Fantasy Football 2026: 10 Draft Tips

How can we even control ourselves? The NFL is back! With the 2026 fantasy football season upon us, the possibilities are endless. As you run to the rooftops to shout the good news, we need to be prepared for our drafts. Let’s take a look at 10 draft tips for the 2026 fantasy football season.

10 Draft Tips for 2026 Fantasy Football

1. Stay Up to Date on the News

This is something I can’t emphasize enough. I don’t care how many NFL games you watch during the season or how much football you actually know. If you don’t stay up to date with all of the news, and I mean all of it, it’s like drafting with one arm tied behind your back. That’s obviously something we don’t want to do, as there are a plethora of factors that should be influencing your thought process:

• Coaching changes as it relates to scheme
• Supporting talent
  • Offensive Line
  • Quarterback
  • Other skill positions on the depth chart
• Health and recovery from prior year injuries
• Any offseason body transformations
• Adjustments to life in the NFL
• Place on the depth chart

2. Do Your Own Rankings

When it’s your turn to draft, how are you going to know who to draft? I know that sounds incredibly obvious; after all, that’s the whole point of this, but having your own personal rankings to go off of is necessary.

Once you ingest all of the latest news, it’s time to put pen to paper. Let’s see those rankings.

3. Update Your Rankings

Yes, I know, you just did your rankings, and now I want you to update them already. Essentially, on a daily basis, we should always return to this step.

The last thing you want to do is to have static rankings. News changes by the minute, so your rankings have to as well. Drafting with outdated rankings is simply a recipe for disaster.

4. Do a Sanity Check

The most important thing to remember here is that this is your team. You’re putting your name, money, and pride up with your roster, so it needs to be yours. Do the research, put the work in, do your rankings, and draft your guys.

However, there’s nothing wrong with some help. Once you complete your rankings, do a sanity check. Take a look at some trusted sources; yes, Fantrax has composite rankings that include my personal rankings, and compare them to yours. I’m not saying you need to change your rankings to match mine, or anyone else’s, but having something to use as a comparison is valuable.

At the least, seeing differences in your rankings could spur some additional thoughts and research. Even if nothing changes, there’s value in exploring what other people think.

5. Take a Look at ADP

By no means should your rankings be influenced by ADP, but your draft strategy should be. The objective here is to make sure you leave the draft with the guys you want. While it’s impossible to know how each individual draft will behave, reviewing ADP will at least give you a good idea of what to expect.

Utilizing ADP as a guide will help guide your draft strategy. There’s going to be situations where you have to draft a player ahead of market value to ensure you secure him. Knowing the ADP is important as it allows you to translate your rankings into a draft plan.

6. Monitor Training Camp Health, News, and Injuries

I should have added, “and don’t overreact”. That’s the big thing this time of year, as the inclination to overreact is very hard to avoid. It’s just the nature of the beast as, now that there’s actual action on the field, we want to react. Like everything though, it’s truly a balancing act.

We need to be aware of everything that’s happening across the NFL and the potential ramifications. There’s always going to be the desire to instantly react to news, but instead, we have to put everything in its proper context.

Follow the news and be aware of everything that’s going on. Adjust your rankings accordingly and react accordingly.

7. Know your League Settings

No league is created equal. Content is generally geared around the majority of leagues. The big difference is whether or not a point, or half a point, is awarded per catch, but there are leagues that go beyond that. There are differences where quarterbacks get either four or six points per passing touchdown, although that’s just the start. Ultimately, the lesson is to be aware of how points are earned in your league. That means adjusting your projections and rankings accordingly. This comes into play more so in situations where the scoring structure differs from what’s considered the “norm”.

Additionally, it’s important to understand the number of starters each week and how many players are on your bench. Are there positional limits?

Is there trading? Are there waivers? Do you have to bid on players?

Essentially, know all the rules before your draft. Adjust your rankings and draft strategy accordingly.

For more great fantasy football rankings and analysis, make sure to check out the 2026 FantraxHQ Fantasy Football Draft Kit!

8. Create Positional Tiers

Now you have your rankings. But how do you decide if you should pull the string on a quarterback, running back, or wide receiver?

Turn your rankings into tiers. Essentially, this allows you to see the drop-off in each position grouping and plan accordingly.

9. Make a Plan

Now that your rankings are set and you know the rules, it’s time to make a plan. Again, the universe might be laughing at you when you come up with a plan for your fantasy football draft, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have one. Just give yourself alternatives and be prepared to pivot. The important thing here is to have an idea of what you are trying to do.

10. Understand Your Draft Engine and Default Rankings

You have your plan, your rankings, and your positional tiers. Now, if you’re doing the draft online, make sure you understand the software. Also, take a look at the default rankings of said platform. That’s what your league mates are going to be starring at, so perhaps there’s a path to exploit that.