The official fantasy football is here!
While many fantasy drafts are already underway, the biggest draft weekend of the year is right around the corner. Regardless of your roster or league rules, it’s time to pay closer attention to players whose roles are clearly defined.
It’s that time of year when NFL teams are making serious roster decisions. Players are put on (and often remain) physically unable to perform (PUP) and non-football injured (NFI) lists. Players who are released or traded in the cut-down deadline, which opens up a clearer path to touch for others.
Beyond these moves, sometimes the public just ends up seeing players that they previously lacked. Regardless of the reason, you can get some great value in fantasy drafts if you stay on top of the news. That’s why, in this article, I’m going to highlight a few players who have moved up in my rankings as we approach the start of the season.
This isn’t a complete and definitive list, but it’s a good starting point when you’re looking for values ​​to go into your draft. Let’s get to it!
Rashee Rice, WR, Kansas City Chiefs
Rice was involved in a serious traffic accident earlier this year. The legal process is ongoing and once completed, the NFL will conduct its own investigation. They are not suspended at this time, but could change at any time.
Barring a suspension, Rice should still have plenty of games as the WR1 in a high-scoring Chiefs offense. Last season, Rice finished as the WR27, but that only tells part of the story. From Weeks 12-17, Rice ranked WR4 in fantasy points due to a surge in targets. During that span, he had a 27.8% target share, ranking sixth in targets, fourth in receiving yards and second in receptions. He was the preferred target for Patrick Mahomes in the offense, even above Travis Kelce.
If Rice didn’t have a legal situation going on, he would be drafted as a top 15 to 20 wide receiver. However, as of this writing, his ADP is only the 33rd WR taken off the board, at the end of the 9th round. That’s really low because of his talent and production as a new person. If you want Rice (my WR24) you need to grab him in the 5th or 6th Round, before one of your managers decides to strike.
Chuba Hubbard, RB, Carolina Panthers
The Panthers drafted RB Jonathon Brooks as the future of the backfield, but he started the season on the NFI list after suffering a torn ACL during his senior year at Texas. That means he will be out for at least the first four weeks of the season, with the potential to miss more time after that.
Don’t assume that the rookie, who still hasn’t practiced with Carolina since being drafted in April, will be right back at the top after the required four weeks of absence. The perfect injury analyst, Stephania Bell, has made it very clear that “return to play” is not the same as “return to performance” – and, in this case, we are talking about a rookie who has not yet touched. training ground with his new team. Brooks still needs to ramp up to a full-time workload while digesting everything the NFL throws at him. And he had to do it in the middle of the season for the worst team in football.
Last season, Hubbard took over the starting RB role in Week 6 and didn’t let go of the gig for the rest of the season. They are not very efficient, but given a constant volume dose. As a starter, Hubbard ranked fifth in the NFL in touchdowns and 14th in scrimmage yards. Sure, it’s tough for him to be uber-efficient in such a low-quality offense (led by a struggling rookie QB), but he’s still able to put in good weeks as a starter, averaging 12.6 fantasy carries. Points per game over that stretch.
Hubbard will get a lot of runs as the starting RB in this offense. He went off the board as RB45 (in the 16th round), six full rounds after Brooks. They are truly “free”. Scoop up as the start of the last round of bye-week needs.
Jerome Ford, RB, Cleveland Browns
Similar to the situation of the Panthers I just mentioned, Ford came from the board full round after Nick Chubb, who started the season on the PUP list after suffering a brutal knee injury last year. If you’ve been listening to Fantasy Focus this year, you’ve heard Stephania Bell talk about her concerns with Chubb coming back and playing like “the Nick Chubb we know and love.”
Look, there’s no way to know how quickly he’ll progress through rehab and get back to game form. Unfortunately, due to the nature of his injuries, I’m going to pass on Chubb entirely and target Ford as another late round RB to put on my bench.
I’m not projecting him as a starter, especially since he’ll be out of place in the 13th round, but I’m projecting him as a weekly filler who should have a good floor if asked to carry an RB2 or flex spot. He hasn’t always been exciting, but after averaging 12.4 FPPG as a starter, Ford has moved up the ranks and is now RB33.
Terry McLaurin, WR, Washington Commanders
A little trivia question: Can you name all the failed starting quarterbacks that McLaurin had to deal with during his tenure in Washington? Well, I can’t either. How evil he is!
In 2024, they will have their No. 2 draft pick, Jayden Daniels, under center and McLaurin is clearly the most talented pass catcher in Washington’s offense. Jahan Dotson is now in Philadelphia and Luke McCaffrey, Olamide Zaccheaus or Dyami Brown project to be the WR2 here.
Only three teams have a lower projected win total (6.5, per ESPN BET) than the Chiefs. This is a team that will “play from behind” more often than not, so it’s finally time to see what McLaurin can do with a real quarterback. I recently moved up to the top 30 wide receivers (the highest among ESPN rankers) and, since he came off the board at the end of the 9th round as WR4, I bought the value of this season.
Malik Nabers, WR, New York Giants
I’ve gone back and forth all offseason about how high to rank Nabers. After estimating, re-estimating and triple-checking the Giants’ roster, I don’t see how Nabers isn’t one of the top picks in fantasy football this season.
Other options for New York include Wan’Dale Robinson, Darius Slayton and Jalin Hyatt, just to name a few. There isn’t much target competition behind Nabers and his skill set. It would be surprising to see him average 10 goals per game, but 8.5 is certainly not out of the question.
He will have a big few weeks in his rookie season as the top skill position player for the Giants. I have moved him all the way up to WR15 (again, the highest among the ESPN rankers) and I would be happy to take a new exciting young man as a low-end WR2 / flexible high-end for the fantasy squad.