Fantasy Football draft season is right around the corner. Some people tend to wait until the preseason is over, so they know the health status of everyone heading into the season, but I’m seeing a lot of people on social media already posting their fantasy drafts.

If you’re playing fantasy this year, it’s likely that your draft is going to take place in the coming weeks, so it’s about time for you to get a head start on your research.

We’ve done everything from position rankings to a mock draft on EssentiallySports, but today we’re talking superlatives. Who’s the biggest sleeper, best rookie, and more at every position? Read on to find out.

Quarterback

Biggest Sleeper: Jared Goff

Jared Goff has finished as the QB10, QB9, QB7, and QB6 in the last four years, but he’s being drafted as the QB16 in fantasy football right now. He doesn’t have rushing upside like some of the other top guys, but you could get a starting quarterback going as a backup in fantasy, so he’s definitely the biggest sleeper.

Biggest Bust: Justin Herbert

Justin Herbert hasn’t recorded a top-9 fantasy football finish in any of the last four seasons. He’s one of the biggest names in the sport, but when it comes to fantasy production, he’s not all that great. He also has a stretch where he played the Seahawks, Broncos, Chiefs, Rams and Texans with a bye week in the middle. I wouldn’t bother drafting him this year.

Best Rookie: Fernando Mendoza

No rookie quarterback is projected to start Week 1 of this season, and only one of them – Fernando Mendoza – is set to see any game time at all this year, barring any injuries. But even Mendoza probably won’t see the field until midseason, and by then you’re making a playoff push with a guy making his first start in Week 10. I’d just avoid all the rookies this year.

Safest Pick: Josh Allen

Josh Allen has finished as the QB1 or QB2 in fantasy in each of the last seven seasons. He doesn’t get hurt, has huge rushing upside, and just got a shiny new WR1 in D.J. Moore. I don’t see a world where he doesn’t finish as the QB1 or QB2 again, so he’s easily the safest pick.

Riskiest Pick: Lamar Jackson

Lamar Jackson has played 15+ games four times in his career (excluding his rookie season, where he played 16 games, but didn’t start until the second half of the year), finishing as the QB10, QB4, and QB1 twice during those four years. However, he also has three seasons where he’s played 13 or fewer games, and in those years, he’s never finished better than the QB14. You’ve got just over a 50/50 shot of him finishing the season healthy, but if he does, he has QB1 upside.

Running Back

Biggest Sleeper: Derrick Henry

Derrick Henry is being drafted as the RB13 in fantasy football, but over the past seven seasons, Henry has finished as a top-eight running back six times, including four top-five finishes. The only year he didn’t finish in the top-8 was 2021, when he played eight games due to injury. I know he’s 32, but Father Time still hasn’t collected Henry, and I don’t think it’ll happen this year, given he just ran for 1,595 yards and 16 touchdowns nine months ago.

Biggest Bust: De’Von Achane

As much as I hate to say it, because I love De’Von Achane and he’s been on four of my five fantasy teams over the past two years, I think he’s going to bust this year. He’ll probably still finish as a top-15 to top-12 running back, but the Miami Dolphins‘ offense is going to be awful this year, so unless he catches 100+ passes, he’s not going to get enough work on the ground to have another RB5 finish, like the last two years.

Best Rookie: Jeremiyah Love

I’m not a fan of where Jeremiyah Love is being drafted, but I do think he’ll be the best rookie running back. He’s in a backfield that has four guys that could be starters, and while he’s clearly the RB1, he’s going to split carries. Plus, the Cardinals‘ offensive line is not very sturdy, so he’s going to have to make a lot happen on his own to finish as a top-10 back. But he’s still clearly the top rookie.

Safest Pick: Jahmyr Gibbs

I know, I know. Picking the RB1 as the safest pick isn’t fun, but it’s hard to see a world where Jahmyr Gibbs isn’t a top-three running back in fantasy. He’s finished as the RB1 and RB3 the past two years, lost his biggest competition in the backfield, and plays in one of the most potent offenses in the NFL. I think he’s a much safer pick than Bijan Robinson, which is why he’s going No. 1 overall in a lot of drafts.

Riskiest Pick: Christian McCaffrey

Everyone always says Christian McCaffrey is injury-prone, and while that was true early in his career, since arriving in San Francisco, he’s only had one injured season in four years, which for a running back isn’t bad. However, he touched the ball 413 times last year (not including the playoffs), is 30 years old, and plays for the 49ers, who always lose stars to injury. He’s either going to be a top-three RB or will miss 10+ games. There’s no in between.

Wide Receiver

Biggest Sleeper: Mike Evans

I don’t get why we’re all sleeping on Mike Evans in fantasy football. He’s coming off the board as the WR26, but he’s clearly the WR1 on one of the most potent offenses in the league. Brock Purdy has never had a receiver like Evans to throw to, so he’s going to see a healthy amount of targets and probably go for 1,000+ yards and 8+ touchdowns.

Biggest Bust: Drake London

This isn’t even me hating on Drake London, but why is a guy who has one 1,000-yard season under his belt in four years and has very suspect quarterback play with Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix (both of whom are hurt) going in the late first/early second round? It makes no sense to me. He’s going to be a solid fantasy WR, but he should be going in round three or four, not round one or two.

Best Rookie: Carnell Tate

Carnell Tate is the third-best rookie receiver in terms of talent, in my opinion, but he’s the one in the best position to succeed right away as a rookie. Jordyn Tyson has to compete with Chris Olave, and Makai Lemon has to compete with DeVonta Smith. Tate just has to compete with Wan’Dale Robinson. He’s going to build a connection with Cam Ward this offseason and be Tennessee’s WR1 by Week 1.

Safest Pick: Amon-Ra St. Brown

Amon-Ra St. Brown is as big of a sure thing as there is in fantasy football. He’s finished as the WR3 in each of the last three seasons and is the clear WR1 in one of the best offenses in football. Pretty easy choice for the safest pick.

Riskiest Pick: Malik Nabers

Nobody really knows what is going on with Malik Nabers’ knee. Will he be ready for Week 1? And if so, will he be 100 percent? And what are the chances of re-injury? There are a ton of question marks around him, but if he’s healthy, he could be a top-eight fantasy wideout.

Tight End

Biggest Sleeper: Juwan Johnson

Juwan Johnson finished last season as the TE8 in fantasy football after catching 77 passes for 889 yards and three touchdowns. He built a strong connection with Tyler Shough, which should only strengthen this offseason, and even though there’s some more competition in the Saints’ TE room, there’s no reason he should come off the board as the TE20. He’s easily one of the biggest steals in the entire draft.

Biggest Bust: Harold Fannin

This one is a bold take, and it has nothing to do with Harold Fannin as a player, but the Browns just drafted two rookie receivers in the first two rounds that are going to take some of his targets, and I just don’t trust Cleveland’s quarterback play. He’ll be a top-10 TE, but I think he’ll be closer to TE10 than TE5, where he’s currently being drafted.

Best Rookie: Kenyon Sadiq

There really wasn’t a question here. Kenyon Sadiq was a first-round pick for a reason. He’s a freak athlete and lands in an offense where he should be one of the top receiving options on his team. Eli Stowers could be a threat, but he has Dallas Goedert in front of him, while Sadiq has no one.

Safest Pick: Trey McBride

Another boring pick, but the right one for the safest pick. Trey McBride was so much better than every tight end in fantasy last year, and his production really picked up when Jacoby Brissett took over. And guess who is under center again this year: Jacoby Brissett. Easy pick.

Riskiest Pick: Kyle Pitts

Everyone’s been waiting for the Kyle Pitts breakout, and it kind of happened last year, but there’s a lot of uncertainty in Atlanta’s quarterback room right now. There’s a world where he finishes as the TE2 again, like he did last year, but he could also easily fall out of the top-10.