2026 NFL Draft: Early Fantasy Prospect Draft builds ultimate roster of the best players at every position in college football
The 2026 NFL Draft is still several months away, but our team here at A to Z Sports is already working hard to break down the draft class now.Our A to Z Film Room analysts Joe DeLeone and Ryan Roberts hosted two of our other NFL Draft analysts Kyle Crabbs and Travis May this week […]
The 2026 NFL Draft is still several months away, but our team here at A to Z Sports is already working hard to break down the draft class now.
Our A to Z Film Room analysts Joe DeLeone and Ryan Roberts hosted two of our other NFL Draft analysts Kyle Crabbs and Travis May this week for a very special episode (that you can find in full here). The four analysts decided to hold a fantasy draft, building the best rosters they could, filled with the top players eligible for the 2026 NFL Draft within every single position group.
Why? One, to see who could scout most accurately nine months ahead of the draft. And two, to help football fans everywhere get to know some of the best returning college football players in the nation.
How does this fantasy draft work as far as scoring goes? For every player selected within a given range, points are awarded as follows:
Early 1st Round = 10 points
Late 1st Round = 7 points
Round 2 = 4 points
Round 3 = 3 points
Round 4-5 = 2 points
Round 6-7 = 1 point
UDFA = 0 points
Back to School = -1 point
Each analyst had to select at least one quarterback, one running back, a wide receiver OR tight end, an offensive lineman, defensive back, edge rusher, interior defensive lineman, and an off-ball linebacker.
Given those roster requirements the exact order of selection was a bit strange as all four analysts attempted to try and take advantage of positional scarcity and various tier breaks in the 2026 NFL Draft class. Again, for the full episode, check out the A to Z Film Room, but here's where the four rosters landed through all eight rounds.
The draft order began with Kyle Crabbs, then went to Joe DeLeone, on to Ryan Roberts, and finally to Travis May. Every single round the draft order reversed (snake style, like fantasy football leagues).
Here's how the draft went down, in order, all 32 picks.
1.01 – Peter Woods, DL Clemson
"So I obviously thought about making a big swing at the quarterback position, but I trust some of the depth [in the 2026 class]…I'm taking Peter Woods, the defensive lineman from Clemson with the first pick here. Man, I just think he is everything you possibly want from a point of attack skills perspective. What he's capable of as a disruptor, the positional mobility that he has within the front. I think he's a really clean projection." – Kyle Crabbs
1.02 – Jeremiyah Love, RB Notre Dame
"Maybe there could be a riser like Nick Singleton [of Penn State] who pushes into the end of the first round. But I think there's a pretty big gap right now at running back…And for anyone who's watched Jeremiah Love, this guy is super explosive. He is a home run threat every single time he touches the rock. The NFL is enamored by that explosiveness that he brings to the table. If he's healthy, I don't think that there's going to be much of a challenge for him being that first running back selected and the only one going in the first round." – Joe DeLeone
1.03 – Caleb Downs, SAF Ohio State
"I think there's another gap from one to two and I'm going to go Caleb Downs, the safety out of Ohio State. I think there's a couple really intriguing safeties in this class that maybe I'll mention later after people make their picks so I don't kind of ruin my thought process on some of the other guys. But I do think Caleb Downs is the foregone conclusion safety one in this class as of today. And I think that based upon his bloodlines and his background and his production, he seems like a pretty safe bet to go very early in this draft." – Ryan Roberts
1.04 – Anthony Hill Jr., LB Texas
"This guy's probably not going to go and be a top 10 pick, but I'm not sure how many off-ball linebackers are going to go very early. And so I'm going to go with Anthony Hill Jr., a linebacker out of Texas. I'm a huge fan of his game. He was a true freshman All-American. He came out and was one of the best players on the team right away. He struggled at times in coverage situations last year, but I think he takes one more step [in his development] and could be a first round pick next next spring." – Travis May
2.01 – Jermod McCoy, CB Tennessee (Travis)
"I don't know how many cornerbacks I'm really sure are going to be early picks next year. And maybe there's some health questions here, but given the true shutdown outside cornerback ability of Jermod McCoy out of Tennessee, I'm going with him. There's a handful of cornerbacks that could be in the mix for first round capital but not a ton of pure outside shut down guys that also are smart enough to find the right spots in zones to make those big interceptions and other fantastic plays that we saw McCoy put together last year. I think he could rise and be a top 7 or 8 pick when it's all said and done." – Travis May
2.02 – Keldric Faulk, EDGE Auburn (Ryan)
"I feel very good about the NFL valuing a 6'6", 288 pound guy that moves as well as this guy does. He can win outside track. He can reduce down in obvious passing situations. He can play from multiple alignments. Keldric Faulk I think is a pretty easy first rounder barring some setback or injury." – Ryan Roberts
2.03 – CJ Allen, LB Georgia (Joe)
"I am such a big fan of his. I don't know for certain if he ends up being a first rounder, but I feel like his overall play style and his instincts are so translatable that he'll be one of the first three linebackers selected in 2026 with a lot of uncertainty on guys that have traits but need to take a step forward. I'm going to go with the one dude who has the best instincts. So I'm going to take CJ Allen." – Joe DeLeone
2.04 – Rueben Bain, EDGE Miami (Kyle)
"He's a guy who was not as good last year as he was as a freshman, but has marquee traits, density, explosiveness. He has the ability to line up all over the front, especially based on what he did as a freshman in 2023. He's not the tallest guy, but that creates like that dense, powerful build. And a lot of times you see those guys that have that density when they come in and rush the passer, it gives them that natural leverage. And I think that's a big tool in his bag to be able to have a translatable pass rush skill set." – Kyle Crabbs
If you want the full breakdown of every pick from this draft you can check out the video below at the The A to Z Sports Film Room! And make sure to subscribe to the channel if you enjoy NFL prospect analysis year-round!
