Comparing ADP Across Platforms to Find Value (Fantasy Football)

The modern world of fantasy football provides many different platforms on which we can play. Every platform caters to different groups of people, and there are often many discrepancies in rankings. This article will take a closer look at three of the most popular platforms: Sleeper, ESPN, and Yahoo. We will dive into the major, general differences in these platforms and their rankings, and then pick out a few players for each platform that you can capitalize on.

Make sure to check out the ADP Comparison Tool as part of the Ultimate Draft Kit in order to see an organized breakdown of each player’s ADP amongst different platforms.

Sleeper

Sleeper is my personal favorite, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking to move platforms. Being a relatively new platform, Sleeper is naturally home to a lot of the newer draft strategies and ideologies. One of the best examples of this is the “Zero RB” draft strategy. In short, the strategy revolves around prioritizing wide receivers, tight ends, and quarterbacks ahead of running backs in the first five to eight rounds and finally drafting running backs later on. Check out this great article by Matt DiSorbo for a more in-depth breakdown of the strategy. When a lot of people are drafting wide receivers early, running backs can fall heavily. This is where you can strike on Sleeper!

This data visualization shows the average ESPN/Yahoo ADP on the x-axis versus Sleeper ADP on the y-axis for 2024 running backs. The higher a player is above the red line, the more undervalued they are on Sleeper.

Derrick Henry is currently being drafted at 3.02, which is a full round later than where he’s going on ESPN and Yahoo. As one of the best pure rushers in the game on the best team offense of his career, 3.02 is a great value for Henry.

Another noteworthy name is Isiah Pacheco, who is also going a full round later on Sleeper. The Ballers expect Pacheco to pick up where he left off, as they stated in their AFC West Divisional podcast episode. Without Jerick McKinnon in the backfield anymore, Pacheco could even see some added work in the passing game. Drafting the lead running back on one of the best offenses in football is a steal in the middle of the third round.

Some other names going much later on Sleeper include Joe Mixon, Alvin Kamara, David Montgomery, Rhamondre Stevenson, Raheem Mostert, Zamir White, Jaylen Warren, and Brian Robinson Jr.

ESPN

The Sleeper running back favoritism is a double-edged sword that you can take advantage of on other platforms as well. On ESPN, many middle-to-late-round wide receivers fall due to the heavy number of running backs taken early on.

Some of the earlier values include Drake London, Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel, Jaylen Waddle, and DJ Moore. All of these players are going at least one round later on ESPN than on Sleeper or Yahoo.

The biggest middle-round values are Amari Cooper, Terry McLaurin, Christian Kirk, Jayden Reed, Marquise Brown, and Rome Odunze. Each of these players is going at least one round later on ESPN, and Kirk, Brown, and Odunze are all going at least two rounds later!

Don’t let the injury fool you from 2023. Christian Kirk has TOP 15 WR upside in PPR fantasy football

Clear WR1 for his team in 2024
20%+ target share
Calvin Ridley is no longer on the team
WR12 overall in 22’ averaging 14.2 FPPG – 9 games with 15+ points that SZN pic.twitter.com/jQZSjkWcB0

— PPRFantasyTips (@PPRFantasyTips) July 17, 2024

Finally, some late-round gems are Brian Thomas Jr., Curtis Samuel, Jakobi Meyers, Romeo Doubs, Khalil Shakir, Brandin Cooks, and Joshua Palmer. Khalil Shakir and Joshua Palmer have been two of my favorite draft picks in the later rounds of best ball drafts all summer due to their rare combination of talent, quarterback aptitude, and opportunity; if you’re drafting on ESPN, you can get both of these guys three rounds later than on Sleeper or Yahoo.

As the only WR of the presumptive main 3, he’s the only one with extensive rapport with Herbert.
While it’s not good for any receivers individually, it separates him from the rest of the pack. Ladd and QJ have much more work to do in terms of establishing a connection with Herb

— Jack Reinhart (@JackJReinhart) August 1, 2024

Yahoo

For whatever reason, it seems as if Yahoo drafters are stuck in the pre-2000s NFL, where tight ends were no more than extra offensive linemen. This makes sense, however, as Yahoo is one of the oldest fantasy platforms still around. Because the platform costs money to keep leagues going each year, it can be assumed that they cater to an older crowd that is more acclimated to the app.

This graph compares Yahoo fantasy tight end ADP data to that of Sleeper and ESPN. There are plenty of great values here, but none bigger than Raiders rookie Brock Bowers, who is going 50(!) picks later on Yahoo than on Sleeper. The 11/12 turn is an incredible value for Bowers, who has an outside chance at finishing as the TE1 overall, per Joe Beldner (@JoeBeldner).

Another value I really like is Dalton Kincaid, who is entering his sophomore season as the potential number-one target for Josh Allen and the Bills. Thanks to the Bills vacating more than 300 targets, Dalton Kincaid will have the opportunity to become one of the elite tight ends in football in 2024, per Aaron Larson (@aalarson).

Some of the many other great tight end values on Yahoo include Mark Andrews, Kyle Pitts, Evan Engram, David Njoku, and T.J. Hockenson.

Conclusion

Every fantasy football platform has different player rankings, each with different weak points in which we can take advantage. In tandem with knowing your league-mates and doing your research on players, drafting against the tide of your platform can allow you to walk away from your draft with one of the most well-rounded, valuable rosters in your league.

To find other great values based on different platforms, make sure to purchase your very own Ultimate Draft Kit.  You can use our ADP Comparison Tool, or any of the other tools, including rankings, projections, and analysis!