Ultimate Fantasy Football Cheat Sheet: The names you need to know for draft dayAfter a season with 1,793 yards and 10 touchdowns, Jaxon Smith-Njigba is one of the top receivers off the board in 2026. Logan Bowles/Getty ImagesESPN FantasyAug 22, 2026, 10:40 AM ETClose
Fantasy football season is here.
But it can be tough to read every article and keep up with every sleeper, breakout candidate, rookie and late-round flier. That’s a full-time job.
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Picking between two running backs? Need to remember the name of that backup running back or rookie receiver? Looking for a dart throw for the end of your draft?
We’ve got you covered.
To help you stay sharp in your drafts — or to enable you to succeed without reading a ton of prep — we present the ultimate ESPN fantasy football cheat sheet, a curated rundown of all the names we’ve been talking about this preseason.
Editor’s Picks
2026 Fantasy Football Draft Guide: Rankings, mock drafts and analysis
Fantasy football Cheat Sheet Central
If you want to read more about these sleepers, busts, rookies, backups, value picks and more, the analysis is available for you to pore through at the links below, or in our Fantasy Football draft guide.
But if all you want is a cheat sheet, well … it’s not actually cheating.
Our PDF aggregates the names and rankings featured in the following content:
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Eric Karabell’s Do Draft and Do Not Draft lists
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Mike Clay’s players who will score more and fewer TDs in 2025
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Tristan H. Cockcroft’s deep sleepers
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Eric Moody’s best backup running backs
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Liz Loza’s players generating buzz
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Loza’s risky players worth drafting
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Matt Bowen and Cockcroft’s skilled players who just need opportunity
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Loza’s late-round fliers
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Moody’s top draft-day values
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Karabell’s players who will bounce back
Here it is: ESPN’s (printable!) fantasy football draft cheat sheet.
