On Friday’s episode of Mad Money, host Jim Cramer used the kickoff of fantasy football season to lay out his version of a “fantasy stock football draft.”
“With the football fantasy season officially kicking off last night… That means it’s time for our Mad Money fantasy stock football draft… I just think it’s a great way to educate you. Building a great portfolio has a lot in common with building a great fantasy football team.”
READ ALSO: Jim Cramer Shared Insights on These 14 Stocks and Jim Cramer Shed Light on These 10 Stocks Recently.
Starting with the quarterback, Cramer said the position is about consistency. In fantasy football, teams usually have just one quarterback, so that player must perform reliably every week. For this role, he named the iPhone maker. He then moved on to running backs, which he described as the workhorses of a fantasy team. For wide receivers, he said, these are about growth. He noted that every season, fantasy football fans look for wide receivers who can break out and deliver big numbers.
Cramer also addressed the tight end position, which he described as a hybrid role that combines some offense with defense. In football, tight ends block but also catch passes. In the portfolio context, he said this is where you want a stock that offers some level of protection but still has room to grow. He also talked about the flex position, a slot in fantasy football that can be filled by a running back, wide receiver, or tight end. The goal in that position is simple: get as many points as possible.
“Bottom line: That’s your full fantasy stock football portfolio. Just like in fantasy, you need to fill every position with the best that you can get. Play your studs.”
Our Methodology
For this article, we compiled a list of 10 stocks that were discussed by Jim Cramer during the episode of Mad Money aired on September 5. We listed the stocks in the order that Cramer mentioned them. We also provided hedge fund sentiment for each stock as of the second quarter of 2025, which was taken from Insider Monkey’s database of over 900 hedge funds.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
Jim Cramer Picked 10 Stocks For His Fantasy Stock Portfolio
10. CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 71
CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) is one of the stocks Jim Cramer picked for his fantasy stock portfolio. Cramer said that he sees strength in the company under Joe Hinrichs, as he remarked:
“Finally, let’s round out our team with a kicker. This time, I’m taking a trendy pick, the Jacksonville Jaguars kicker Cam Little… How about CSX, the railroad company? I’m not saying this because CSX is based in Jacksonville, but because the company’s widely considered to be in play. The merger-friendly Trump administration looks ready to approve transcontinental railroad deals.
Union Pacific, already trying to buy Norfolk Southern. And now many speculate that CSX could be doing the same thing with Canadian Pacific or Berkshire Hathaway’s Burlington Northern. Now, we know there’s an activist shareholder pushing for some kind of deal, which would be like a 70-yard field goal as far as I’m concerned, for CSX shareholders. To be sure, I like CSX because I think Joe Hinrichs is running a great railroad, alright? Anything take-over related, icing on the cake.”
CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) provides rail-based freight and intermodal transportation, moving goods such as chemicals, agricultural products, coal, and manufactured items.
9. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 95
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) is one of the stocks Jim Cramer picked for his fantasy stock portfolio. Cramer made some positive comments about the company, as he commented:
“JNJ’s up roughly 23% year to date. I couldn’t believe it, I saw it was like 180. It was amazing. Weak action throughout most of the healthcare, not affecting these people. Their core pharma business is roaring. Terrific oncology franchise, medical devices really strong now. That’s why JNJ keeps putting up good numbers, and they don’t have that lawsuit as much as, it used to be front and center. Not anymore. Now both the Eagles and JNJ do come with some risks… JNJ, the company’s still not quite clear of all the talc litigation headaches. But at the end of the day, I expect the overall quality of both franchises to win out.”
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) develops and markets pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and vision care products. The company’s solutions include therapeutic treatments, surgical technologies, and eye health solutions.
Hedge Fund Resource Center