Tue May 20th 2025

My Sleeper League Rookie Draft

A few years ago, a Dynasty Freeks follower invited me to take over an orphan in one of his leagues. I was pleased to do so. It's only the second orphan team I've ever taken over. The team was in decent shape. Still, I immediately made some trades to make the team my own. I've done well since entering the league, making the playoffs each year, winning the championship two years ago, and finishing as the runner this past season.

It's a ten-team, one-quarterback, PPR league that awards 1.3 PPR for tight ends. We start one quarterback, two running backs, three wide receivers, one tight end, and three flex spots. I prefer to build my team around pass catchers in a PPR and a slightly tight-end premium league like this. I always start wide receivers and tight ends in the three flex spots. I am content to have one solid starting running back and stream the RB-2 position with pass-catching backs and backups who enter my starting lineup when the guys ahead of them are injured.

It's worked well for me since I have finished in the money each year since I joined the league and have won one championship. While my team is getting older, I am a top contender again this year. I entered the rookie draft with a plan to add some youth but also stay in contending mode if I could add proven veterans over players in this class, which, as you will see, I successfully did during and after the draft.

Here's how my "Finish The Fight" rookie draft turned out and what I did to keep my team a top contender.

Round One

1. Ashton Jeanty

2. Omarion Hampton

3. Travis Hunter

4. Tetairoa McMillan

5. TreVeyon Henderson

6. Quinshon Judkins

7. RJ Harvey

8. Kaleb Johnson

9. Colston Loveland

• It's hard to complain when you finish at the top of the league each year, but the hardest thing to do when you do is add top-tier rookie running backs. In this deep class, I hoped RJ Harvey or Kaleb Johnson would fall to me at 1.9, especially in a PPR and tight-end premium league, but it didn't happen. My choice was between Loveland and Ebuka, who are back-to-back in my rookie rankings. Given the slight tight-end premium scoring in this league and the fact that all of my tight ends are older (Mark Andrews, Evan Engram, and Zach Ertz), I decided to draft Loveland. I am excited about his landing spot with Chicago and his long-term future with Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson. I have no doubt that he will be an active part of their offense for years and years to come. He's the perfect addition to my aging team and a premium position in this league. I have Justin Jefferson and Puka Nacua as the young core of my wide receiver group, and I traded up in the first round last year to draft Xavier Worthy, so I feel good about my young wide receivers. Adding a rookie tight end was the wise move for me here, and I am confident in my selection.

10. Emeka Egbuka

Round Two

1. Luther Burden

2. Tyler Warren

3. Matthew Golden

4. Cam Skattebo

5. Jayden Higgins

6. Tre Harris

7. Jack Bech

8. Cam Ward

9. Bhayshul Tuten

• I hoped Harris or Bech would fall to me here at 2.9, but they were drafted a few spots before me. The top player on my board was Kyle WIlliams, so I planned on taking him before receiving a trade offer. A manager offered me David Mongomery for my 2.9 and 3.9. I was unwilling to give up two picks in this draft for Montgomery, but I was happy to give up the 2.9 for Mongomery. I countered, and he quickly accepted and rafted Tuten. Looking at my rankings, you'll see I am far lower on Tuten than the rest of the dynasty managers and analysts. Much is being made of his presumed ability to climb the depth chart of Travis Etienne and Tank Bigsby, both of whom have significantly higher draft capital than Tuten. Tuten will have a better chance of playing time next season if the Jaguars let Etienne go, but his impact will not be immediate. For my team, I wanted an immediate impact player for my RB-2 spot. As a win-now team, I am pleased to start Joe Mixon and Montgomery each week and stack the rest of my starting lineup with pass catchers. Plus, I was confident that I could get a third-tier running back at 3.9 and store him on my taxi squad for a year, which you'll see I was able to do. After Jahmyr Gibbs' stellar end to last season, I am sure Mongomery's role will be reduced compared to the past two seasons. However, I am still confident that he will score goalline touchdowns, and if my RB-2 gets a touchdown every other week, that's all I need from him on this contending team loaded with starting wide receivers and tight ends. I was very pleased with this trade.

10. Mason Taylor

11. ** Kyle Williams

• This league does something different that I don't like. They award an extra pick at the end of the second round to the winner of the Toilet Bowl. It's an attempt to keep the teams that did not make the playoff active in the dynasty postseason. It's silly, and the pick is far too valuable. As I said above, I would have taken Williams at the 2.9 had I not made the trade I did. He's far too valuable of a player to give a non-playoff team an extra pick. I didn't make the rules, but I must play by them.

Round Three

1. Jaydon Blue

2. Elijah Arroyo

3. Jalen Royals

4. DJ Giddens

5. Trevor Etienne

6. Jaylin Noel

7. Devin Neal

8. Terrance Ferguson

9. Jarquez Hunter

• I eagerly wanted Devin Neal to fall to me here at 3.9, but he was taken higher than I have ever seen him go in rookie drafts thus far. Still, I had Hunter at the end of the same tier of rookie running backs and see him as a perfect player to add to my taxi squad to see if he can climb the depth chart ahead of Blake Corum and to see what the Rams choose to do with Kyren Williams as he enters the final year of his contract. Hunter steadily rose up my rookie rankings throughout the prospecting season as I learned more about him. He's a straight-ahead runner who always gets the extra yards at the end of a run, which is just the Rams' type. Last year, I said the same thing about Corum, though Corum is shiftier than Hunter. Corum did not make the most of his limited opportunities last year, so Hunter should get a chance to compete for the RB-2 spot on the team. I love having a few leagues with taxi squads because I can wait longer to decide on Hunter. He's not a player I will ever consider dropping this year, no matter how he plays, or at least until the Rams decide on what they will do with Williams's contract. I need to hit on late-round running backs in a league where I am continually at the back end of every rookie draft. Hunter is the guy I choose to bet on this year.

10 Dylan Sampson

Round Four

1. Harold Fannin

2. Woody Marks

3. Jordan James

4. Tory Horton

5. Ollie Gordon

6. Pat Bryant

7. Elic Ayomanor

8. Isaac TeSlaa

9. Jaxson Dart

• It's rare, even in a one-quarterback league, to have a first-round rookie quarterback fall to the end of the fourth round of rookie drafts. Last year, I selected Bo Nix as the last pick of the rookie draft. Look at how that turned out for me. I decided to do the same here, even though my quarterback depth is solid with Lamar Jackson, Bo Nix, and Sam Darnold on my roster. Dart is a way better athlete and runner than most dynasty managers think, and he will get starting reps way earlier in the season than dynasty managers expect. I did not add him to my taxi squad because he will see the field sooner rather than later. As you'll see next, I added several undrafted free agents worthy of being taxi squad spots. If the Giants' trash at quarterback last year made Malik Nabers a star, I am sure Dart can do the same. If Dart breaks out by the end of the season like Nix did for me last year, I'll have two young quarterbacks on my roster and then can decide to keep them both for the future or trade one away for a team after their quarterbacks get injured or are not performing. In the fourth round, I did not pick for team need; I picked the highest-drafted player left in the rookie draft, a first-round draft pick, Jaxson Dart. I knew I could select players to fit my team's needs in the undrafted free-agent pool after the draft.

10. Jalen Milroe

Undrafted Free Agents

• I like playing in leagues with different formats because it makes drafting and managing my teams a little different. This league's four-round rookie draft and taxi-squad components make the undrafted free agent pool an exciting element of the post-draft experience. Almost all of my leagues have five-round rookie drafts, meaning 50-60 rookies get drafted. However, only 40 rookies get drafted in this league, leaving many desirable rookies on the undrafted free-agent list. After the season ends and dues are paid in this league, each team gets $100 FAAB to spend throughout the offseason. Little money is spent before the draft, though I added and dropped players during the free-agent frenzy season. However, after the draft, teams spend a lot of FAAB buying undrafted free agents. It's one of the most fun parts of this league. Here is how the first day of bidding looked.

$33 - Kyle Monangai

$27 - Savion Williams

$27 - Damien Martinez

$25 - Brashard Smith

$22 - Chimere Dike

$15 - Jacory Croskey-Merrit

• Of course, you know I got my favorite sleeper in this year's class! I've written too much about him, but he was naturally my highest target in this undrafted free-agent class. He's a perfect running back to add to my taxi squad as I wait patiently for one surprise running back to break out. He and Hunter are on that list this season. I was not the only one interested in Croksey-Merrit. My $15 bid was higher than two other bids at $9 and $0. You can't outbid me for my guy!

$15 - Tahj Brooks

• Brooks has a great chance of quickly climbing the depth chart to become the RB-2 behind Chase Brown, and I need all the RB-2s I can get on this team. One other manager liked him, too, but I outbid his $12 bid. I hope to see how he plays in the preseason before deciding on him. I'm confident he can be an excellent third-down back in the NFL and in a PPR league, which is good enough to start as an RB2. We do have to cut three players and set our final taxi squad by the first game of the NFL season, and once players are promoted from the taxi squad in this league, they cannot be added back. If he shows something in the preseason, I could add him to my taxi squad with Hunter and Croskey Marrit, filling up my taxi squad with three running backs. If he does not play well in the preseason, I'd be willing to cut him and keep another player as a taxi player. 

$11 - Ricky White

$3 - Tyler Shough

• The rookie draft in this league took place the first week of May, before Derek Carr's retirement. I added Shough in case Carr's injury prevented him from playing this season, especially since Carr was on my roster then. After Carr's retirement announcement, this underrated free-agent move looks even better. I likely bought a starting quarterback for $3. However, I have far too many quarterbacks in a one-quarterback league on my roster. I cannot keep them all, so I will look to sell at least one of them before the season starts, especially if a quarterback goes down to injury in the preseason. Or, if he wins the starting job immediately and Jaxson Dart does not, I could keep Shough on my active roster and move Dart to the taxi squad. I also have Sam Darnold, who I could consider selling on the cheap to the manager who drafted Jalen Milroe if he lacks quarterback depth. Time will tell. I know it's unwise to keep so many quarterbacks, especially given the final move I made with undrafted free agents.

$3 - Shedeur Sanders

• Why not? With a taxi squad, I decided to add Sanders, who is currently on my taxi squad. I doubt he will remain on my team, even my taxi squad, unless he somehow wins the starting job to start the season, but I thought it would be a risk worth taking to see what will happen. It's as simple as that on this addition.

$0 - KeAndre Lambert-Smith

$0 - Oronde Gadsden

$0 - Dillon Gabirel

Post Draft Trade

Davante Adams, Ray Davis and a 2026 4th round pick <-----> 2026 1st and 3rd round pick

• Finally, I made one more move to strengthen my team, which is in win-now mode. A rebuilding team sent me a direct message about wanting to trade his older players for draft picks. Davante Adams was the most attractive veteran on his team. Adams can produce with the Rams after signing a two-year contract with them. I would love to have two years of production on this dynasty team. He was more attractive to me because I have Puka Nacua on this team. Nacua has been injured quite a bit, but now, if he is injured, I'll still have the WR-1 for the Rams in my starting lineup, and in a league this deep, I don't mind at all starting both of them when they are both healthy. I was particularly excited to add Ray Davis to this deal, given his very real chance of being the Bills' starter next season if the Bills let James Cook go. Cooks' contentious contract talks make me believe the team will not re-sign him. Even if they sign him, I have added another backup running back to my team, making him an injury away from an every-week starter for me this season. I added one more vet to strengthen my team, though I gave up a first and third-round pick to get him. I'm confident that, barring major injuries, my team will be a top contender, making the first and third-round pick late-round picks. At the end of the negotiations, I asked the other manager to add a fourth-round pick back into the deal because I value fourth-round picks much more in a league with a taxi squad. He obliged, and we struck a deal. Now, my team, though relatively old, is stacked again and ready for a Super Bowl run in 2025!

My Roster

Quarterbacks: Lamar Jackson, Bo Nix, Sam Darnold, Jaxson Dart, Tyler Shough, Shedeur Sanders

• There's no doubt who my starter is; Lamar Jackson. He was the highest-scoring quarterback last season in this league, 49 points ahead of Joe Burrow. He helps carry my team. I'm pleased with my depth and youth behind Jackoan with Nix, who scored the 8th most points in this league last year, and Darnold, while circumstances have changed, scored the 7th most points. Dart and Shough will be fun to watch develop in their rookie seasons. I'm fantastic at the quarterback position.

Running Backs: Joe Mixon, David Montgomery, Jaylen Warren., Zach Charbonnet, Ray Davis, Justice Hill, Jarquez Hunter, Jacory Croskey-Merrit, Tahj Brooks

• Running back is my weakest spot, but as I said, I'm content with that in a PPR, tight-end premium league. I have two old workman-style running backs at the top of my depth chart, Jaylen Warren, who will start for me often at the beginning of the season while he attempts to hold off rookie Kaleb Johnson, and I have who I consider to be among the top backup running backs in the league, Charbonnet and Davis. As I mentioned before, my taxi squad will be filled with at least two, if not three, running backs in hopes that one will get starting opportunities this year or next. It's hard to build up a running back room when you finish each year at the top of the league, but I'll do what I can with what I have. It's worked for me thus far.

Wide Receivers: Justin Jefferson, Puka Nacua, Tyreek Hill, Terry McLaurin, Xavier Worthy, Davante Adams, Cedric Tillman, Dyami Brown, Treylon Burks, Jalen McMillan, Malik Washington, Jaylin Lane

• Wide receiver is the strength of my team on purpose. Jefferson, Nacua, and Hill alone make my team awesome, and the depth I have behind them is fantastic. McLaurin and Adams will be in my starting lineup each week, while Worthy will stream with one or more of my excellent tight ends in this tight-end premium league. I like Tillman, Brown, and McMillan. They will make my squad no matter what happens before the season. Burks, Washington, and Lane are at the top of the chopping block at cut time, but I'd like to see how the depth charts settle on their teams before the season starts.

Tight Ends: Mark Andrews, Evan Engram, Colston Loveland, Zach Ertz

• Andrews sat on my bench early last season before catching fire and helping my playoff run to end the season. He's definitely on the decline, but the Jackson-Andrews stack has been a huge part of my success over the last three seasons. I'm glad to run that back again this year. I could not have loved Engram's landing spot more. He'll see a lot of action in Denver and see my starting lineup often as a tight end or flex this season. If old-man Ertz remains the starter in Washington, he'll also be another spot starter for me in this league. My first-round pick, Loveland, is the future for me at tight end, though I'm certain he will start for me often this season, too. Shoot, I could run a lot of 13 personnel this season and start three tight ends in this high-end premium league. It will be a fun ride in 2025!

My Staring Lineup

QB: Lamar Jackson

RB: Joe Mixon, David Montgomery

WR: Justin Jefferson, Puka Nacua, Tyreek Hill

Tight End: Mark Andrews

Flex (3): Terry McLaurin, Davante Adams, Xavier Worthy, Evan Engram, Colston Loveland, Zach Ertz, Jaylen Warren

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