I’m currently in my first supplemental draft of the 2025 offseason, and I wonder if I’m making a mistake by not going after highly touted freshmen early. Should I be looking more at breakout players who have yet to technically do anything but could easily be an elite option in 2026?
The dynasty format is changing, and we should change with it. So today, I’m taking a look at the first round of my last best ball draft as well as the top 12 quarterbacks taken in that draft to see what kind of draft capital was invested to acquire that player. Let’s dig in.
(Draft and waiver wire results from a 14-team industry dynasty league with participants from Campus2Canton, Fantasy Points, and Burning the Redshirt, among other sites/podcasts).
Darius Taylor, Minnesota, RB
Taylor was selected in the fourth round and was a valuable asset by the second week of his freshman season.
Desmond Reid, Pittsburgh, RB
Reid wasn’t drafted but was picked up on waivers after the draft ended.
Bryson Washington, Baylor, RB
Washington was a mid to late draft pick who was eventually dropped before being picked up on waivers in September of last year.
Dylan Edwards, Kansas State, RB
Edwards was picked in the mid-rounds before heading off to Colorado.
Anthony Hankerson, Oregon State, RB
Hankerson has been around a while but was most recently added in the final rounds of the 2024 offseason supplemental draft. You could have added him for free before this period as well.
Isaac Brown, Louisville, RB
Brown was drafted in the early to mid rounds as a flier option that everyone seemingly liked heading to Louisville.
Makhi Hughes, Oregon, RB
Hughes went undrafted in the 2023 supplemental draft but was added early in the season. If he were available past that draft for some reason, he would have cost you a pretty penny to acquire.
Easton Messer, Florida Atlantic, WR
Over the past few years, Messer was added and dropped mid-season via the waiver wire.
Al-Jay Henderson, Buffalo, RB
Henderson didn’t do much in his career until 2024, but he was taken in the final rounds of the 2022 supplemental draft in this league. Since then, he was added and dropped multiple times before sticking with his team during the 2024 season via waiver wire addition.
Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State, WR
Tyson had an impressive freshman season (2022) for Colorado and was added midseason because of it.
Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State, WR
Finally! Smith was a consensus top-three pick in your 2024 offseason drafts. The only player in consideration over him was DJ Lagway.
Bryson Donelson, Fresno State, RB
Donelson squeaked by the 2024 supplemental draft undrafted but was added in early August via free agency.
Quarterbacks
Arch Manning, Texas – 1.10 in 2023
Cade Klubnik, Clemson – 1.06 in 2022
Micah Alejado, Hawaii – 3.03 in 2024
LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina – 2.14 in 2023
Colton Joseph, Old Dominion – Waiver wire
Caden Veltkamp, FAU – 14.04 in 2022
Demond Williams, Washington – 2.02 in 2024
Parker Navarro, Ohio – Waiver wire
Avery Johnson, Kansas State – 3.14 in 2023
Garrett Nussmeier, LSU – 13.07 in 2021
Haynes King, Georgia Tech – 11.12 in 2021
Owen McCown, UTSA – 9.12 in 2024
Takeaways
If you’re looking to acquire a high-end flex option in future years, it’s not necessarily dependent on where you take them in your supplemental draft. We saw just one player out of 12 be taken in the first round and then third (Isaac Brown), fourth (Darius Taylor), and fifth round (Dylan Edwards) capital as the next most valuable asset drafted.
We often see players break out and win over jobs, thus catapulting them into valuable roles. Who could have seen Makhi Hughes take over the RB1 role at Tulane and then transfer to Oregon? Easton Messer was a name we all knew at Western Kentucky, but it wasn’t until he moved to FAU with his quarterback, Caden Veltkamp, that his projection skyrocketed.
At the quarterback position, we see a much different story. Of the top 12 quarterbacks taken, two were drafted in the first round, two in the second round, and two in the third round. While spending up to get a quarterback does provide you with a potential future star at the position, this position also gives us busts all over the place. Just look at the 2023 class of quarterbacks and you’ll see that while the upside is there to take a quarterback early, it’s not a given that you’ll get paid off with a star.
Bust rates are high across the board in CFF supplemental drafts. The dynasty world is changing thanks to the transfer portal and NIL. Remember when we would draft Baylor and Washington State players and profit no matter their recruiting pedigree?
We’re not playing the same dynasty game as we did years ago. It’s probably time to consider veterans we know are in more solidified roles and then target freshmen later in drafts that could emerge in the right situation. Then use the waiver wire in the middle of the season to nab any star that flew under the radar during the offseason.
One thing I do know is that by the time we feel comfortable with dynasty strategy, it will all change. But hey, the challenge is the fun of it!
