The season long fantasy football season is over for 2019. For us year ’round football junkies, this could be a depressing time of year. The truth is, IT’s NOT. This is when the most hardcore football fans, like you, are starved for quality content. As we do every year, we will take our impressions of the season and apply them immediately to the 2020 way too early ranks. This is a good exercise because as draft season progresses we often get poisoned by narratives and ADP. This is an unfiltered look into what I believe the top 24 is heading into next season. This will obviously change as free agency, the draft and situations develop. Here is the video version to go along with our ranks. Below is the video podcast of the ranks to go along with the list.
Round One
1- Christian McCaffrey
2- Saquon Barkley
3- Michael Thomas
4- Ezekiel Elliot
5- Dalvin Cook
6- Alvin Kamara
7- Aaron Jones
8- Austin Ekeler
9- Davante Adams
10- Leonard Fournette
11- DeAndre Hopkins
12- Tyreek Hill
Round One Takeaways:
It is RB heavy just like it was 20 years ago. WRs dominated the first round of fantasy drafts from 2015-2016 but for the last 2 seasons drafters are all in on trying to secure a workhorse.
The 3 WRs that I have ranked in round one all had uneven seasons. Injuries and environment played the major role for the down part of their season, NOT performance on the field. When they were healthy with a healthy QB, these three stars were weekly difference makers. That is why I have them back in round 1.
Austin Ekeler certainly belongs in the first round if Melvin Gordon leaves and The Chargers do not draft an RB in this 2020 class that is anything more than a complementary piece. But even with ⅔ of the work Eckler is a modern day RB who can be a 900 yard rusher AND 1000 yard receiver. In PPR leagues he belongs in round one.
There are three incoming rookie RBs (D’Andre Swift (Georgia), JK Dobbins (Ohio St.), and Jonathan Taylor (Wisc) that if they land in the right situation will be in our top 12. For example, any of these three land in KC in the first two rounds of the real NFL draft, that would be enough for me to put them in the top 12.
Below is the video podcast of our round one ranks
ROUND TWO
13-Chris Godwin
14- Lamar Jackson
15- Josh Jacobs
16-Derrick Henry
17-Julio Jones
18-Mike Evans
19-Joe Mixon
20-Kenyan Drake
21-Allen Robinson
22-George Kittle
23- Travis Kelce
24- Kenny Golladay
Round Two Take-Aways
Chris GOD-WIN is a fringe first rounder. He finished the season as WR3 on the year and looks like a complete monster. If Jameis stays I am comfortable taking Godwin as high as WR2, but if Winston goes, the new QB may not develop with Godwin as Winston did. I think Tom Brady is a sneaky under the radar candidate to be the Tampa QB in 2020. More on this later.
Heading into 2019 we ranked Drake as a top 13 RB. We feel exonerated as Drake lit the league on fire after the move to Arizona. As long as they resin Drake, he could go as high as 12th overall.
Lamar Jackson- Every year many of us get fooled into taking the QB1 in the 2nd round the following year. It did not pay off to take Mahomes in round 2 this past year. Jackson is different because of the rushing ability. If you take away his passing stats, he finished with the 6th most rush yards in the whole NFL. You are getting a top 10 RB and a QB in one position. I’m in on Lamar anytime from pick 6 overall to whenever you want to take him. 14th overall feels like a good spot for Lamar to start the 2020 ranks.
Just missed
Nick Chubb- When Kareem Hunt returned he hurt NC’s weekly upside enough to push him out of the top 24 in my judgement, Hunt is a restricted FA meaning he could go elsewhere without the Browns matching the offer. Chubb would shoot up my board into round 1.
Melvin Gordon (new team)
DJ Moore- Moore is a player I will be proactively drafting in 2020. I suspect I am not alone with that mindset. The QB situation needs to be resolved but Moore should still be one of the best 3rd round picks in the draft. I can see him jumping into round two as draft season moves along
Lev Bell- Talent is still there, the OL was poor. Already talk about Bell being on the trade block. With his $13MM contract I do not see the case for a team trading for him. If the unlikely scenario does occur and he lands in a optimal spot like Indy or KC, he is back in round one too.
ODB- Talent still there as we saw in week 17. ODB will be a tough rank for 2020, some will have him a s a third round pick some will still take him at the 1-2 turn if the consensus on the new HC to be named is favorable.
Chris Carson- I had ranked Carson as a top 18 overall player, but the injury late in the season was enough for me to move him out of the top 2 rounds. We will have to see if Seattle re-commits to CC as they did in 2019.