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Solving the Fantasy Football Logjams in Your Draft
Last Updated on August 12, 2026 9:15 am by Jon Mosales | Published: August 12, 2026
Having your own rankings is great, but in general fantasy GMs rely on someone else’s rankings and often times there isn’t really a rhyme or reason why one player is above another. This happens every season and it’s these “gluts” of players that can really make or break your season. How do you know which player to take and just because one player is two-or-three spots ahead of another really means absolutely nothing in the grand scheme of things. It gets even harder when all the players stuck together play the same position, but I promise with a little research, we can sift through the chaos.
Traditional ADP The Mosales ADP
17. Saquon Barkley 17. De’Von Achane
18. Ashton Jeanty 18. Chase Brown
19, George Pickens 19. Omarion Hampton
20. Omarion Hampton 20. Ashton Jeanty
21. Trey McBride 21. Kenneth Walker
22.Josh Allen 22. Saquon Barkley
23. Kenneth Walker 23. George Pickens
24. Chase Brown 24. Trey McBride
25. De’Von Achane 25. Josh Allen
Not to be overdramatic, but this log jam might determine the rest of your draft. We have the clear QB1/TE1 and while that might be appealing, it almost certainty is, restraint is the name of the game. I’d argue it depends what you did with your first-round pick, but if you went WR, then you are doing yourself a disservice by not drafting a RB. Either way, the choice is clear, you need to go RB here. The ‘natural’ ranks here are Barkley, Jeanty, Hampton, Walker, Brown, Achane, but honestly, I think it’s almost backwards. Barkley has the best track record, but has he peaked? Jeanty has the most upside, but he might be on the worst offense with the worst o-line of this group. For me, I would take Achane here first. He’s got b2b top-10 finishes, should have his best o-line and could lead the league in targets. I get that it’s risky, but I am in on MIA this season, but I appear to be the only one. If you are gun shy about Achane, Brown is the next logical choice. Brown isn’t as TD friendly as some of the other elite backs, but the CIN schedule means CIN might actually be playing with a lead late in games and that should benefit Brown immensely. Next is tough, but I believe in the Chargers this season. They could be the number-one offense in the NFL. They threw for 25 and ran for 10 last season, they could easily be closer to 30 and 20 this season and Hampton will get at least 20% of those. Hampton isn’t a generational talent, but the o-line stabilizing along with Mike McDaniel is an alluring recipe. I would go Jeanty next because he might a generational talent and o-line upgrades along with Klint Kubiak won’t take them as high as LAC, but the difference between last season and this could be a greater differential than with the Chargers. The Raiders threw for 19 TDs and ran for five, so if they got to 25 and 10, it would be a coup. Walker vs. Barkley is tough because the fact that Barkley lost 1.7 in his YPC scares me terribly as a RB who is about to turn 30. Walker is finally going to be unleashed, in theory, but it’s always sketchy betting against a clear trend and Walker has never had more than 230 carries (Jeanty had 266 as a rookie). Barkley is in a run-first offense with a very good o-line, so the variables are great, but I hate banking on older RBs to determine my season. I can chase ceilings later in my draft, but with my first handful of picks, I’m fine with a super high floor.
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I have been crazy about fantasy sports even before I knew what it was. Some people use stats as a tool and some use the eye test. I like to believe I have the perfect blend of both and that extra special spider sense that separates me from the herd. I have been nominated for one FSWA Football Article of the Year award and am just getting started. My only fear is that I will become too good at fantasy football and have to retire early like Michael Jordan. You won’t see me leave my house without at least one of my (four) dogs and if you are lucky enough, you will catch me cruising top-down with all four in tow.