WR-WR Fantasy Football Draft Strategy: Amon-Ra St. Brown, A.J. Brown To Open

We had so much fun with the RB-RB fantasy football draft strategy, that it’s time to flip a 180 into what I will admit to be uncomfortable territory. I’m an admitted Hero-RB drafter, likening it to Linus and his blanket. Even having that one RB who is drafted toward the top of the draft provides that security that I won’t be living in a world where I have to hope that I’m guessing right later between Rico Dowdle and Jaylen Warren—if there is a right answer.

So let’s try the WR-WR draft strategy. There’s no comfort zone here. We’ll see a slew of RBs go off the board from the 1-2 turn through mid-Round 2. I’m braced for that feeling of longing to draft an RB, like the GIF of the Spongebob character looking out the window as friends are outside having fun.

One thing to be clear on is that this is not a traditional Zero-RB strategy. We’ll get into that in another article. This is just hitting the first two picks with WRs, then seeing how the rest of the board falls. Last year if you tried this strategy picking late in the first round, it could have been a home run with Amon-Ra St. Brown and Puka Nacua. Or it could have been a disaster with Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas. This is why this strategy makes me nervous above all others.

As with the last mock draft, I used our Draft Champion to get through this mock draft instantly. The draft was from the 1.08, so the trio of Tier 1 WRs was expected to be gone. Also, if you haven’t done so already, please make sure to sync your leagues, so you can even do mock drafts using your league’s settings.

A quick preview, there were some interesting findings, and what I think is a gaffe revealed in this draft. This is why we mock. To try some things to get our mistakes out of the way when the stakes are nonexistent. Check out our ADP and fantasy football rankings, too.

Using WR-WR Draft Strategy in Fantasy Football 2026

Round 1: Sun God Rises

I expected fully that Ja'Marr Chase, Puka Nacua and Jaxon Smith-Njigba would be gone. There was a part of me that thought I’d be choosing between CeeDee Lamb and Justin Jefferson. J-Jettas went two picks prior, leaving for me one of the most consistent players in fantasy football: Amon-Ra St. Brown.

The Sun God has earned 140+ targets in four straight seasons—twice going over 160—and caught 100+ balls in each of those seasons. He also has contributed double-digit touchdowns the past three years. This type of production is similar to a bell cow back. Feeling good about the start.

Matthew Berry's Draft Day Manifesto

Round 2: AJB the Tough Choice

The expected run of five RBs went in a row before this pick. But one of my favorite Round 2 RBs was right there for the taking: Derrick Henry. The King had an unofficial “Do Not Draft” sign on him, as did Omarion Hampton. That left me with the choice of two clear WR1s for their teams: A.J. Brown and Nico Collins. Both have little target competition, so what it came down to was the quarterbacks. Hard to pass up the top pass catcher for Drake Maye, especially one who fits so well with the QB’s deep-ball talents. With our fantasy football projections putting him in the top 10 in targets at 131, he looks like a solid pick to live up to the 85-1,177-7.5 numbers we have him slated to produce. This feels like a solid WR-WR start.

Round 3: RB, FINALLY!

RB depth is starting to look pretty shallow at this point. I was happy to get Tee Higgins in this round last time out. Not going there again, because this will not be a Zero-RB build. Colston Loveland is also a no go. So I was now going to pick between Josh Jacobs, Breece Hall and Javonte Williams.

Jacobs has been a TD machine in two years in Green Bay, but nagging injuries to end last season and off-the-field concerns drove down his price. The early reports are that he probably will not be suspended, but there is no guarantee. So passing on him.

Then the pick is between Williams and Hall. Both will be plenty involved in their attacks, so it’s looking at the relative health of their respective offenses. The Cowboys are leaps and bounds better than the Jets, even though Hall may be the more talented all-around runner. Javonte is the pick.

Round 4: Pivotal Pick

What I did with this pick would determine what kind of build I would have. Go RB, and it’s a pretty traditional build. Go anything but RB, and it’s a Hero-RB build. I didn’t love the running backs, as players like David Montgomery and Cam Skattebo had role uncertainty and other concerns that put me off. Also, Zay Flowers going into OC Declan Doyle’s offense had me envisioning the speedy wideout in a role similar to that of St. Brown in Detroit (via Ben Johnson), now that he’s a “young, old head.” Flowers power.

Round 5: Price Not Right

At 5.08, I really wanted to look at RB, but it felt too early for Jadarian Price. Plus, there was a string of WRs with plenty of upside. Even though Jayden Daniels went four picks before my turn, Terry McLaurin has been one of my favorite picks at his ADP this year. While I can’t stack him with Daniels, the 113 targets that McLaurin is projected to draw feels about a dozen light. Maybe he doesn’t get the 13 TDs like in 2024, but he’ll hit the painted area plenty and outperform this draft slot.

Matthew Berry's Half-PPR Fantasy Football Rankings

Round 6: Luck Arrives Swiftly

While this is the range where I like to begin to look at the QB position, I’m feeling boxed in to getting a running back. Lucky for me, D'Andre Swift is right there for the taking. With back-to-back seasons posting more than 1,300 scrimmage yards, Swift feels like a steal at this point in the draft. He’s looking like a solid target in a Hero-RB build. That Ben Johnson offense thrives when the running backs are fully involved, even when it’s two of them. Nerves went down dramatically.

Round 7: Mistake?

With a pair of RBs rostered, the only open slots are the onesie positions: QB and TE. There were still many QBs available and I started to think of TEs. Then I looked at the WRs and saw Marvin Harrison Jr. His sophomore campaign was one of the biggest letdowns on teams where I had him, but this felt like the point to take a flier. I left Kyle Pitts on the board, thinking he might be there next round.

Round 8: Missed it by a Hair

No dice, Pitts went at the 8.02—three picks before me. There are several TEs still on the board, with one of my favorite QB targets still available. Trevor Lawrence finished as the QB6 at 20.2 fantasy points per game, though that was just .2 out of second place. Now in his second year in the Liam Coen offense, even if he hits similar numbers to last year he’s going to outperform his QB10 ADP. He is also one of the quarterbacks playing either indoors or in sunny Jacksonville during the fantasy playoffs. Should I have gone TE instead?

Round 9: Run on TEs

To answer the last question, probably. Sam LaPorta, George Kittle and Travis Kelce all went since my last pick. Kittle was the one who hurt the most, as his Top-3 TE upside when he’s healthy is very much there. It looked like I could wait a while at TE, so I went for RB depth with Blake Corum. He’s my pick as the best RB handcuff in the game, and he’ll get 10-15 touches per game to make him a potential starter on a regular basis. That empty TE slot is pretty glaring at this point, though.

Round 10: OG Move

For someone who likes to wait at TE, this was a game of chicken that I did not find fun at all. Oronde Gadsden was spectacular Weeks 4-7, as he saw 27 targets and turned them into 24-377-2. His huge game with 164 yards and a score was in there, which put him on many waiver wire articles. He didn’t catch more than 4 balls or go for more than 61 yards in any game after that, which makes me nervous. I do like the Chargers’ offensive potential this season, but hard to see Gadsden as more than the No. 3 target. I’ll have to get a backup, but I will not wait this long at TE again. In retrospect, I could’ve waited at QB two rounds earlier and gone after a TE then. Look at the QB options available here.

Round 11: More RB Depth

Going to go more quick analysis here on out. Getting a fourth RB felt critical at this point, and getting Alvin Kamara here felt pretty good. As long as he still is involved in the passing game.

Round 12: The Other Higgins

It’s getting late out there, but Jayden Higgins is a good dart throw here. Possibly the No. 2 target in a Texans passing game that won’t be as bad as we saw in the playoffs.

Round 13: Just Missed

Travis Hunter went right before my pick. Expletives were kept to a minimum. There were a slew of intriguing RBs available. It came down to Tyjae Spears vs. Woody Marks. Both have pass-catching ability and look to have roles in their offenses. Spears is projected for 49 targets to Marks’ 30. Even though the rush attempts were higher for Marks, I went with the targets. Spears.

Round 14: Upside for Bigger Role?

I remember the hype for Greg Dulcich coming out of UCLA, where he was really good. Injuries came on in Denver, but now in Miami, he could be a prime target for Malik Willis. At this point, why not?

How did WR-WR Draft Strategy Work Out?

Maybe this is tough in comparison to the RB-RB start draft, but even though I felt I salvaged my team by getting Swift when I did, this draft felt like I was chasing to fill at the RB and TE positions. That’s just a very unsettling feeling during a draft.

The WR quartet of the Sun God, AJB, Flowers and McLaurin is definitely the strength, as it was getting Lawrence in the eighth round. Maybe the receivers all ball out and make me feel better about having solid, though not high-upside RBs. I also felt the need to add RB depth in this draft more than others.

If I had any pick to do over again it would be the MHJ selection. Grabbing a TE like Pitts there might have been more prudent. It really felt like the position started to dry up after that point. While this very well could be a playoff team if the WRs go off, this draft probably deserved the C+ grade it got.