Broncos WR Jerry Jeudy missed two full games and most of three others with injuries last year. But in the other 12, he averaged 7.7 targets, 5.2 catches, 74.7 yards, and 0.5 TDs. His scoring averages in those games would have ranked 13th among WRs in PPR points and 14th in half-PPR. Jeudy also ranked seventh among 80 qualifying WRs in yards per target and 12th in yards per route. He's improved in both of those metrics across each of his first three NFL seasons. Still just 24, Jeudy should still be ascending. And he gets a significant coaching upgrade this season with HC Sean Payton replacing Nathaniel Hackett. If QB Russell Wilson can bounce back from an ugly 2022, Jeudy is primed for a true breakout season.
Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin looks like a value by ADP right now, especially at his WR29 price on Underdog Fantasy. He does sit higher than that in our fantasy football rankings. But he has some issues to overcome. Godwin rebounded from his 2021 ACL tear to finish 18th in PPR points per game at the position last year. That followed a No. 8 finish. But he -- and the rest of the Bucs receivers -- benefited from huge passing volume with Tom Brady. Tampa Bay led the league in pass attempts each of the past two seasons and has ranked among the league leaders throughout Godwin's six seasons. That volume figures to come down with Baker Mayfield or Kyle Trask replacing Brady. Godwin finished each of the past three years ranked 31st or worse in target share among WRs. If that doesn't rebound, he'd feel a volume drop even more. Godwin is also coming off career lows in yards per catch (9.8), yards per target (7.2), and yards per route (1.73). That's no surprise, given the December ACL tear that closed 2021. We're betting on some rebound for Godwin on that front. Though the QB switch could also challenge the WR's efficiency. Godwin looks like a decent bet at modest ADP. Just don't treat him like a lock for big 2023 fantasy points.
Saints TE Foster Moreau announced Monday that his Hodgkins lymphoma is in full remission. Moreau had already been cleared to the point of signing with New Orleans and being expected to take part in training camp. So this merely serves to confirm that he'll be a factor in 2023. And, you know, it's pretty good personal news for the 26-year-old TE. Moreau looks like he could be an issue for TE Juwan Johnson's fantasy upside. See where both sit in our TE rankings.
Giants QB Daniel Jones looks to build off a solid 2022 in Year 2 with HC Brian Daboll. Jones set career-highs in adjusted completion rate (80.1%), passing yards (3,642), and yards per attempt (6.8). The last two figures aren’t particularly impressive, but remember his leading receivers: Darius Slayton, Richie James, Isaiah Hodgins, and Saquon Barkley. While Sterling Shepard and Wan’Dale Robinson are candidates for the PUP list, New York added pass-catching talent in Darren Waller, Parris Campbell, and Round 3 pick Jalin Hyatt. Even modest passing improvements would give Jones a chance to perform as a top-10 fantasy QB. Last year, he ranked fourth among QBs in rushes; second in scrambles.
Chargers WR Mike Williams suffered a high-ankle sprain in Week 7 last year that cost him four games and most of a fifth. Prior to that injury, though, Williams was sitting ninth among WRs in PPR points. He ranked 11th at his position in targets (59), 11th in catches (37), ninth in yards (495), and 10th in TDs (3) from Week 1 to 7. That followed a healthy 2021 season that saw Williams rack up 76 catches, 1,146 yards, and nine TDs in 16 games to finish WR14 in PPR points. He faces additional target competition this year with the arrival of first-round rookie WR Quentin Johnston. But Williams is certainly capable of comfortably beating his recent WR25 ADP. He sits a handful of spots higher in our PPR WR Rankings.
Panthers No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young has been widely lauded for his passing accuracy. But sneaky rushing upside could be key to his fantasy value. If you remove yardage lost on sacks -- which NCAA stats subtract from QB rushing -- Young averaged 6.1 yards per carry in 2021 and then 9.1 per rush last season. He totaled 284 yards and then 313 yards in scrambles in his two starting turns at Alabama, according to Pro Football Focus. Young followed that with a 4.58-second 40 time at his pro day. That would rank 90th-percentile among QB results at the Scouting Combine. Young will likely need to scramble at least a bit more in the NFL than he did at Alabama. He averaged just 2.56 attempts per game there over the past two years. Even the largely immobile crew of Colts QBs -- led by Matt Ryan -- on Frank Reich's last Colts team averaged 2.78 per game. The 280+ yards that Young delivered on scrambles the past two years would have ranked seventh among QBs in rushing yards in the NFL last season. That level of rushing production would boost his fantasy floor and ceiling. Read more about Young's fantasy outlook and see where he sits in our 2023 superflex rankings. The rookie could turn into a value pick in that format.
Former Vikings GM -- and current CBS analyst -- Rick Spielman visited Buccaneers minicamp in June and came away expecting QB Baker Mayfield to be the starter. "Even though they say it's an open competition, the feel that I got, there's no question Baker will be the starting quarterback," Spielman said on a CBS podcast. That's certainly the general assumption and how we have Bucs passers in our QB rankings. But Mayfield would get at least a slight boost as the sure starter. And his current Underdog Fantasy superflex ADP has him at QB32, last among starters. Especially if you combine him with WRs Chris Godwin and/or Mike Evans -- or even RB Rachaad White, who caught 50 passes as a rookie -- there's upside for Mayfield from that starting point. Check out our superflex rankings for more.
Falcons QB Desmond Ridder has teammates fired up about his leadership heading into his second season. “When he talks, you listen,” TE Jonnu Smith told The Athletic. “Having leadership qualities is the most important trait you should have as a quarterback. He has that. He’s been coming in here and working his butt off. I have nothing but great things to say about Desmond.” Those words come from a seventh-year veteran heading into his age-28 season and in his first offseason with the Falcons. Others had similar praise for Ridder, who has not only led on-field work but reportedly been organizing events with teammates away from the field. All of this could mean nothing for his in-game performance. And Taylor Heinicke stands in wait as Ridder insurance. But all signs point to the Falcons hoping that Ridder will be their guy for at least the near future. He’s a fine late shot to take in superflex drafts. Check out his spot in our superflex rankings.
The Athletic's Joe Person highlighted WRs Terrace Marshall and Jonathan Mingo in the "Stock Up" section of a recent article. The Panthers re-made their WR corps this offseason under new HC Frank Reich, trading away D.J. Moore and adding Mingo, Adam Thielen and D.J. Chark to Marshall and Laviska Shenault. It seems like playing time is up for grabs heading to training camp later this month. We'll keep you updated on the situation.
Jim Wyatt of the Titans' official website expects a "big leap" from TE Chig Okonkwo this year. "He's had a solid offseason," Wyatt adds. Okonkwo didn't see quite enough volume to be a real fantasy factor as a rookie last season, turning 46 targets into 32 catches, 450 yards, and three TDs. But he averaged a huge 14.1 yards per catch and shined in underlying metrics like targets per route and yards per route. With very little target competition in Tennessee, Okonkwo has breakout potential in 2023.
Panthers QB Andy Dalton believes he’s still a top-32 QB in the NFL. “I view myself as a starter in this league; I don’t think there are 32 guys better than me,” Dalton told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “But this is the situation I am in, and I understand that. As soon as I don’t think I’m one of the best 32, or a little lower, I’ll be watching football on TV.” Barring a summer face plant from Bryce Young, Dalton will enter September in a backup role.
Patriots TE Mike Gesicki aims to rebound from a down 2022. A change of scenery helps, as Gesicki ran only 354 routes last season — way down from 2021 (539). His targets per route run also sunk, from 22.7% to 15.5% in Year 1 under HC Mike McDaniel. The Pats took a flier on Gesicki, inking the 27-year-old to a 1-year deal worth $4.5 million. He needs QB Mac Jones to bounce back in Year 3. But barring the addition of WR DeAndre Hopkins, Gesicki should hold a role that makes him a fantasy spot-starter. Ideally, he’s your TE3 in best ball leagues.
Titans RB Hassan Haskins has been charged with "aggravated assault by strangulation," according to ESPN's Turron Davenport. Haskins reportedly fought with his girlfriend, who was also arrested. We'll see how this situation plays out. Haskins doesn't look likely to be a fantasy factor even if these charges don't produce any league or team discipline.
Panthers RB Miles Sanders is in a strong situation to provide fantasy value this year. The Panthers gave Sanders the biggest RB contract in free agency by total money ($25 million), guaranteed money ($13 million), and average annual salary ($6.25 million). HC Frank Reich and company want Sanders to be their feature back, and they place a lot of faith in his abilities to shoulder large responsibilities. “Miles is a three-down back, and he can do a little bit of everything," said Reich during OTAs. "He’s explosive, he’s fast, and he has good vision and patience. Really smart. And on third down, when he has to block, he’s a willing blocker.” There isn't a ton of competition behind Sanders, either. Chuba Hubbard logged just 6.3 carries and 0.9 targets per game in 2022 following the Christian McCaffrey trade, and Raheem Blackshear and Spencer Brown combined for 44 touches in last year’s Panthers backfield. We project a major workload for Sanders in 2023, though his ceiling will depend on how many scoring opportunities the Panthers' offense will have with a rookie QB at the helm. See where we have him slated in our current RB rankings.
Titans QB Ryan Tannehill endured a rough 2022. Hurting his right ankle twice led to two stretches of missed games. When on the field, though, he played fine. His 65.2% completion rate remained in line with his career rate (64.3%). His 4.0% TD rate was below league average for starters but matched his 2021 number. His 1.8% TD rate was the second-lowest of his career. And Tannehill ranked a decent 18th in Pro Football Focus passing grade among 43 QBs with 150+ dropbacks. That followed rankings of 10th, seventh and third. Tannehill now heads into his age-35 season with a cap hit near $37 million and almost $19 million in dead cap if Tennessee were to move on. His competition is a second-round rookie (Will Levis) and second-year player who stunk as a rookie (Malik Willis). You can tell by our superflex rankings that we're not expecting a high-impact season from Tannehill. But he finished each of the previous three years among the top 16 QBs in fantasy points per game. Something near that would make Tannehill a nice value in superflex and 2-QB formats.
NFL Network's James Palmer had "multiple people" in the Broncos organization tell him that Tim Patrick is "the best football player in that WR room." That WR room also includes Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton, and second-round rookie Marvin Mims. QB Russell Wilson felt most comfortable throwing to Patrick last offseason, per Palmer. And the belief (hope?) is that Patrick's August torn ACL played a big part in Wilson's ugly 2022 season. Patrick is on track to be ready for Week 1, which is good news for Wilson. But it's tough to see Patrick emerging as a reliable fantasy option barring an injury to Jeudy or Sutton. Patrick is at least worth considering near the end of best-ball drafts.
Chiefs RB Jerick McKinnon ranked fifth among RBs in PPR points (and ninth in non-PPR points) over the final 10 games of last season. He averaged 5.4 targets, 4.3 catches, 39.6 receiving yards, and 0.8 receiving TDs per game during that span -- all top-2 marks among RBs. McKinnon also ranked eighth among 43 qualifying RBs in Pro Football Focus receiving grade and 10th in yards per route run. He's in for some TD regression after scoring on nine of 56 receptions last year. But, with the Chiefs returning the same backfield, McKinnon should again play a big role in the passing game in 2023. He looks like a nice value at his recent RB44 PPR ADP. McKinnon sits a handful of spots higher in our 2023 PPR RB Rankings.
Browns RB Nick Chubb averaged a career-high 17.7 carries per game in 2022. RB coach Stump Mitchell thinks that number may increase this fall. "Well, Nick hasn’t averaged 20 carries any single year in his career," Mitchell said via the Akron Beacon Journal. "If anything, they may increase. Hopefully we'll be a lot more successful in the passing game and we'll be running the ball more in the third or fourth quarter.” Michell also said Chubb will have an “opportunity to catch more passes.” (He even said a 1,000-yard receiving season is within reach, a wild claim.) The veteran tallied 27 catches for 239 yards last season and owns a career-high of 36 catches (2019). Current projections have Chubb pegged for 300 total touches.
Cardinals WR Marquise Brown was, not surprisingly, more productive in games without WR DeAndre Hopkins than with him last year. How much more productive? Brown averaged just 4.3 catches, 39 yards, and 0 TDs in four games with Hopkins. Those numbers spiked to 6.3 catches, 69 yards, and 0.38 TDs in eight games without Hopkins. Brown's 15.5 PPR points per game in those outings would have ranked 14th among WRs for the season. Most importantly, Brown went from 7.5 targets per game on a 19.7% share without Hopkins to 9.6 targets on a 23.8% share without him. Hopkins, of course, was released by Arizona in May. And the team only added WRs Michael Wilson and Zach Pascal this offseason. It sets Brown up for hefty volume in 2023. See exactly where he lands in the 2023 WR Rankings.
Bengals WR Tee Higgins is about as consistent as they come in fantasy football. He's hovered around a 20% target share and a 30% air yards share annually and has recorded three straight 900+ receiving yard seasons since 2020. Higgins has never finished outside the top 20 in Pro Football Focus receiving grade in any season among WRs who received 100+ targets in that span. He'll continue to play second fiddle to teammate Ja'Marr Chase, but Higgins is a reliable WR2 option for fantasy managers with occasional room to boom for more. Should Chase miss any time, Higgins has the upside to be a true WR1 in the Bengals' offense. In four games without Chase in 2022 between Week 8 and Week 13, Higgins ranked 11th overall in PPR (75.1), 9th in PPR points per game (18.8), 16th in target share (26.7%), 3rd in air yards share (46.4%), and 6th in receiving yards per game (92.8) among all WRs. See where we have Higgins in our current WR rankings.
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