The general consensus around the Fantasy Football world is that Zero-RB is dead. This is not the article to convince you that is wrong, but as I drafted six in our pick-by-pick mock, I once again found myself favoring a three-receiver start to my draft. That's partially because in the first round two of the first three picks are Jahmyr Gibbs and Bijan Robinson but four of my top six players are receivers. In other words, if I am picking four through six, it is a near lock that my highest-rated player will be a receiver, and in this draft it was Amon-Ra St. Brown. It's also because of my favorite pick in this draft, who I'll discuss more below. What you'll see is that if you start with three receivers, and you don't want to go Zero-RB, you're either going to have to sacrifice at quarterback or tight end. I prefer the former, but this draft showed that if your favorite mid-round tight ends go earlier than expected, you may be piecing that position together in the double-digit rounds.
This is our 12-part, pick-by-pick series where me, Jamey Eisenberg, Dan Schneier, Dave Richard, and Jacob Gibbs all took part in a six-person mock draft. We each built two of the 12 teams in this 14-round draft to show you a different strategy from each spot.
As a reference point, all touchdowns in this league are worth six points, and we award one point for every 10 yards rushing and receiving and one point for every 25 yards passing. We also award one point for every reception. We feature a starting lineup of QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, TE and FLEX (RB/WR/TE).
Here's how my team came together from the 11th pick:
1.06 Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Lions
2.07 George Pickens, WR, Cowboys
3.06 Zay Flowers, WR, Ravens
4.07 Breece Hall, RB, Jets
5.06 Tony Pollard, RB, Titans
6.07 Bhayshul Tuten, RB, Jaguars
7.06 Dak Prescott, QB, Cowboys
8.07 Jakobi Meyers, WR, Jaguars
9.06 Xavier Worthy, WR, Chiefs
10.07 Brock Purdy, QB, 49ers
11.06 Mark Andrews, TE, Ravens
12.07 Tyjae Spears, RB, Titans
13.06 Mike Washington, Jr., RB, Raiders
14.07 Hunter Henry, TE, Patriots
St. Brown, Pickens, and Flowers all rank inside my top 10 wide receivers for 2026. St. Brown is the obvious one, and Flowers is the player I will be talking about below, so it is probably worth spending some time on why Pickens deserves to be here. Pickens averaged 16.8 FPPG in his final 10 full games with Lamb and that was with him only scoring three touchdowns. He plays in a high-volume pass offense with a very good quarterback and was on pace for 146 targets in those 10 games. That volume, combined with Pickens' career 9.9 yards per target, makes for an elite yardage projection that is worth a pick in Round 2.
Obviously, starting with three receivers puts you in a bind everywhere else, and I don't have a projected RB1. What I did land was three starting running backs in Hall, Pollard, and Tuten. Pollard and Tuten are actually a combination I like because Pollard's floor feels pretty safe as a low-end RB2 while Tuten offers a lot of upside but very little security. They all three project for more than 11 FPPG, and if I can get 25 out of my two starters each week, that should be plenty with my elite receivers.
As I said, this approach can leave you vulnerable at tight end or quarterback. I took Prescott in Round 7, which solved that issue, but could not find a tight end value I liked. Sam LaPorta was gone by the time I picked in Round 6, Kyler Pitts went one pick before me in Round 7, and Isaiah Likely went one pick before me in Round 8. That's some pretty bad luck that I have not experienced for most of this offseason. One of two things is true. Either this is an outlier draft, and you can expect better tight end options later, or my favorite mid-round tight ends are all rising. I think it is the former, but it is something to look out for. As it is, I ended up with Mark Andrews and Hunter Henry, which could mean I'm streaming if Andrews doesn't regain form with Isaiah Likely gone.
Favorite pick: Zay Flowers
I have talked a lot about Flowers this offseason and will give you the condensed version here: He became an alpha WR1 last year, and no one noticed because the Ravens only threw 420 passes. I expect a significant increase in pass volume for the Ravens this year, and I don't think the rookies cut into Flowers' target share. That would be huge because Flowers was a top five wide receiver in most efficiency metrics in 2025. The only thing he was missing was volume and touchdowns. While touchdowns have been a constant concern early in his career, Chris Olave and Terry McLaurin are two recent examples that low touchdowns are not sticky for WR1s. No one should be surprised if Flowers scores eight-plus times this year and finishes as a top six wide receiver. I think he's worth a pick in Round 2, but he's always available in Round 3.
Pick I might regret: Tony Pollard
I have Pollard and LaPorta back to back in my overall rankings and at the time I made the pick I felt more desperate for a running back than a tight end. Knowing that I got Tuten in Round 6, I think I probably should have taken LaPorta, who has TE1 overall upside in Drew Petzing's system. That also would have freed me up to take more upside running backs later in the draft, and I probably would have taken Woody Marks and Kaytron Allen instead of Andrews and Henry. Of course, this is a pick I might regret. Pollard was RB12 the final five weeks of last season, when the offense looked more functional. If the Titans are much improved offensively, Pollard could be good enough that I don't care if I am streaming tight end.
Player who could make or break my team: Breece Hall
When you don't have a true RB1, you really need the guy you draft first at running back to have a good season. I have zero doubt Hall has the talent to do that; he is the complete package. He's averaged at least 85 yards per game each of the last three seasons and has shown 70-catch upside. He ranks fourth amongst all running backs in targets since he entered the league and only Christian McCaffrey and Bijan Robinson have been better on a per-target basis. I am hopeful Frank Reich uses him more in that role and we get some positive regression in the area of touchdowns. If so, he could easily be a top 12 running back. If not, I am going to be scrambling to get enough out of my running back position.
