Pat Fitzmaurice#8 of 87 NFL pundits · Aug 8, 2026
Fitzmaurice lays out a round-by-round 2026 fantasy draft plan, ordering his first-round board (Bijan Robinson slightly over Jahmyr Gibbs, then the 'Big Three' receivers), flagging Trey McBride and Jerry Jeudy as players to avoid at their cost, and naming mid- and late-round values including Brock Purdy, Justin Herbert, Trevor Lawrence and several tight ends and Round 3 targets.
Published in writing · FantasyProsRead the original
What Pat Fitzmaurice said
our reading, beside the words we read it fromRound 1 starts with a coin flip between Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs at the top — Fitzmaurice gives a slight edge to Robinson’s bigger frame.
- Where it was published
- FantasyPros
- The piece
- 2026 Fantasy Football Draft Strategy Guide & Expert Advice
- The original
- Read the original
- Read it wrong?
- Tell us and we will look
- 1Brock Purdy to outplay his draft cost (ADP sits around where Michael Wilson goes)“while Brock Purdy’s ADP sits around where Michael Wilson goes — and a Purdy/McConkey combo of two weekly starters beats an Allen/Wilson combo”
- 2Trey McBride to fall short of his draft cost (the second round)“he’s comfortable taking Brock Bowers or Colston Loveland at their going rate in the second round, but not Trey McBride, whose value is tied to a huge target total in Arizona that’s likely to shrink”
- 3Fantasy Rankings“Round 1 starts with a coin flip between Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs at the top ... Next come the “Big Three” receivers — Ja’Marr Chase, Puka Nacua, and Jaxson Smith-Njigba ... After that, it’s a McCaffrey-vs-St. Brown decision ... followed by Ashton Jeanty, James Cook, Justin Jefferson, CeeDee Lamb, and Jonathan Taylor rounding out the round.”
- 4Zay Flowers to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)“His favorite Round 3 targets include ... Zay Flowers”
- 5Josh Allen to fall short of his draft cost (ADP sits right around where Ladd McConkey goes)“Josh Allen’s ADP sits right around where Ladd McConkey goes ... a Purdy/McConkey combo of two weekly starters beats an Allen/Wilson combo”
- 6Tetairoa McMillan to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)“His favorite Round 3 targets include ... Tetairoa McMillan”
- 7Jeremiyah Love to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)“His favorite Round 3 targets include Jeremiyah Love (leaning on the historical track record of top-12 rookie running backs)”
- 8Colston Loveland to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)“His favorite Round 3 targets include ... Colston Loveland”
Box score
HitCloseMissWaiting| Verdict | Call | Kind | What happened | Score | Naive | Skill |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brock Purdy to outplay his draft cost (ADP sits around where Michael Wilson goes)1 | Sleeper Calls | — | — | — | — | |
| Trey McBride to fall short of his draft cost (the second round)2 | Fantasy Bust Calls | — | — | — | — | |
| “Round 1 starts with a coin flip between Bijan Robinson and…”3 | Fantasy Rankings | — | — | — | — | |
| Zay Flowers to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)4 | Sleeper Calls | — | — | — | — | |
| Josh Allen to fall short of his draft cost (ADP sits right around where Ladd McConkey goes)5 | Fantasy Bust Calls | — | — | — | — | |
| Tetairoa McMillan to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)6 | Sleeper Calls | — | — | — | — | |
| Jeremiyah Love to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)7 | Sleeper Calls | — | — | — | — | |
| Colston Loveland to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)8 | Sleeper Calls | — | — | — | — | |
| 8 calls · 8 waiting | — | — | ||||
How each call scored
8 checkable claims — 5 sleeper calls, 2 fantasy bust calls and 1 fantasy ranking — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call.
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.
Each call is scored 0 to 100 against what happened, on its own, by the published methodology. The naive guess is what knowing nothing would have scored on the same calls; the gap, weighted by how hard the call was, is the skill.
Brock Purdy to outplay his draft cost (ADP sits around where Michael Wilson goes)
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
2Fantasy Bust CallsTrey McBrideArizona Cardinals
Trey McBride to fall short of his draft cost (the second round)
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
“Round 1 starts with a coin flip between Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs at the top ... Next come the “Big Three” receivers — Ja’Marr Chase, Puka Nacua, and Jaxson Smith-Njigba ... After that, it’s a McCaffrey-vs-St. Brown decision ... followed by Ashton Jeanty, James Cook, Justin Jefferson, CeeDee Lamb, and Jonathan Taylor rounding out the round.”
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Zay Flowers to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Josh Allen to fall short of his draft cost (ADP sits right around where Ladd McConkey goes)
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
6Sleeper CallsTetairoa McMillan
Tetairoa McMillan to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Jeremiyah Love to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
8Sleeper CallsColston Loveland
Colston Loveland to outplay his draft cost (Round 3)
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Who this take is about
Others on the same people
Jesse Holley · Game Outcome Picks · Arizona Cardinals · Hit 100
Jesse predicted the Cowboys finish 10-7 but still win the NFC East with 10 wins, picking Dallas over the Giants, Commanders, Texans, Buccaneers, Colts (loss), and losing to Baltimore, Green Bay, Philadelphia twice, Arizona, Seattle and the Rams.Garrett Podell · Game Outcome Picks · Arizona Cardinals · Miss 0
For Week 7 of the 2026 season, Podell predicts Daniel Jones plays a clean, turnover-free game against Minnesota's top-ranked defense, Bijan Robinson rushes for 150-plus yards against the undefeated 49ers, and the Cardinals upset the Broncos at home without scoring a touchdown.Tyler Sullivan · Game Outcome Picks · Arizona Cardinals · Miss 0
In his Week 7 upset alert column, Sullivan expects the Cardinals to score in the low-to-mid 20s and beat the visiting Broncos, whose offense he views as broken under Bo Nix. He also suggests Sam Darnold's turnovers will let the Chiefs win in Seattle and remain undefeated.Tyler Sullivan · Score Predictions · Arizona Cardinals · Miss 24
Sullivan projects final scores for every Week 7 NFL game, including a comfortable Vikings home win over the Colts, a Jets win over the winless Dolphins, a Browns road win in Tennessee, another Cardinals upset over Denver, and a Bengals win in Baltimore.
More sleeper calls
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
Derek Brown · Sleeper Calls · Travis Hunter · Hit 100
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 their own rankings well ahead of ADP for several of them.Chris Welsh · Sleeper Calls · Tyler Warren · Hit 100
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.Joe Pisapia · Sleeper Calls · Tyreek Hill · Miss 0
Joey P (Joe Pisapia) played draft-or-pass on 2025 fantasy values: they 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.Derek Brown · Sleeper Calls · George Pickens · Hit 100
Brown's five-to-one breakout list was Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Tucker Kraft, Ricky Pearsall, George Pickens and Tetairoa McMillan; they forecast Brian Robinson Jr. being cut or traded, Kraft finishing as a top-five/six tight end, Pickens as a top-15 receiver and McMillan spiking for double-digit touchdowns.