A special thank you to Kushal for getting these draft grades out on such short notice before the NFL kickoff. -Bali
For this year’s draft grades I wanted to immediately start with a reflection on last year. How many things were correct? Did the grades even matter?
| Team | 2025 Draft Grade | 2025 Record |
| Moore On the Run | B+ | 9-5 (Playoffs) |
| Slam Ball 2k25 | A | 7-7 |
| Gandalf the Goat | B- | 7-7 |
| Mahomies’ Deezflated Nuts | C | 4-10 |
| Jedi Knights | A- | 10-4 (Playoffs) |
| Cloud 9 | B | 7-7 |
| Pool Of The Dead | A | 7-7 |
| Isla Sorna Raptors | B+ | 6-8 |
| Da Moons HUGE Craters | B- | 10 – 4 (Playoffs) |
| Uur UPS | B+ | 8-6 |
| Doctor Jenious | C | 5-9 |
| Bruce Almighty | B- | 2-12 |
| Philippine Garbage Dumps | C | 11-3 (Champion) |
| Wolfpack | B+ | 7-7 |
| Elk Grove Spartans | B | 6-8 |
| Game of Zones | B | 6-8 |
Overall I don’t think I was off the mark by too much but there is one team that we need to discuss first. The Phillipine Garbage Dumps were given a C and ended up winning the whole damn thing with an impressive 11-3 record. Why did I rate this team so low? Well, it was all because of Matthew Stafford. Going into that draft I had downgraded pretty much every LA Rams player due to potential injury concerns with Stafford’s back. Stafford had an MVP level season and was the difference maker for the PGD championship run. Jonathan Taylor was someone I was high on but did not expect him to continue to produce so much with Danny Dimes missing so much of the season.
Da Moons HUGE Craters also had a lower draft grade of B- and made the playoffs, what did I get wrong? Once again, it was the quarterback. My disdain for Baker Mayfield is well documented, it is ultimately why I graded this team a little lower. Baker was in the MVP mix for the first 6 weeks and gave some critical divisional wins for Da Moon. Once again, I was wrong on this QB. The QB position in our league can single handedly propel a team to a championship or the playoffs. That being said if you don’t build a team around the QB you can still miss the playoffs. Look at the Spartans who took the #1 QB off the board, finished 6-8.
The other takeaway is that all of the rankings services available use rank your team will simply check how closely you drafted compared to their rankings. They factor in what the draft position was and will also include our unique league settings. But ultimately if it was all that accurate, wouldn’t everyone be winning? There’s still a great strategy and luck element to this, it’s why we keep coming back every season. Assuming the NFL isn’t shut down due to some ultra CTE, we’ll be doing it into our 90s. How a GM manages trades, bye weeks, Waiver Adds , waiver bids etc. all of it matters. Every single point matters. You can’t win or lose the league on draft day. Anyways lets get right into it, how’d everyone do?
Cloud 9
Kyler Murray and Brock Purdy round out amazing value at the QB position. Brock missed a good bulk of the season with injury but should be healthy this year. He’s a tremendous late round value. Kyler Murray also offers high upside with Jefferson as the main weapon. They’ll likely switch between the two based on matchups. When you pick #1 overall you’re pretty much locked in on the best player available, here Gibbs will be unleashed and he won’t be conceding goal line carries to Montgomery anymore. Aaron Jones is on the other side of 30 and should be eclipsed by Jordan Mason at some point this season, so great value there, though still a little thin at RB. The WR corps is anchored by Pickens, Olave, and Burden, a solid trio that will get plenty of targets. Tucker Kraft was on pace for a monster year before injury last year so this is easily a top 5 TE. The Broncos are an amazing defense for fantasy production as well. Overall a very balanced team with high production at every position. Can we please send them back to the FFC North?
Grade: A
Isla Sorna Raptors
Last year I was big on the Tush Push, it was a huge boost to Hurts’ overall value. Guess what? They still haven’t gotten rid of it! But defenses have certainly adapted. Hurts also lost one of his key weapons but they have a couple of new intriguing prospects at WR. Sam Darnold is going to be facing a brutal schedule but still offers excellent late round value. Hurts could also be running more again which would help his fantasy production, hard to forecast since the Eagles changed their Offensive coordinator AGAIN.
The true strength is the running back core. Derrick Henry and Devon Achane are excellent RB workhorses. Achane will of course have injury concerns but he should be seeing a massive boost in volume as no one expects the Dolphins to be effective with their offense. The flip side is he may see 8 man boxes all season. But given his breakaway speed, he should have a great year. A new offensive system in Baltimore should unlock Henry as well. It boggles my mind that John Harbaugh was not sued for malpractice in how he managed Derrick Henry’s carries. With him out of the picture and Lamar looking to pass more, Henry should feast. WR core is a bit of a weakness for this team, they really only have 1 true WR1. Expectations for Waddle in Denver are quite high, but its the depth behind that is worrisome. Addison, McMillan, Deebo, these are depth guys, not WR2s. Kyle Pitts is a solid Tight End but his QB situation will be the determining factor on how many targets he actually gets this year. This team will look to its QB/RBs to lead the effort.
Grade: B+
Philippine Garbage Dumps
The defending champs had a great draft, there is depth at every single position and they were able to find RB value late. Skattebo should have a sizable role, if he stays healthy (given his propensity to do dumb things, its worth factoring in) he should lead this backfield. Montgomery is going to be in a committee but should still get goal line work. The true strength of this team is the WR corps. Amon Ra and Nico are top 10 WRs who will command the bulk of the passing targets in their respective offenses. Brian Thomas Jr and Jakobi Meyers offer some good depth too. Mark Andrews is a steal, he should have a resurgent year this year and won’t have to compete with Isiah Likely. Especially as Baltimore will supposedly be passing more.
Not sure about rostering two kickers, but they’re both excellent kickers. The Eagles defense will also generate lots of sacks. Weakness for this team is at the QB position. Now last year I was quite wrong in assessing Matthew Stafford, I could be wrong again, but Jordan Love is not Elite in fantasy production. He is also in a tough NFC north division. Aaron Rodgers might have a good game or two but is definitely not the same as he used to be. Rodgers is definitely a good luck charm for the PGD though, so you never know. In order for this team to make it to the playoffs in a competitive West, they will need Skattebo to outplay his ADP. Jordan Love to take the next step and throw for more yards. Given the whole Josh Jacobs situation, that may just end up happening.
Grade: B+
Jedi Knights
Best starting WR combination in the league, Puka and London. The only thing potentially lowering London’s value is who’s throwing him the ball? Tua throws an excellent pass but is one hit away from retirement. London posted career bests with Penix/Kirk at QB, so he should continue to produce. The RB room is led by Judkins and Dobbins, these are not the main featured backs but have plenty of upside. If Jacobs is able to beat these allegations (pun intended), then the conversation changes entirely. Quarterbacks are a wild card for this team. Jaden Daniels is electrifying when healthy but is he going to be healthy behind the swiss cheese offensive line of the Commanders? Commanders made 0 moves to improve the line (seems like Adam Peters is continuing the 49ers way of drafting), can Daniels survive the season? Hard to say. It’s a risk that many GMs said no thanks to. Baker Mayfield, yeah ok that’s all I’ll say about him. The Tight End position is dynamite for this team, the best combination of Tight Ends, Tyler Warren should have a solid year and Schultz will get more opportunities. Defense is also excellent, Chargers and Jaguars should put up 10+ pts on many weeks. If Daniels stays healthy, this team will go far.
Grade: B
Niner Mania
Garret Wilson is criminally underrated but its what happens when you play for the Jets and haven’t had a competent QB in ages. Geno is not elite, but he’s certainly more capable than the bums who have been throwing the ball Wilson’s way. One of my personal absolute favorites in this year’s draft, he should be great. Another WR who was impacted last season by mediocre QB play was Justin Jefferson. Kyler Murray isn’t what he used to be but the man can throw it deep and is orders of magnitude better than JJ McCarthy. Seems to me that everyone in the off season became a Luther truther and they forgot about Rome. He is still good. A couple of solid depth WR3s that can also potentially see expanded roles later in the season. The team is a bit thin at the RB position, Gainwell and Sampson are serviceable back ups but the bulk of the scoring will have to come from Jeanty. The biggest question that comes to mind is durability, but its one that will be fixed by scheme. Clint Kubiak is running a similar run offense as the 49ers, so Jeanty will get plenty of opportunities to work in space. With Kirk at QB he should also see less 8 man boxes. Tight End they have a couple of value picks, Sadiq had some hype going into the draft as a sleeper. The Steelers defense can always be counted on for some points. The QB situation is interesting, I’m personally not too high on Bo Nix, I also think he threw quite a few interceptions last season. But if he takes a step and grows, especially with Waddle now in his arsenal, he could take this team further. Malik Willis is an intriguing prospect too, he has a really good running ability. Given the Dolphins are expected to be horrendous, Willis could be in line for tons of throws and rushes in garbage time. Could make for a great streaming QB option.
Grade: B-
Moore On the Run
The fantasy football nerds all love Justin Herbert. This is probably the best talent he’s been surrounded by his whole career and he could take the next step in fantasy as well. Mendoza is worth a flier but very risky due to his potential for high turnovers. Travis Ettienne is a solid RB1 and by the misfortune of domestic violence, Lloyd should see an expanded role while Josh Jacobs is out. That brings us to WRs, Jamar Chase is arguably the #1 WR in fantasy football. Brandon Aubrey is a kicking machine and can easily put up 10+ pts a game, much as any WR2. The only possible issue is the team’s bench is looking a bit thin. Cowboys defense was a joke last season, but with the offseason changes they could be better. Barring major injuries, this team has well rounded starters that could make some noise.
Grade: B+
Bruce Almighty
Mahomes is back but how will he recover post ACL tear? This team will need him to produce otherwise it is going to be a very long season. Brissett is a good back up but plays in the NFC West and will have some tough matchups all season. The RB Core of Williams and Pollard could be good, it is however undervalued at the moment in ADP. That being said the cowboys just lost their all pro left guard for a few weeks so that could maybe hurt the production in the first few weeks. WR is where this team has its heavy hitters, JSN was a cheat code last season. The question is will there be a superbowl hangover? Rashee Rice should have a strong season and McLaurin is still going to be the number one guy for Jaden Daniels. Pineiro is Dinero, an excellent kicker. This team has players that were much lower in ADP so the ratings may have downgraded them. A Mahomes bounceback season is needed for this team to make it to the playoffs otherwise they’ll be on the outside looking in.
Grade: C
BangBang9erGang49
Dak Prescott is the man, he is an excellent fantasy quarterback throwing to two elite WRs. He’s going to put up a ton of points. Bryce Young is like playing Russian Roullette, he has too many turnovers. This team’s RBs are rated lower by most ADP rankings but I think there is massive upside. Bucky Irving has been earning praise from the teams’ OC. Everyone thinks he’s going to be in committee hell but I think he will get the bulk of the carries. Kenneth Walker is going to get an insane amount of carries too, the bigger question is can he stay on the field and not get hurt? The WR corps has many questions to address. Will Zay Flowers get more targets this season? With the new offense in Baltimore looking to increase the passing game, it’s possible.
Parker Washington has gotten all of the hype in preseason and in Training Camp. Unfortunately it won’t be clear for a couple weeks if he’s the de facto number 1 WR for Jacksonville. This team took the top Tight End in the draft. With Kirk Cousins at the helm Bowers should have his best season. The Texans defense is basically this team’s WR2. If they continue to execute like last season they will have the highest output, especially with TFLs and Sacks. This team needs their upside RBs and WRs to hit in order to have a chance of playoffs.
Grade: B
Da Moons HUGE Craters
Trevor Lawerence proved me right and wrong at the same time. Put up tons of points, but also cost the Jags real games. This year he should be playing his best football. Daniel Jones is an excellent back up too, depending on the matchup they can play him over Lawrence. Chase Brown is one of my favorite RBs this year, especially in PPR leagues. Unfortunately this is not a PPR league but he is still a top 5 RB. I expect him to be the main anchor in this rushing attack. Chubba Hubbard is reliable, everyone needs a little Chubba on their roster. Jonthan Brooks will look to vulture but Chubba should still get his share of the carries. Price is the big question, it’s hard to see how much impact a rookie RB will have. Just look at what happened with Jeanty last season. That being said, Price could easily thrive in the Seattle offense that is built to maximize play action. He doesn’t have the starting role locked up at all but it’s possible. The WR Corps is not as strong as the RBs. DJ Moore is your typical WR1 diva, when he’s in the mood he’ll ball out. When he’s constantly getting overthrown he’s going to check out. Josh Allen is not Caleb Williams, Moore should return to his prime form. Conception, Lemon, Tucker, Kupp are a hodgepodge of upside. If they see expanded roles this team will get a much needed points boost. The defense and kicker are strong, and the Vikings will definitely rack up many sacks. Ultimately this team will need Price to get a more dominant role and better WR production to make it to the post season.
Grade: C
Game of Zones
Jared Goff has quietly become a consistent fantasy producer at QB, surrounded by talent across the offense, he should have plenty of opportunities to score.Great starter RBs in Cook and Williams. Their WRs are good but not great, these are not the primary targets in their respective offenses. That being said Stafford loves to stat pad at the goal line with 1 yard TD slants. The recipient of many of these has been Devante Adams. He should continue to produce and outplay his ADP. I expect Lad to be more of the same, Metcalf could see a boost in his production now that he won’t be getting all of the opposing coverage focusing on him. Great TE depth with LaPorta and Hockenson. Goff is a sneaky good value too, consistently finishing above his ADP. The Patriots defense should get many fantasy points and were ranked 4-5th depending on ranking sources. Compared to teams that this GM has fielded in the past the ceiling is much lower with this squad, but the floor is higher. Cook will be the main scorer with the highest possible upside. But to make the playoffs in the West this team will need help from all skill positions.
Grade: B-
Slam Ball 2k26
Josh Allen is an unstoppable force, his ceiling is the highest in all of fantasy football for our league. They got him at 16! Insane drop off. The Tight End Ferguson should get 4-5 looks per game with red zone upside. Not a fan of the kicker but he’ll get opportunities especially if Chiefs struggle to punch it in from the red zone. Lions defense might be a liability given the opposition in the NFC North. I love Tee Higgins, he can be streaky but he’s great value. Marvin Harrison Jr COULD bounce back but boy was his rookie season a disappointment. Year 2 of the offense should bring more opportunities and stability at QB with Birsett. Diggs is more of a PPR play, hard to say he’ll get significant yardage, he will be TD dependent. Lets talk about the elephant in the room, 6 RBS! This team is holding onto multiple back up RB lottery tickets, similar to last year. Saquon should have a solid year but I’m not sold on Corum, he’s always going to be in a committee. This team needs some upgrades at WR, DEF, I’m not sure how feasible this 6 RB approach will work long term. If other RBs get injured then this team’s gamble will pay off, but that seems less probable. Josh Allen MVP season coupled with their back up RBs getting a more significant share of the offense is needed for this team to make the playoffs.
Grade: C+
Mahomies Deezflated Nuts
Joe Burrow is going to have a great season. He was a QB I personally was targeting, the Bengals haven’t upgraded his offensive line but they have finally made some improvements to the defensive side of the team. This should hopefully get Joe out of having to throw it a million times which may sound bad for fantasy but if the goal is for him to last the whole season, one would want him to be on the field less than he has to be in obvious passing situations. Penix is yeah I wouldn’t have drafted him but hey I’m no QB guru. Breece Hall is great value at RB. The OC went out of his way to mention how many times they’re going to feature him. He’s inline to get 15-20 carries a game and he does work in the pacing game too. The law firm J.Croskkey-Merritt has some upside, the rest of the backs are pure back ups. The WR corps are led by solid veterans in Ceedee Lamb and Mike Evans, both should do well. For all the Evans haters, the man puts up 1000 yards essay money, even if he misses a few games with some soft tissue injury. Excellent value. Though I don’t think Micheal Wilson will repeat his feats from last season, he’s also going to get a ton of targets as Arizona will likely be down in many, if not most of their games. The Rams defense is going to be getting tons of sacks so lots of points there. By ADP this team would be graded lower but I think they’ve got a real shot. Especially if Burrow plays the whole season.
Grade: C+
Uur UPS
Caleb Williams should continue to accelerate in the Ben Johnson offense, 4000+ yards and 30 TDs does not seem unreasonable. Jaxon Dart, yeah of all the QBs who might get hurt, I’d say he’s the most probable. No QB spent more time in the blue medical tent last season than Dart. This team is old school in the draft approach, QB, RB, RB and a WR1. Top heavy for a reason. You’ve got Bijan and Jeremiyah Love. Love is a rookie and he opens as the #2 back behind Tyler Allgeier (a known Bijan vulture). The upside is there for Love to take over the role as he gets acclimated to the league. Rookie RBs are always a risk, so will it pay off? Remains to be seen. The WR corps is interesting. Egbuka is clearly the WR1 for this team, but the others’ roles are not as set. Shaheed is used more in special teams but might finally get a role in offense. Alec Pierce is extremely touch down dependent. While he doesn’t get many catches, he’s able to convert the deep shots for big yards and TDs. Boutte may be the best value here as CJ Stroud loves the slot WR, from his college career to now. Losing Tank Dell was one of the reasons he struggled last season. Kincaid should get some red zone work but less yards. Defense might get shredded in the NFC North but they do generate sacks. For this team to truly go far, Love has to pan out as a pick and some of these other WR2s will need to step up. Otherwise bye weeks could be difficult.
Grade: B-
Doctor Jenious
If you believe that Drake Maye played hurt in the superbowl and was banged up all year and not the beneficiary of a cakewalk schedule, you’re going to believe he’s going to have an amazing season this year. I’ve mentioned this before a couple of times but I think it is worth repeating, to my knowledge not a single team has ever won the BFFL championship with a QB and WR from the same team. Could the Doctor be the first? AJ Brown and Drake Maye could be an explosive combination and its one Dr J has bet big on. Rounding out the WR corps is Tate, Tyson, Stribbling. Lots of young talent, lots of big bets. Of these I believe Stribbling may have the highest floor and should start contributing right away.
Tutten and Hampton provide a great RB floor as well. This team will go as far as Drake Maye can throw it to AJ Brown. If that partnership does not do well, the Doctor may have to make some trades. 5 Rookies drafted by the Doctor, go big or go home.
Grade: C
Goal Post Malone
Stafford is a championship winner, just ask the PGD. Can he continue the same form this year? Well apparently this whole league thinks the Rams are winning the super bowl so ya I suppose so. Sstafford is an excellent fantasy QB with superb offensive talent around him. Cam Ward is someone who should only start on Sttafford’s byeweek. He turns the ball over far too much to be productive in our league. Love the running backs of Taylor and Swift, both will be productive. The WR Corps is interesting, with AJ Brown gone will Smith be the true WR1? I don’t think he’s built for that, I think his production won’t go up as many expect. Sutton is a great pick who could actually do better now that defenses have to account for Waaddle lining up next to Sutton. My favorite pick has to be Chris Godwin. Went down with a brutal ankle injury and everyone pretty much wrote him off. With Mike Evans gone, he should be the main WR2 for Tampa but should see enough targets to be a fringe WR1. At least that’s my prediction. Excellent value for Godwin in the late rounds. Travis Kelce.. Yeah I don’t know about this one, better options do exist for TE. He may not be fast but still gets open, the best chance is for TD upside in the red zone. We’re not PPR so his floor will be very shaky.
Grade: C+
Elk Grove Spartans
For as much as I talk about injury risk and taking on extra risk for bigger payoffs, it’s a plan we rarely use for our drafts. We’ve consistently gone after players we identify having the best value. Seems like we threw that out the window this season and have taken on the MOST risk in any of our previous drafts. This team features two starters coming back from season ending injuries along with a guy who is at risk all the time and fell to #5 as a result. Let’s talk about it. CMC is one of the all time great fantasy players, if he’s healthy he’s elite. Kittle is coming back from an achilles injury and Nabers is coming off of a horrible knee injury. If these 3 play they are high ceiling players capable of putting up multiple TD games on the regular. Stevenson was in a committee and is now getting a larger role for week 1. Mike McCarthy loves Rico Dowdle, so much so that he took him to Pittsburgh as well. Jameson Williams is finishing in the top 15 consistently getting plenty of targets in Detroit.
Leading this offense is the two time MVP and guy whose hand we shook that one time in Miami. He’s got a new offensive coordinator, new mojo, he’s ready to cook. His back up? Well we’re only going to need him for a bye week filler. Defense wise Seattle should continue to generate takeaways, TFLs, and pressures. If the health of the top 4 players is good this team should be explosive. We’re taking a page out of Dr J’s playbook, go big or go home!
Grade: B-
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