This article analyzes the various fantasy football draft strategies when drafting from one of the first three slots — 1.01, 1.02 or 1.03. The presumed format is 12-team leagues starting QB/2RB/3WR/TE/flex, with either PPR or half-PPR scoring.
Any strategy is permissible and some strategies become more or less viable as your draft order unfolds — it makes more sense to go "Zero-RB" if your early round RB options are subpar, for instance — but in general if you're drafting from the first three slots you might want to plan on going one RB and either two-WR or one-WR, 1-TE otherwise.
The reason for that is the first two slots are elite running backs — Jahmyr Gibbs and Bijan Robinson — who generally should not be passed on in favor of wide receivers in the same range. From that point, though, your RB1 (be it Gibbs or Robinson) would be strong enough to carry some slack for your eventual RB2, making it more reasonable to go with two wideouts or one wideout and one tight end in your next two rounds.
Even if you end up with that third slot, though, and thus end up out of typical range for Gibbs or Robinson, you'll from that point either target one running back in the next two rounds or go into a zero-RB track. This is all based on the general options availed to you in those subsequent rounds, as detailed below.
As a general note: when you have one of the first or last slots in a round, your subsequent snake-draft options will always be at the end of rounds, meaning your team will have longer to wait between picks than someone with the sixth or seventh pick. The longer you wait between picks, the more you should probably consider what could go wrong between your selections. If you need a quality RB2 and otherwise stare down the possibility of waiting nearly two rounds until your next pick, then you might want to consider whether any of your acceptable answers to the RB2 question typically fall as far as your next pick.
Read our other fantasy football draft strategy for:
Slots 4-6
Slots 7-9
Slots 10-12
Drafting from Early, Mid, Late Draft Positions
First Round - Picks 1-3
The consensus ADP in this range is pretty clear: with one of the first two picks you should plan on taking either Jahmyr Gibbs or Bijan Robinson, while beginning with the third overall slot the consensus pick is Ja'Marr Chase, though that's also the slot you might consider followup ADP picks like Puka Nacua or Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
If you're going with one of the two running backs then you might want to plan on eschewing the running back position with your second and third-round selections. For now at least the best options in that range tend to be receivers or tight ends — a welcome enough development if you already have a top-overall finisher candidate like Gibbs or Robinson at running back.
If you're starting with Chase or one of the other wideouts at 1.03 then you might want to plan on going light on running back, because other than Jeremiyah Love and Breece Hall you won't find consensus-range running backs to target with your second or third selections. The 1.03 spot is probably one of the best for zero-RB builds, because by the fourth round you could easily be looking at a WR-WR-WR or WR-TE-WR roster.
Note: Make sure your league doesn't have a third-round reversal, such as that is used in NFFC drafts. If your league uses a third-round reversal then your third-round pick would be among the last of the round instead of the first of the round.
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Second Round - Picks 22-24
If you want Brock Bowers at tight end then you'll probably need to take him here. If you're looking at wide receiver you'll have more options available; Drake London, Nico Collins, George Pickens or Rashee Rice has their own compelling case to make.
If it's running back you must have then your options are likely limited to Jeremiyah Love and Breece Hall. There's arguably good news either way — if you went with Gibbs or Robinson in the first round then they should do enough lifting at RB1 to leave less pressure on your RB2, be it Love/Hall or otherwise. Similarly, you should get a good enough wide receiver with your remaining top-3 pick to justify going running back with your first pick and one of your second or third picks.
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Third Round - Picks 25-27
It's splitting hairs to identify Round 2 targets versus Round 3 when you're talking picks on the round turn, so any of these players are fairly justifiable selections with your second pick.
Malik Nabers in particular offers WR1 upside if his uncertain knee situation turns out for the better, but DeVonta Smith, Chris Olave, Zay Flowers, Emeka Egbuka and Ladd McConkey can make their own cases as fantasy WR1s, especially if you already have two killer running backs or Gibbs/Robinson and Bowers or Trey McBride at tight end. If you go with Flowers in this range you should be in a good spot to pair him with Lamar Jackson when you pick in the late-fifth round.
McBride tends to go later than Bowers, so if one were more likely to make it to your third pick it would probably be McBride.
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Fourth Round - Picks 46-48
If you're intent on acquiring one of the Big Three at tight end and you did not acquire Bowers or McBride previously, then this pick is probably where you'd need to take Colston Loveland.
Just as at the Round 2/Round 3 turn, your best options otherwise are probably at receiver for the most part. Terry McLaurin, Luther Burden, Mike Evans and Davante Adams are quality WR2 types and excellent for WR3 purposes.
At running back Cam Skattebo and D'Andre Swift are your most conventional options at this pick. There are other names who come up quickly after them — see the Fifth Round for that list — but particularly if you have the 46th or 47th pick you might need to take your preferred running back target here rather than assume they'll make it back to your fifth-round pick at 50 or 51. If you're on the turn itself then it makes more sense to merge this Fourth Round list with the subsequent Fifth Round list.
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Fifth Round - Picks 49-51 /Sixth Round - Picks 70-72 and Onward
For this tandem of picks we should just list the general options in the range instead of trying to speak in Round 5 versus Round 6 — the distinction is barely possible at this point.
If you're looking for a running back in this range then realistically your options are generally Bhayshul Tuten, TreVeyon Henderson, Quinshon Judkins, Bucky Irving and Jadarian Price. Each of these guys has a good case to return RB2-like value to varying degrees, with differing floors and ceilings between them. You might call Judkins the floor play as the clear starter among these, whereas the more explosive but more volatile likes of Tuten, Henderson and Price could theoretically offer more fireworks. Irving is mostly in this range due to injury concerns with his shoulder.
If you're looking wide receiver then in this range you might be looking at Jameson Williams, DJ Moore, Christian Watson, Carnell Tate, Rome Odunze and Brian Thomas. Although they each have their WR2 upside cases, this group of receivers is probably best thought of as WR3s in most roster designs. These guys do not project for obvious 100-reception upside, instead likely needing big plays or/and touchdowns to propel their fantasy utility any higher than WR3-type returns.
Lamar Jackson is also a worthwhile consideration here, especially if you took Zay Flowers as your WR2 at the turn of the second and third rounds.
