While best ball season has been in effect, the sleeping giant of redraft season has awakened. These two formats allow gamers multiple avenues to flex their drafting skills and prepare for the 2024 season. Everyone should be piling up the reps on our FREE Draft Wizard mock draft tool and Drafters. Perfect practice makes perfect.
Becoming adept at navigating differing average draft positions (ADPs) is the name of the game, as you want to be cool as a cucumber as you flow through your drafts, which is where Drafters comes into play. As you stockpile teams on Drafters chasing top prizes of $25,000 and $500,000, there are some players whose ADPs jump off the page, making them must-draft players right now in this format when you compare FantasyPros’ expert consensus rankings (ECR) and Drafters’ ADP. I’ll go over a few below.
Enjoy the value. I’ll see you in the lobby.
- 2024 Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- 2024 Dynasty Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- 2024 Best Ball Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- Free Fantasy Football Mock Draft Simulator
Drafters ADP vs. ECR Values
Joe Burrow looking like Cody Rhodes out here. The ranks are moving off vibes. pic.twitter.com/DehV3Yfk21
— Derek Brown (@DBro_FFB) July 23, 2024
Joe Burrow (QB – CIN) | ECR: QB7, Drafters ADP: QB9
Joe Burrow wasn’t right for much of last season as he dealt with a crippling calf injury to open the year. Once healthy, though, he was the same stellar Burrow we have come to love in fantasy. In Weeks 5-10, he was the QB4 in fantasy points per game while ranking 10th in yards per attempt, third in passing touchdowns, fifth in completion percentage over expectation (CPOE) and second in highly accurate throw rate, per Fantasy Points Data. Across his last 23 healthy regular season games, Burrow has averaged 20.8 fantasy points per game, which would have ranked as the QB5 in fantasy points per game in each of the last two seasons. Drafting Burrow at this cost on Drafters is free money. I love it.
Aaron Jones (RB – MIN) | ECR: RB18, Drafters ADP: RB22
With his advancing age (by running back standards), Aaron Jones’ injury risk is real, but it’s more than priced into his ADP on Drafters. If he can stay healthy, though, he should smash. Unlike many people, I am not concerned about Ty Chandler taking too much work from Jones. The vibes around Chandler’s 2023 season are puffed up too much, with his one monster game doing much of the heavy lifting because his per-touch efficiency was bad.
Among 49 qualifying backs, Chandler ranked 47th last season in missed tackles forced per attempt and yards after contact per attempt, per Fantasy Points Data. This isn’t the case for Jones. Once he was healthy, he proved he is still one of the best backs in the game. In Weeks 15-20, Jones averaged 21.6 touches and 120.3 total yards as he was a weekly stud. During that same stretch, among 47 qualifying backs, he was eighth in explosive run rate and 10th in yards after contact per attempt, per Fantasy Points Data. Jones offers RB1 upside at a low-end RB2 price tag on Drafters.
I know people don't want to hear it but…
Najee Harris was low key freaking good last year
among 49 qual RBs last year
(per @FantasyPtsData)Explosive run rate: 10th
MTF/att: 19th
Yards after contact/att: 17th— Derek Brown (@DBro_FFB) July 26, 2024
Najee Harris (RB – PIT) | ECR: RB23, Drafters ADP: RB26
The disdain for Najee Harris has gone too far. Yes, among him and Jaylen Warren, I still side with Warren, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t give Harris some shine. We know with Arthur Smith in town the Steelers will be a run-first offense. It wouldn’t shock me to see Harris lead this backfield in touches and red-zone opportunities, especially if the Steelers can play from ahead often in 2024 if their defense is among the best in the league. People need to give Harris more respect for what he did on a per-touch basis last year. Among 49 qualifying backs, he was 10th in explosive run rate, 19th in missed tackles forced per attempt and 17th in yards after contact per attempt, per Fantasy Points Data. Harris is a strong value on Drafters.
Brandon Aiyuk (WR – SF) | ECR: WR13, Drafters ADP: WR17
Brandon Aiyuk was fantastic last season as the WR16 in fantasy, with career-highs in yards per reception and receiving yards. He also crushed in deeper efficiency metrics, ranking third in yards per route run (YPRR) and second in first downs per route run (FD/RR), per Fantasy Points Data. As good as Aiyuk was last year, he still only ranked 30th in raw target volume with an astounding 105 targets. He also ranked only 44th in red-zone targets and was the WR31 in expected fantasy points per game. At this middle-of-the-road WR2 price tag, we should be taking more swings on Aiyuk on Drafters. The volume worries are a tad more baked into his ADP on this platform.
Amari Cooper (WR – CLE) | ECR: WR23, Drafters ADP: WR29
Amari Cooper didn’t show any signs of slowing down in 2023. Last year, he finished as the WR17 in fantasy points per game while ranking 23rd in target share (22.1%), 13th in air-yard share (39%) and 12th in YPRR. Even the putrid quarterback play of Deshaun Watson couldn’t slow Cooper down. In the five full games Watson played, Cooper averaged 96 receiving yards per game with 2.96 YPRR and 0.123 FD/RR, per Fantasy Points Data. Cooper’s WR3 price tag here is easy money you should be pouncing on before the market corrects.
Good lord…
I forgot Jakobi Meyers was the WR24 in fppg last year
— Derek Brown (@DBro_FFB) July 20, 2024
Jakobi Meyers (WR – LV) | ECR: WR50, Drafters ADP: WR57
I’m not going to lie. I had to double-check this stat more than once before writing it up here. Yes, last year, Jakobi Meyers was the WR24 in fantasy points per game. Touchdowns fueled his fantasy output as he had the fifth-most among wide receivers, but he also drew a 19.9% target share and 25.9% air-yard share. Dealing with subpar quarterback play all season, he only ranked 48th in YPRR but was also 29th in FD/RR, per Fantasy Points Data. Meyers isn’t a sexy pick in drafts, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t a sharp selection.
George Kittle (TE – SF) | ECR: TE6, Drafters ADP: TE8
The discount is slight here, but if George Kittle isn’t being drafted inside the top six tight ends in any draft, it’s time to jump on his ADP. Since 2018, Kittle has never finished lower than TE6 in fantasy points per game. Among 51 qualifying tight ends, he ranked first in YPRR (2.42) and seventh in FD/RR (0.10), per Fantasy Points Data. If Brandon Aiyuk or Deebo Samuel misses any time this year, it won’t shock me if Kittle posts another top-three fantasy tight end season in 2024.
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