# Pat Fitzmaurice: Fitzmaurice names four players he's targeting in 2026 fantasy drafts: Trevor Lawrence (a top-10 QB with high-end QB1 upside being drafted as a low-end QB1), Bucky Irving (buy the dip, still a workhorse rather than committee back), Christian Watson (potential for special production with increased targets), and rookie Makai Lemon (worth his WR39 cost, could be a star immediately).

**Claimed:** Aug 6, 2026
**Pundit:** Pat Fitzmaurice — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/pat-fitzmaurice
**Outlet:** FantasyPros — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/fantasypros
**How it reached us:** published in writing
**Original:** https://www.fantasypros.com/2026/08/3-draft-picks-experts-love-2026-fantasy-football/

5 checkable claims — 3 sleeper calls, 1 depth chart call and 1 positional finishe — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet.

It names 8 players and teams, each linked to their own record.

None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in.

Of the 2 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands above the room on 1 and below it on 1.

> It seems as if everyone in the fantasy community is fading Bucky Irving. I'm buying.

*(their words, quoted for attribution)*

## The claims

- **Makai Lemon to outplay his draft cost (an ADP of WR39 (92nd overall))**
  - Kind: Sleeper Calls · About: Makai Lemon, Philadelphia Eagles
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Trevor Lawrence to outplay his draft cost (being drafted as a low-end QB1, according to average draft position (ADP))**
  - Kind: Sleeper Calls · About: Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Christian Watson to outplay his draft cost (his current cost assumes he'll miss a few games)**
  - Kind: Sleeper Calls · About: Christian Watson, Green Bay Packers
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Bucky Irving to be 1st on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Bucky Irving, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Trevor Lawrence to finish top 10 at his position, by passing yards**
  - Kind: Positional Finishes · About: Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars
  - Verdict: too vague to check

## Who this take is about

- Makai Lemon — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/makai-lemon
- Philadelphia Eagles — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/eagles
- Trevor Lawrence — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/trevor-lawrence
- Jacksonville Jaguars — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/jaguars
- Christian Watson — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/christian-watson
- Green Bay Packers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/packers
- Bucky Irving — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/bucky-irving
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/buccaneers

## What others said about the same people

- Chris Simms on Jacksonville Jaguars: Simms went through the entire Week 3 slate with straight-up winners and predicted final scores, taking Jacksonville, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Detroit, Houston, Carolina, Kansas City, Seattle, the Giants, Baltimore, New Orleans, Minnesota, San Francisco, Denver and Philadelphia. He also expected Zay Flowers and Puka Nacua to sit, Kyler Murray to play, and said Marvin Harrison Jr. projects as no better than a good No. 2 or high-end No. 3 receiver. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/662b7ba3-1bf6-4ad0-9f93-9f2ab83143fd (scored 50)
- Nate Tice on Philadelphia Eagles: Tice matched his guest on every Week 3 game, picking the Ravens over the Cowboys, the Jaguars over the Patriots in a close game, the Broncos to upset the Rams, the Raiders over the Saints, the Eagles over the Bears and the Lions over the Jets. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b8378e16-ea5c-4107-a883-28aaf0e71134 (scored 0)
- Steven Ruiz on Philadelphia Eagles: Previewing Week 3, Ruiz picked the Ravens to beat the Cowboys in Brazil, Jacksonville over New England in a low-scoring game, an upset by the Broncos over the Rams, the Raiders over the Saints, the Eagles over the Bears, the Lions over the Jets, and his Hail Mary that Houston beats Indianapolis by two touchdowns. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a30ff469-4972-4c48-855b-ba984e4de9d0 (scored 0)
- Chris Simms on Green Bay Packers: Simms picked the Packers to beat the Falcons in the Thursday night game by a low score, expecting a defensive struggle. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b12420c5-837c-4a24-8a8e-c74b10cc697c (scored 9.52)
- Matt Harmon on Jacksonville Jaguars: Harmon picked the Bengals to beat the Texans in Week 2, expecting Nico Collins to miss the game with a hamstring injury, and also predicted the Titans would be shut out by the Eagles. He took the Rams over the Giants, the Bears over the Vikings, and the Jaguars at Denver. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/21a71025-ab65-4716-ac2c-e77ad5ce3348 (scored 0)
- Nate Tice on Jacksonville Jaguars: Tice picked the Bengals over the Texans in a low-scoring game, the Jaguars at Denver, the Bears over the Vikings, the Patriots over the Steelers and the Rams to edge the Giants, and his Hail Mary was the Cowboys scoring 40 on Washington. He also floated Abdul Carter as a possible All-Pro. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b6211c80-3d1c-46b8-8a0c-151fc0ba92de (scored 0)

## More sleeper calls

The same kind of call, about other players and teams.

- Tom Strachan on Ricky Pearsall: Tom Strachan backed Xavier Worthy, Jalen Coker, Egbuka, Jalen Waddle, Darnell Mooney, Zay Flowers, George Pickens, DeVonta Smith and Travis Hunter as values at their draft costs, while avoiding Jerry Jeudy and the Cleveland receivers. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c42eacc5-eb10-4103-a94d-50545a487cbb (scored 100)
- Ryan Wormeli on Ricky Pearsall: Host Ryan Warmley endorsed Ricky Pearsall as a bet worth making and put his rookie-receiver capital in Tetairoa McMillan, while fading Zay Flowers at his cost and opting out of Marvin Harrison Jr. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/192d6e67-2e0e-49b3-bc82-4c8a77bd5950 (scored 100)
- Derek Brown on Jalen Coker: Derek Brown ("Debro") laid out a slate of wide receiver breakouts — Ricky Pearsall, Jalen Coker, Egbuka, Jalen Waddle, Joshua Palmer, George Pickens, DeVonta Smith and Travis Hunter — while fading Xavier Worthy, Tyreek Hill and the cheap Cleveland/late-round types, and gave his own rankings well ahead of ADP for several of them. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/effe2fda-3dcb-489f-a1e1-f8fa5b11ada7 (scored 100)
- Chris Welsh on Tyler Warren: Welsh drafted Christian McCaffrey, Breece Hall, RJ Harvey, Tetairoa McMillan, Travis Hunter, the Rams and Saints receivers, Justin Fields (a top-10 QB), Drake Maye (QB10-14), Travis Kelce and Tyler Warren, while passing on Joe Mixon, the Commanders backfield, Tyreek Hill, Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/9f0f2132-f3b8-4813-b2b1-374b827d86a8 (scored 100)
- Joe Pisapia on Tyreek Hill: Joey P (Joe Pisapia) played draft-or-pass on 2025 fantasy values: he passed on Christian McCaffrey at pick 7, Breece Hall, Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy, Travis Hunter and Chris Olave, while drafting RJ Harvey, Tyreek Hill, Tetairoa McMillan, Puka Nacua, Tyler Warren and a late-round Joe Mixon. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c3c95c1c-64a4-42b6-9389-58d5fb5b27d1 (scored 0)
- Ryan Wormeli on Tetairoa McMillan: Hosting the segment, Warmley backed Bryce Young to finish better than his QB22 consensus ranking, endorsed Cedric Tillman as a late-round target, and said Tetairoa McMillan will be a top-15 fantasy receiver this season. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/2c695b79-bc5e-4d3f-8136-6705656267a2 (scored 100)

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Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages.

Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology

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