Which Fantasy Players Benefited the Most From the First Round of the NFL Draft?
Ohio State WR Marvin Harrison Jr. is the best player in dynasty drafts and a top-12 WR in redraft as he joins the Arizona Cardinals, a team with a capable QB in Kyler Murray who supported productive fantasy seasons for DeAndre Hopkins and Marquise “Hollywood” Brown. Harrison, the son of the former Colts WR, is the most talented player in the draft from a position-neutral perspective.
The Los Angeles Chargers opted to take the number one offensive tackle in the draft, Joe Alt, instead of the number two WR. Chargers QB Justin Herbert had been getting punished in the past two seasons. In both of his past two seasons, he suffered serious injuries. A better offensive line should help there, but the Chargers will need to take a WR in the second and/or third round, as they lost both of their starting WRs this offseason. Luckily, there are still a lot of talented WRs left on the board.
Washington QB Michael Penix Jr. would be a great streaming option in fantasy football (most likely in redraft) if Kirk Cousins gets injured. He’d take over an offense with Drake London, Kyle Pitts, and Bijan Robinson—and he has the arm and the talent to produce. In dynasty, he could be a good late-round QB of the future for teams with veteran QBs.
It’s disappointing to see LSU WR Malik Nabers being wasted on the New York Giants. Giants WRs have not produced on a team with Daniel Jones at QB and a bad offensive line in front of Jones. None of the previous Giants’ rookie WRs were as good as Odunze, a guy who had been called by some as the “1b” to Harrison. But it’s still not an ideal situation, especially with the Giants possibly drafting a rookie QB next season, which could mean more years of QB purgatory.
Washington WR Rome Odunze on the Bears is not a great fit, either. The Bears drafted QB Caleb Williams at No. 1. But Williams had an underwhelming senior season at USC compared to how much he was hyped. He was called a “generational” talent and compared to (a lesser version of) Patrick Mahomes primarily because he ran around behind the pocket all the time, regardless of whether he was being pressured (which is not what Mahomes does). It seems like his play style won’t translate to the NFL. He’ll take a lot of unnecessary sacks. If he does learn to play in the NFL, it might take a year or two, which would delay Odunze’s production. But, given how long a career a top WR like Odunze or Nabers could have, the initial questionable situations shouldn’t prevent you from drafting them early in dynasty rookie drafts.
Texas WR Xavier Worthy has the best opportunity, having been drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs WR room was terrible last season. Kadarius Toney and Skyy Moore were complete disappointments. Their best WR, rookie Rashee Rice, will most likely miss at least a couple of games—and possibly much longer, depending on how the criminal case against him on charges stemming from his reckless street race that caused a multi-injury crash. TE Travis Kelce is slowing down and retiring in a couple of seasons. Worthy has a good opportunity if he can take it. He displayed elite speed and testing athleticism at the Combine, but he is undersized and had mediocre production at Texas.
Get A Jump on the Competition This Fantasy Football Season! Buy Mitch’s Offseason Review
Pro football free agency is underway in 2024, and there are many moves to jump into. Now in its seventh edition (including an analysis of the Texans WR room after the Stefon Diggs trade!), 2024 NFL Fantasy Football Free Agency Review includes an analysis of running backs, wide receivers, and quarterbacks to change teams and who to target for the 2024 fantasy football season.
Buy for $3.99 and read on Kindle, or read for free if you are a Kindle Unlimited member.