The 2026 10 Demandments of Fantasy Football

by: God (as told to his humble servant John Holler)

Editor's Note: Below you will find THREE of the TEN Fantasy Demandments for 2026 (they change every year).  If you'd like to read all ten, please click HERE to order our 2026 Pre-Season Draft Guide.

"In the beginning, He that is God created fantasy football. He looked and said it was good."  Genesis 17:52

 

For the past quarter-century, He has chosen those among us that he sees as the proper vessel to convey His message. A couple thousand years ago in a land far, far away, Moses came down from the mountain with the Ten Commandments – a guide of principles that most, but not all, still live by. For reasons I have yet to fully understand, He has selected me to provide his fantasy football Ten Demandments – the same guiding principles imparted to Moses, except for the kingdom of fantasy football.

If you follow these guidelines, He will be pleased because He sends these Demandments to you because He wants to give you the best opportunity to discover the milk and honey of the Promised Land at the end of the season.

 

The First Demandment

 

Thou Shalt Beware of Committing to a Prophet – There is something to be said about having a quarterback that is elite and can almost singlehandedly win three or four weeks for you during the fantasy. However, landing someone like Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson comes with a steep price. Elite running backs and wide receivers dry up quickly. Fantasy talent at quarterback runs deeper than any other position. In a 10-player league, you could be among the last one to take a quarterback and still have the option of pairing up two players like Brock Purdy, Trevor Lawrence, Dak Prescott, Justin Herbert, Patrick Mahomes, Bo Nix and Matthew Stafford – all of whom will be available. Stockpiling talent at running back and wide receiver can pay off if you find two quarterbacks whose schedules marry up well, you can be among the last to take a quarterback but the first who takes two and closes out the position for the remainder of the draft with a clear game plan in place heading into the season.

 

The Fourth Demandment

 

Thou Shalt Avoid the Illuminated Prophets – Almost universally, the top two tight ends on draft boards are Trey McBride and Brock Bowers. Both of them are likely to go before the end of the third round of drafts because of their potential for huge days consistently. However, both the Cardinals and Raiders have among the worst projected offenses in the league. Both teams look to be behind often in games which could lead to a lot of garbage points, but taking either of them in the third round comes at the expense of other positions early in the draft. The thing to consider is would you rather take Bowers in the third round or Tyler Warren in the sixth round? Guys like George Kittle and Travis Kelce will likely still be somebody’s TE2 because of more young talent. Getting two interchangeable tight ends that make the lineup based on matchups. The talent pool at tight end is deep with a mix of established veterans and young up-and-coming talent, which makes using a premium pick at the position doesn’t outweigh the ability to strategically take two tight ends when their talent meets their draft positions several rounds later in the draft.

 

The Eighth Demandment

 

Thou Shalt Work Diligently On the Sabbath – The two most important days in any fantasy season are draft day and the Sunday/Monday when fantasy championships are won and lost. Only two teams make it to the finals and, for the most part, it’s because they were either very good or very lucky on draft day. Part of being very good is being prepared and there are a couple of simple things you can do to give yourself an edge – use bye weeks and the fantasy playoffs to influence your decisions. No leagues are one based on the first three or four rounds. They’re won by choosing the right players in Round 5 and beyond. Before drafting players beyond the first four or five rounds, consideration definitely needs to be given to the bye week of those players. If, for example, someone drafts Drake Maye (bye week in Week 11), that should automatically eliminate Jordan Love, Matthew Stafford, Michael Penix Jr. and Sam Darnold as the No. 2 option. The same holds true with creating a list of the most attractive schedules in Week 15-17 – based both on opponents and potential for brutal weather impacts. Having that knowledge and using it can create a huge advantage.

 

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