Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC) games continue to grow immensely in popularity, as they offer a variety of lucrative contests at a number of price points. FFPC has expanded into SuperFlex, Best Ball, and dynasty leagues, among others. In this article, we will dive deep into the specific 2024 FantasyPros Championship tournament average draft position (ADP) data and analyze what is working and what is not as July drafting heats up.
The FantasyPros Championship contest is one of the best in fantasy football and offers 20,000 entrants a chance at the $1,000,000 grand prize at the end of the season. With overall prizes at the end of regular season and for the winners of each league, it is one of the best contests in terms of number the of players who get paid.
The scoring format is very unique in FFPC leagues, including the FantasyPros Championship. It is a point per reception format, but it is tight end premium scoring. FFPC scoring adds a half-point per reception for tight ends, so that substantially affects that position’s overall ADPs. The point per reception and the tight end premium means running backs who do not catch passes should fall further down ADP than typically occurs in other drafts. For more ADP information on this tournament, FFPC ADP reports can be consulted here.
Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC) games continue to grow immensely in popularity, as they offer a variety of lucrative contests at a number of price points. FFPC has expanded into SuperFlex, Best Ball, and dynasty leagues, among others. In this article, we will dive deep into the specific 2024 FantasyPros Championship tournament average draft position (ADP) data and analyze what is working and what is not as July drafting heats up.
The FantasyPros Championship contest is one of the best in fantasy football and offers 20,000 entrants a chance at the $1,000,000 grand prize at the end of the season. With overall prizes at the end of regular season and for the winners of each league, it is one of the best contests in terms of number the of players who get paid.
The scoring format is very unique in FFPC leagues, including the FantasyPros Championship. It is a point per reception format, but it is tight end premium scoring. FFPC scoring adds a half-point per reception for tight ends, so that substantially affects that position’s overall ADPs. The point per reception and the tight end premium means running backs who do not catch passes should fall further down ADP than typically occurs in other drafts. For more ADP information on this tournament, FFPC ADP reports can be consulted here.
Fantasy Football ADP Analysis: FFPC FantasyPros Championship
Round 1
The players you will find in Round 1 ADP are about the same that you will find on just about any top-12 ADP for PPR leagues, including our FantasyPros rankings. Christian McCaffrey takes the top spot, but then the consensus top-seven wide receivers who make up their own tier in 2024 are sprinkled throughout the rest of the round. Those receivers include CeeDee Lamb, Tyreek Hill, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Justin Jefferson, Ja’Marr Chase, Puka Nacua, and A.J. Brown. Mainly because of the PPR format and partially due to Raheem Morris’ recent comments about how they plan to use Bijan Robinson, the Falcons’ sophomore running back has moved up to third overall. He finished ninth in total points in PPR leagues last year, but that was on just 272 total touches and that number could be over 350 this season.
Jahmyr Gibbs sneaks into Round 1 just over Jonathan Taylor, primarily because of the former’s ability to rack up several catches per game. Gibbs was eighth in PPR fantasy points per game in 2023.
Round 2
Round 2 is when things to start to get interesting in terms of ADP. Because of the tight end premium format, four different tight ends can be found in Round 2: Sam LaPorta, Travis Kelce, Trey McBride, and Dalton Kincaid. Mark Andrews is also just outside of Round 2 with an ADP of 25.9. How can the extra half-point per reception impact the position? Consider Sam LaPorta and his 86 catches last year. Add an extra 43 points to his total last year and all of a sudden he has the same as the WR7 in 2023 , Mike Evans. In a format that features tight end premium, securing one of these top options almost seems essential since rosters also have to fill two flex positions.
Marvin Harrison, the first rookie off the board, comes into play in Round 2 near pick 17, however another rookie doesn’t show up until Malik Nabers around pick 35.
Round 3
Three more top-tier tight ends typically come off the board in this round, including Mark Andrews, Kyle Pitts, and Evan Engram. After these seven tight ends, there is a large drop-off at the position, so grabbing one of these in FFPC formats is highly advisable. The last 10 of the top-12 running backs generally also fall off the board in this round, so taking Travis Etienne, Isiah Pacheco, or De’Von Achane is completely reasonable if your team started WR-TE. Round 3 also features a mix of high upside wide receivers, like Malik Nabers and Nico Collins, and safe floor options at the position such as Michael Pittman and Brandon Aiyuk. Nabers has quickly risen up ADP in all formats and without many other options on the New York Giants, he could easily have 150 targets in 2024.
Round 4
The first quarterback finally comes off the board in Round 4, with Josh Allen at pick 45. He has been in the top two in quarterback scoring for each of the last three seasons, so it’s no surprise that he takes the top spot here even after losing Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis. After taking big swings with some wide receivers and tight ends in the first three rounds, the fourth round largely has safe floor running back options like Josh Jacobs, Rachaad White, and Joe Mixon. These high-volume backs have unimpeachable roles and only injury would be able to knock them out this year. Many of the wide receivers in Round 4 have turned into high level boom-or-bust players. Take DeVonta Smith for example; he had four games over 22 PPR fantasy points in 2023, but he also gave his managers five weeks under 10 points.
Round 5
Round 5 starts a bit of a running back dead zone, as only two backs (Alvin Kamara and Kenneth Walker) are typically picked between number 49 and 65. Instead, Round 5 is where the rest of the elite quarterbacks like Lamar Jackson, Jalen Hurts, and Patrick Mahomes come off the board. The pass-catchers in this round, like Amari Cooper, George Pickens, Tank Dell, and Tee Higgins, all have major team-context or injury concerns, so the next tier of tight ends like Jake Ferguson and George Kittle start to fill in some slots in this area. That leaves players like Tee Higgins and Christian Kirk as the safest wide receivers in the round, although I expect Tank Dell to move up in ADP once we start to see videos of him healthy and participating in the preseason.
Round 6
In Round 6, we start to see some value emerging after the run on tight ends pushed some players later in the draft. Zamir White is projected to have a massive workload for the Las Vegas Raiders after the departure of Josh Jacobs. White averaged 4.6 yards per touch in 2023 and had the 16th-best breakaway run rate in the NFL at 4.8%. After 119 touches last year, he is primed to have well over 200 this year. Anthony Richardson checks in around pick 69, and there are circles of fantasy analysts that believe Richardson could finish as a top-three quarterback this year. Richardson had finishes of 22, 17, and 30 fantasy points before a shoulder injury derailed his season. Jayden Reed (ADP of 72) isn’t fooling anyone into thinking Christian Watson (pick 85) should go ahead of him, but Reed had the 14th-most red zone targets in 2023 and the Green Bay Packers’ offense should improve this year.
Round 7
The last of the elite quarterbacks, C.J. Stroud, goes off the board around pick 74 which is important because the next quarterback won’t generally be taken until around pick 97. If you don’t get one of the top six, there is no reason to push up Jordan Love or Joe Burrow well past ADP because they are falling in this type of format. This is also what we might call the tight end dead zone; after Brock Bowers goes at pick 64, Dallas Goedert (ADP of 81.7) is the only tight end to be drafted until pick 90. In this type of format, grabbing one early is key, but then you can wait until the later rounds for a backup at the position. The next tier of rookies also starts in this round, with Ladd McConkey and Jonathon Brooks going back-to-back around pick 80. In my personal rankings, I have DeAndre Hopkins (ADP of 82.3) much higher, as the tea leaves tell us the Titans and Will Levis will be looking to throw at a significantly higher rate in 2024.
Round 8
Speaking of the Tennessee Titans, Round 8 features running backs Tony Pollard (90.9) and Tyjae Spears (94.2) going less than four spots away from each other. After Pollard’s lackluster 2023, things are looking up for Spears, but it’s clear this will be some kind of committee and we won’t truly know how Tennessee will deploy them until the cleats are on and the games count. I’m personally investing in Tyjae Spears and his 5.5 yards per touch, which ranked fifth among all running backs in 2023.
Two rookie wide receivers with major questions marks on elite offenses are also taken in this round. Kansas City Chiefs’ receiver Xavier Worthy and Buffalo Bills’ wideout Keon Coleman are tied to top quarterbacks, but target distribution and success at the NFL level are still to be determined, which prompts their fall to the end of Round 8.
Round 9
Round 9 kicks off with three straight quarterbacks taken back-to-back-to-back. Jordan Love, Dak Prescott, and Joe Burrow all squeak in under pick 100, and they are shortly followed by Kyler Murray at pick 106. Considering those price tags, Kyler Murray might be the best of the bunch. He just added perhaps the best wide receiver since Justin Jefferson, plays with an elite tight end in Trey McBride, has strong rushing upside, and should be on a team with a defense that will require Murray to keep slinging it all game. In the eight games Murray played last year, he was 10th among quarterbacks in fantasy points per dropback.
Besides those quarterbacks, four rookies make up most the remainder of Round 9. Running backs Trey Benson and Blake Corum and wide receivers Rome Odunze and Brian Thomas are all high-end talents, but they face major competition on their teams. Both Benson and Corum are some of the top running back handcuffs this year because of the huge workload they would have if injuries fell upon their respective incumbents.
Round 10 & Onwards
Once the draft gets past pick 110, it’s shocking to see how quickly the wide receiver pool dries up in PPR formats. Both Jameson Williams and Courtland Sutton have an ADP around 110, but then it’s only Tyler Lockett and Curtis Samuel for the next 15 picks. By this stage of this tournament, and most PPR drafts, the wide receivers have been secured for starting lineups and high-upside plays are the favorite. That’s where we get rookie running backs such as MarShawn Lloyd (Green Bay Packers) and Jaylen Wright (Miami Dolphins). We have no idea how these rookies will be used in 2024, but we do have some certainty that these will be high-octane offenses. Taking a shot on players who could find themselves in good roles on those teams after pick 120 could be a league-winning strategy. If Josh Jacobs were to get hurt in Week 2, Lloyd could have a path to 200 or more touches.
If your build focuses on Hero RB or Zero RB, Lloyd, Ty Chandler, Rico Dowdle, and Antonio Gibson are all viable options after pick 125. At the wide receiver position, my favorite late-round targets in PPR formats like these are Khalil Shakir (ADP of 132.5), Jahan Dotston (151.6), and Adam Thielen (160.2). The later rounds also prove that the strategy of waiting on quarterbacks is absolutely viable; Trevor Lawrence, Caleb Williams, and Tua Tagovailoa all go after pick 140 in this tournament.
Fantasy Football Draft Picks to Target
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