The Perfect First Round of a 12-Team Dynasty Rookie-Only Fantasy Football Draft
It is time for the league to reconvene and begin drafting. Your league is a dynasty format in which every player is retained. In that case, you will draft rookies only. It must be done with upside in store. Consider the team situation for both the short and long term. What suits your team the best? I cannot say, but in the first round of a rookie-only draft, this is how the script may go.
1st Pick — Jeremiyah Love
My hot take is that Love's Notre Dame backup, Jadarian Price, will perform better over the course of the season. Nonetheless, Love is the consensus No. 1 pick. Unless I am in your draft, he will go here.
2nd Pick — Carnell Tate
The 4th overall draft pick is meant to go here, especially in a PPR format. He is my WR33, but with tremendous upside. If the Titans can at least become a mediocre offense, Tate has top-20 upside. <5 win teams that become playoff teams tend to find breakouts. If that can happen in Nashville, the profit will be quite nice.
The NFL changes FAST.
— Tom Carelli | Fantasy Football (@TCarelliTakes) August 25, 2026
Over the last 11 seasons:
15 teams with <5 wins made the playoffs the following year.
11/15 had a major coaching overhaul.
Every year, one “bad” team becomes fantasy football gold.
Here are some prime examples of BIG fantasy profit: pic.twitter.com/Co1R2UvOXv
3rd Pick — Jadarian Price
I have Price as a top-20 fantasy football running back with the injury to Zach Charbonnet. Yes, I am above consensus. He is a "Ride or Die" for me. Price is the 3rd rookie off the boards in standard re-draft formats.
4th Pick — Makai Lemon
It has been an injury-ridden training camp for Lemon. The Eagles do expect him to be ready for Week 1, in which 2026 will likely begin in a contest with Dontayvion Wicks for the WR2 job. While Lemon could lose that battle early on, the team will favor him over the long term. If DeVonta Smith was a top-25 wide receiver behind AJ Brown, why can't Lemon do the same if he really is as good as advertised?
5th Pick — KC Concepcion
The Browns have found their WR1. Denzel Boston may think he is the WR1, but he is a vertical threat. Concepcion, being a shift player, will have more volume and a larger playbook to work within. He has a limited ceiling with Deshaun Watson, but the long-term upside is elite.
6th Pick — De'Zhaun Stribling
There is no bigger training camp riser than Stribling. One month ago, the 33rd overall draft pick was the 49ers' WR4. All of a sudden, he is the WR2, and when Mike Evans misses time, he will be the WR1. It appears that Evans is likely to miss time as he deals with hamstring- and groin-related issues before playing a single snap.
7th Pick — Jordyn Tyson
Tyson was my top wide receiver in the NFL Draft. No expert, I am, but Tyson is very good at football. Unfortunately, he takes a hit with yet another hamstring injury. Unfortunately, Tyson is probably out for at least 6 games. When he is back, he may not be near 100%. Nonetheless, Tyson should be a high-level wide receiver for years to come.
8th Pick — Denzel Boston
The Cleveland Browns appear to have gotten everything they wanted out of Boston. He is showing out at training camp and is probably booting Jerry Jeudy to WR3 on the depth chart. Let's now find Concepcion and Boston a quarterback beyond 2026...
9th Pick — Fernando Mendoza
The Raiders are going with Kirk Cousins to begin the season. In due time, Mendoza will probably get started in 2026. With a lacking supporting cast, he has hardly any value this season. This is still the No. 1 overall draft pick.
10th Pick — Ja'Kobi Lane
The Ravens are flirting with being a top-5 NFL offense. If that does happen, Lamar Jackson will definitely be able to feed multiple capable wide receivers to fantasy viability. Lane may become the Ravens' WR2 over Rashod Bateman in the longer term.
11th Pick — Malachi Fields
Fields is above consensus in my estimations. He is with a legitimate shot to be the Giants'has WR2 ahead of Darius Slayton. He is among my favorite deep sleepers in 2026.
12th Pick — Omar Cooper Jr.
Kenyon Sadiq may be a hot pick, but he will miss some time and require an additional ramp-up. Once that is done, he must outwork Mason Taylor. Instead, we favor Cooper Jr., who might fall behind AD Mitchell in the short term, but can easily outwork Mitchell, who is often a training camp star who goes on to be a mediocre in-season wide receiver.
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Thomas Carelli is a sportswriter based on Northern New Jersey. He is a massive New York Jets and Mets fan, but that is not where is sports fandom stops. He loves to watch and play golf, all things football, baseball, and much more. If he can watch it, he will. Thomas graduated from William Paterson University in 2018 with a Bachelor's Degree in Sport Management. He spent 4 years working at a local golf course, volunteered past PGA events, and spent some part-time experience with the New York Jets events team. His passions for sport runs deep and his articles show for it.