This is what we’ve been waiting for, fantasy football enthusiasts. The NFL Draft is underway, and we finally get to see where the rookie prospects will launch their professional careers. And NFL Draft landing spots allow us to start to zero in on fantasy football and dynasty rookie draft pick values.
Throughout the draft, we’ll take a closer look at fantasy-relevant prospects, giving you an overview of their strengths and weaknesses, and assessing their fantasy value in both redraft and dynasty formats. Here’s our dynasty rookie draft advice for Jayden Higgins.
Let’s dig in.
- Dynasty Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- Dynasty Rookie Draft Simulator
- DBro’s Dynasty Rookie Draft Primers
- NFL Draft Guide
Fantasy Football Dynasty Rookie Draft Outlook
Fantasy Football Dynasty Rookie Draft Advice
The Texans secured another weapon for C.J. Stroud in landing Jayden Higgins out of Iowa State. This is a 6-foot-4, 220-pound wideout with 4.47 speed, forming an imposing duo on the perimeter with Nico Collins. With Tank Dell‘s status in question due to a torn ACL and Christian Kirk more of a slot receiver, Higgins has an opportunity to establish himself as the number-two target in this passing game. With early second-round draft capital, expect Higgins to rise in dynasty ADP. I’d be willing to take him as the rookie WR5 (early 2nd round), behind Travis Hunter, Tetairoa McMillan, Matthew Golden, and Emeka Egbuka. You can make a legit argument for Higgins to be taken over Egbuka because there’s a higher ceiling here as a big-bodied deep threat. As for redraft leagues, Higgins is going to be a rock-solid sleeper wideout due to his skillset and landing spot.
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DBro’s NFL Draft Scouting Report & Player Comp
Scouting Report:
- Jayden Higgins is a physical X wide receiver. His play strength shows up in his routes and against press coverage. He has no issues playing through contact and dealing with physical corners. It shows up consistently at the catch point, as he had a 2.2% drop rate or lower in each of the last three seasons and a 55.6% contested catch rate in his collegiate career.
- Higgins excels in the short/intermediate areas of the field with surprisingly nimble footwork for his size. He gets open at will on slants and out routes where his footwork shines. Uses his size to box out corners. I wouldn’t be surprised if he were to transition to a big slot role in the NFL. If Sean Payton drafts him, don’t be surprised if he turns him into Michael Thomas 2.0.
- Higgins has a decent second gear, but I question his long speed. I wonder in the NFL if he has the raw speed to stack corners on the perimeter downfield consistently. Higgins has plenty of route nuance in the short and intermediate routes, but he has to continue to add tricks to the bag as a downfield receiver. He struggles to get separation on go routes, but he wasn’t asked to run them much at Iowa State. Higgins also needs to sell the vertical push on comebacks and curls consistently. He’ll get lax here at times, and it leaves corners glued to him after his route break.
- He has nice body control in the air and some nice back-shoulder grabs, especially in the red zone. His strong hands and ability above the rim should help him on the perimeter and in the red zone in the NFL.
- Higgins isn’t a dynamic YAC threat. He looks more like an athletic tight end after the catch. He can provide some YAC, though, with his physicality and tackle-breaking skills.
Player Comp: developmental Michael Thomas
More Dynasty Rookie Draft Advice
- DBro’s Dynasty Rookie Draft Primers
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