How to Win Your Draft from the 7 Spot

Drafting from the 1.07 spot in fantasy football can feel like a tricky middle ground. You’re not guaranteed one of the elite top-3 workhorse running backs, and you don’t have the luxury of a turn pick to double-dip like managers at the back of the round. But make no mistake—1.07 is a powerful draft position when you approach it with the right strategy.

From this slot, you can build a balanced roster, capitalize on value that slips through early runs, and position yourself for long-term success. The key is knowing which player archetypes thrive at this draft spot and how to stay one step ahead of the board.

1.07: The Potential WR1

Drafting Malik Nabers is a great choice right here in the middle of the round. I have Malik Nabers as my third best receiver in drafts this year, but think he could finish as the top wide receiver in 2025, passing both Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson.

He had an elite-level season last year playing with scrubs at the quarterback position. Now New York brings in a Super Bowl winning quarterback that has great accuracy and can pepper him with targets. Malik is going to fly to the moon this year and you don’t want to get left behind.

Other potential picks here are Amon-Ra St. Brown, Puka Nacua, and Nico Collins. All of which are great, but each with a slightly different issue. St. Brown and the Lions will have a new offensive coordinator calling plays. Stafford maybe missing time will hurt Nacua’s chances at having a huge year. Collins is the only true wide receiver in Houston, which will draw him more double coverages in the secondary.

2.06: The Future at the TE Position

Brock Bowers might be here, but depending on who you are playing with, they could take him early. He truly is an elite tight end that will get the job done putting up wide receiver numbers from your tight end spot.

So let’s get the next best thing with Trey McBride. He has already proven that he is going to be a top tier TE for years to come and getting him now is really your only opportunity to getting an elite TE. Pass on him here and you might as well punt the TE position for a while.

Other players you could draft here include A.J. Brown, Ladd McConkey, and Chase Brown. A.J. is dealing with a soft-tissue injury, but will be good to play. McConkey is coming off a phenomenal rookie season, which tends to lean toward a disappointing sophomore season, but maybe he is different. The Bengals just paid both wide receivers and drafted a rookie running back, I am a little worried about his utilization, even after finishing as a top 10 running back.

Because of those situations, I am taking McBride here as he is the true safe, elite pick.

3.07: Risk It For the Biscuit

I truly believe that Garrett Wilson is an elite wide receiver always caught in a bad situation. That’s the truth of the matter for him as he has yet to have consistent quarterback play while he has been in the NFL. Enter Justin Fields who is more of a mobile quarterback that does not sling the ball down the field nearly as much.

Fields can be a good quarterback, if given the right play calls. Last year in six starts, he had six top 24 outings, three of which were top 12 (one was QB1). I like to think back to what the Bears did with Justin and DJ Moore when he was traded to Chicago. Moore finished as the WR6 that year, primarily changing his game from a deep threat to a receiver that caught the ball short and made big plays.

Moore ended up with 136 targets, 1,364 yards, and 8 touchdowns in 2023 with Justin Fields. Those targets are less than what Garrett Wilson has ever received in his three year career, but Wilson is much better than Moore. Garrett will have a big year once the Jets figure things out.

Others you can take here could be Alvin Kamara, Davante Adams, and Kenneth Walker III. We talked about why I was not taking Puka, but Adams has history with potential starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, and it was not good. Walker is still dealing with some injuries and could miss time again. I debated taking Kamara here as he will be a dump off machine in New Orleans, but with rookie quarterbacks, they want to sling it and prove they are the guy. Wilson is the safe pick here.

4.06: The Safe Chicago Pick

Speaking of DJ Moore, he had a little bit of a fall last year compared to his Justin Fields year, but he still finished as WR16. Good thing you are drafting him to be your WR3! With 140 targets from rookie QB Caleb Williams, Moore should have a breakout year with new head coach Ben Johnson.

Keenan Allen is no longer in Chicago and the only threat that replaced him is rookie Luther Burden III who is dealing with a soft-tissue injury which will likely limit his play. Rome Odunze is set to have a breakout year two, but Moore should still be the primary guy in Chicago.

Other players likely still available here include Kenneth Walker III (still), DK Metcalf, and Courtland Sutton. I still don’t like Walker in the 4th round, DK is on a team that is in flux right now, and I almost picked Sutton here. Sutton is really the only other option with the 4.06 here because Bo really does favor him, but he does scare me.

Remember back in 2019 when Sutton won people championships because of his WR19 finish? He followed that up with 1 game in 2020, WR44, WR43, and WR35 with only missing a total of three games in those years. Was his bounce back a true test to what is to come? Give me the safe DJ Moore pick here.

5:07: The Rookie

I have primarily stayed away from drafting TreVeyon Henderson in all of my drafts, but everything I have been seeing recently has made my worry go away. In general, I have not liked drafting Ohio State running backs. There have only been a handful of really elite ones that have done something in the NFL recently.

But when I am staring at the draft board and see that my true options are Henderson, DeVonta Smith, Jaylen Waddle, and Patrick Mahomes, I grab the sticker and take the rookie. Henderson is set to have a really good year behind an offense that favors him.

Drake Maye had a great rookie season and they look forward to opening that up more with the addition of Stefon Diggs. We all kinda thought that Rhamondre Stevenson was going to be something, but he fell off a cliff and was replaced with a rookie. Henderson should be a very good pick here to be your RB1 on your team.

Besides, I hate drafting running backs too early, but Henderson has great value here.

6.06: Mr. Underrated

I have a love-hate relationship with Baker Mayfield. Not too long ago, I said Baker could never follow up what he did in his first year with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after most of the league was decimated with quarterback injuries. He followed that up with a top 5 finish.

I love Baker Mayfield now and believe he truly can get the job done in Tampa. Even with Chris Godwin down for a while and now emerging wide receiver Jalen McMillan being put onto IR, Baker still has All-Pro WR Mike Evans, rookie Emeka Egbuka, and second year back Bucky Irving.

The Bucs offense should soar again this year and I have no fear in making him my top QB option in 2025. I have in multiple leagues this year so far.

Other options here likely include Tony Pollard, Chris Olave, and Jerry Jeudy. After taking Henderson the round before this, I am not ready to double up on running back when you can easily get a top tier fantasy quarterback. I am still worried about Olave and his own injury history. He has had one top 5 weekly finish and that was his rookie season. He’s never repeated that again. And even though Jeudy had a great year last year, that quarterback situation in Cleveland scares me.

7.07: The Only Titan I Will Draft

We are getting to the range of picks where this could make or break your season. The misfits of fantasy that could do well, but could also do very poorly. It’s how you manage the next couple of picks that will determine your fantasy success.

Tony Pollard finished as RB21 on a very, very bad team last year. With 260 attempts and over 1,000 rushing yards, Pollard was really the only thing in Tennessee that was working. This is after taking over for Zeke Elliott in Dallas and finishing as TE8 and TE14. So the opportunity is there, under the right conditions.

I recognize that the Titans offensive line is not nearly what the Cowboys had, but Pollard is a great running back that can get going. If RB21 is his floor, I am comfortable drafting him here as my RB2 after he slid from the 6th round.

Other players here to consider were Khalil Shakir, Tyrone Tracy Jr., and Jaylen Warren. The Bills proved that Khalil is their guy by giving him a payday this offseason, but who else is there to pull the coverage off of him? He’s also dealing with an injury this offseason. Tracy Jr. had a good rookie campaign, but they also drafted Cam Skattebo in the middle rounds and no one truly knows what Brian Daboll will do with that position. Warren is a pick you could take, but he could also likely be RB2 on his own team, so I am not willing to risk my RB2 position for that.

8.06: The RB2 of His Own Team

I said I wouldn’t want to risk my RB2 with a team’s RB2, but I am willing to make him a bench player! Is it early for that? Maybe. But solidify that spot now so you don’t have to worry later, especially since you are stacked at the other positions already.

Jaylen could still end up getting the bulk of the workload after they decided to keep Warren instead of Najee Harris this offseason. And with an early bye week (week 5), he will be there when Pollard and Henderson have their byes later in the season.

Other players to consider include Jauan Jennings, Tyrone Tracy Jr. (again), and Travis Etienne Jr. I’ve talked about Tracy, but Jennings and Etienne are different stories. Jennings should be good, but he’s been dealing with that injury bug in San Francisco and Etienne is being shopped on the market right now.

9.07: Very High Upside

In the 9th round, I am looking at a few different options here. Two Colts wide receivers and two backup running backs. The selection became Josh Downs because he truly has higher upside than Michael Pittman Jr. at this point.

Josh Downs can play anywhere on the field, short, medium, or deep. With Daniel Jones being named the starting quarterback, that should increase his utilization. Pittman is a bit more in the 10 yard range always. Whether that’s an out route or slant, that’s what he is doing. Plus, Pittman has dealt with injuries the past few years and just been a disappointment in fantasy. So Downs was the easy pick for me here.

The other two options I am staring at are Jordan Mason and Zach Charbonnet. Both of these running backs could make it to the 10th round and both are backing up very good running backs. Both could also see a significant amount of playing time, which makes them attractive. But I went with the safe pick that will garner me more weekly points and is poised for a breakout year.

10.06: The Handcuff

In case of emergency, break glass. Tyjae Spears has always just been there. We want big things from him, but he hasn’t delivered, yet. If Pollard goes down, he is the guy to be there.

Last year, Pollard got hurt in week 15 and became a bit limited in both week 15 and 16 and then missed week 17. Spears during that time scored 27.2, 23.6 and 13.3 fantasy points. You want that kind of handcuff on your lineup.

Other players you could consider here are Tank Bigsby, Austin Ekeler, and Rashid Shaheed. Truthfully, I don’t trust the Jaguars offense to pick one single running back, ever. Austin Ekeler is fine, but they also have two other running backs that have been doing well. Shaheed is a big play guy and not someone I want in my lineup week-to-week.

Rounding Out the Lineup

In the later rounds, I finished with two more running backs, two more wide receivers, and a backup quarterback. The bench looks safe and any of these players could easily jump in and make an impact. Brock Purdy could be a starting quarterback in fantasy this year. Braelon Allen is in a running back committee and Kareem Hunt is loved on the goal line in Kansas City. Wan’Dale Robinson is a handcuff for Malik Nabers as the true WR2 on the Giants and so is DeMario Douglas in New England.

The 1.07 spot isn’t about chasing what you missed at the top, it’s about controlling the middle of the board. By focusing on balance, anticipating positional runs, and securing cornerstone players who fit your league format, you can turn a “neutral” draft slot into a winning advantage. Stay flexible, trust the value that falls to you, and remember: the draft is just the beginning, but nailing your strategy at 1.07 sets the tone for a championship season.