Jamie Calandro's 2026 Fantasy Football Draft Guide

August 30, 2026

Jamie Calandro outlines how he is approaching fantasy football drafts in 2026 with a primary focus on when to draft which positions in standard redraft formats.

Everyone has their favorite approach to drafting their teams in this wonderful game of fantasy football. The fact that each year is so different makes it even more challenging (and fun) to get into it.

The expansion of types of games and league sizes, and community efforts like the Scott Fish Bowl and the Fantasy Football Expo are only helping this amazing thing to flourish.

That said, you still need to know what you're doing, especially with money on the line. You'll hear many different voices shouting into the void (mine included if you choose to read on) about the most successful way to draft. Whoever you choose to follow (or even if you go rogue on your own), it's vital to do certain things.

General Draft Tips

1. Know your league scoring settings inside and out. There's no excuse for not knowing how players will accumulate points, and certain players are going to move up or down your draft board accordingly.

2. Come in with a plan of some sort! You'll have to be ready to pivot and be flexible as your top targets get sniped, but failing to plan is planning to fail!

3. Do your research! I recommend using my rankings and the rest of the resources here at RotoBaller. In this day and age, there's more access to information than ever before!

4. Have fun! You can take it seriously and still enjoy the experience. That's why we play the game, right?

5. Draft Colston Loveland (I'm kidding...well, sort of...)

Establishing your Team in Rounds 1, 2 and 3

A lazy, casual approach is going into the draft with the idea that "they're all superstars this early so I'm good no matter who I get". While it's true that you're drafting the best of the best in the first two rounds, you're also laying the foundation for the rest of your squad, and the approach you take depending on your draft spot matters immensely.

Generally, I'm a proponent of "letting the draft come to you". In other words, taking the best combination of RBs and WRs in your first two picks (or a TE if the price is right) and then building the rest of your team around them. This year is a bit different as the RB position is dangerously thin, while WR is rich with talent that stretches all the way into the mid rounds. For that reason, I'm making a concerted effort to not leave the first three rounds without two RBs this year.

Let's examine this for a second. It looks like it doesn't matter early on, as choosing between Jonathan Taylor and Amon-Ra St. Brown at pick 1.07 is a situation where you're fine either way. However, if you've drafted (or mocked) already, you'll see that positional depth later on should at least influence your pick.

No. 17 on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2026…@Colts RB Jonathan Taylor! @NFLFilms pic.twitter.com/ZVhrL5Te4i

— NFL (@NFL) August 18, 2026

Here are some examples of RBs that have average draft positions (ADP) in rounds 4-6:

• Cam Skattebo (returning from injury, crowded backfield)
• Quinshon Judkins (returning from injury, concerns about team offensive efficiency)
• TreVeyon Henderson (shared backfield)
• Bhayshul Tuten (new role as lead back)
• D'Andre Swift (shared backfield)

Now let's examine some WRs that have similar ADPs:

• DeVonta Smith (undisputed WR1 in Philly)
• Zay Flowers (undisputed WR1 in Baltimore)
• Tetairoa McMillan (undisputed WR1 in Carolina)
• Luther Burden III (high-octane offense, expected every-down role)
• Ladd McConkey (same as Burden)

As you can see, there is a ton more safety and upside in the later rounds at the WR position than there is at RB, which matters big time when maximizing your expected weekly output. Does this mean you should bump Omarion Hampton and James Cook III so far up your draft boards that you take them over Ja'Marr Chase and Puka Nacua? Probably not. However, I would strongly suggest prioritizing RB with your next couple of picks if you do wind up with an elite WR in Round 1.

Some three-round combos I've wound up with that fit this strategy from different draft spots, and I'm happy with:

• Pick 1.01: Gibbs-Walker-Olav
• Pick 1.03: Chase-Walker-Kyren Williams
• Pick 1.07: Taylor-AJ Brown-Breece Hall
• Pick 1.12: Hampton-Achane-Devonta Smith (and then Colston Loveland because I adore him)

How to Play the Tight-End Game

When to take a tight end is a tricky concept in fantasy football no matter what year you're drafting, and this one is no different. Tiering your players matters at any position, but for TE it's absolutely critical. In many cases, you're only drafting one tight end, so it has to be where you're getting the best value for him.

If you only have two players in the top-tier of TEs (Brock Bowers and Trey McBride), you have to be prepared to pay a premium tag for them (rounds 1-2). If you're not able to get them, be very careful reaching for one of your tier two TEs at a tier one price tag. Instead, build your team out of RBs and WRs, and wait for the rounds to come when you next feel comfortable adding your TE. If that doesn't happen for another six or seven rounds, that's OK. This year, I have Colston Loveland and Tyler Warren also in tier one, so I've largely been avoiding Bowers and McBride if I feel I'm in a position to get Loveland or Warren 1-2 rounds later.

Colston Loveland is TORCHING the Titans defense pic.twitter.com/jqmKzf0Mzl

— Kalshi Sports (@KalshiSports) August 27, 2026

Creating a smaller player pool of TEs you value more than consensus is also a solid strategy. This is a good exercise in making sure you're not deviating from your own rankings, or getting trapped when a tight-end run occurs (which can be intimidating).

Some of my starred players who I feel can outperform their ADPs are:

• Early rounds - Colston Loveland, Tyler Warren
• Mid rounds - Harold Fannin Jr., Isaiah Likely, George Kittle
• Later rounds - Juwan Johnson, Dalton Schultz

This is basically a narrative to yourself of "If I don't get ______ here, I'm fine drafting ________ here".

I Never Know When to Take a Quarterback!

You're not alone. Countless fantasy drafts have been upended because fantasy managers will panic pick too early, or simply push it too far. I will say this - I've been more successful than not over the years practicing a mantra of one single word when it comes to QB (and sometimes I'll say it to myself in Mr. Miyagi's voice just so it feels more soothing):

"Patience".

Trust me - you do NOT need to invest an early pick in a top-tier QB to be ahead of the curve in your fantasy league. Am I saying that grabbing Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson early on is a mistake? Of course not. They're awesome. However, we must consider that the QB position is as deep as it's ever been this year, and you can really build a winning team even if you wait until the double-digit rounds to take your first QB.

Remember, if you're in a 12-team single-QB league, the top 12 QBs will likely be the starters of every team. Now let's pretend you're the last person to select one. You've likely ended up with Trevor Lawrence, Jaxson Dart, Brock Purdy, or Bo Nix as your QB1. Are you good with that? Because I sure am.

Let's get BOLD 🚨

My 2026 Fantasy Football BOLD PREDICTIONS are LIVE @RotoBallerNFL 🔥

🏈 Trevor Lawrence the QB1?
🏆 Dalton Kincaid the league-winner?
👀 Chris Godwin > Emeka Egbuka?
...And more 👇https://t.co/z9IeRWrruc

— Andy Smith (@A_Smith_FS) August 25, 2026

Now push it even further. Let's say you want to continue to wait, and people start taking their backups before you've even taken a starter. You're still fine. Here are some players I have ranked after the top-12 have been picked:

Patrick Mahomes - QB14
Matthew Stafford - QB15
Tyler Shough - QB16
Jared Goff - QB17

All four of those guys could EASILY be top-12 finishers this season, and I haven't even touched on Baker Mayfield, Daniel Jones, Jordan Love, Malik Willis, and the list goes on! Now, if you ARE waiting this far, you have to be prepared to take two QBs and play the streaming game, but it's just as viable a route as taking a set-it-and-forget-it guy like Josh Allen.

Deepen your Depth in the Middle Rounds

Deepen your depth- is that even a thing?

The old standby for fantasy drafts is that you win your league in the middle of the draft, not the beginning. I don't particularly subscribe to that, BUT it does pay to make sure you're attacking the middle rounds correctly. The way to do this is straightforward - identify your weaker skill position and bolster it.

If you've followed my RB-heavy approach at the beginning of the draft, you're going to need wide receivers. Luckily, the middle rounds are flush with upside. You should be targeting pieces of elite offenses (Chicago, Jacksonville, Detroit, etc), or else concentrated offenses on teams that are projected to be frequently playing from behind and will therefore produce a lot of volume (Arizona, perhaps Washington...).

Some players in that area include, but are not limited to:

• Jameson Williams
• DJ Moore
• Rome Odunze
• Marvin Harrison Jr.
• Michael Wilson
• Any of the Jaguars WRs
• Christian Watson
• Alec Pierce

On the flip side, maybe you abandoned the RB-heavy tactic at the beginning and are currently looking at a roster of Puka Nacua, Drake London, Tyler Warren, and Tee Higgins. That's some serious receiving firepower, but you still need running backs. I'm always wary of the Zero-RB approach, but there are some potential diamonds in the rough that you can snag in the middle-to-late rounds and hope they can provide enough of a floor to let your receivers cook.

If this is you, Rhamondre Stevenson, Jadarian Price, Tony Pollard, Jaylen Warren, Kyle Monangai, Jonathan Brooks, and Rachaad White are just dying to make your acquaintance.

Defenses and Kickers Are Always Last!

This isn't breaking news, as you've heard this drumbeat for years now. I do want to revisit it quickly here to close out the article, however, because there's a lot of narrative about Brandon Aubrey and "how much further he is ahead of every other kicker".

Don't fall for this. Yes, his accuracy from deep is noteworthy, but Aubrey wasn't even the top kicker in fantasy last season. In fact, he wasn't even the second-best! Both Jason Myers and Ka'imi Fairbairn both finished 2025 with more total fantasy points AND a higher per-game average.

I'm not saying Aubrey shouldn't be your K1. If he's still hanging around near the end of the draft, grab him. Just don't lean into the middle rounds and take him over an upside depth piece at WR or RB. That's a fast track to the bottom of the standings.

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