I’ve always said that there are two things that make a fantasy football superstar: talent and opportunity.
If a player has the necessary talent, they can become fantasy football superstars if they’re given the workload. This may look like the majority of the team’s targets for a wide receiver or the majority of a teams carry count for a running back, etc.
Inversely, some players in the NFL have incredible talent, but are stuck down a depth chart, which prohibits their ability to receive the necessary opportunity to break out.
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In the NFL pre-draft process, it’s our job to scout these players to determine their talent level. Based on my grading scale, I’m able to break down these players in an effort to understand them and determine what they bring to the table. This is the first part of the process that has resulted in mock drafts, big boards, etc. The second part is determining their opportunity, which comes after the NFL Draft when we know landing spots.
Where these players land is going to shift things around greatly from a Dynasty perspective. There will be time to determine the opportunity portion of the evaluation, but right now we still need to evaluate where these players land from a talent level.
Before the NFL Draft hits, it’s a perfect time to do a four-round Dynasty mock draft to determine where these players are going now. For context, the settings are 1QB and 12 teams.
(This order is a cross between my rankings and Dynasty League Football’s Rookie ADP)
Round One
1.01 – Jonathan Taylor (RB – Wisconsin)
Jonathan Taylor is an extremely polished prospect that has proven he can handle a large workload. He’s the perfect speed/size combination and will be an instant impact player for fantasy football right out of the gates.
Click here to view our rookie profile on Jonathan Taylor.
1.02 – Jerry Jeudy (WR – Alabama)
Some leagues are going to have CeeDee Lamb here as the first WR off the board. With that being said, each league is different and it’s important to play out different scenarios. Jerry Jeudy is an incredibly smooth route-runner, he creates separation at all levels of the field, and he has some of the best release off the line of scrimmage that you’ll see in a college WR. He’s my number one prospect for Dynasty and he goes off the board here at No. 2 overall.
1.03 – D’Andre Swift (RB – Georgia)
D’Andre Swift’s a well-balanced RB prospect that can do a little bit of everything. He’s able to run with power, but yet is so smooth out in the open field. He’s elusive and has fantastic hands in the receiving game. Swift will be a top-tier player for fantasy football right out of the gates.
Click here to view our rookie profile on D’Andre Swift.
1.04 – CeeDee Lamb (WR – Oklahoma)
CeeDee Lamb is beloved by the Dynasty community, so there’s a strong possibility he could go No. 1 overall in your Dynasty rookie drafts. He has the best hands in the entire class, he is incredible at tracking the ball deep downfield, and has the ability to go up and bring in nearly any catch. He’ll be a star in the NFL for a long time and is a great addition here at No. 4 overall.
Click here to view our rookie profile on CeeDee Lamb.
1.05 – JK Dobbins (RB – Ohio State)
JK Dobbins wasn’t able to run at the Combine and his Pro Day was unfortunately cancelled, so we do not have athletic testing numbers for him. However, there’s no reason to doubt Dobbins’ top-tier athleticism. He was an insane athlete coming out of high school and that showed up week in and week out in college. Dobbins is insanely talented and he’s going to make some NFL team very happy for a long time.
Click here to view our rookie profile on JK Dobbins.
1.06 – Clyde Edwards-Helaire (RB – LSU)
Clyde Edwards-Helaire is a Ray Rice clone. He has incredible hands in the passing game and is incredibly elusive in the open field. CEH was asked to run routes consistently out of the backfield, so his pass protection chops aren’t what they need to be for some NFL coaches, but he’ll still be valued highly in the NFL Draft. There may not be a more fun tape evaluation than CEH and watching what he did in the SEC each week.
Click here to view our rookie profile on Clyde Edwards-Helaire.
1.07 – Justin Jefferson (WR – LSU)
Justin Jefferson is one of my favorite prospects in this class. He’s so smooth breaking in and out of routes and he’s going to be a force in the NFL for a long time. It’s crazy that you can be getting a player of Jefferson’s talent level all the way here at No. 7 overall.
1.08 – Cam Akers (RB – Florida State)
Cam Akers is far from a polished prospect, but his upside is fun. He was playing behind a terrible offensive line at Florida State and, because of that, developed some poor tendencies and habits. He’ll need to break those when it’s time to put the pads on, but if he gets them ironed out, he could be the best RB in this entire class.
Click here to view our rookie profile on Cam Akers.
1.09 – Henry Ruggs (WR – Alabama)
Henry Ruggs has been compared to a lot of different players on Twitter recently. People have compared him to Marquise Goodwin, but he’s so much more than that. Ruggs is a good route-runner, tough as nails, and has great hands. His speed has people concerned about him being utilized as just a deep downfield threat, but he can be utilized all over the field. He’s more of a Tyreek Hill type player than anything else…
Click here to view our rookie profile on Henry Ruggs.
1.10 – Jalen Reagor (WR – TCU)
Jalen Reagor can be defined in one word: playmaker. He’s electric with the ball in his hands, but yet can also go up and play “above the rim” for a player of his size. He’s not a super refined route-runner, which means that he needs to be given schemed touches to begin his career, but his upside is tremendous.
Click here to view our rookie profile on Jalen Reagor.
1.11 – Denzel Mims (WR – Baylor)
Denzel Mims has risen up draft boards like nobody’s business this pre-draft process. He dominated the Senior Bowl and then destroyed the NFL Combine with some of his athletic testing. Mims isn’t as polished of a prospect as everyone may think, but he’s still a promising WR with tremendous upside.
Click here to view our rookie profile on Denzel Mims.
1.12 – Joe Burrow (QB – LSU)
Joe Burrow’s one of the best QB prospects we’ve seen coming out since Andrew Luck. He dominated CFB last season and is essentially a lock to go No. 1 overall in the NFL Draft. While he’s a top-tier QB prospect, he doesn’t possess elite rushing upside like Kyler Murray last year that would propel him higher than this draft spot in a 1QB league. For a QB-needy team though, Burrow’s the long-term answer here in the first round.
Round Two
2.01 – Michael Pittman (WR – USC)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Michael Pittman.
2.02 – Tee Higgins (WR – Clemson)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Tee Higgins.
2.03 – Laviska Shenault (WR – Colorado)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Laviska Shenault.
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2.04 – Zack Moss (RB – Utah)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Zack Moss.
2.05 – Tua Tagovailoa (QB – Alabama)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Tua Tagovailoa.
2.06 – AJ Dillon (RB – Boston College)
Click here to view our rookie profile on AJ Dillon.
2.07 – Ke’Shawn Vaughn (RB – Vanderbilt)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Ke’Shawn Vaughn.
2.08 – Brandon Aiyuk (WR – Arizona State)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Brandon Aiyuk.
2.09 – KJ Hamler (WR – Penn State)
Click here to view our rookie profile on KJ Hamler.
2.10 – Bryan Edwards (WR – South Carolina)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Bryan Edwards.
2.11 – Antonio Gibson (RB – Memphis)
2.12 – Antonio Gandy-Golden (WR – Liberty)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Antonio Gandy-Golden.
Round Three
3.01 – Justin Herbert (QB – Oregon)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Justin Herbert.
3.02 – Donovan Peoples-Jones (WR – Michigan)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Donovan Peoples-Jones.
3.03 – Tyler Johnson (WR – Minnesota)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Tyler Johnson.
3.04 – Eno Benjamin (RB – Arizona State)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Eno Benjamin.
3.05 – Cole Kmet (TE – Notre Dame)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Cole Kmet.
3.06 – Jalen Hurts (QB – Oklahoma)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Jalen Hurts.
3.07 – Anthony McFarland (RB – Maryland)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Anthony McFarland.
3.08 – Devin Duvernay (WR – Texas)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Devin Duvernay.
3.09 – Lamical Perine (RB – Florida)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Lamical Perine.
3.10 – Lynn Bowden (WR – Kentucky)
3.11 – Albert Okwuegbunam (TE – Missouri)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Albert Okwuegbunam.
3.12 – Darrynton Evans (RB – Appalachian State)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Darrynton Evans.
Round Four
4.01 – Chase Claypool (WR – Notre Dame)
4.02 – DeeJay Dallas (RB – Miami)
4.03 – Quintez Cephus (WR – Wisconsin)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Quintez Cephus.
4.04 – K.J. Hill (WR – Ohio State)
Click here to view our rookie profile on K.J. Hill.
4.05 – Isaiah Hodgins (WR – Oregon State)
4.06 – James Proche (WR – SMU)
4.07 – Brycen Hopkins (TE – Purdue)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Brycen Hopkins.
4.08 – Hunter Bryant (TE – Washington)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Hunter Bryant.
4.09 – Van Jefferson (WR – Florida)
4.10 – Adam Trautman (TE – Dayton)
4.11 – Gabriel Davis (WR – UCF)
4.12 – Jordan Love (QB – Utah State)
Click here to view our rookie profile on Jordan Love.
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Kyle Yates is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Kyle, check out his archive and follow him @KyleYNFL.
