AJ Barner or Keaton Mitchell: who to draft first

What the sportsbooks price

The player markets price AJ Barner at 6.2 PPR points a game, built from 3 markets across 15 books. That is the 158th highest figure of the 182 players the books price.

The player markets price Keaton Mitchell at 6.0 PPR points a game, built from 4 markets across 14 books. That is the 161st highest figure of the 182 players the books price.

Where the draft room stands

Drafters have formed no consensus on AJ Barner: he carries no ADP, and the board ranks him 141st overall on the rest of his evidence.

Drafters have formed no consensus on Keaton Mitchell: he carries no ADP, and the board ranks him 142nd overall on the rest of his evidence.

In 2QB drafts he goes at ADP 170.

This season through Week 1

Through Week 1, AJ Barner has been on the field for 88 percent of SEA snaps, drawn 8 percent of the targets and had 0 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 0 of the offence's 7 third down targets and seen 1 of its 3 two minute targets.

His 2 targets have come 0.5 yards behind the line of scrimmage on average.

In Week 1 against NE he caught 2 of 2 targets for 13 yards and did not score.

Through Week 1, Keaton Mitchell has been on the field for 31 percent of LAC snaps, taken 19 percent of the carries, drawn 0 percent of the targets and had 20 percent of the red zone chances.

He has taken 0 of the offence's 6 third down targets and seen 0 of its 1 two minute target.

In Week 1 against ARI he carried 4 times for 9 yards and did not score.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025 AJ Barner played 17 games and scored 147.3 PPR points, 8.7 a game, finishing TE14.

He caught 52 of 68 targets for 519 yards and 6 touchdowns, with 12 red zone targets.

That came to 4.0 targets a game, a 76 percent catch rate and 10.0 yards a catch.

He was on the field for 78 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

In 2025 Keaton Mitchell played 13 games and scored 55.4 PPR points, 4.3 a game, finishing RB67.

He carried 59 times for 341 yards and 1 touchdown, and caught 9 of 12 targets for 63 more yards.

That came to 4.5 carries a game at 5.8 yards a carry and 0.7 catches a game.

He was on the field for 17 percent of the snaps in the games he played.

AJ Barner was available for 4 games more.

Side by side

In 2025 AJ Barner scored 8.7 PPR points a game and Keaton Mitchell 4.3, 4.4 a game between them.

AJ Barner finished TE14 and Keaton Mitchell RB67, which are two different ladders.

AJ Barner is a tight end and Keaton Mitchell a running back, so the question is which slot you fill first rather than which of them is better.

Byes and availability

AJ Barner is off in Week 11 and Keaton Mitchell in Week 7, so either can cover the other's bye.

What would change the answer

0.2 points a game is the entire case. The books restate it every week, and a line that moves moves the order with it.

The draft market is the half that is missing: when the consensus sample holds these two again it can order them differently from the price, and this page will follow the sample rather than the books when it does.