Early Look at Rookies I Like This Year

It’s me! The guy who followed the rookies all season last year. Here are my quick thoughts on some of my favorite situations for players from the draft.

I absolutely love the NFL Draft. There’s so much hope for the next season. Everyone is undefeated and every fan can dream of their favorite team being a world champion…unless you’re rooting for the Cardinals or Texans but even they both have a tiny glimmer of hope for the future. The draft is my Christmas which plays right into my article wheelhouse. The following is a collection of players (and situations) I like for next season. I’ll actually rank them for fantasy purposes after training camp when there’s a clearer picture.

Bijan Robinson, Falcons

The best running back coming out of college went to the team that runs 55% of the time? The same team whose head coach maximized the monster that is Derrick Henry as the Titans’ Offensive Coordinator? I don’t think a more perfect marriage exists. Atlanta really needed to fix their defense, but you can’t fault them for taking a player whom analysts have called the next Saquon Barkley.

Zay Flowers, Ravens

The Ravens were a dearth of wide receiver talent last year. They were the 28th best passing attack in the league and 26.5% of that came out of Mark Andrews, a tight end. In fact, 44.3% of all passing yards came from the tight end position, 6% from running backs and 47.4% from wide receivers (with a 2.3 percent mysteriously missing when I add it up on pro-football-reference.com). Zay Flowers crushed last season on a Boston College team that was also devoid of talent. This is another need-meets-talent situation that will be fun to watch.

Bryce Young, Panthers

The Carolina Panthers burned their whole offense to the ground and rebuilt it through free agency. It’s hard to see how the pieces all fit together, but according to all accounts, Bryce Young is a football savant. During the draft process the only knock on him was his size. Young himself addressed the problem by saying “I’ve been this size, respectfully, my whole life…” In reality, his size probably helped him learn the position because he had to outplay quarterbacks bigger than him on every team.

Jonathan Mingo, Panthers

Mingo has the opposite problem. In a class of mostly short, small wide receivers, he came in measuring 6’2 and 220 pounds. Some felt that he underproduced at Ole Miss but it’s not like that team was great as a whole. Given the opportunity, I would happily draft a player with the same measurables and pedigree as DK Metcalf and AJ Brown. 

Jahmyr Gibbs, Lions

Jahmyr Gibbs is the highest drafted running back for the Lions since Barry Sanders. The Lions organization drafted him in the first round, despite having D’Andre Swift and David Montgomery already on the roster. The Alabama junior is fast and an excellent receiver out of the backfield.

Sam LaPorta, Lions

Sam LaPorta wasn’t the highest rated tight end coming out of the draft, but he was productive in college. Jared Goff loved throwing to TJ Hockenson, until Hockenson was traded away halfway through the season. This is more of a gut feeling, but I think LaPorta may be the best TE to come out of the draft class this year.

Anthony Richardson, Colts

If Richardson can win the job, he is a physical freak. The accuracy may take time to develop, but his physical style of running should give him a very high floor for fantasy purposes. It also helps having the former Eagles offensive coordinator, who turned Jalen Hurts into a star, be your head coach.

Rashee Rice, Chiefs

Patrick Mahomes spent some time this offseason practicing with receivers he doesn’t typically have a chance to use. These included pros on other teams and some rookies. Apparently, Rashee Rice and Mahomes meshed well together. Mahomes is a prolific passer. Looking at the Chiefs’ roster after the departures of Mecole Hardman and JuJu Smith-Schuster, it’s hard to predict who the number one wide receiver on this team will be. Personally, I will happily roll the dice on Rashee Rice.

Jaylin Hyatt, Giants

Brian Daboll was coach of the year with a collection of receivers who wouldn’t start on any other team (much like another team I already talked about…) Hyatt may be the best receiver Daniel Jones has worked with in his short career. Hyatt’s 4.40 40 yard dash gives Jones a chance to show off his big arm. Maybe the Giants will have a functional offense this year.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seahawks

JSN was the number one rookie wideout on a lot of draft boards. He should be the perfect slot receiver to complement DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. It is going to be hard to defend the Seahawks passing game this year.

Alright. Back to hibernating until training camps are complete. I look forward to digesting an absurd amount of camp information and giving it back to you in time for redrafts. Have a nice summer!

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