There was a point when it felt like an outright necessity to give a draft class three years before determining whether or not those players hit. Things have changed to a degree, as we’ve seen an influx of young players entering the NFL and making an immediate impact on their respective teams.

Taking a look back at the 2023 NFL Draft shows us a bit of a mixture: Some players entered the NFL and took the league by storm, while others might have gotten off to a slower start, but now look primed to make an impact for your fantasy rosters.

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Dynasty Draft Advice: Third-Year Players

Quarterbacks

The 2023 NFL Draft was star-studded, with quarterback prospects at the top. Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud and Anthony Richardson were all selected in the top four picks of that draft. Each currently has a different story.

Stroud set the world on fire in 2023, throwing for 4,108 yards, 23 touchdowns and only five interceptions. He vaulted toward the top of dynasty quarterback rankings but is coming off somewhat of a sophomore slump in 2024 where he finished as the QB18. The truth is somewhere, and likely always has been, in the middle. It’s tough to trust him as a clear top-five option at the position due to the level of dual-threat talent available in the elite quarterback tier, but he’s a locked and loaded QB1 and can comfortably be treated as such.

Bryce Young and Anthony Richardson have both seen different levels of adversity. Young’s play disappointed early in 2024 and he was sent to the bench. It seemed like the type of situation that would be impossible for him to recover from. Speculation ran rampant he played his last down for the Panthers.

The Panthers signal-caller turned things around in a big way after returning from the bench. From Week 10 to Week 18, Young was the QB10 and averaged 20 fantasy points per game. You don’t want to necessarily trust Young as your QB1 in dynasty, but there’s a chance he can now be had at a value in Superflex drafts. If you’re able to roster him as your QB3, you’re in great shape. I’d trust him as a QB2 moving forward.

Anthony Richardson, at his best, is a true game-changing fantasy option. The problem is that fantasy success is not indicative of him playing quarterback at a high level, and it seems likely he’ll face more competition entering the 2025 season. The ceiling for Richardson — thanks to his big-play ability as a passer and runner — is astronomical, but the floor is abysmally low due to his errant accuracy and inconsistencies as a passer. It’s tough to trust Richardson as more than a high-upside flier at this point, but if he does turn it around, you could be rewarded handsomely thanks to his immense upside.

In Tennessee, the hold that Will Levis has on his starting quarterback job feels tenuous, at best. It would not be a shock if the Titans opt to replace him with their first overall selection in the 2025 NFL Draft.

Running Backs

The 2023 NFL Draft was very kind to fantasy managers when it comes to the running back position.

Jahmyr Gibbs, Bijan Robinson, De’Von Achane and Chase Brown all finished as top-10 options at the position in PPR formats in 2024. Of those four — Gibbs, Robinson and Achane are locked and loaded RB1s moving forward thanks in part to their ability to contribute in the receiving game. There’s an argument to be made that all three are top-five options at running back in dynasty formats.

The same could be said about Chase Brown as well, but his situation feels like the one most likely to be impacted by another addition to the Bengals’ running back room in 2025.

If the Bengals do add another running back, it may cap Brown’s ceiling a little. He’s still an explosive and efficient player, however, who will be able to make the most of his touches. The reality of the situation is nearly all running backs (outside of an elite few) find themselves in some variation of a committee. The Bengals may look to add a running mate for Brown to keep him fresh. Still, Brown should be treated as a high-end RB2 with RB1 upside.

Zach Charbonnet has impressed when given the opportunity, but with Kenneth Walker ahead of him, it’s tough to trust him as more than an RB3 currently. The caveat is that if Walker misses time, it’s easy to trust Charbonnet as a high-end RB2 with RB1 upside.

Tank Bigsby turned in a solid second season, rushing for over 700 yards and averaging over 4.5 yards per attempt. It’s fair to wonder if he’s supplanted Travis Etienne as the top option there, but until we see how new head coach Liam Coen plans to utilize his running backs, it’s tough to trust either player as more than an RB3.

Tyjae Spears was banged up in 2024 but didn’t flash as much as we hoped playing behind Tony Pollard. He’s best treated as a depth option moving forward. The same could be said for Kendre Miller, who seems to get a groundswell of hype every offseason, but I’m not trusting him as more than a bench flier.

Wide Receivers

We saw four wide receivers come off the board in round one of the 2023 NFL Draft, and they all came in consecutive picks — Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Quentin Johnston, Zay Flowers and Jordan Addison. We also saw Puka Nacua come off the board in round five and immediately set the league on fire.

Nacua battled injuries in his 2024 season, but he’s a truly elite option at the wide receiver position. When you look at wide receivers ranked by fantasy points per game in PPR formats in 2024, only one player was higher than Nacua (18.8) — Ja’Marr Chase (23.7). Puka Nacua is a truly elite wide receiver who may even see his target volume increase thanks to the expected departure of Cooper Kupp. The Rams will likely still look to add another playmaker, but Nacua is a locked-in top-end WR1.

Those who were patient with Jaxon Smith-Njigba during his rookie season as he played behind DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett saw that patience pay off in a big way in 2024, as he hauled in 100 receptions for 1,130 yards and six touchdowns. Wide receiver is a loaded position group, so when you’re looking at fantasy football rankings, Smith-Njigba might often fall just outside the top 12 options at the position. Know that’s more indicative of the depth of the position and talent surrounding him than it is of him as a player. He has WR1 upside every week. If you opt to address the wide receiver position heavily in startup drafts and can come away with Smith-Njigba as your WR2, you’re in excellent shape.

Zay Flowers also had his first 1,000-yard season as a pro in 2024, and it’s easy to be a big fan moving forward knowing he’s attached to an MVP-caliber quarterback in Lamar Jackson. Flowers would need some real touchdown luck to go his way to significantly move him up the rankings, but he can confidently be trusted as a solid WR2 option on your dynasty roster.

The same goes for Jordan Addison, with one caveat. We need to see how the quarterback position unfolds in Minnesota. If the Vikings decide to run it back with Sam Darnold under center, I’ll be utilizing Addison as a WR2. He won’t move much if the team moves on and moves forward with last year’s first-round pick, J.J. McCarthy, but there will be some level of uncertainty until we see it play out in a regular season game.

Quentin Johnston had the best season of his young career, but his inconsistent hands and the likelihood the Chargers add another weapon on the outside for Justin Herbert make it tough to trust Johnston as more than a WR4/WR5 option in dynasty.

We have a trio of players who are clouded in different levels of uncertainty who we’ve seen be highly productive at the NFL level — Rashee Rice, Jayden Reed and Tank Dell.

Rice suffered a torn LCL and could still be facing a suspension for an off-the-field incident. Dell tore his ACL, dislocated his kneecap and damaged his meniscus. We likely won’t see Tank Dell in 2025, so it’s very hard to suggest making any moves with him. If he’s on your roster and you have a large enough bench, you just hold for now and wait to see what happens. Reed started the season on fire in 2025 but was maddeningly inconsistent down the stretch.

All three of these players have outstanding upside. Rice is the easiest to trust of the three, but you do have to weigh the possibility he will face a suspension. On the field, Rice has WR1 upside. The same could be said for Reed, but he’s probably best treated as a boom or bust WR2.

Tight Ends

We saw some immediate contributions come from the tight end group from the 2023 NFL Draft, and some players are starting to emerge a little further down the line.

Sam LaPorta broke onto the scene in a big way during his rookie season. Despite his 2024 season getting off to a slow start, he was the TE5 from Week 10 on. There will always be some variance thanks to the surplus of playmakers the Lions have on their roster, but LaPorta remains a top tight end in dynasty formats. He should be treated as a top-three option at the position, likely behind only Brock Bowers and Trey McBride.

Dalton Kincaid has failed to live up to the hype and it’s fair to wonder at this point if we’re ever going to see a massive breakout for fantasy purposes. The Bills feel likely to add another playmaker in some capacity this offseason. Even if that’s at wide receiver, it’s bound to eat into Kincaid’s opportunity in some fashion. He’s a back-end, touchdown-dependent TE1 moving forward.

The wind was taken out of Michael Mayer‘s sails for fantasy purposes as soon as the Raiders selected Brock Bowers. While the two players complement each other nicely, it’s tough to see Mayer being able to emerge from Bowers’ shadow. If the Raiders were to ever put Mayer on the trade block, he’d be an interesting post-hype candidate on another team.

Tucker Kraft was maybe the least heralded of this group, but he broke out in a big way in 2024. After only having 355 receiving yards as a rookie, Kraft hauled in 50 catches for 707 yards and seven touchdowns in 2024. His 14.1 yards per reception average was second in the NFL among tight ends, behind only San Francisco’s George Kittle. He’s a mid-range TE1 for dynasty leagues and arguably falls within the top six options at the position.

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