Mike Clay's fantasy playbook for 10 league types
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- Mike Clay advises dynasty managers to target 20- to 24-year-old players in startup drafts, accepting short-term losses so the roster peaks in Year 2 or 3 and yields an early rookie pick.
- Clay tells dynasty GMs not to hoard rookie picks, arguing most hyped rookies bust and trading a lottery-ticket pick for an established good player usually wins — as when he dealt Terry McLaurin, Raheem Mostert and two future seconds for Davante Adams ahead of his 2020 title run.
- Clay says rookie drafters routinely overreach for Day 3 running back fliers with clear short-term paths over Day 1-2 wide receivers, despite pedigree being the stronger predictor of long-term fantasy relevance.
- Clay's keeper-league test is ADP: when a young keeper at a 12th-round cost has similar ADP to an established veteran at a second-round cost, keep the young asset and re-draft the veteran at his natural slot.
- Clay argues basic IDP leagues should treat defensive starters as a later-round concern because IDP scoring is shallower than offense and casual managers know offense far better, making IDP values easier to find on waivers.
- Travis Hunter's dual WR/CB eligibility gives him unique IDP value, Clay notes, since he can be slotted into the CB/DB spot and accrue points on both sides of the ball.
- Clay's superflex draft plan is one elite QB, one elite skill player, then patience: wait for the early QB rush to settle before taking a second QB typically ranked in the 8-to-15 tier, with Kyler Murray, Tyler Shough, Daniel Jones, Malik Willis, Cam Ward and Fernando Mendoza on his 2026 upside list.
Why it matters: For fantasy players stuck in standard one-size-fits-all advice, Clay's playbook reframes each format's core tradeoff — youth over veterans in dynasty, pedigree over positional need in rookie drafts, ADP over gut feel in keepers, and QB depth over skill positions in superflex — with each tip grounded in his experience running 12-plus teams and winning a championship. Picking the wrong framework for your specific league type is the difference between a contender and a cellar dweller by midseason.
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