If you’re reading this article, there’s a good chance you’re getting ready to draft your fantasy football team. It’s one of the most enjoyable parts of playing our great game, and it’s also one of (if not) the most important parts of being competitive and winning your league.
Unlike me, who participates in way too many leagues (LOL), you might have just one or two leagues to prepare for each season. As a result, you can focus your attention on how to successfully draft from one particular spot in the order. In this case, it’s the No. 9 pick.
The benefit, of course, is that you’ll have two picks in eight spots between odd and even rounds, but you’ll also have an extended wait (18 picks) when the rounds go from even to odd. Being at No. 9, you’re very unlikely to get a top three running back or a top five wide receiver. Maybe you’ll get lucky and one will fall to you, but I wouldn’t count on it. And while you’ll still get a solid player, you might have to make a difficult decision in Round 1.
As a result, it’s imperative to have a good strategy for that ninth overall pick and the rest of the draft that will help you build a championship-level fantasy football roster.
That’s where I come in!
To help you draft the best possible fantasy football squad from the ninth pick, here’s a look into my fantasy football headspace and the decisions I would make in each and every round from that spot. Also, I’ll give you some of the players I’d most like to target in each round in a best-case scenario based on the average draft position data over at FantasyPros. You should also check out my latest Top 200 player ranking list to help you prepare.
Alright, let’s kick things off!
All Picks: No. 1 | No. 2 | No. 3 | No. 4 | No. 5 | No. 6 | No. 7 | No. 8 | No. 10 | No. 11 | No. 12
No. 9 Fantasy Football Draft Strategy
Rounds 1-2
I mentioned earlier that managers with the ninth overall pick would have a tough choice to make … the choice is whether or not to draft Raiders rookie running back Ashton Jeanty. He has all the tools to be an instant impact maker in fantasy football, from his athletic skill set to his projected role as the centerpiece of the Las Vegas offense under coach Pete Carroll.
Selecting a first-year player might freak some managers out, and that’s understandable. After all, you have plenty of other options, like Dolphins running back De’Von Achane or Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua (who should both be on the board). However, for this exercise, I’m taking the rookie and throwing fantasy caution to the wind! After all, Jeanty does rank ninth overall in my list of the Top 200 players, and I practice what I preach.
In Round 2 (pick No. 16), and assuming I landed Jeanty in the first round, I’ll look for the best available wide receiver in most cases. Based on FantasyPros ADP data, that’s going to give me a choice of wideouts like A.J. Brown, Garrett Wilson or Ladd McConkey. If Drake London were still on the board (ADP – 15.5), I would jump at the chance to grab him.
If you want Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson, this is probably where you’ll need to take one of them since they might not be on the board near the bottom of Round 3. That’s not my personal jam, however. The same goes for the tight end. If you want Brock Bowers or Trey McBride, you’ll have to take them here or lose them because they’ll be gone by Round 3.
I typically wait on a quarterback and tight end, though, and I might not even take a field general until the eighth or ninth round. It’s a deep position so I’d rather focus elsewhere.
Fabs’ ideal Round 1 pick (No. 9): Jeanty
Fabs’ ideal Round 2 picks (No. 16): London/Brown/Wilson
Rounds 3-4
With a running back and a wideout on my roster, I’ll very likely be looking at a second wide receiver with the No. 33 overall pick. If you’re of the Hero-RB mindset (drafting one back in the first five to six rounds) you’ll definitely go with a second wide receiver in this spot. In that scenario, I could still get McConkey, Terry McLaurin or Tyreek Hill at this spot.
You could also go with a tight end if Bowers or McBride fell, but don’t expect that to happen (Bowers is at No. 19 in ADP and McBride’s ADP on FantasyPros has him off the board at 26.5).
In Round 4, I’m going with the best player available at running back or wide receiver. If it’s a receiver, that’s fine to have three before you get your second runner. You’ll find good backs who are still on the board into the fifth round, so I would probably side with a wideout. In that case, I’ll have gone with three straight wideouts after taking Jeanty at No. 9. I wouldn’t force the issue if a good back fell a few spots, however, so keep tabs on the draft flow.
It’s important to keep tabs on whether or not there’s been a run at a particular position, leaving it a bit thinner in terms of depth and if you want to grab a player at that spot now or punt it down the line instead.
In this case, I’m going with the best available player between the running backs and wideouts. Based on ADP data, that could be Kenneth Walker III, Alvin Kamara, DJ Moore, Chuba Hubbard, Joe Mixon or DK Metcalf.
Fabs’ ideal Round 3 picks (No. 33): Wilson/McConkey/McLaurin/Hill
Fabs’ ideal Round 4 picks (No. 40): Walker III/Kamara/Moore/Hubbard/Mixon/Metcalf
Rounds 5-6
If you’ve followed my strategy, you have either one running back and three wide receivers or a pair at each position heading into the 57th overall pick. If I only have one running back, I’m grabbing my second here. Kamara or Mixon could still be on the board in some drafts, and Chuba Hubbard is also an option. If I already have an RB2 from a previous round, I’ll likely go with the best available running back or wide receiver in the fifth round.
More than likely, it will be the latter.
It’s at this point that I might look into a tight end based on who is available. My ideal first five rounds includes a pair of runners and three receivers, and tight ends like Sam LaPorta, T.J. Hockenson or Travis Kelce could still be on the board. If LaPorta were gone, however, I'd most likely punt the position down the line and grab another runner or wideout. Rookies like RJ Harvey or TreVeyon Henderson or a veteran like David Montgomery would make sense.
If you don’t have a quarterback yet, don’t fret … there will be plenty of good options in future rounds.
Fabs’ ideal Round 5 picks (No. 57): Mixon/Conner/Sutton/Smith/Worthy/Williams
Fabs’ ideal Round 6 picks (No. 64): LaPorta/Henderson/Harvey/Montgomery
Rounds 7-8
I would continue to focus on the best player available strategy here, picking either a back or a wideout (assuming you took a tight end in Round 6). If you’re still without a tight end, now could be the time to target that position. Hockenson and Kelce could still be options. If they’re gone, I’d likely wait and punt the position down the road a few more rounds.
I’d also be looking at the draft flow and seeing what quarterbacks are on the board. Based on Fantasy Pros ADP, Bo Nix or Kyler Murray could be available. I’d still wait, however, looking instead to get a young running back or wide receiver. The best available players are likely to be on the tier of Brian Robinson Jr., Jerry Jeudy or Rome Odunze.
Don’t be afraid to keep kicking the quarterback position down the road, either. Again, there will be plenty of good players at the position still on the board in Rounds 8 and 9.
Near the top of the eighth round, you can either fill that quarterback position (depending on the depth that’s left) or continue to bolster your offensive skill spots with potential sleepers. There’s a chance Murray could have slid to this round in some leagues, otherwise you can look for upside player options like Jaylen Warren, Odunze or Ricky Pearsall.
Fabs’ ideal Round 7 picks (No. 81)
Hockenson/Kelce/Robinson Jr./Jeudy/Odunze
Fabs’ ideal Round 8 picks (No. 88): Nix/Murray/Warren/Odunze/Pearsall
Rounds 9-10
With the ninth pick in the ninth round, you can go in any number of directions. Those of you who waited at quarterback can grab players like Brock Purdy, Dak Prescott or Caleb Williams. If there’s still depth at the position, you can still wait another round or two.
This is also a good time to grab sleepers or even a handcuff such as Issac Guerendo or Zach Charbonnet. Other good options who will be available at this point in drafts include Jakobi Meyers, J.K. Dobbins or Evan Engram … again, this is all based on how your roster is built. Veterans like Cooper Kupp and Mark Andrews are also potential options based on ADP, but I like getting depth with upside players in these mid-to-late rounds.
Looking ahead to the fourth pick of the 10th round (112th overall pick), you could get a second quarterback (unless you took an elite player in the first five rounds, then I would wait a few more rounds). That would be borderline QB1s such as Justin Fields or Jared Goff.
You could also continue to bolster your depth with some young players like rookie tight end Tyler Warren, runners Tyjae Spears, rookie Cam Skattebo or wideout Luther Burden III.
Fabs’ ideal Round 9 picks (No. 105): Purdy/Prescott/Williams/Dobbins/Skattebo/Charbonnet/Guerendo
Fabs’ ideal Round 10 picks: Fields/Goff/Warren/Spears/Burden III
Late Rounds (11-plus)
Once you’re in the final rounds, you should continue to focus on sleepers and players with upside (or just players who might have fallen a few rounds and are now bargains) … there is often value to be had. There will still be a lot of good young quarterbacks, such as veterans like Justin Herbert or Jordan Love and sleepers like Drake Maye and J.J. McCarthy.
I also like to grab a second tight end (unless I have one of the top five players) as another choice for my starting lineups. I mentioned Warren as an option in the previous round, but he could fall to Round 11 too. Jake Ferguson or Tucker Kraft are other attractive picks, and fantasy fans who like rookie tight ends who missed Warren could grab Colston Loveland.
Deep sleepers should be targeted, too. Think about players like Trey Benson, Jaylen Wright, Marvin Mims Jr., Cedric Tillman or Brenton Strange (to name a few). Throw those darts at players with a path to workload/targets or an injury away from being thrust into a big role.
You’ll also be rounding out your roster in these final stanzas, including drafting a kicker and a defense if they’re required (many leagues have removed both positions). I’d wait to draft those until the last two rounds, unless you want to grab a high-end kicker (Brandon Aubrey or Jake Bates) or defense (Broncos, Eagles, Steelers) in the third-to-last round.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Fantasy Football No. 9 Draft Pick Strategy: How to Draft From the Ninth Overall Position.
