The Athletic has released its 2026 fantasy football draft kit, giving readers an updated preseason resource built around rankings, projections, sleepers, breakouts and customizable tools. For fantasy managers trying to get an early handle on the season, it is the kind of one-stop setup that can shape draft prep before the first regular-season game.
At the center of the package is Jake Ciely, who provides the rankings, point projections and customizable cheat sheet tools. The kit is designed to be usable across a range of formats, including dynasty, IDP and customizable scoring setups, which makes it more flexible than a standard cheat sheet.
What the 2026 draft kit includes
The release features a broad set of fantasy resources, including top-100 overall rankings, position-specific rankings and top-50 DE, LB and DB rankings for IDP leagues. It also includes sleepers, breakouts and draft tools that can be adjusted to fit different league settings.
That flexibility matters because fantasy drafts are not all built the same. A manager in a standard redraft league will use the kit differently than someone in dynasty or IDP, but the goal is the same: give users a clearer read on where players fit before draft day arrives.
A resource that will keep growing
The Athletic says the draft kit is not a one-time update. It is expected to expand each week, and often each day, until the first regular-season game. That makes it more of a living draft resource than a static preseason list.
For readers, that means the kit should continue to reflect changing news, camp developments and depth-chart movement throughout the summer. In a season where roles can shift quickly, that kind of ongoing update cycle can be the difference between guessing and drafting with a plan.
There are also already 18 players highlighted as part of the broader offering, giving fantasy managers a starting point for identifying early targets and watching for movement in the rankings. As always, the value is not just in the names themselves, but in how the kit organizes the information into something usable.
In practical terms, The Athletic's 2026 fantasy football draft kit is built to save time and sharpen decisions. Between the rankings, projections and customizable tools, it gives fantasy players a single place to track the biggest preseason questions before the first snap is played.
