• Wide Receiver is the right choice in the first round outside of 1.01: Christian McCaffrey is the right choice at 1.01, but for every other first-round pick, a wide receiver is the preferred option.

• Find out when Rashee Rice will be available: It is becoming increasingly clear that Rice is unlikely to be suspended in 2024, making him potentially the best option.

• Dominate your fantasy draft: Subscribe to PFF+ to get full access to PFF’s fantasy football tools, including Fantasy Mock Draft Simulator, Live Design Assistant, Fantasy Draft Rankings, Cheat Sheet and more! Click here to register!

Estimated reading time: 15 minutes

The Perfect Fantasy Football Draft series combines current average draft positions from expert and casual drafts to predict player availability at each selection so we can make the best possible picks based on that information. This draft is designed for 12-team PPR leagues. Click here for our 10-team version.

Last updated: Monday, September 2, 7:15 am

Round 1, Picks 1-12: Draft a wide receiver

Anyone with the first overall pick should take Christian McCaffrey without hesitation. He scored over 100 more PPR points than any other running back last season and has the perfect combination of talent, opportunity and situation. If you miss that, you’ll have to switch to a wide receiver. No quarterback or tight end is worth a first-round pick this year.

Bijan Robinson And Breece Hall are both worth a first-round pick, but also have slightly higher ADPs than they should considering the wide receiver’s talent, so if you’re picking anywhere between second and tenth, the wide receiver is your best option.

Primary goal: CeeDee Lamb (Player profile)

Lamb has improved noticeably each season and is now at the top of the position. He finished 2023 as the best wide receiver and has less competition for targets this season. Tony Pollard‘s and Michael Gallup‘s departure. The only notable new addition is the receiver from the sixth round Ryan Flournoywhich will have no impact on Lamb’s target share.

In contrast, Justin Jefferson has a new quarterback, Ja’Marr ChaseThe quarterback is coming back from injury and Tyreek Hill is 30 years old, which adds a little risk to each of her profiles.

Possible goals: Ja’Marr Chase, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Justin Jefferson, AJ Brown, Puka Nacua

Round 2, Picks 13-24: Draft a wide receiver

Similar to the first round, the value in this round is on the wide receiver, making the wide receiver the strength of your team. This is where the “zero running back” strategy gains popularity – wide receivers selected at this time are generally more reliable fantasy starters all season long than the running backs available in the same range.

Primary goal: Puka Nacua (Player profile)

Nacua finished last season with the fourth-most fantasy points of any wide receiver, making it one of the best rookie seasons ever by a wide receiver. His situation this year is very similar to last year, with Sean McVay as head coach. Matthew Stafford as his quarterback and Cooper Kupp than his main competitors. It’s entirely possible that Nacua will perform even better in year two. Still, he has a one-year sample of excellent play compared to the wide receivers who were selected ahead of him and have been clear elite options for multiple seasons.

Possible goals: Davante Adams, Marvin Harrison Jr., Chris Olave, Drake London, Michael Evans

Round 3, Picks 25-36: Draft a wide receiver or quarterback

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