Yahoo Changed Their Rankings: Here’s What You Need to Know
Last week we did an analysis of the top draft values according to Yahoo X Rank but they have since changed their rankings. Luckily all of the values we highlighted still exist but there has been some significant movement of player ranks across all areas of the draft.
The chart below shows some of the top risers and fallers based on Yahoo’s newest X rank along with some of our own data we’ve gathered. The FFH ADP column shows our ADP data from 25+ 12-Team PPR leagues across numerous redraft platforms (from July – current day). The FFH 7 Day column highlights the ADP from the latest three drafts we’ve completed this week (August 22-24).
Yahoo X Rank: Top Risers and Fallers
Yahoo X Rank Top Risers
Every player in this section has jumped at least eight spots from the latest rankings update; this is more than half a round which is quite significant. Some players have jumped 2-3 rounds higher which will certainly alter your draft plans if you’d like to roster these players. Here are some notes:
- Amon-Ra St. Brown has moved from a mid 6th round pick to a mid 5th round pick. Our seven day draft data is directly in-line with Yahoo’s ranking update.
- Clyde Edwards-Helaire is perhaps seeing a jump in the rankings due to Ronald Jones being a potential cut candidate. Yahoo has moved up his ranking more than a full round but our recent data shows drafters don’t consider him a late 5th round pick just yet, instead opting to draft him in the late 6th.
- Brandon Aiyuk has reportedly been the star of 49ers camp. This could be why Yahoo has increased his X Rank 13 spots. Our data shows drafters are taking him eight spots earlier than they were in July or early August, but still nowhere close to Yahoo’s new ranking of 73.
- Dameon Pierce seems to have earned the first shot as the Texans RB1, making him Yahoo’s largest riser, jumping 38 spots! Our data does not show Pierce being drafted as high as his newest X rank of 82, but it does show that he’s being drafted 21 spots earlier than he was in July and early August.
- Brian Robinson is another rookie running back having a terrific pre-season, potentially earning himself some early down work and/or goal line duties for the Commanders. His Yahoo X rank has jumped more than two rounds, which is right in line with our data. Yahoo’s new ranking is 121 and our 7 Day ADP has Robinson at 117.
Yahoo X Rank Top Fallers
The movement in this section is not as significant as the risers but there are some surprising new ranks which Yahoo drafters definitely need to take advantage of:
- David Montgomery has fallen seven spots which is quite a lot of movement for 3rd/4th round pick. Coincidentally our FFH ADP vs 7 Day ADP also shows a drop of seven spots. We feel this is a much more appropriate spot for Montgomery as his previous ADP seemed too costly.
- One of the most egregious ranks across any platform has to be Marquise Brown’s Yahoo X rank of 79. His previous X rank of 64 was already a huge bargain, but for some odd reason Yahoo decided to drop his value 15 more spots. In our latest drafts, the managers were smart and didn’t let him fall to pick 70+ but if for some reason he falls this late in your draft, there is no excuse not to draft him.
- Like Marquise Brown, Amari Cooper has also fallen 15 spots in Yahoo’s ranks. We can attribute this to Deshaun Watson’s recent 11 game suspension, however even with Jacoby Brissett (or someone else), this ranking seems far too low. He is still the clear #1 target in the passing game and could be a league winner for the final 7 weeks of the season once Watson returns.
- We mentioned in our previous ADP analysis that the late round strategy for Yahoo PPR leagues was to draft as many rookie WRs as possible as they are not ranked properly. Yahoo took it one step further and has pushed down numerous rookie WRs, further burying their X rank in draft rooms. There is really no excuse for Garrett Wilson to be ranked outside the top 125, let alone the top 175, and while Skyy Moore and Treylon Burks have had a underwhelming pre-season thus far, they are still worth a roster spot.
- Rookie WRs are worth stashing on your roster. They might start out slow but it’s becoming more common for these players to produce top 24 or even top 12 numbers in the 2nd half of the season. Since 2006, 25 rookie WRs have produced at least 14 PPR PPG in the 2nd half of the season with eight of those instances coming in the past three years. This year’s rookie WRs like Burks, Moore, and Wilson have high draft capital and solid prospect profiles. They are massive values after round 10.
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