Fantasy Football: How to Draft From the 8th Pick

Say the 40-yard dash time was slow and your hammy got a bit tight, or perhaps, the random duck race didn't go your way. No matter how the draft order was decided, you ended with the eighth pick that no one ever thinks about.

We all dream of first overall, and strategy around the turn is crucial. However, eighth overall can be a bit of a no man's land. The top studs are usually long gone, yet you get to beat your leaguemates to the punch in Round 2. It seems like a decent spot to do damage.

We'll just have to avoid the disaster that 2023 brought to this pick, which seemed to be an instant loss if you didn't go well off the board to select CeeDee Lamb and Amon-Ra St. Brown with your two picks. Round 1 produced headaches in the form of Nick Chubb, Saquon Barkley, or playoff letdown A.J. Brown. Round 2 wasn't much better with a potential selection of Tony Pollard, Cooper Kupp, Josh Jacobs, or Davante Adams.

Is this spot cursed? No one knows. Yet, we've got to solider on and do our best to examine the board from it and build a winner. After a few mocks to brush up on different sites' outlooks at this eighth spot, let's deep dive how most drafts look -- and how to use that information to win your league.

Fantasy Football 8th Pick Strategy

Round 1 and Round 2

After doing a few mocks, I now believe most fantasy football players with the eighth pick will mess up their roster construction.

There's a clear "value" proposition at this spot in Round 1, allowing for the selection of the final "elite" wide receiver before a large perceived drop to A.J. Brown. That's usually Justin Jefferson or Amon-Ra St. Brown, but Ja'Marr Chase occasionally made it all the way to the spot.

It's hard to turn down "Jettas," who is already second in NFL history in 100-yard games over a player's first five seasons through just four of his own. As the WR5 on a points-per-game basis in half PPR last year, he proved that wasn't solely tied to Kirk Cousins, either, as one of Sam Darnold or J.J. McCarthy should represent an upgrade from the end of the season. On the other hand, St. Brown can go as high as third in drafts thanks to a league-best 30.6% target share last year in an offense returning identical pieces, so you feel like a robber snagging him at eight.

However, I think this could be a mistake. Through the next five picks, this draft slot is flush with elite talent at wide receiver and frankly not close to it at running back. That's why it's worth considering Jonathan Taylor or Saquon Barkley.

Taylor seems primed for a mammoth return to fantasy greatness with Zack Moss out of the picture, posting 16.4 half-PPR games in just eight healthy games a year ago where he saw at least 55% of the snaps. Barkley is in a new spot with the Philadelphia Eagles, but rushing behind Pro Football Focus (PFF)'s second-ranked offensive line should be a new lease on life for the talented former No. 2 overall pick -- even if the "tush push" is primed to cause a little tilting for his touchdown total.

As managers at the turn get creative, the Round 2 selection is where extreme value can drop your way. I've seen Garrett Wilson and Derrick Henry fall below consensus rankings to this selection, but if they don't, a pair of my favorite players at 21st overall should comfortably be here in the form of Kansas City Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco and New Orleans Saints wideout Chris Olave.

Henry and Pacheco are preferred, which makes me a dinosaur to the "Zero WR" crowd. There's just too much talent at wide receiver on the way.

Round 3 and Round 4

That talent starts in Round 3, where I snagged Nico Collins and D.K. Metcalf among others in this range.

I'm not really into Collins at his ADP (29.7 via FantasyPros), and he's often reached for beyond it, but if he's going to tumble to 32nd overall, it's a consideration. Attached to budding star C.J. Stroud, he was second in yards per route run (3.30 YPRR) last year in a show of elite efficiency.

As for Metcalf, the arrows are all pointing up on the Seattle Seahawks' offense with former Washington Huskies coordinator Ryan Grubb potentially able to get the best out of Geno Smith, who was wildly efficient on deep throws in 2023. A declining Tyler Lockett could set DK up for his best campaign yet.

With only an inefficient Rachaad White usually standing between a huge drop of tiers at running back, the third-rounder at this slot feels like an absolute must to go wide receiver. Jaylen Waddle and DeVonta Smith are others hanging around here depending on the platform.

The Round 4 pick is where things get interesting. If Josh Allen or Jalen Hurts makes it here, this is an appropriate spot for one of the biggest advantages in terms of quarterback rushing. However, I'm a bit down on Hurts when the "tush push" was such a huge part of his touchdown count and a key member of it has retired. Patrick Mahomes might be the realistic quarterback target, and pairing him with Pacheco to account for most of the Chiefs offense doesn't even sound like a bad idea.

Though Sam LaPorta isn't my favorite tight end target, this is also an appropriate range for him. Rumors of a snap count for Travis Kelce makes the juice not particularly worth the squeeze for a guy who mustered just 9.0 half-PPR fantasy points per game over the second half of last season.

Most of the time in mocks, one of Metcalf, Waddle, or Smith made it back around to the fourth round, and they were the selection.

Round 5 and Round 6

The argument for Taylor or Barkley here was solidified in my brain in the fifth round. In many instances, I was passing on an elite wideout in the fifth because my running back room was empty. Ideally, Malik Nabers would be that guy, but it was usually Tee Higgins.

I want to get most of my Higgins exposure from this slot. Adoring Ja'Marr Chase's fantasy football outlook, it's hard to double dip with them, but Chase is usually gone by the eighth pick. Higgins should also benefit from the exodus of Joe Mixon and Tyler Boyd from Cincinnati -- in combination with a healthier and better Joe Burrow.

If not Higgins, Mark Andrews and Dalton Kincaid were my most common picks to begin to shore up tight end. Kyle Pitts (and sometimes Kincaid) can do the same job in Round 6 if the selection ends up Nabers, Higgins, or George Pickens in the prior round.

Without addressing quarterback in Round 4, Round 6 is the next-best opportunity to do so in the form of either Joe Burrow or Jordan Love, but it's possible to wait for Jayden Daniels in most instances. The Mahomes plunge would have been alright because both skill positions aren't totally dead in Round 6.

My running back to target in the sixth round was Zamir White, who seems locked into an unquestioned goal-line role for the Las Vegas Raiders even if the passing-down work might be a question mark. The wideout to target in the sixth round was 1,000-yard staple Terry McLaurin, which can work out well to stack with Daniels in Round 7 from this position.

This draft slot sets up well for some of my favorite "Zero RB" targets in following rounds, including Brian Robinson, Javonte Williams, and Ezekiel Elliott. I'd still prefer all as my RB3 instead of my RB2, yet their existence still makes a Jefferson build viable.

The best mock I did from this slot led to two running backs, three wideouts, and a tight end while still able to nab Daniels in the seventh, so I'm leaning to wait on a quarterback from this spot despite it being much better for an early quarterback than top-six spot.

Takeaways

• The best "value" at the eighth pick might be the final first-tier wide receiver, but a running back at the position allows more flexibility to take the best player available in coming rounds.
• I often found that you're right in the zone where managers can go off the board in front of you, setting up the possibility of getting two players who could easily have been first-round picks with your first two selections.
• This draft position is chock full of wideouts in the first six rounds. A "Zero WR" believer should love it.
• While it's definitely no reach to select quarterback at various points in the first five rounds, the optimal strategy might still involve waiting until at least the sixth.
• As an inverse of my guide from the fourth pick , you're actually now dictating the board in Round 2 and Round 4, which does allow similar flexibility to construct rosters in many different ways.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.