FSH NOTEBOOK: DAVID'S DAILY DIGEST

August 29th, 2023

Tuesday Evening Edition

My Top 10 Fantasy Football 

Draft Rankings for 2023

(PPR Format)

The final weekend and probably busiest weekend of fantasy draft season is creeping towards us and with so much excitement afoot it’s time to dial in your strategy and hone in on your 1st round picks.

Below are my Top 10 and full 1st round (12-team league) rankings for 2023 and of course, there’s no surprise here with my top pick of Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson. This season the Vikings wideout is the consensus number one pick in most rankings and well deserved. In 2022, Jefferson led all receivers with 128 receptions and posted the 6th best All-Time receiving yards mark with 1,809.

The Top-10

1. Justin Jefferson

2. Ja'Marr Chase

3. Christian McCaffrey

4. Austin Ekeler

5. Cooper Kupp

6. Tyreek Hill

7. Travis Kelce

8. Saquon Barkley

9. Stefon Diggs

10. Davante Adams

The Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase falls in at number Two. An incredible talent and highlight-reel, Chase scored double-digit fantasy points in every game he played last season. He’s entering season number three and appears poised to post big numbers in 2023.

In the PPR format, I had to boost Chargers running back Austin Ekeler to the number four spot. Ekeler is a scoring machine with 38 combined touchdowns over the past two seasons and in 2022 he finished tied for the 5th spot in fantasy points per game (ppr). Perhaps his best stat is playing in all 33 games the past two seasons.

With a full season of health under his belt, I am probably higher on running back Saquon Barkley than most. In 2022 Barkley posted 295 carries, played in 16 games, and finished 5th in fantasy scoring for running backs. Healthy and ready to go in 2023, Barkley should only improve on those numbers.

Another fantasy wide receiver I am excited about more than most others is Davante Adams. I am not sure why so many are down on the Raiders receiver this year. Yes, he’s getting a new quarterback, but he’s still an elite receiver. His numbers over the past three seasons have been prolific. Since 2020 Adams has 4,443 receiving yards and 338 receptions, both rank first among fantasy wide receivers.

And filling out the tail end of Round One…

11. CeeDee Lamb

12. AJ Brown

The Eagles receiver AJ Brown was solid in 2022, especially down the stretch. For the season Brown was the number eight fantasy scoring receiver. In his last six games he posted no fewer than 13 fantasy points, eclipsing 17 or more points in four of those six games.

Set your sights high and draft with confidence.

That's my take!

~David G. Ortega