NFL DRAFT DFS: 2018 Best Ball Rankings (First Update!) (DRAFT.com)

Why do you need another DFS site? Because DRAFT combines the excitement of a season-long draft into one set of games! Available from now until the start of the NFL season are “Best Ball” drafts. If you have seen them in the lobby and have not tried them out yet, this article has some pre-draft rankings all set for you to jump into some NFL DRAFT DFS action!

Welcome to the first of probably a few updates to my rankings for NFL DRAFT DFS, covering best ball drafts on DRAFT.com from FantasyCPR. Now that we have the ins and the outs of best ball drafts out of the way, it is time to move ahead with some rankings. I am done with five drafts at this point, and plan to do five more before fine tuning my rankings and presenting them here. If you missed the first part of this best ball series, it can be found here.

NFL Best Ball Drafts:

We won’t waste much time with recapping anything, but really quickly, a best ball draft is a season-long league on DRAFT. Simply draft 18 players for the whole season. No trades or waivers. DRAFT automatically takes your highest scorers of the week to give you a weekly score. All scores are accumulated throughout the season over the 16 weeks, and payouts follow at the end of the season.

So now that my warm up drafts are complete, my rankings will be posted here, and it will be my top 216 overall. For a 12-team league, there are 216 players drafted, so my expectation is for these rankings to cover the larger field drafts completely. I will go 36 deep at quarterback and tight end, and 72 at running back and wide receiver. Let’s proceed to the rankings!

First Rankings Update:

After a couple of weeks of the preseason, it was obvious some things have changed and my rankings needed an update. I am heading out on vacation soon, and one thing I will do before this article is published is draft at least ten more best balls while I am traveling, and get my rankings revamped. We have already had some unfortunate injuries around the league for those that got in on some early action. Redskins rookie Derrius Guice, who looked like he was on his way to a starting job, is out for the season. And on the flip side, we learned that Peyton Barber was looking to be the starter in Tampa, despite being drafted well behind rookie Ronald Jones. If you looked at my first set of rankings, maybe you have some shares of Barber like me? He is actually a great all-around back. He can catch the ball, blocks well, and if a rookie isn’t going to push him, he could end up in that backfield all year if he stays healthy.

NFL DRAFT DFS: QB Rankings

My rankings should be pretty easy to follow. I have ranked the top 216 overall. Rankings are broken down into positions by slides, starting here with quarterbacks. Following each players name will be their overall ranking in parenthesis. These rankings will of course change over the course of now through the preseason, so maybe we can refresh them with an update closer to the season? I guess it will depend if there is any interest. Without further delay, I present to you the quarterback rankings!

The QB rankings haven’t changed much. I think the most notable move in my rankings would be that Andrew Luck has moved up 34 spots to 83 overall. He looked healthy in his first taste preseason action, and that seems to have calmed my nerves. We know how good he can be if he is 100%, and considering his ADP, he could end up a steal. I am not going all in on Luck by any means, and in the couple have drafts I have grabbed him, I have also grabbed another mid-tier QB to pair him with. For these best ball drafts with no waivers, most will view Luck as risky, and he will fall in most drafts.

QB Rankings: 

1. Aaron Rodgers – Green Bay Packers – (32)

2. Deshaun Watson – Houston Texans – (55)

3. Russell Wilson – Seattle Seahawks – (56)

4. Tom Brady – New England Patriots – (68)

5. Cam Newton – Carolina Panthers – (79)

6. Andrew Luck – Indianapolis Colts – (83)

7. Drew Brees – New Orleans Saints – (85)

8. Carson Wentz – Philadelphia Eagles – (88)

9. Kirk Cousins – Minnesota Vikings – (94)

10. Jimmy Garoppolo – San Francisco 49ers – (95)

11. Patrick Mahomes – Kansas City Chiefs – (96)

12. Matthew Stafford – Detroit Lions – (100)

13. Philip Rivers – Los Angeles Chargers – (118)

14. Ben Roethlisberger – Pittsburgh Steelers – (119)

15. Marcus Mariota – Tennessee Titans – (124)

16. Jared Goff – Los Angeles Rams – (131)

17. Matt Ryan – Atlanta Falcons – (132)

18. Derek Carr – Oakland Raiders – (137)

19. Dak Prescott – Dallas Cowboys – (138)

20. Case Keenum – Denver Broncos – (145)

21. Blake Bortles – Jacksonville Jaguars – (153)

22. Tyrod Taylor – Cleveland Browns – (158)

23. Alex Smith – Washington Redskins – (161)

24. Mitchell Trubisky – Chicago Bears – (164)

25. Jameis Winston – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – (173)

26. Eli Manning – New York Giants – (174)

27. Sam Bradford – Arizona Cardinals – (179)

28. Ryan Tannehill – Miami Dolphins – (180)

29. Andy Dalton – Cincinnati Bengals – (182)

30. Lamar Jackson – Baltimore Ravens – (183)

31. Baker Mayfield – Cleveland Browns – (191)

32. Sam Darnold – New York Jets – (201)

33. Josh Rosen – Arizona Cardinals – (202)

34. Joe Flacco – Baltimore Ravens – (206)

35. Josh Allen – Buffalo Bills – (208)

36. AJ McCarron – Buffalo Bills – (210)

NFL DRAFT DFS: RB Rankings:

Quite a few things going on at the running back position as far as whose stock is rising and whose stock is falling. One thing that is constant however, is that Todd Gurley looks like a clear-cut first overall pick. The Rams are going to be good this year, let’s just start by pointing that out. They have an above-average defense at the very least, and they also have an above-average to elite offensive line. They lost Sammy Watkins to Kansas City, but the gain in Brandon Cooks, who they traded for from New England, could be a fantastic upgrade.

Gurley will likely get as heavy of a workload as he did last season, as he proved to be an elite pass catcher out of the backfield. He caught six touchdowns last year giving him a total of 19, as he rushed for 13. Gurley also amassed over 2000 yards from scrimmage with over 1300 rushing and nearly 800 receiving. I just had the first overall pick in our inaugural FantasyCPR Writers League, and backed all of this up by selecting him first overall. Be on the lookout for some articles about our draft soon!

RB Rankings:

1. Todd Gurley – Los Angeles Rams – (1)

2. Ezekiel Elliott – Dallas Cowboys – (2)

3. Alvin Kamara – New Orleans Saints – (3)

4. David Johnson – Arizona Cardinals – (4)

5. LeVeon Bell – Pittsburgh Steelers – (5)

6. Saquon Barkley – New York Giants – (6)

7. Leonard Fournette – Jacksonville Jaguars – (8)

8. Kareem Hunt – Kansas City Chiefs – (9)

9. Dalvin Cook – Minnesota Vikings – (10)

10. Melvin Gordon – Los Angeles Chargers – (11)

11. Christian McCaffrey – Carolina Panthers – (15)

12. Devonta Freeman – Atlanta Falcons – (18)

13. Joe Mixon – Cincinnati Bengals – (19)

14. Jerick McKinnon – San Francisco 49ers – (22)

15. Jordan Howard – Chicago Bears – (26)

16. Derrick Henry – Tennessee Titans – (33)

17. Jay Ajayi – Philadelphia Eagles – (34)

18. Royce Freeman – Denver Broncos – (35)

19. Alex Collins – Baltimore Ravens – (42)

20. Lamar Miller – Houston Texans – (43)

21. Mark Ingram – New Orleans Saints – (45)

22. Rex Burkhead – New England Patriots – (48)

23. LeSean McCoy – Buffalo Bills – (50)

24. Rashaad Penny – Seattle Seahawks – (51)

25. Dion Lewis – Tennessee Titans – (53)

26. Kenyan Drake – Miami Dolphins – (54)

27. Kerryon Johnson – Detroit Tigers – (59)

28. Tarik Cohen – Chicago Bears – (65)

29. Tevin Coleman – Atlanta Falcons – (66)

30. Sony Michel – New England Patriots – (67)

31. Ronald Jones – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – (70)

32. Jamaal Williams – Green Bay Packers – (72)

33. Marshawn Lynch – Oakland Raiders – (74)

34. CJ Anderson – Carolina Panthers – (80)

35. Isaiah Crowell – New York Jets – (81)

36. Chris Thompson – Washington Redskins – (84)

37. Marlon Mack – Indianapolis Colts – (89)

38. Carlos Hyde – Cleveland Browns – (90)

39. Duke Johnson – Cleveland Browns – (99)

40. Nick Chubb – Cleveland Browns – (102)

41. Nyheim Hines – Indianapolis Colts – (103)

42. Ty Montgomery – Green Bay Packers – (107)

43. Peyton Barber – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – (112)

44. Giovani Bernard – Cincinnati Bengals – (113)

45. Chris Carson – Seattle Seahawks – (116)

46. Aaron Jones – Green Bay Packers – (117)

47. Jordan Wilkins – Indianapolis Colts – (123)

48. Chris Ivory – Buffalo Bills – (124)

49. Latavius Murray – Minnesota Vikings – (126)

50. Devontae Booker – Denver Broncos – (127)

51. Matt Breida – San Francisco 49ers – (128)

52. Corey Clement – Philadelphia Eagles – (129)

53. Bilal Powell – New York Jets – (130)

54. James White – New England Patriots – (143)

55. LeGarrette Blount – Detroit Lions – (145)

56. Frank Gore – Miami Dolphins – (148)

57. Javorius Allen – Baltimore Ravens – (149)

58. Spencer Ware – Kansas City Chiefs – (151)

59. Doug Martin – Oakland Raiders – (152)

60. Rob Kelley – Washington Redskins – (165)

61. Adrian Peterson – Washington Redskins – (166)

62. Samaje Perine – Washington Redskins – (167)

63. Theo Riddick – Detroit Lions – (171)

64. Austin Ekeler – Los Angeles Chargers – (186)

65. Kenneth Dixon – Baltimore Ravens – (195)

66. Darren Sproles – Philadelphia Eagles – (196)

67. TJ Yeldon – Jacksonville Jaguars – (197)

68. Jonathan Stewart – New York Giants – (205)

69. CJ Prosise – Seattle Seahawks – (206)

70. Kalen Ballage – Miami Dolphins – (208)

71. Chase Edmonds – Arizona Cardinals – (209)

72. Mike Gillislee – New England Patriots – (211)

NFL DRAFT DFS: WR Rankings:

For these best balls it is imperative to get at least three quality receivers. Even though Antonio Brown dropped a spot in the overall rankings, he is still a clear-cut #1 for me this year. After him in the rankings, a negative can be found on pretty much everyone ranked two through seven. Beckham Jr is elite when healthy, but an aging QB and overall awful offense that will be asking a lot out of rookie Saquon Barkley has me balking at him.

Hopkins was fantastic with Watson when he was healthy last season, but I am not a fan of taking him as early as he is going. There are just too many receivers in the 8-25 ranked range that I would rather target. Jones is aging and it showed last season as he struggled, and Allen has proven he struggles to stay healthy. Give me Brown or Michael Thomas in this range or I will wait a bit to draft my first WR.

WR Rankings:

1. Antonio Brown – Pittsburgh Steelers – (7)

2. Odell Beckham Jr. – New York Giants – (12)

3. DeAndre Hopkins – Houston Texans – (13)

4.  Julio Jones – Atlanta Falcons – (14)

5. Keenan Allen – Los Angeles Chargers – (16)

6. Michael Thomas – New Orleans Saints – (17)

7. AJ Green – Cincinnati Bengals – (21)

8. Adam Thielen – Minnesota Vikings – (24)

9. Davante Adams – Green Bay Packers – (25)

10. Tyreek Hill – Kansas City Chiefs – (27)

11. Mike Evans – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – (28)

12. Stefon Diggs – Minnesota Vikings – (29)

13. TY Hilton – Indianapolis Colts – (30)

14. Juju Smith-Schuster – Pittsburgh Steelers – (36)

15. Brandin Cooks – Los Angeles Rams – (37)

16. Larry Fitzgerald – Arizona Cardinals – (38)

17. Doug Baldwin – Seattle Seahawks – (39)

18. Amari Cooper – Oakland Raiders – (40)

19. Demaryius Thomas – Denver Broncos – (41)

20. Allen Robinson – Chicago Bears – (44)

21. Chris Hogan – New England Patriots – (46)

22. Jarvis Landry – Cleveland Browns – (47)

23. Sammy Watkins – Kansas City Chiefs – (49)

24. Golden Tate – Detroit Lions – (51)

25. Josh Gordon – Cleveland Browns – (57)

26. Marvin Jones – Detroit Lions – (58)

27. Alshon Jeffery – Philadelphia Eagles – (60)

28. Michael Crabtree – Baltimore Ravens – (62)

29. Will Fuller – Houston Texans – (64)

30. Marquise Goodwin – San Francisco 49ers – (69)

31. Emmanuel Sanders – Denver Broncos – (73)

32. Corey Davis – Tennessee Titans – (76)

33. Randall Cobb – Green Bay Packers – (77)

34. Pierre Garcon – San Francisco 49ers – (82)

35. Jordy Nelson – Oakland Raiders – (86)

36. Robert Woods – Los Angeles Rams – (91)

37. Cooper Kupp – Los Angeles Rams – (92)

38. Devin Funchess – Carolina Panthers – (93)

39. Kelvin Benjamin – Buffalo Bills – (97)

40. Jamison Crowder – Washington Redskins – (98)

41.  Robby Anderson – New York Jets – (104)

42. Allen Hurns – Dallas Cowboys – (105)

43. Sterling Shepard – New York Giants – (109)

44. Nelson Agholor – Philadelphia Eagles – (110)

45. Julian Edelman – New England Patriots – (111)

46. DeVante Parker – Miami Dolphins – (114)

47. Dez Bryant – *Unsigned* – (115)

48. Kenny Stills – Miami Dolphins – (118)

49. Kenny Golladay – Detroit Lions – (122)

50. Rishard Matthews – Tennessee Titans – (131)

51. Tyler Lockett – Seattle Seahawks – (134)

52. Mike Williams – Los Angeles Chargers – (135)

53. DJ Moore – Carolina Panthers – (136)

54. Marquise Lee – Jacksonville Jaguars – (137)

55. Calvin Ridley – Atlanta Falcons – (142)

56. Mohamed Sanu – Atlanta Falcons – (150)

57. Anthony Miller – Chicago Bears – (153)

58. Michael Gallup – Dallas Cowboys – (155)

59. Cameron Meredith – Chicago Bears – (159)

60. Ted Ginn – New Orleans Saints – (160)

61. Desean Jackson – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – (161)

62. Josh Doctson – Washington Redskins – (164)

63. Paul Richardson – Washington Redskins – (169)

64. Geronimo Allison – Green Bay Packers – (173)

65. Chris Godwin – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – (174)

66. Tyrell Williams – Los Angeles Chargers – (178)

67. Martavis Bryant – Los Angeles Raiders – (180)

68. Dede Westbrook – Jacksonville Jaguars – (183)

69. James Washington – Pittsburgh Steelers – (189)

70. Danny Amendola – Miami Dolphins – (190)

71. Albert Wilson – Miami Dolphins – (191)

72. John Ross – Cincinnati Bengals – (198)

NFL DRAFT DFS: TE Rankings:

I have now done 17 best ball drafts since the MLB All-Star break, and the two players I have the most exposure to are Mahomes and Kelce. I expect that trend to continue as I continue to do more until the season begins. Kelce to me presents an ideal type of pick for these drafts. Tight end is such a limited position in my opinion, that grabbing Kelce or Ertz is almost a must for me. In a different situation, like say Aaron Rodgers slips too far and I grab him, I may look to Jimmy Graham as I have done a couple of times.

If you were to look up and down my best ball rosters, you will see lots of Kelce, a little Ertz, plenty of Vance McDonald who is my top sleeper TE, and a little bit of George Kittle who was my preferred choice in the rare event I missed out on Ertz or Kelce. Bottom line is I want a healthy, productive TE. And while Gronkowski is the best pure athlete at the position, his injuries and the distribution of targets for the Pats has me passing on him this season for this format.

TE Rankings:

1. Rob Gronkowski – New England Patriots – (20)

2. Travis Kelce – Kansas City Chiefs – (23)

3. Zach Ertz – Philadelphia Eagles – (31)

4. Greg Olsen – Carolina Panthers – (61)

5. Jimmy Graham – Green Bay Packers – (63)

6. Evan Engram – New York Giants – (71)

7. Delanie Walker – Tennessee Titans – (75) 

MORE FROM FANTASY CPR

• NFL DFS Player Pool: Preseason Week 2 (Saturday, 8/18)
• DFS MLB Game by Game Breakdown – Saturday, August 18
• Fantasy Football 2018 Debate: Dak Prescott or Philip Rivers
• MLB DFS Picks and Pivots – Saturday August 18
• DraftKings Main MLB Picks August 18: Will Price dominate Fenway?

8. Kyle Rudolph – Minnesota Vikings – (78)

9. Trey Burton – Chicago Bears – (87)

10. George Kittle – San Francisco 49ers – (101)

11. Jordan Reed – Washington Redskins – (106)

12. Jack Doyle – Indianapolis Colts – (108)

13. David Njoku – Cleveland Browns – (121)

14. OJ Howard – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – (140)

15. Eric Ebron – Indianapolis Colts – (141)

16. Vance McDonald – Pittsburgh Steelers – (144)

17. Benjamin Watson – New Orleans Saints – (147)

18. Tyler Eifert – Cincinnati Bengals – (154)

19. Cameron Brate – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – (157)

20. Ricky Seals-Jones – Arizona Cardinals – (158)

21. Charles Clay – Buffalo Bills – (170)

22. Jared Cook – Oakland Raiders – (172)

23. Austin Sefarian-Jenkins – Jacksonville Jaguars – (177)

24. Austin Hooper – Atlanta Falcons – (179)

25. Hayden Hurst – Baltimore Ravens – (187)

26. Mike Gesicki – Miami Dolphins – (188)

27. Jaylen Samuels – Pittsburgh Steelers – (192)

28. Vernon Davis – Washington Redskins – (194)

29. Tyler Kroft – Cincinnati Bengals – (199)

30. Ed Dickson – Seattle Seahawks – (200)

31. Antonio Gates – *Unsigned* – (201)

32. Jake Butt – Denver Broncos – (202)

33. Garrett Celek – San Francisco 49ers – (213)

34. Virgil Green – Los Angeles Chargers – (214)

35. Josh Hill – New Orleans Saints – (215)

36. Luke Willson – Detroit Lions – (216)

Stay tuned to Fantasy CPR for all of your DFS need, even College football! We will also have the breakdown of the Fantasy CPR Writers league draft. You don’t want to miss that!