Favorite Fantasy Football picks in the first 10 rounds

A lot of people say that you need to have a plan going into your fantasy football drafts. Personally, I like the plan of not having a plan. Okay, maybe not having absolutely zero plan, but being flexible enough to zig when other people zag to get the best value out of the draft. With that being said, there are players in nearly every round that stand out to me as a value or that I like more than others for one reason or another.

Using FantasyPros ADP, here are my favorite picks in each of the first 10 rounds of a 12-team, full PPR league draft.

Round one: Nick Chubb, RB, Cleveland Browns

Chubb has been a top-13 running back in each of the past four seasons, and top-8 in the two seasons that he has played a full season (RB13 in 14 games and RB11 in 12 games). In those four seasons, he has shared the workload with one of the better dual threat running backs in the league.

That man, Kareem Hunt, is no longer on the team. The guy stepping into his role, Jerome Ford, had eight offensive touches in his rookie season. Assuming he takes over the same role that Hunt had would just be foolish. In his two healthy seasons in Cleveland, Hunt averaged 12 touches per game. If Chubb gets even a third of those, he will add to what is already an incredibly large workload (third in carries in 2022, behind only Derrick Henry and Josh Jacobs).

The passing game should be better with Deshaun Watson now in his second year as a Brown. That will not only help lighten the box for Chubb but will also give him better opportunities in the passing game. With his main competition for touches no longer in town, there is no reason that Chubb can’t be a top-5 running back this year.

Round 2: Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Detroit Lions

While his stats only saw marginal increases, his increase in targets and yards per reception are a good sign for St. Brown’s continued progression heading into his third year. What should also help is the fact that the Lions' D’Andre Swift, was second on the team in targets.

While new additions Marvin Jones and Jahmyr Gibbs should take Swift’s target share (and then some), there should still be more than enough for St. Brown to once again be a WR1. The biggest competition coming into the offseason was 2022 top-15 pick Jameson Williams, who missed all of last season due to an injury. While he is expected to return at some point, he will miss at least six games for gambling at a team facility. He is also dealing with a hamstring injury, so the six games could extend even further.

Regardless, the time missed has likely had an impact on his transition from college to the pros. He may very well not be game-ready, or at least not be a major impact when his suspension is over. For a team that throws the ball a good amount and has less than optimal surrounding talent, St. Brown has a chance to elevate his game even higher than last year’s WR7 finish.

Round 3: Tee Higgins, WR, Cincinnati Bengals

I know, drafting a team’s WR2 as your potential WR1 doesn’t seem like an ideal strategy. Trust me on this one, Higgins is one of just two or three guys in the league who can bring that level of production while not being the top target on his own team.

He has been a top-30 wide receiver in each of his first three seasons while increasing his end-of-season rank each year. Last season, his 75/1,042/7 line was good for a WR18 finish. Going into the final year of his rookie contract, and with Joe Burrow still needing his massive extension, Higgins could very well be showing off this year for the other 31 teams in the league.

Another factor that could lead to continued and improved success is who the Bengals lost in the offseason. Hayden Hurst and Samaje Perine combined for 119 targets last season. Those two were replaced by oft-injured Irv Smith Jr. and rookie Chase Brown. I have a hard time believing that those two will see the same workload that Hurst and Perine got. That means more targets for the rest of the group. Barring a completely unexpected step backward, Higgins should have no trouble being a low-end WR1 or high-end WR2. If you went running back and/or tight end in the first two rounds, he is more than capable of being your team’s WR1. If you grabbed another wide receiver in the first two rounds, he will be one of the better WR2s in your league.