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It's easy to overrate average draft position when you go into your draft. That's not what we're trying to do here. But there is value in knowing the ADP on a specific site because at this point in the year it can become a little bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy.
The way to take advantage of that is to target the players who are lasting too long on certain sites a round or two before the draft room tells everyone else to take them.
Below I go over the ADP here at CBS and at ESPN and Yahoo! to find the best values on each site. There is at least one player at each position who is severely underrated. Use this list to plan out your picks in the later rounds.
CBS
I consider it a personal failure that Philip Rivers is still the No. 15 quarterback by ADP on the site that employs me. You guys must really hate 4,200 yards and 28 passing touchdowns, because that's the floor for Rivers over the past five seasons. He's going behind guys like Carson Wentz, Matt Ryan and Jared Goff. Consider it a blessing that you can wait until every team in the league has a quarterback and you can still land a top-10 option.
I have and always will be #TeamGio, but you don't have to love him as much as I do to profit at the end of the 12th round. Bernard is flexish in PPR leagues even if Joe Mixon stays healthy. If Mixon goes down, Bernard instantly becomes a top-15 back. He was awesome in the second half of 2017, and the Bengals have never given a No. 1 back more than 55 percent of the rush attempts since Bernard came to Cincinnati.
Robby Anderson was a top-15 receiver last year and somehow he's available after pick 100 in CBS leagues. I know the off-field troubles may be responsible for some of that, but that has been resolved legally and we still haven't heard anything about a possible suspension. At this point I'm expecting Anderson will play 16 games and lead the Jets in receiving again. He's a borderline No. 2 receiver for me, and a great value if you find yourself weak at receiver in the middle rounds.
Eric Ebron is going after Jared Cook on this site. Do I need to say anything else? Jack Doyle may be scaring people off, but I really believe Ebron and Doyle may be second and third in targets on this team. That's a pretty good place to be considering the state of the Colts run game and defense. If you're worried about Andrew Luck, don't. The only legitimate concern is that he can't throw the deep ball as well, and that will only be better for the tight ends.
ESPN
Jameis Winston is undervalued on most sites, but on ESPN he's behind Case Keenum and Blake Bortles as well. Sure, you can't start him for the first three weeks. I'm assuming you're not starting those guys, either. Winston is a great No. 2 quarterback, if you're into that kind of thing, and has top-five upside in the second half of the season. He's had a great preseason and was on pace for 4,900 yards and 27 touchdowns in the 11 games he's started and finished last year.
I've got concerns about Marlon Mack's Week 1 availability just like everyone else, but in ESPN drafts he has an ADP in the 12th round. That's absurd considering Mack is the starting running back for the Colts. While he's been recovering from his hamstring injury, the rest of the Colts backfield has been underwhelming. If he plays 16 games, he's a top-30 running back with top-20 upside. Take him happily in the 10th or 11th. You're stealing.
Also undervalued: Bilal Powell (172)
John Brown, like Mack, has had injury issues in the past. Unlike Mack, he's been healthy in the preseason and impressing everyone in Baltimore. I currently still have him projected behind Michael Crabtree but I wouldn't begrudge anyone who thinks he's the Ravens' best receiver. He has rapport with Joe Flacco and he's the only receiver who can get behind the defense. His ADP on ESPN is 187. That's basically free.
I'm not as sure of the Trey Burton breakout as Dave and Jamey, but you don't have to be to draft him on ESPN. Burton has an ADP of 108 and he's the 11th tight end off the board, behind Jordan Reed and Jack Doyle. With Matt Nagy as his head coach, Burton could be the focal point of the passing game in Chicago, much like Travis Kelce was when Nagy was in Kansas City. Don't fret if you miss out on the top tight ends on this site, there's one waiting for you in the Round 8 or 9.
Yahoo!
I know everyone thinks I'm crazy with Ben Roethlisberger in my top-five quarterbacks. I'm not really sure how you could overrate a quarterback with 600-plus pass attempts and the best weapons in the league, but that's splitting hairs at this point. Roethlisberger is the 12th quarterback off the board in Yahoo! leagues, at 97 overall. As we always say, just wait on quarterback.
Severely undervalued: Andrew Luck (108)
I thought Jamaal Williams was underrated in CBS leagues. But he's available in the 10th round on Yahoo! Good grief. Williams is the starting running back for one of the best offenses in the league. His backup is suspended for the first two games of the season, and the guy who is going to handle the work in the passing game is perpetually injured. I expect Williams will be the starter for as long as he stays healthy and will finish the year as a top-25 running back.
Also undervalued: Alex Collins (47), Lamar Miller (65), Mark Ingram (70), Royce Freeman (72), Carlos Hyde (100)
It's not as easy to find undervalued receivers on Yahoo! but T.Y. Hilton at pick 36 certainly stands out. I have him ranked as a top-10 wide receiver, but I would assume this once again comes down to concern over Andrew Luck. Because if Luck is healthy for 16 games, this value is phenomenal.
Also undervalued: Marquise Goodwin (93), Kenny Stills (130)
You don't even have to bet on Tyler Eifert staying healthy for him to be a good value on Yahoo! He's healthy right now, and he's starting Week 1 against the Colts. That makes him startable for Week 1, and that's all you need to worry about when you're taking a tight end in the 10th or 11th round. Eifert's ADP currently trails Mike Gesicki and O.J. Howard. There's no doubt who you'd rather start in Week 1.
So what sleepers should you snatch in your Fantasy Football draft? And which huge running backs do you need to jump all over? Visit SportsLine now to get Fantasy Football cheat sheets from the model that called Alvin Kamara's huge breakout last season and find out.
