Seth Starr’s Fantasy Football Guide
A Guide To Your Fantasy Football Draft
The start of a new NFL year means new storylines, players and coaches, but it also means a new year in fantasy football. Fantasy football is a virtual league consisting of real NFL players where managers in a league, consisting of friends, family or anyone, draft players to put on their team to accumulate points. The goal is simple: have your team rack up the most wins across the season, win the playoffs and then win the championship. However, in some leagues, last place can face humiliating punishments, but luckily for managers, there are several guides that can help them avoid disaster.
These guides can help by telling managers what players to avoid and what players to buy in on that others may not. For quarterbacks, avoid Fernando Mendoza of the Las Vegas Raiders. Despite Mendoza coming off of a national title win at Indiana and being the number one pick, he will not start week one, as the Raiders will turn to newly signed veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins. Furthermore, with Mendoza being a rookie, taking a chance on him early in the draft is risky as his play may not translate right away from college. However, buy into Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. Even though Burrow has a lengthy injury history, it is still worth taking a chance on him because of his team around him. Burrow and his offense including star receivers such as Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins could generate long touchdowns. In advance, Burrow has a higher chance to give managers high point games as the Bengals run a very pass heavy offense. According to the NFL, the Bengals had 640 pass attempts last season, which was the second most in the entire league.
For running backs, avoid TreVeyon Henderson of the New England Patriots. Although Henderson did produce some electrifying runs last season, they were few in far between. Moreover, these explosive runs have inflated his yards per carry from what it really should have been. According to PFF (Pro Football Focus), without explosive runs, runs for 15+ yards, Henderson’s yards per carry drops from an elite 5.1 to an average 3.8. Also, Henderson is not the primary running back in his system, as he is splitting carries with fellow back Rhamondre Stevenson. However, buy into New York Jets running back Breece Hall. While a lack of offensive help usually spells disaster for a player's season, this is not the case with Hall. With the Jets not having a consistent number one option outside of star receiver Garrett Wilson, who is coming off an injury, Hall is going to be the primary weapon of the Jets offense for the upcoming season. According to Fantasy Football Pros, Hall accumulated 44% of the overall touches for the Jets last season. Additionally, Hall is not sharing the Jets running back room with any other dynamic backs, as his counterpart Isaiah Davis only rushed for 236 yards last season, and is coming off a knee injury he suffered during training camp.
For receivers, avoid Alec Pierce of the Indianapolis Colts. Pierce was just rewarded a four year, $114 million extension after a breakout 2025 season where he had 1,003 yards receiving and six touchdowns. However, it is not likely that he is going to replicate that success. Pierce, similar to Henderson, had his numbers boosted off of explosive plays, as Pierce only had three games with five or more receptions, which could lead to games where he does not perform as expected. However, the most concerning topic is Pierce’s health, as he missed most of training camp recovering from ankle surgery. His lack of practice quantity could potentially make him start his season off slow. However, buy into Los Angeles Rams receiver Davante Adams. While Adams is on the older side at 34, he is a consistent end zone threat for reigning MVP quarterback Matthew Stafford. According to Pro Football Reference, Adams was targeted 30.1% of the time in the red zone and 40.4% of the time inside the 10 yard line. Not to mention, Adams led the league in touchdowns with 14 last season. So, with his red zone prowess, Adams will be a consistent point scorer throughout this season.
As this year’s NFL season finally gears up to kickoff, many fans are anticipating not only the games, but also their fantasy leagues. These suggestions should help any managers who have concerns whether they should take a chance on a player or not.
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