Fantasy Football Draft Strategy: ADP Variance on ESPN, CBS, NFL, Yahoo & Sleeper

In the world of fantasy football, the platform you draft on can significantly influence your strategy. Drafters tend to be anchored to a site’s player rankings. Each site-be it ESPN, Yahoo, CBS, NFL Fantasy, or Sleeper-has its own Average Draft Position (ADP) trends, impacting player values and positional priorities. For example, Best Ball formats often favor wide receivers, while traditional leagues lean more towards running backs in the earlier rounds.

To uncover these nuances, I conducted several 12-team mock drafts on each platform and through FantasyPros Draft Wizard Mock Draft Simulator. This article dives into the ADP variances across these popular sites, sharing insights and strategies to help you dominate your league, no matter where you draft.

Fantasy Football Draft Strategy: ADP Variance

ESPN

I conducted two mock drafts using FantasyPros’ Mock Draft Simulator and one regular mock draft on the ESPN platform itself. Note that when I used the Draft Simulator the second time, I checked off only the ESPN ADP and ESPN pre-draft rankings settings to get a more accurate reading on the ESPN 2024 fantasy football landscape. If you want to practice drafting against ESPN ADP, follow the same settings.

Main takeaways:

  • In both draft simulations, RBs went much earlier than I anticipated. As a result, my overall RBs were lackluster.
  • In the first simulation, Kyle Pitts was drafted in Round 10, David Njoku in Round 11, and Jake Ferguson, Dallas Goedert, and Brock Bowers in Round 12. Late in the draft, many tight-end values were available.
  • The best value picks (versus ECR) included Deebo Samuel, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Amari Cooper. This aligns with Samuel and Cooper’s egregiously low ADPs on the ESPN platform.

  • In terms of strong reaches, nothing stood out because it was mostly on players going in the “sleeper” range. Once we get outside the top seven rounds, go get your guys. The one standout is Panthers RB Jonathon Brooks, who was selected 61st overall at the beginning of the sixth round. RBs go like hotcakes in this more traditional league format.

  • In the second simulation, there was another pocket of tight ends that were drafted very late. And although Cooper and Samuel weren’t drafted super late, another WR fell to the wayside in Christian Kirk. Kirk’s ADP is 86th overall on ESPN…
  • All in all, the majority of WRs that I listed on this thread (see below), such as Jaylen Waddle, Brandon Aiyuk, Diontae Johnson, etc., were extreme values among WRs much later in the draft. Terry McLaurin and Keenan Allen also fell.

  • Reaches were the same story. Jonathon Brooks went in Round 6, and Derrick Henry was a high-end second-rounder. The Big Dog’s ADP is 16th overall.

Yahoo

I conducted two mock drafts for Yahoo. One using FantasyPros’ Mock Draft Simulator and one regular mock draft on the Y! platform. Note that when I used the Draft Simulator, I checked off only the Yahoo pre-draft rankings settings to get a more accurate reading on that specific 2024 fantasy football landscape on the Y! If you don’t want to wait for a Yahoo mock draft till fill, hop on the draft simulator with Yahoo’s pre-draft rankings to simulate the experience.

Main takeaways:

How did the simulation stack up versus the actual Yahoo mock draft? Pretty consistent. Our draft simulator rocks.


NFL Fantasy

I conducted two mock drafts for NFL Fantasy. One using FantasyPros’ Mock Draft Simulator and one regular mock draft on the NFL.com platform. Note that when I used the Draft Simulator, I checked off only the NFL pre-draft rankings settings to get a more accurate reading on that specific 2024 fantasy football landscape on that host site. That draft is not depicted.

Main takeaways:

  • Starting with the real-life mock draft (aside from some crazy positional takes), it was standard from a redraft PPR perspective, with more RBs drafted first.
  • De’Von Achane and Nico Collins went later in Round 3.
  • Joe Mixon went MUCH later than he has in the CBS/Yahoo drafts (Round 5), perhaps a sign that he could fall further in home leagues compared to other RBs.
  • Malik Nabers also went late in toward the end of Round 5 (par for the course of most rookies).
  • George Pickens is going to be much closer to a Round 6 pick in home leagues than the Round 4 range of best ball drafts.
  • Brooks’ ADP is back up to Round 7.
  • Keenan Allen continues to see a massive discount in these mock drafts.
  • Kincaid fell into Round 6 along with Kyle Pitts.
  • Speaking of which…Jaylen Warren is one of these late-round RB darling best ball drafters who might have to be “overdrafted” in their home leagues. He is consistently going in Round 7. He also went ahead of Najee Harris. By nearly 2 rounds. Najee’s ADP on NFL.com is the lowest in the industry. In an RB-starved platform, Harris is going near the double-digits. Tells you something…
  • Speaking of Round 7 – we have another tier break with the QBs after this round. Ergo, if you don’t have a QB 7 rounds in, take that position completely off your draft board. Seems like a break spot for those following the late-round QB approach.
  • Rashee Rice is beyond dirt cheap on NFL.com, as are all the Chiefs WRs.

CBS

FantasyPros currently doesn’t offer a way to synchronize CBS ADP pre-draft rankings into the Draft Wizard (although you can still league sync), so I just did a normal CBS mock draft on their website to get an idea of the landscape.

Main Takeaways:

Sleeper

FantasyPros didn’t previously offer a way to synchronize only Sleeper ADP pre-draft rankings into the Draft Wizard when I conducted this mock last week, so I just reviewed a generic Sleeper mock draft to get an idea of the landscape. I’m expecting this to be the “sharpest” of the mocks, given that Sleeper is a relatively newer platform for fantasy football compared to the others I’ve used.

But since that time, Sleeper ADP has been added to the Mock Draft Simulator, providing users (in my opinion) the best way to realistically project your league by drafting against that specific ADP.

Main Takeaways:

  • The first round was split between WRs and RBs. Puka Nacua and Garrett Wilson fell outside Round 1 altogether.
  • Kyren Williams and Travis Etienne Jr. were high-end second-round picks.
  • Again, Joe Mixon fell into Round 5. Among the “dead-zone” RBs, Mixon seems like the most logical candidate to fall a bit farther than the remaining pack.
  • Sleeper also has the most up-to-date rookie rankings, so the discount you get on the first-year players here is not nearly as great. This is due to their strong presence in dynasty fantasy football leagues.
  • Even so, Jaylen Warren remains a strong value at 8.10. 2-plus rounds AFTER Najee Harris. Jaleel McLaughlin is also buried in ADP.
  • Upon further review of the Sleeper ADP, here are the players who stood out the most based on price alone (specific to Sleeper). Note that many increased RB prices here are the same as the other platforms I analyzed.
  • Overall, I’d say that Sleeper strikes a nice balance of “accurate ADP” without being over the top in either direction. Captures a little more of the rookies while also considering the RB-heavy nature of more traditional home leagues.
  • I will also say that while doing this exercise, it’s bewildering to see how rookie ADP varies so much by site. However, the one constant is Marvin Harrison Jr. being a staple at the top of Round 2. Even in home leagues, Harrison Jr. is not coming with a rookie discount anywhere. I think he’s being overvalued.
  • As we move forward into the peak of the draft season from August to September, I will likely refer to Sleeper as my main ADP source, along with consensus to give the best proxy of what your 2024 fantasy football draft will look like in a vacuum. I’ll be sure to update specific articles in the FantasyPros Draft Kit with references to Sleeper’s ADP.
  • Note that FantasyPros ADP has just added Sleeper ADP into the consensus ADP.
  • But as I have discussed, you want to exploit any edge possible. And that firmly includes your league’s drafting platform.

  • I was able to run quickly through a Sleeper ADP simulation (thanks to the Mock Draft Simulator), and the results aligned with the real mock draft. Other highlights and the draft board are below.

Final Insights

ESPN

Yahoo

  • Elite TE Availability: High-quality tight ends are available in rounds 5-7.
  • Value Picks: Keenan Allen, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and Chris Godwin are solid picks.
  • QB Drop-Off: After the seventh round, there’s a significant gap in QB selections.

NFL Fantasy

  • RB Focus: More RBs are drafted early compared to other platforms.
  • Late-Round WR Bargains: Players like Keenan Allen and George Pickens are available at discounts.
  • Tight End Values: Dalton Kincaid and Kyle Pitts are selected in the middle rounds, offering value.

CBS

Sleeper

  • Balanced ADP: Provides a realistic ADP without extreme variances.
  • RB and WR Values: Jaylen Warren and Jaleel McLaughlin are strong values, while rookies are priced higher.
  • Consistent Rookie Valuation: Marvin Harrison Jr. remains an expensive pick across all drafts.

Most Highlighted Player Values

Understanding these platform-specific ADP trends can give you a strategic edge in your drafts. Based on each platform’s tendencies, adapt your strategy to exploit undervalued players and secure key positions.

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