Dynasty Rookie Draft Advice: Trey Benson, Malachi Corley, Jermaine Burton (2024 Fantasy Football)

The 2024 NFL Draft has come and gone. While the real NFL draft is over, the fantasy football drafts are just beginning! That’s especially true when it comes to dynasty rookie drafts. NFL Draft landing spots allow us to start to zero in on fantasy football and dynasty rookie draft pick values. Let’s dive into our dynasty rookie draft outlook and advice for a few rookies.

Fantasy Football Rookie Draft Outlook

Here’s what Fitz expects for a few rookies selected during the 2024 NFL Draft.

Jets Draft Malachi Corley

The New York Jets have added to their wide receiver corps, selecting Western Kentucky’s Malachi Corley with the first pick of the third round.

Corley is a catch-and-run specialist. At 5-10, 215-pounds, Corley has the thick build of a running back, and he plays like one. As FantasyPros NFL Draft and college football analyst Thor Nystrom has noted, Corley caught 89 passes behind the line of scrimmage over his last two seasons and led the nation in yardage gained on screen passes both years. It’s easy (maybe too easy) to compare Corley to the 49ers’ Deebo Samuel, since both players do their best work after the catch and can do damage with either elusiveness or power. Corley is extremely tough to bring down.

The 22-year-old Corley needs work on his routes, however. He hasn’t shown the ability to consistently do damage as a downfield receiver, and he had a poor contested catch rate (23.5%) last season.

Corley should fit right in as the Jets’ slot receiver in three-WR sets, with Garrett Wilson and free-agent addition Mike Williams on the outside. Wilson is the Jets’ alpha receiver, and Williams will be a key vertical threat. Corley can be QB Aaron Rodgers’ short-area slot receiver. There might be a limited ceiling with that sort of role, but it could give Corley a decent fantasy floor.

In dynasty, I have Corley ranked WR13 among rookies and WR56 overall. Expect him to be selected somewhere in the vicinity of the late second round of 1QB rookie drafts, or in the mid-third round of superflex drafts.

Corley’s predraft FantasyPros Expert Consensus ranking was WR89 in half-point PPR formats, and he had a predraft Underdog best-ball ADP of WR74. I have Corley ranked WR79 for redraft.

Check out his full dynasty rookie draft profile

Cardinals Draft Trey Benson

The Arizona Cardinals have beefed up their backfield by selecting Florida State RB Trey Benson with the second pick of the third round.

Trey Benson has the best size-speed combination of any running back in this class. At the NFL Scouting Combine, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.39 seconds at 216 pounds, giving him a 98th percentile speed score, according to PlayerProfiler.com.

Over his final two college seasons, Benson ran for 1,896 yards and 23 touchdowns in 26 games, averaging 6.1 yards per carry. He began his college career at Oregon but transferred to FSU after getting only six carries for the Ducks as a redshirt freshman.

Trey Benson is a one-cut runner with admirable footwork. An impressive physical specimen, Benson can be a real problem for defenses when he gets to the second level, with the speed to blow by linebackers and the power to shake off tackle attempts by defensive backs.

Although he wasn’t a prolific pass catcher in college, topping out at 20 receptions for 227 yards last season at Florida State, he has the potential to be a pass-down asset in the NFL. He has good hands, is a willing and able pass blocker, and as FantasyPros college football and NFL Draft analyst Thor Nystrom has noted, Benson showed the ability to adjust to a ball in the air during his college career.

Benson has an upright running style that invites unnecessary punishment and can make him easier to tackle than he should be. Although Benson has the build to be a three-down workhorse, he never filled that role in college, averaging 11.9 carries per game during his two seasons with the Seminoles.

Although Benson stayed healthy in 2022 and 2023, it’s worth noting that he sustained a major knee injury when he was at Oregon, tearing his right ACL, MCL, lateral meniscus, medial meniscus and hamstring.

After taking WR Marvin Harrison Jr. with the fourth overall pick of the draft, the Cardinals elected to add more offensive firepower in the second round with Benson. It’s a logical addition. Their top running back, James Conner, turns 29 the first week of May and has had injury issues in the past. The other running backs on the roster — Michael Carter, Emari Demercado and DeeJay Dallas — are role players. Benson can ease Conner’s burden, and the rookie won’t be asked to shoulder a huge workload right away after getting modest usage at Florida State.

But from a fantasy perspective … not great, Bob. A Conner-Benson platoon limits the value of both, and it’s hard to envision either of them going in the first five rounds in redraft leagues.

Benson’s predraft FantasyPros Expert Consensus Ranking in half-point PPR redraft leagues was RB40, and he had an Underdog best-ball ADP of RB37. I tentatively have Benson ranked RB36, with Conner at RB28.

In dynasty, I have Benson ranked RB3 among rookies, RB31 overall. In 1QB rookie drafts, Benson figures to go somewhere from the late first round to the early part of the second round. In superflex drafts, Benson will probably go in the middle to late second round.

Check out his full dynasty rookie draft profile

Bengals Draft Jermaine Burton

The Cincinnati Bengals have selected Alabama’s Jermaine Burton with the 16th pick of the third round.

Burton led Alabama in receiving yards in each of the last two seasons, with 40 catches for 677 yards and seven touchdowns in 2022, and 39 catches for 798 yards and eight touchdowns in 2023. Over his four-year college career that also included a two-year stint at Georgia, Burton averaged 18.0 yards per catch and scored touchdowns on 17.4% of his receptions.

The 6-0, 196-pound Jermaine Burton ran a 4.45 at the combine and posted a Relative Athletic Score of 9.54. He’s a dangerous downfield threat who had an average depth of target of 20.2 yards last season. His speed and athleticism show up on the field, helping him create separation. Burton also has ultra-reliable hands, with zero drops in 2023 and only four drops in four collegiate seasons.

There are character concerns with Burton, who reportedly wasn’t on the draft boards of several NFL teams. He’s not always consistent with his route-running or his effort. Burton also has a lean build that could hurt him in contested-catch situations at the next level.

Let’s face it: Cincinnati is not an optimal landing spot for a rookie receiver. The Bengals have one of the best wide receivers in the NFL, Ja’Marr Chase. They also have one of the best No. 2 receivers in the league, Tee Higgins. Cincinnati also has an intriguing pair of young receivers in Andrei Iosivas and Charlie Jones. It could be hard for Burton to get on the field as a rookie. But if the Bengals were to trade Tee Higgins, as has been speculated for some time, Burton’s fantasy outlook would brighten.

In dynasty, I have Burton ranked WR14 among rookies and WR60 overall. He’s likely to come off the board in the mid-to-late second round of 1QB rookie drafts, or in the early-to-mid third round of superflex drafts.

Burton’s predraft FantasyPros Expert Consensus ranking was WR113 in half-point PPR formats, and he had a predraft Underdog best-ball ADP of WR91. I consider Burton to be a longer-term play only and have him ranked WR100 for redraft.

Check out his full dynasty rookie draft profile