The fantasy roster foundations have been laid in the 2025 Fantasy Index Invitational. Time to put in the injury insulation and hang some upside drywall.

The first six rounds of the Invitational's maiden voyage are in the books: Ranker-in-chief Ian Allan has assembled an impressive armada of running backs, and a sensible (if less than scintillating) core of target-commanding wideouts; Andy Richardson has begun hammering upside after early investments in a couple of surefire superstars; moonlighting baseball head Todd Zola threatens to show up the guys on the football side with a potentially dominant first five rounds.

With a run on both quarterbacks and tight ends imminent, we make the wide turn into the eye of the draft...

12th Round

12th Round Commentary

• Ian Allan: It's tough for any RB to play in all 17 games, so seemed like the right point to pick up the insurance policies on two of my first three picks (Davis, Corum).
  Luke Wilson: Pretty cost-effective, too. Hidden perk of guys like Kyren and Cook is the rest of the league's less likely to get cute poaching the handcuffs to your guys while you're still busy filling out the rest of your starting lineup. Like certain Bhayshul Tuten and Tank Bigsby drafters, for example.
  
• Ian Allan: Jalen McMillan scored a touchdown in his last five games. He also pulled down a real nice grab in their preseason opener. Are we sure Egbuka will outperform him?
  Ben Prator: I'm seeing him more as the likely cuff to my Evans than an early season starter. Godwin is highly questionable for the early season at this point, so Egbuka getting work early seems increasingly plausible. But I was aiming to get McMillan since the Evans pick.
  Luke Wilson: That is a very fair question, Ian. Certainly, a lot of dynasty players that thought McMillan would be a full-time starter in 2025. Chris Godwin's deal was up, and coming off of a gruesome lower leg injury were they really going to pay him the kind of money he'd otherwise earned?
  Turned out the answer to that question was a resounding 'yes', and then to compound McMillan's roadblock the Buccaneers' brain trust stuck to their board and took Egbuka. Bummer for McMillan fans and dynasty owners, but he's certainly quality depth/insurance for a Tampa team looking to go places. Rooting for the kid.
  Ian Allan: McMillan was looking bust-like at the beginning of last season, but he was a different guy at the end of the year. I remember one real impressive touchdown late. First rookie since Randy Moss to catch touchdowns in five straight games. If not for the injury issues, he would have been a second round pick last year.
  Luke Wilson: Yeah, he had battled Rome Odunze to just about a target share stalemate in 2023 before the knee injury wiped out the middle part of his season. Came back and put nine catches and 131 yards on Oregon in the conference championship.
  
• Luke Wilson: Jacory Croskey-Merritt's name called in the 12th round. This is truly a den of sickos. You know I gotta ask, Boards: Who is the back that goes by 'Bill', but we've dubbed 'JC Money'?
  Boards: In a typical draft I obviously would have waited on Croskey-Merritt - he's still mostly going undrafted. But I didn't want to wait for you or Lou to take him. That kid's damn good.
  Luke Wilson: Make it five rookies for Boards...
  
• TPats: Liked that Jacory pick. Also like the Tillman pick.
  Luke Wilson: Was hoping for one of him or Luther Burden to make it back to me after I broke the seal at kicker. Don't know why I thought Burden might sneak back by Fitzmaurice when it was a tweet from him which reassured me that the rookie draft 2nd rounder that I'd spent on him in one of the FI dynasty leagues was draft capital well spent. Silly me.
  

7th Round

7th Round Commentary

• Luke Wilson: Brian Robinson-Najee Harris has gotta be the absolute least exciting, 'ehhh but I could kinda see it working out' fantasy backfield of all-time. I love how much I don't love it.
  Andy Richardson: I had my eye on Najee.
  Luke Wilson: Andy's got jokes, boys. Try the fish, tip your waitstaff!
  
• Luke Wilson: Odunze this late. Really hate that it didn't happen on my roster.
  Sweet Lou: Yeah, that one hurts. I was looking at him on my previous pick.
  Boards: I think probably most of us considered Odunze in the last round.
  TPats: Considered Odunze over Hock'. I don't like the drop-off at TE after him, plus I think he's going to be JJM's (J.J. McCarthy) safety net. Also a full year removed from the knee injury, Addison suspended, etc.
  
• Luke Wilson: Tyler Warren as the TE6! 'Fortune favors the bold' pick if ever there were one, Mr. R!
  Andy Richardson: Engram would have been safer, but I think Warren might be Indy's top receiver.
  
• Boards: Looking at who's available here, my heart is saying to keep the rookie train going. My brain is saying 'STOP'.
  Luke Wilson: Fully half of your first six picks in this draft are rookies, Boards. You've been generally rookie-positive in drafts historically, but this is pushing it even for you. Andy Richardson: I like Boards' team. Lots of guys I was considering or was hoping would make it to me.
• Boards: I hear ya. I generally play for the mid- to late season and trust my analysis. I could've settled for vets that I don't find interesting, but I try to see past what has been to predict what will be, as you know. Wasn't my plan to take this many (rookies), but with everyone targeting the usual folks, I pivot to value and upside.
  Luke Wilson: As pricey rookies go, I do like the ones you've assembled so far.
  
• Boards: Sorry for nabbing Engram there, Ben. I suspect he was among your targets here.
  Ben Prator: Actually, Tyrone Tracy was the one I was more sure on. Sniped by Fitzmaurice.
  Boards: Interesting.
  Luke Wilson: It was going to be Tracy or Etienne for me. I just couldn't look at myself in the mirror if I'd pretended to believe in the Giants' offense even that much.
  Boards: Etienne was the right pick. No bones to pick with that value.
  Ben Prator: Okay, well if vanilla is off the table...
  

8th Round

8th Round Commentary

• Luke Wilson: BAM, Ben just drove this bus straight into Flavortown! Speak to that zesty Mayfield-Golden combo platter sir! Also the revenge snipe on our resident Packers fan, bonus points.
  Ben Prator: I have been shooting my mouth off saying Baker was my QB1, but that was more targeted at the ADP range I had in mind for taking a QB than anything - that is to say, he was my QB1 after the guys who could actually finish as the QB1, none of whom for which I was willing to pay up. I didn't really want to be taking an upside pick at QB.
  Luke Wilson: Baker is going up against an undefeated run of TD% regression, historically. No quarterback that banked TDs at a clip as high as Mayfield's just did has avoided so much as a 10, 15% drop-off, let alone run it straight back. But if you had to bet on one guy to beat the odds...
  Sweet Lou: That offense is looking super exciting, too. Plus, Baker is just a fun player to watch, easy to root for him.
  Luke Wilson: Yeah, Baker is maybe the poster child 'vibes' pick. History is against him, the FI rankings certainly have the whole offense pulling back fairly sharply, and justifiably so - but there's also undoubtedly a ton of swagger in Tampa right now. And Baker's why.
  Boards: Surprised that Golden is the rookie you go for here, Ben.
  Ben Prator: Golden was the most exciting guy on the board. I would have taken Egbuka but I'm not trying to triple stack Bucs. I buy Golden's path to volume and the talent-driven upside narrative. Plus, what's going to stop him? Josh Jacobs can't do everything, and Love isn't bad.
  Luke Wilson: Josh Jacobs, last seen doing everything: "Uhhh?"
  Ben Prator: Okay, correction: It's not ideal for Jacobs to do everything. Although that Jordan Love thumb surgery news breaking right after I made this pick hits like a swift kick in the pants...
  
• Moss: The only player I had in my queue here was Jordan Mason (Mason selected two picks prior).
  Luke Wilson: Yeah, but it was time for Dobbins to get out of the barn, too. I'd have liked to have grabbed Mason too, but Dobbins could easily outproduce him.
  Sweet Lou: Moss, hold my hand as I make this next pick and say 'to heck with ADP!'
  Moss: Oh my poor, sweet, Sweet Lou.
  Sweet Lou: Hey, running back is thinning out. I think Javonte starts for Dallas, and I know the RB position is going to look worse on the way back next round - ADP going out the window in a hurry. But yes, Jordan Mason and J.K. Dobbins were my queue.
  
• Boards: Quinshon Judkins pick. Spicy.
  Luke Wilson: TPats heartbroken by that pick.
  Tom M. I consulted the ol' Magic 8 ball on that one.
  Boards: I'd like to borrow that some time, good sir.
  
• Boards: I liked the Deebo pick here. Maybe a bit controversial, but should realistically outperform this ADP by a wide margin. I know he's looked... maybe less than svelte in some training camp clips, but whatever. Hated the Javonte pick. Sorry Lou.
  Sweet Lou: Honestly, me too. I tend to prioritize RB depth, but that pick was really out of the norm for me. I think I had positional tunnel vision. But I do believe he is the RB1 in Dallas and I'm just hopeful he finally got some juice back.
  Luke Wilson: Deebo is the kind of pick that maybe feels icky now, but really are we talking about anything other than health here? If Deebo plays 15+ games is this not a killer value? I'd have a hard time poking holes in at that point. That "if" is bigger than Deebo's pant size but it could happen!
  TPats: I've said this about a lot of guys already, but I would have taken Deebo there if he'd made it to me. He has the potential to pay off big time.
  
• TPats: I'm amazed nobody is giving me a hard time over the Stefon Diggs 'homer' pick. But I do think he's going to be solid, so long as he's healthy.
  Sweet Lou: The footage of Diggs motoring around back in OTAs were enough for me to believe he can still deliver.
  Luke Wilson: He was pretty effective for your Texans last year. Believe he was the WR10 in fantasy football thru eight weeks, by our scoring here. Yeah, Diggs was a very nice value at this point in the draft. Not yet clear what his ramp-up is going to look like next month, but once we do have some clarity he could be going a full round or more earlier during peak redraft season.
  TPats: He's easily Maye's top target, had to get a piece of the action somewhere. And he's going to be drafted crazy early in my hometown leagues.
  

9th Round

9th Round Commentary

• TPats: Dang, maybe I should have waited longer on a tight end.
  Luke Wilson: Yeah wasn't necessarily super expecting the position to hold out for this long, but zero shame in my Njoku game. In his last 21 games where he logged at least 50% of the offensive snaps (including the playoffs), David Njoku has logged 6+ targets 20 times. He had 8+ targets 15 times, 10+ targets seven times. That stretch also overlaps with his five games with Flacco in 2023, with whom he averaged 6 receptions for 78 yards and 0.8 TDs per game. And now they're tooling around Cleveland together in a tricked out ATV listening to the Rolling Stones and Hendrix? Clear the deck folks, this F-16 is about to throttle up.
  Andy Richardson: I regret taking Warren as high as I did. I still like the player, but so many decent TEs still available here.
  
• Sweet Lou: You know how sometimes you have a player that you are super high on and for whatever reason you just miss out on him on all your teams that year? That's been me with Emeka Egbuka. I've been in on him all along, but I haven't managed to grab even a single share of him in any leagues, redraft nor dynasty.
  Boards: He went later than usual here, too. If you want him usually you've gotta take him by the eighth.
  TPats: Long-term, he's going to be a massive player for them.
  
• Luke Wilson: Awfully nice of y'all to leave me the Cowboys' real RB1 this late in the draft.
  Boards: Knew it was going to be Blue there.
  Luke Wilson: Like Lou said last round, running back has now been well and truly decimated. Was time to grab the last bit of real upside before it was too late. Suspect Blue missing the preseason opener is the only reason I was able to get him even this 'cheap'. But for the record, I really don't appreciate you all forcing me into a pick this dicey, this early.
  Sweet Lou: Yeah, well I bet you wish you had some Javonte in your life!
  
• Luke Wilson: Save your money, buddy. But yes, I am keenly aware just how bad Blue going immediately before Keon Coleman could look in three months. Could even say I'm 'Keonly' aware.
  Sweet Lou: In my unbiased opinion, Javonte remains RB1 in Dallas and Blue gets sprinkled in on passing downs.
  Boards: I'm all for the 'players can improve' way of seeing things, I usually am that guy. But... have you seen Javonte play, like recently?
  Luke Wilson: Only thing getting sprinkled is Javonte's ashes at the Tar Heels' 50 yard line.
  Ben Prator: I've managed to get caught in the gravity well of Blue hype, but realistically Javonte is the RB1 right now. He would need to be a better version of himself to actually keep that job, but is that less likely than the Cowboys handing the reins to a rookie? I'd wager the odds are comparable.
  
• Boards: That Guerendo pick hurt. Dang it.
  Ben Prator: Surprised Guerendo was even still on the board with Ian in this draft. I was very tempted to take another 'sleeper' RB and let the chips fall where they may at TE, but I estimate at least three tight ends will go before my next pick. If that estimate were low then I'd have been in real trouble. Plus, this way if Moss' big CMC gamble goes kaput, I reap the bennies.
  

10th Round

10th Round Commentary

• Boards: Guerendo pick hurt, and Loveland was quite possibly going to be my next pick. Double dang it.
  Ben Prator: My RBs are a touch suspect after Jeanty, but I'm liking these receivers. I guess I should have considered one of the other backs in the sixth, like Swift. I can follow the narrative on the case for Swift this year, but I'm surprised other people are buying it. Everyone was out on him in Philly, even more out on him after his first year in Chicago, but now still in Chicago he's going to break out with Ben Johnson who already moved off of him when he was what, three years younger?
  Moss: Picking one of Swift, Mixon or Pacheco in the sixth doesn't really feel like 'buying in' on anything to me. More like gobbling up scraps before they're all gone.
  Ben Prator: Good point. If Mixon gets right early, the value could be insane. There's the ghost of Nick Chubb and nothing else in that backfield.
  Sweet Lou: Yeah, it was weird letting him slide down the draft board. Foot injury with an older running back is risky, but can definitely pay off where he was taken.
  Ben Prator: If the Texans were to want to shore up at running back, though - who's realistically on the market? Kenneth Walker maybe?
  Luke Wilson: Murmurs that Etienne could be on the move as we speak/draft. And wouldn't that just serve me right.
  Ben Prator: Yeah, 'ETN' makes sense. Tuten fanboys would explode.
  Luke Wilson: And Rachaad White definitely is, has been for months.
  Andy Richardson: I took Mixon in the sixth recently in a 14-team league, standard scoring - RB30 overall. Seemed worth the risk. We don't even know if he's going to miss any games next month.
  Sweet Lou: Yeah, we definitely played this one scared. Luke got good value there.
  Andy Richardson: I might have taken him over Pacheco if he'd been there. Probably, actually.
  Sweet Lou: I even considered him at the 'Jamo' pick. But foot injuries make me nervous on an older RB. I live in Houston and I'm not hearing any real news about it.
  
• Luke Wilson: Gotta admit, Ian maybe didn't need to take Purdy even that 'early'. The QB values coming up are going to be painful for us early QB drafters to behold.
  Andy Richardson: Yeah, regretting the Hurts pick. Recently I was thinking I would take a second quarterback early just to sting people who haven't drafted one yet, but I still see like 5-6 solid fantasy starters there. It's ridiculous.
  Luke Wilson: The position has just recovered so much from two years ago, where the Lamar-Allen-Hurts tier actually was a cudgel to smack people with in matchups more often than not.
  Ian Allan: I considered waiting another round on a QB. My gut tells me Purdy would have made it another round. (If not, there would have been a serviceable guy). Dak Prescott wasn't even drafted in a mock a few weeks ago. But I do like Purdy.
  Sweet Lou: (Moss takes Josh Downs) Moss... really, bro? Sorry for the delay on this pick guys, didn't realize Moss hated me.
  Boards: I like Downs and what he can be, but I don't remotely understand the optimism this offseason with what should be terrible QB play.
  Moss: Bench guy. See what happens.
  Luke Wilson: Plus, he can use him to extort Lou.
  

11th Round

11th Round Commentary

• Looking at the forest for the trees for a moment, the Cam Skattebo pick allowed Boards to re-take the lead in the rookie roundup. He's up to four rookies rostered, with Andy and Ben tied behind him at three apiece. The rest of the league has drafted five.
  Andy Richardson: I start selecting rookies in drafts when I know what the ceiling is of the top veterans left and think they might be better, if they reach their upside. There were safer choices available to me where I took Warren, Henderson and Egbuka, but the ceiling potential wasn't there.
  Luke Wilson: 'Upside wins leagues', true as ever. Especially in the range where you and Boards have been mostly swinging on them. Still, after the Braelon Allen pick Boards has a whopping three players drafted with more than one year of NFL experience. Players in their first two seasons do tend to produce more in the second half of the NFL season though, so I definitely get the appeal... but going 4-0 to close the regular season might not matter if you start out 1-5.
  
• The fatal flaw of taking Dak late (10th round here) is that too many drafters are on it. There really isn't a strong downside making him a pariah and once QB starts to dry up desperation is going to force people's hand.
  Luke Wilson: Is it? Everyone has a QB here and none are 'worse' than Jared Goff, or Prescott himself.
  Boards: Kind of just the risk you take going QB late. It's this perceived meta that 60% of people are implementing, and most have the same targets. In Dak's case, there are plenty of people who just don't want him; I've had several side conversations trying to persuade people that he's a better pick than those folks are assuming.
  Sweet Lou: Honestly, it's not just Dak that I'm willing to take late. There are still a few guys I'd be okay with that I could see outperforming ADP at the position.
  Ben Prator: I'd love a Dak late QB build, I'm just not sure I can get it and I'm not excited about Caleb stacks or other approaches at the bottom. I admit I have recency bias from Burrow last year but QB is one spot I intend to target big upside.
  Luke Wilson: You say that Lou, but you're probably not drafting the twelfth QB hoping for QB12 or even QB11 production. Because if that's what you wind up with, that means you're losing the QB matchup with your opponent seven, eight times out of ten.
  Ben Prator: Dak's ADP has been sticky so far, too. It's weird: He's been hurt in three out of the last five seasons, just like McCaffrey. But McCaffrey is still breaking into the first round of drafts. I don't get it.
  Luke Wilson: Look at our board. Of the first 11 quarterbacks taken, can you really say you would definitely prefer Dak over any of them? Kyler maybe, that's about it.
  Ben Prator: Purdy for me, but I take your point.
  Boards: Same, but that's basically on a tiebreaker because of the 49ers' laughable strength of schedule.
  Luke Wilson: Point being, the QB position is strong - which is why I went Josh Allen. Decent chance that everything from the Mayfield/Nix tier all the way thru to Dak/Goff is gonna eat pretty much the same. FI's rankings project a 54-point gap between the QB1 and QB6. Only a 43-point gap between the QB6 and the QB16.
  

—This article will update continuously in the coming days. Stay tuned.