Analyst Flags 4 Early-Round Fantasy Busts, Led by McCaffrey and Barkley

1 articles · Updated · Yahoo Sports · Aug 31

Christian McCaffrey, Saquon Barkley, Kyren Williams and Rashee Rice were tagged as the worst picks in the first four rounds of 2026 fantasy football drafts.
35.2% of running backs and 45.8% of wide receivers drafted in Rounds 1-4 from 2021-2025 failed to return value, with the analyst focusing on healthy players who still missed tier-based expectations.
McCaffrey and Barkley drew the strongest warnings because declining rushing efficiency and offensive-line concerns could leave expensive workloads producing only middling RB1 results.
Williams was flagged as Blake Corum's role grows and the Rams throw more in the red zone, while Rice's shallow 4.3 aDOT role in Kansas City's scheme limits his upside outside reception-heavy formats.