The goal at Footballguys is simple: We want to help you win more fantasy championships. While you may not win the trophy at your draft, you can build the foundation.
You undoubtedly have great players in mind that you want to land in the first five rounds. You probably even have some sleepers to target and busts to avoid in Rounds 6-10. Of course, you're using our tools, so I am sure that your team will look like a winner before you even hit the last five rounds. But what you do to end your draft can make that journey to the championship easier.
When it comes to Rounds 11-15, drafters can become robotic. They want to fill their last few spots and call it a day. Some will look for dart throws and handcuffs. Most will add their kicker and team defense. Nothing is inherently wrong with this, but it's also not setting them up for success. So instead, here are three strategies for your last five picks that will set you apart from your league.
Plan for Week 1
The issue with the robotic approach is when they skim the draft board, they have no plan. Instead, most just look for a name they've heard and add them to their roster. If the player doesn't show immediate promise, he's usually cut in favor of Week 1's hottest waiver target.
This strategy is a direct counter to that problem. You still get to leave your draft with a traditional roster. It's just put together with a goal in mind.
If you previously played fantasy football, you know the massive value players can gain and lose after the season's first games. So when you hit these rounds, think about Week 1.
First and foremost, you are not drafting your defense and kicker until your last two picks, with no exceptions. Later, we'll talk about skipping them altogether, but some leagues may not allow that, or maybe you prefer to have them. That's fine; just make sure you land the right ones.
Choosing your kicker is easy: pick a good offense. Usually, the weather won't play a significant factor in September but maybe lean towards someone with an opening game in a dome.
With defense, all that matters is the Week 1 matchup. Even the best fantasy defenses are only relevant in half their games. So, look for teams playing against a bad offense on the opening weekend. After that, you can plan to stream the position all season, searching out the best matchups. Our Sigmund Bloom has a weekly article giving you the best options for the position.
For your picks in Rounds 11, 12, and 13, focus on players that will at least see the field in Week 1. There are still starters on your board, and you should prioritize them.
They will be easier to find at wide receiver. Look for players making their debut with a new quarterback or returning from injury. Kenny Golladay comes to mind in this range. You don't want a perennial top-50 wide receiver with no upside. You'll never start them, and they have no trade value. You want players with an unknown ceiling that could pop in Week 1.
Finding solid running backs is a little trickier but not impossible. Typically, third-down backs and passing specialists fall. Think Nyheim Hines. Players that only do one thing, but that thing has massive fantasy value. The point of this strategy is to leave with pieces that should score fantasy points in Week 1. You should know what you have immediately and can utilize or trade them early in the season.
Plan for Trade Bait
In recent years you've probably been given the advice: Don't draft a kicker or defense. It was likely from me, as I try to fit it into at least one article every offseason.
The goal is to make 2:1 or even 3:1 trades to land better players before the season starts. However, you're not trading the players you take in the last third of your draft; nobody wants them. Instead, you will use the pieces you took in the middle rounds and trade them for a better asset.
Did you miss on an elite tight end? Go ahead and offer a running back and two wide receivers. This trade does two things: It gets you the player you wanted and frees up the space you need to sign your kicker and defense later.
The key here is that you must draft players you are comfortable starting in the final five picks of your draft. Because after you gut the middle of your draft with trades, these guys become the core of your lineup. This strategy lends itself to drafting high-ceiling dart throws.
To start, you must add your quarterback late. There is plenty of talent at the position, and you need to use those middle-round picks on players with trade value. Outside of quarterback, you're looking for players to fill your WR3 and Flex spot, and they need to put up starter numbers at least a few times per year.
Consider players like Allen Lazard and Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Lazard could be the top wide receiver for Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay, and Valdes-Scantling is now in Kansas City with Patrick Mahomes II. Both are in a spot to heavily outscore their sub-10th Round ADP, and you need that in this draft type.
Plan for the Future
A recent conversation with Zach Berger from Dynasty Vipers inspired this strategy. Zach wrote a few dynasty articles about targeting players one year away from a breakout to get them at the best price. This approach can also be valuable for redraft, specifically in leagues with keeper settings.
Like dynasty, a keeper league lets you hold players from one year to the next. However, unlike dynasty, you tend to keep just 1-5 players instead of your entire roster. In addition, the players you hold usually have some draft cost associated with when you drafted them the previous season.
Obviously, this format lends itself to finding sleepers. For example, if you drafted Hunter Renfrow in the 12th round last year, you will enjoy keeping him at that discounted price. But if it were that easy, everyone would do it.
This strategy requires the most research of the bunch. You are looking for guys that may already be in an advantageous position for the following offseason.
My favorite example here is rookie Zamir White. Josh Jacobs and Kenyan Drake are set to hit free agency next season. That would put White in an excellent spot next season. He has a current redraft ADP of RB60, and he often goes undrafted. If you can take him in the 14th round or land him cheap in a salary cap league, you may have the cheapest starting running back in the NFL next season.
Another way to crack this code is simply to remember your injured reserve slot. Last year, J.K. Dobbins was hurt in the preseason and largely forgotten about by draft time. In keeper leagues, managers that paid attention took him with late picks or $4 in a salary cap league and stashed him in their fantasy IR. Now, they have a running back going off the board in the first five rounds but at a better price.
Using the end of your draft to build for the future requires two crucial things: preparation and patience. You're reading this article so you can check off preparation. Regarding patience, you must have the bench discipline to hold on to a player for this entire season that may not help you for even one week.