The Madden Fantasy Draft Cheat Sheet: What Actually Goes in Every Round
From spreadsheets to touchdowns — Ripping Sticks
You hit “Fantasy Draft,” the board lights up, the clock starts ticking… and suddenly you’re panic-picking a punter in Round 12 because you forgot kickers exist. We’ve all been there. So we did the nerdy thing: we ran the mocks, screenshotted every board, and turned it into a spreadsheet so you can walk into your league draft knowing exactly where the run on each position starts.
Here’s the setup
A Madden franchise fantasy draft is a different animal than the real NFL draft. Every team empties its roster and re-drafts the entire league from a shared pool — 53+ rounds, every position, until the scrubs and special teamers are gone. That means value doesn’t live where you think it does. The elite quarterbacks vanish immediately. Cornerbacks come off the board in a wave that lasts what feels like ten straight rounds. And if you wait too long on a position group, you’re stuck picking from the bottom of the barrel while your buddies stack starters.
We pulled data from two full fantasy drafts plus several partial mocks (first round through round 20) to map out the tendencies. Below is the round-by-round breakdown — and yes, there’s a free downloadable draft board at the bottom with the whole thing, including a “who else went here” column so you can see your backup options at every single pick.
Round 1: It’s a Quarterback Bloodbath
If you take one thing from this entire article, take this: Round 1 is for quarterbacks, full stop. Across our mocks, the first twelve picks were almost exclusively QBs — Burrow, Josh Allen, Lamar, Mahomes, Maye, Herbert, and right on down the line. The elite passers were gone before pick 13 every single time.
The takeaway: if you want a franchise QB, you grab him in Round 1 or you don’t get one. There is no “I’ll wait a round.” The wait ends your season before it starts.
Once the passers dry up around pick 13, the board pivots hard to elite skill and premium defenders — the Ja’Marr Chase / Jaxon Smith-Njigba / Jahmyr Gibbs / Micah Parsons / Myles Garrett tier. If you’re picking late in Round 1 (we ran it from the 31st and 32nd slot), that’s your lane: the best non-QB weapon or an edge-rushing cornerstone.
Rounds 2–5: Weapons, Then the Trenches
This is where your roster takes shape, and the pattern is clean:
- R2 — Wide Receivers & Left Tackles. The WR1 run collides with a rush on premium pass protection. Grab a difference-maker before the tier cliffs.
- R3 — Cornerbacks (the first wave). Your early warning: CB depth is deep, but the good ones start moving here.
- R4 — Defensive Tackles. Interior D-line becomes the value play — pair it with the tackles still sliding.
- R5 — Left Tackles again. If you missed protection in Round 2, this is your second (and last good) bite.
Rounds 6–10: The Great Cornerback Run
Buckle up. In our data, cornerback was the single most-drafted position in Rounds 6, 7, 8, 9, AND 10. Five rounds. It is the longest sustained run on any position in the entire draft.
Strategy note — don’t fight the CB wave, time it: Because corner is so deep, you don’t need to reach in Round 6. But you also can’t ignore it until Round 11, or you’ll be picking sixth-string nickel guys. The move: grab your CB1 early in the run (R6–7), then hammer other needs while everyone else fights over corners, and circle back for a CB2 around R9–10 when there’s still starter-quality depth.
Rounds 11–18: Front Seven & the Tight End Pocket
Once the corner run cools, the board turns defensive and beefy:
- R11 — Edge rushers (with a side of halfbacks).
- R12 — Strong safeties & linebackers — the back seven fills in.
- R13 — Tight Ends. If you don’t have a TE yet, this is the pocket. Miss it and you’re streaming replacement-level guys.
- R14–18 — Defensive Tackle city. DT was the top position in five of these rounds. Rotational big men, all day.
Rounds 19–32: Depth, Sleepers & Second Waves
The middle rounds are where good GMs separate. The board recycles through corners (R19–20), a second WR run (R21), linebackers (R22), and a halfback pocket in R23 for anyone who punted on running back early. There’s even a second tight end run in R24 and a monster defensive tackle run in R25 (16 DTs drafted in that round alone across our mocks).
Translation: if you missed a position in the early rounds, the spreadsheet shows you exactly which round the “second wave” hits so you can plan your reach.
Rounds 33+: Fullbacks, Backups & the Special Teams Endgame
The deep rounds are exactly what you’d expect — and knowing this stops you from wasting a pick. Round 33 is a fullback run. The 40s are interior linemen and backup QBs. And the specialists? They come off almost dead last:
- R43 & R45 — Kickers
- R44 — Punters
- R46 — Long snappers
Please, for the love of Sean Payton, do not draft a kicker in Round 20. They’re still sitting there in the 40s. Every round you spend on a specialist early is a starter you handed to the guy next to you.
The One-Glance Round-by-Round Board
Here’s the top position drafted in every round, based on our combined mock data. Tape it to your monitor.
| Round | Top Position Drafted |
|---|---|
| Round 1 | Quarterback |
| Round 2 | Wide Receiver |
| Round 3 | Cornerback |
| Round 4 | Defensive Tackle |
| Round 5 | Left Tackle |
| Round 6 | Cornerback |
| Round 7 | Cornerback |
| Round 8 | Cornerback |
| Round 9 | Cornerback |
| Round 10 | Cornerback |
| Round 11 | Left Edge |
| Round 12 | Strong Safety |
| Round 13 | Tight End |
| Round 14 | Defensive Tackle |
| Round 15 | Defensive Tackle |
| Round 16 | Defensive Tackle |
| Round 17 | Defensive Tackle |
| Round 18 | Defensive Tackle |
| Round 19 | Cornerback |
| Round 20 | Cornerback |
| Round 21 | Wide Receiver |
| Round 22 | Weak Linebacker |
| Round 23 | Halfback |
| Round 24 | Tight End |
| Round 25 | Defensive Tackle |
| Round 26 | Defensive Tackle |
| Round 27 | Cornerback |
| Round 28 | Wide Receiver |
| Round 29 | Cornerback |
| Round 30 | Mid Linebacker |
| Round 31 | Strong Safety |
| Round 32 | Strong Safety |
| Round 33 | Fullback |
| Round 43 | Kicker |
| Round 44 | Punter |
| Round 45 | Kicker |
| Note: Rounds not listed follow the same trench/depth themes as their neighbors (interior O-line, edge, and linebacker depth fill the gaps). | |
How to Actually Use This on Draft Night
- Lock your QB in Round 1 or accept you’re building around a game manager.
- Get one blue-chip weapon and one tackle by Round 5. The skill-and-protection tiers cliff fast.
- Ride the corner wave (R6–10) on your schedule, not in a panic. It’s the deepest position in the draft.
- Hit the Tight End pocket in R13 (or the second one in R24) so you’re not streaming replacements.
- Never spend an early pick on a kicker, punter, or long snapper. They’re there in the 40s. Always.
📋 Grab the Full Draft Board (Free)
Every round, every pick, the range each player went across our mocks, and a “who else went here” column so you always have a Plan B on the clock. Same spreadsheet magic we bring to our dynasty tools.
💡 Tip: keep it open on a second screen or your phone while you draft.
That’s the whole game: know the runs, time your picks, and stop letting the clock bully you into a Round 12 punter. Build the board, trust the data, and go win your league.
Now go make some picks, coach!
Data compiled from multiple Madden franchise fantasy draft simulations for commentary and analysis. Madden NFL and all team names, logos, and player likenesses are trademarks of their respective owners. Ripping Sticks is an independent fan project — from spreadsheets to touchdowns.
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