB, RB, WR, TE), laying out draft strategy, tiers, statistical analysis, and scouting reports. Let’s dive into this exciting rookie class.

How to Approach Tight Ends in Dynasty Rookie Drafts

The tight-end position is one that I will enjoy the value pockets in start-up drafts or trades over drafting rookies aggressively in most cases. Tight ends often still need some NFL seasoning before they hit their full stride in the league. This lag time between hype and production can open up a few buy windows, so I’ll usually remain patient and look to pounce on athletic freaks that could break out.

In saying that, this year’s tight-end class is strong for fantasy. Players like Dalton Kincaid, Sam Laporta, and Michael Mayer should earn big snap shares early. The sexy skill sets Tucker Kraft and Luke Schoonmaker should allow them to earn targets of the high-value variety in Year 1.

How to Approach Quarterbacks in Dynasty Rookie Drafts

SuperFlex

In SuperFlex, quarterbacks rule the day. My approach with quarterbacks in this format is to draft them always. If I can help it, I never want to be in a position where I have to trade for quarterbacks.

The dirty secret about SuperFlex is that while quarterbacks are valued higher, they are also much harder to trade for or away. It can be done, but when constructing trades in many SuperFlex leagues, the trade partner usually wants a quarterback coming back in return (even if the QB is their QB3). The difficulty of constructing these trades is the assumption that you will like the quarterback that’s attainable on their roster, and you also have a quarterback on your roster that the other team is interested in acquiring. That’s even before we discuss the expensive nature of acquiring quarterbacks via trade in this format. This is a long way to say: Avoid the headache and draft quarterbacks.

NFL Draft capital is also a big part of how I value quarterbacks. Quarterbacks, in general, can be a mixed bag of hits and flameouts, even when we are just looking at players drafted in the first round of the NFL Draft. Once we get past the first round, those hit rates fall exponentially. This is something to remember if you’re drafting QBs in a dynasty that are third and fourth-round picks in the NFL Draft. You’re making the bet that the player will be an outlier, so I usually stick to quarterbacks drafted in the top two rounds of the NFL Draft. If I take fliers to fill out the bottom of my roster, it will be via waivers, so if you’re wondering why I only have three tiers of quarterbacks listed here, that’s because these are the only players I’m currently projecting to possibly go in the top two rounds of the upcoming NFL Draft.

Each tier 1 & 2 quarterback below should be drafted in the first round of your SuperFlex rookie draft. Levis is a second round Superflex rookie draft pick.

1-QB

My strategy in this format is similar to SuperFlex in that I prefer to draft quarterbacks, but they are easier to trade for in this format with the value lowered some. The key for quarterbacks I target in this format is staying consistent with my previous NFL Draft capital points and looking for difference-makers at the position. That difference-making potential is not always but usually tied to rushing ability. Mobile quarterbacks can separate themselves in scoring from both a ceiling and floor perspective. Those are my main targets in 1QB formats. That’s not to say I don’t draft pure pocket passers, but I will likely draft them in the second round of a 1QB rookie draft, whereas mobile quarterbacks, I’ll usually take them in the late first round.

How to Approach Running Backs in Dynasty Rookie Drafts

The approach with running backs in the different formats is unchanged. The only difference is in SuperFlex. Running backs will get pushed down the board, some with quarterbacks going early and ahead of them sometimes. Bijan Robinson (the locked-in 1.01) and Jahmyr Gibbs will each be gone within the top ten picks in each format. Each back in tier 3 should be gone by the end of the second round of drafts. I love picking up a ton of running backs to round out my dynasty rosters that could fall into volume during the season with one or two injuries on a depth chart. That’s exactly the thought process when looking through tier 4 and my honorable mentions.

How to Approach Wide Receivers in Dynasty Rookie Drafts

The approach with wide receivers remains consistent regardless of league format. The only difference is in SuperFlex. Wide receivers will get pushed down the board some, with quarterbacks going early and ahead of them. I’m higher on this draft class than some. Some diamonds in the rough could break out and outkick their draft capital. If you’re looking for a viable flex option/WR3 that you can insert into your lineup in Week 1, that’s Tier 1. Every tier after that gets sketchier and sketchier, but as we’ll discuss, there are avenues for them to reach every down status.