Another draft come and gone.  I wrote the grades in order of original draft order.  The league is so active and we trade so much it’s hard to keep track! One thing to mention is that these draft grades are simply my opinion with snippets of research I’ve done.  I tell you what informed my thought process whether it’s an X article, Establish the Run (ETR), Keep Trade Cut (KTC), Fantasy Pros(FP), Late Round QB (LRQB) Prospect Guide, etc.  Overall this draft was better than I had originally thought.  Less thorough bred studs, but a lot of solid football players.  I viewed picks 2.02 equal to 3.02.  Everybody in that range picks 14-26 were equal sleepers in my mind.  Where an argument could be made to take anybody drafted in that section of the draft.  Another thing that surprised me was how many slice and dice slot guys were in this draft.  I’m calling this draft class the “Slot Sleeper” class.  I talk about each of them and what stands out.  Enjoy the draft grades boys!   

1. Brad: 

3.01: Ted Hurst 

3.10: Adam Randall 

5.02: Cade Klubnik 

5.04: Eli Raridon 

Player Notes: 

Ted Hurst, WR, Georgia State, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

Hurst was drafted pick#84 overall in the 3^rd round by the Bucs who find themselves Mike Evans-less.  Steve Smith Sr, the feisty little Tasmanian devil that tortured the Saints for so many years now talks on a podcast about WRs.  He famously referred to Jerry Jeudy as a JAG or “Just a guy”.  Had this to say about Ted Hurst “A Diamond in the Rough”.   Sleeper reported early in the offseason that Hurst would take the “Sacrificial X” receiver position to open up Godwin in the slot and Egbuka in the z role.  Hurst dominated a bunch of small schools, obviously more talented than the corners that were covering him.  But he made some plays that make you want to check your eyes.  His ability to turn his body while running full speed to make a catch is incredible.  One comp for him is Nico Collins.  But it came from several sources.  NFL Draft Buzz and LRQB.  Godwin is getting older and is coming off two injury plagued years.  McMillian is coming back from his broken neck from a year ago.  Egbuka had a recurring hamstring he dealt with his rookie season.  Hurst could be sneaky folks.   

Adam Randall, RB, Clemson, Baltimore Ravens 

Steve Bisciotti has been the majority owner of the Ravens since 2004. In a strategy session in Florida this offseason he asked GM Eric DeCosta if he could make a selection this year.  Do the research, and make the pick himself.  Hard to say no to the boss, so DeCosta agreed to let Bisciotti make the last of their 5th round picks since they had three of them.  Bisciotti reviewed team need and other factors and called up his friend Dabo Swinney, head coach of Clemson.  They had met several years ago when they got paired on a golf course together and became friends.  Bisciotti asked about Adam Randall.  Dabo loved coaching Randall.  Talked about his coachability, high character, and adaptability.  Randall was a wide receiver when he started in college. (6’3” 230)   But Dabo experimented by putting him at RB a little and was impressed.  They made the move permanent in 2025.  Randall rushed for 814 yards and 10 touchdowns and caught 36 balls including 3 receiving touchdowns.  He ran a 4.50 40 yard dash and will be behind Derrick Henry and Justice Hill and Rasheen Ali to start the season.  Henry is 32. Justice Hill is entering the last year of his contract.    

Ali is also a 5th rounder who is on his rookie contract.  Randall earned a Masters Degree at Clemson.  Was a Team Captain.  Honor Roll student.  And used his NIL money to open a barbershop with his dad.  Give me the raw talent sleeper with high character who gets to learn from one of the best to ever do it and let’s see what happens.  

Cade Klubnik, QB, Clemson, NY Jets 

4^th round pick.  Been getting good reviews from Jets beats writers.  Has a chance to start out at QB2 behind 35 year old Geno Smith.  Dart Throw. 

Eli Raridon, TE, Notre Dame, New England Patriots 

Hunter Henry is 31 and entering last year of his contract.  They signed Julian Hill as a free agent this offseason but he tore something in his knee and is out for the year.  Unless they bring in a veteran the #2 job is Raridon’s.  ETR had him as their 23^rd highest rookie.  I think he’s more Luke Musgrave but worth a look at.   

Draft Grade: B.  Planned to not trade back into this draft and wind up doing it for Adam Randall.  If you are going to send a 3^rd from two years from now a, 21 year old RB isn’t the worst sleeper I guess.   

2. Oscar 

2.07: Antonio Williams 

2.08: Chris Brazzell 

3.02: Mike Washington 

3.04: Brenan Thompson 

4.03: Kevin Coleman 

Player Notes: 

Antonio Williams, WR,  Clemson, Washington Commanders 

Williams top comp according to NFL Draft Buzz is… Kyle Williams.  They also list Jalen Royals and…Ladd McConkey.  Now that’s a roller coaster of emotions.  Here’s what we know.  He was taken pick #71 overall.  He gets paired with Jayden Daniels.  And behind 30 year old Terry McLaurin the pass catchers are Treylon Burks, Chig Okonkwo, Luke McCaffrey, and Dyami Brown.  Yummy.  LRQB also comps him to Ladd McConkey, but also to Markus Wheaton and Roman Wilson.  Neither really worked out.  I worry a little bit about his weight (187), strength (10 bench press reps).   This is another slot receiver.  But he was productive at Clemson and opportunity is there.  People are assuming he automatically takes Deebo Samuel’s 800 yards and 7 tds from last season.  But David Blough is a new OC.  They could still sign a veteran free agent.  And Treylon Burks (I know I know) has shown flashes in OTAs.  He’s a slot sleeper like the rest of the 2^nd round WRs.   

Chris Brazzell II, WR, Tennessee, Carolina Panthers 

I hated this landing spot.  Pick#83 isn’t bad.  Like the prospect, not the team.  He’s got some Alec Pierce to his game.  Some Chris Conley.  LRQB thinks its more Josh Reynolds to George Pickens type of range.  Tennessee WR’s haven’t worked out well in the NFL.  Trust me, I have two of them (Tillman, Thornton).  But Panthers have young Tet McMillian, Jalen Coker, and just added Bryce Young’s college sweetheart John Metchie.  They have X, Z, and Y covered.  That caps Brazzell’s rookie year upside.  So unless he can develop into a CeeDee Lamb type guy in a couple years I’m out on Brazzell.  This has deep threat/decoy role written all over it.  This will open up Coker and Tet to eat.  #cokeheadsunited  

Mike Washington, RB, Arkansas, LV Raiders 

Kubiak had a time share to keep Kenneth Walker fresh while he was the OC with Seattle.  Now he’s the head coach of the Raiders and has Ashton Jeanty.  But they bring in this demon who was All SEC last year.  He was selected in the 4^th round, 122^nd overall.  Speedster with good weight on him.  He ran a 4.33 40 which is crazy fast.  He’s a handcuff to Jeanty, but an intriguing one.   

Brenan Thompson, WR, Mississippi State, Los Angeles Chargers 

Speedster ran a 4.26 and enters Mike McDaniel’s offense.  Some writers are saying he’ll take the Tyreek Hill roll in the Chargers offense.  He’s 164 lbs.  I’m pretty sure everyone in the league weighs more than him with the exception of Dickinson and Ollie.  (Guessing I haven’t met several of you).  He’ll be behind Ladd, QJ, Tre Harris, and probably someone else if they bring in a veteran. 

Kevin Coleman, WR, Missouri, Miami Dolphins 

3rd WR taken by the Dolphins in the draft.  More slot receiver.  Played at four schools in college.  He didn’t do bench press at the combine and his arms are short.  

Draft Grade: C-.  Loved the Antonio Williams pick.  Didn’t care for any of the others.  I liked Zachariah Branch more than Brazzell.  I liked Randall over Washington.  Lane over Thompson. But Oscar did his usual trade a 3^rd for a future 3^rd move.  So he got a 2027 3^rd as well.  A tradition like no other. 

   

3. Ollie 

1.02: Carnell Tate 

1.03: Jordyn Tyson 

1.08: Kenyon Sadiq 

2.03: Jonah Coleman 

2.05: Ty Simpson 

5.03: CJ Daniels 

Player Notes:  

Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State, Tennessee Titans 

Carnell Tate was the 4^th overall pick in the NFL draft and has 10.25 inch hands.  Throwing him the football is Cam Ward, 2025’s 1^st overall pick who just got Brian Daboll as his OC.  Daboll helped in Josh Allen’s development and helped a little bit with Jaxon Dart last season.  Bullish on the Titans and Tate. Establish the Run mentioned Daniel Jeremiyah comping Tate to Chris Olave.  ETR’s data team comped him to Sterling Shepherd, Travis Hunter, and George Pickens.  With LateRoundQB agreeing with the latter having him comped to George Pickens the most.  He had a ZAP score of 88.3, 2^nd only to Jordan Tyson. 

Jordan Tyson, WR, Arizona State, New Orleans Saints 

Jordan Tyson scored 3^rd best prospect score for LateRoundQB and #1 WR with a 96.2.  His comps are CeeDee Lamb, Marvin Harrison Jr, and Corey Davis.  Establish the Run’s closest comparison was Ja’Marr Chase followed by Marvin Harrison Jr and JuJu Smith-Schuster/Devante Parker.  What this tells me is Tyson has a ton of potential if he can stay healthy.  He’s had a few injuries in his college career, but when healthy he’s flashed signs of greatness.  Let’s hope he’s more on the Lamb/Chase end of the spectrum and less on the Corey Davis/Devante Parker end of the spectrum.  I’m bullish and chose him over Tate with the 1.02 in my FFPC dynasty league because I like to live dangerously.  Fortune favors the bold.  (I also drafted Travis Hunter last year this might be really bad don’t @ me) 

Kenyon Sadiq, TE, Oregon, New York Jets 

Physical specimen.  Sadiq is LRQB’s highest rated prospect with a score of 98.5.  That’s right.  Higher than Jeremiyah Love’s score of 97.6.  Since 2011, 7 tight ends have been drafted in the Top half of the first round in the NFL draft.  Sadiq is one of them.  His comps are Noah Fant, OJ Howard, and Evan Engram, but TE comps are less correlated.  He isn’t the biggest Tight End.  A lot of NFL tight ends are 6’5″ and 230+.  Sadiq is built more like a wide out at 6’3, 241.  But what impresses is the athletic ability.  4.39 40 time?  43.5″ vertical? 26 bench presses at 225? Jesus.  Yes the Jets are a mess.  Geno Smith should be an improvement over Justin Fields/Tyrod Taylor in 2025.  Cade Klubnik might hit.  Who knows?  But this is a bet on talent bet.  Think Sam LaPorta.   

Jonah Coleman, RB,  Washington, Denver Broncos 

Coleman was the 4th RB taken in the draft, but there was a gap.  Picks 3, 32, then Black at 90 and Coleman at 108.  Insert Coleman.  Whose main comp was… Blake Corum.  Another was… Sean Tucker.  And finally…Doug Martin.  All short, stocky, gutsy RBs.  He had 5TDs against UC Davis this past season, which is awesome.  He’ll join robot JK Dobbins and RJ Harvey in Denver.  It’ll be RBBC, but Dobbins isn’t getting any younger and Payton will ride the hot hand.  Harvey’s PFF rushing grade was 69.2 which was 49/55 qualified RBs.  I could see Jonah carving out a share sooner rather than later. 

Ty Simpson, QB, Alabama, Los Angeles Rams 

What do you do when you fleece Atlanta in a trade? Take a shot on a QB I guess.  Simpson has comps to Mac Jones and Brock Purdy.  Both members of the Niners in the NFC West.  I thought that was interesting.  Sean McVay said on draft night after they selected him that he’d compete with Stetson Bennett for QB2 duties.  Stafford signed an extension, so that put Simpson in a taxi spot holder for two seasons unless Stafford gets hurt AND he beats out Stetson Bennett.  But Top 15 pick, the teams going to give him a hard look.  If he doesn’t work out another team might give him a hard look.  I could see a Jordan Love type career.  I can also see a Geno Smith or Sam Darnold type career.  I’d just rather not take him with my dynasty roster construction.   

CJ Daniels, WR, Miami, Los Angeles Rams 

CJ Daniels played Liberty then LSU for a season before finishing his college career at Miami.  He’s got good size and will compete in Los Angeles with Mumpfield and Jordan Whittington for 3^rd WR duties. 

Draft Grade: A-.  #1 WR, #2 WR, #1 TE, #2 QB.  Decent haul from this draft class.  Tate paired with young Ward.  Tyson paired with young Shough. Talented TE.  Sleeper RB.  Taxi stash QB.  Only got a minus because he made us wait 2 hours for the Tate pick.  

4. Dan 

1.04: Jadarian Price 

2.04: De’Zhaun Stribling 

2.12: Skyler Bell 

3.05: Max Klare 

3.07: Garrett Nussmeier 

4.04: Jack Endies 

Player Notes: 

Jadarian Price, RB, Notre Dame, Seattle Seahawks 

Price’s prospect profile isn’t great because of his production.  His production wasn’t great because he played with Jeremiyah freaking Love.  If he hadn’t he would have been a beast.  We don’t have a lot of examples of good talents that carved out a role for themselves while playing with an elite prospect.  As a result his comp comes out to Ronald Jones (Rojo) from LateRoundQB and Clyde Edwards-Helaire from ETR.  But Bucky Irving also shows up.  NFL network has him at a 6.38 (will eventually be a plus starter) with his comp being Javonte Williams.  That’s pretty solid.  And given his landing spot with Seattle minus Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet nursing a late season injury, he’ll get some opportunity to make an immediate impact.     

De’Zhaun Stribling, WR, Ole Miss, San Francisco 49ers 

Stribling was taken 33^rd overall.  The 1^st pick of the 2^nd round.  49ers have Ricky Pearsall, then aging vets Mike Evans and Chris Kirk.  Neither of which have been the healthy the past couple of seasons.  Stribling is kind of a beast. ETR has him as their 8^th ranked rookie in this class ahead of Denzel Boston and the Tight Ends believe it or not.  His comps are several players I don’t recognize on LRQB.  DraftBuzz comped him to Tyquan Thornton due to his speed.  I think Shanahan wanted to replace Jauan Jennings and wanted better downfield blocking.  He did both. 

Skyler Bell, WR, UCONN, Buffalo Bills 

4th round pick, 125th overall. Exceptional jumping ability.  96%tile in vertical jump and 98%ile in broad jump.  He reminds LRQB of Ricky Pearsall.  DJ Moore isn’t getting younger. Buffalo traded for DJ Moore this offseason. They have Shakir, Josh Palmer and Keon Coleman. He can carve a role out for himself.  

Max Klare, TE, Ohio State, Los Angeles Rams 

Comps to Jonnu Smith, but this isn’t Arthur Smith’s team be-atch.  He caught a lot of balls at Purdue.  Intriguing weapon buried in the Rams Tight End room from hell.  Tyler Higbee, Colby Parkinson, Terrance Ferguson, Davis Allen.  Ferguson is taller, weighs more, is faster, has bigger hands, longer arms, and is only a few months older than Klare, but yeah I’m sure Klare going to come in and push T-Ferg out.  Right, right, right, right right…  

Garret Nussmeier, QB, LSU, Kansas City Chiefs 

Mahomes can play for as long as he wants to play.  Mahomes is 30.7.  So he could play for another 8-10 years if he wants to.  Nuss is a developmental prospect who will be Mahomes backup through the duration of his rookie contract.  Should’ve taken Lane here, but go Tigers. 

Jack Endies, TE, Texas, Cincinnati Bengals 

7^th round pick by Bengals backing up Mike Gesicki and/or Erick All in Cincy. 

Draft Grade: B.  Solid draft.  Drafted for team need at 1.04 with Price.  Stribling is a good sleeper with good draft capital behind aging vets.  Bell is a good sleeper on a fun offense.  Rest of the draft kind of mailed it in, but nobody’s perfect. 

5. Cuz 

1.05: Makai Lemon 

1.07: KC Concepcion 

3.03: Jake Tonges 

3.12: Ryan Flournoy 

4.10: Colby Parkinson 

Player Notes: 

Makai Lemon, WR, USC, Philadelphia Eagles 

I don’t particularly care for Lemon as a prospect.   

List of physical attributes: 

Height: 5-11 

Weight: 192 

Hands: 8.75 

Arms: 30.5 

Wingspan: 73.25 

Forty Time: 4.50 

10Yard: 1.59 

Every single one of those with the exception of his 40 time are in the bottom 33% of NFL WR prospects. 

Now he went out with his little snake face interview trying to get attention.  The Eagles traded up to jump the Steelers to get him.  LRQB has his comps as Nelson Agholor, Odell Beckham, and Jayden Reed.  ETR has his comps as Travis Hunter, Jaylen Waddle, Nelson Agholor, JSN, John Metchie and yes Amon-Ra St. Brown.  People might see USC WR making funny faces and think he is the next Amon-Ra.  Maybe.  I see a slot specialist that may or may not hit.  I’m biased, you can ignore this and move on.  But he wasn’t my favorite despite being a 1^st round pick.   

Also Howie gets a lot of credit on being a mastermind team builder.  Let’s see how he’s done scouting WR talent: 

Ah yes.  Reagor over Justin Jefferson.   

Also after watching film I can confidently say: the way Lemon runs looks femine and I hate it. In fact, Lemon might be a conspiracy created by rich people: When life hands you lemons | The Fall of the House of Usher 

KC Concepcion, WR, Texas A&M, Cleveland Browns 

ETR loves this guy.  Their comps are Christian Kirk, Elijah Moore, DJ Moore, Jayden Reed and Jordan Addison.  But they noted that their correlation with those comps are all on the lower similarity end.  Meaning he’s kind of unique.  Or at least, more unique than some.  LRQB isn’t as obsessed, but comps to Christian Kirk, Emeka Egbuka, and Randall Cobb.  Think slice and dice like Christian Kirk, but with solid other comparable contributors that were in the league a long time. (Randall Cobb) 

LRQB had Lemon’s score as 77.4 and Concepcion at 75.4.  ETR has Concepcion ranked higher than Lemon in their rankings.  Lets compare his measurables to Lemon, shall we? 

 Height: 6-0, taller 

Weight: 196, heavier 

Hands: 9.25, bigger 

Arms: 30.25 slightly smaller 

Wingspan: 73.88 longer 

Forty Time: 4.46 faster 

They both lined up in the slot in college.  Both were very productive.  I’m just saying.  Eagles are better than the Browns.  Is Hurts better than Watson/Sanders?  Eagles pass catching room is stacked with Devonta Smith, Hollywood Brown, Dontavion Wicks, Dallas Goedert, and Eli Stowers.  Browns pass catching room is stacked with Denzel Boston, Jerry Jeudy, Cedric Tillman, Harold Fannin.  Is it so crazy to think Concepcion could be a better pro than Lemon? Both in Year 1 and beyond? 

Jake Tonges (Free Agent), San Francisco 49ers 

Kittle’s backup played well in spot starts last year. 

Ryan Flournoy (Free Agent), Dallas Cowboys 

Beat writers banging the drum of his performance during OTAs, but George Pickens skipped the optional training and will report to training camp according to Schefter.   

Colby Parkinson (Free Agent), Los Angeles Rams 

Throw away pick due to young Terrance Ferguson and Max Klare picks in last two drafts. 

Draft Grade: B.  Lemon won the Biletnikoff trophy.  Concepcion won the Hornung award.  I prewrote their notes before the draft as I didn’t think they’d go to the same team.  But obviously it’ll be fun to see which of these two hit better.  Was okay with free agent strategy, but wasted 4.10.   

6. Colt 

1.01: Jeremiyah Love 

2.06: Elijah Sarratt 

2.10: Malachi Fields 

3.11: Ja’Kobi Lane 

5.06: Michael Trigg 

Player Notes: 

Jeremiah Love, RB, Notre Dame, Arizona Cardinals 

As mentioned in my mocks, Bijan/CMC level prospect.  Cardinals backfield is crowded and they have the hardest schedule according to Warren Sharp.  CMC’s rookie year he was PPR RB#10.  Bijan’s rookie year he was PPR RB#9.  I think given the schedule and the TD vulture Allgeier being there I have Love as more of a RB2 this season, finishing around RB#15.  Cardinals should have great draft capital next season and like Bijan, Love should take over the Lions’ share of the touches sooner rather than later (Years 2 and 3).  Then you have a stud asset that everyone covets.   

 Elijah Sarratt, WR, Indiana, Baltimore Ravens 

Omar Cooper 2025 Stats:  69 receptions, 937 yards, 13 touchdowns.  Drafted 30^th overall 

Elijah Sarratt 2025 Stats:  65 receptions, 830 yards, 15 touchdowns, Drafted 115th overall 

Huh?  LRQB has Cooper comped to Rashee Rice and Deebo Samuel.  They have Sarratt comped to Michael Thomas, Pat Bryant, and Rome Odunze.  DraftBuzz thinks he comps to Xavier Hutchinson.  NFL.com thinks he’s Allen Lazard.  If anything he’s intriguing.  15 touchdowns is 15 touchdowns.  He has great hands.  Will most likely take over the DeAndre Hopkins role.  The Ravens have vacated targets with Hopkins, Likely, and Kolar all walking.  His competition is Zay Flowers, Mark Andrews, Rashod Bateman, and fellow rookie J. Lane.  Zay is the ppr king.  He’s moving the sticks and has big play ability.  Sarratt is going to be the X and the Redzone guy.  A place where Mandrews also operates.  If Lamar can play better and Sarratt continues doing what he did in college.  He could outperform not only Lane, but his old teammate Omar Cooper.   

Malachi Fields, WR, Notre Dame, NY Giants 

Giants took Fields 74th overall.   Being called a “power forward” by some.  Giants have Nabers but he’s a bit behind with his knee recovery.  They signed Darnell Mooney, Calvin Austin, then drafted Fields.  THEN signed OBJ, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Braxton Berrios.  Insert the Notre Dame rookie.  He got comped to Michael Pittman and Mack Hollins.  I think he’s closer to Hollins and he’s gonna help block downfield for Scattebo or Dart.  He’ll have to battle this smorgasbord of dusty vets to get meaningful playing time.   

Ja’Kobi Lane, WR, USC, Baltimore Ravens 

Wow!  What a bargain at the end of the 3^rd round.  Ravens took Lane at 80 and Sarratt at 115.  Lane has the biggest WR hands in this draft at 10.5 inches.  Lemon was able to slice and dice because Lane was opening things up for him.  The Ravens lost Isaiah Likely to free agency and did not resign DeAndre Hopkins.  Opportunity is there.  LRQB has him comped to AD Mitchell.  Love that you took both Baltimore rookie WRs and you can see which one hits.   

Michael Trigg, TE, Baylor, Dallas Cowboys 

Played defensive end and basketball in high school.  Played for 3 different colleges.  Cade Stover comps.  Indecisive.   

Draft Grade: B-.  Love is Love and that’s a slam dunk.  Loved the double tap on the Ravens WRs.  Fields was the pick I didn’t care for.  I liked Emmett Johnson and Ted Hurst more there.  Hindsight is 20/20.  If you had known Lane would fall to you in the 3^rd maybe you snag Emmett Johnson.  But overall solid draft. 

7. Wesley 

1.09: Omar Cooper 

2.01: Nick Singleton 

3.08: Oscar Delp 

5.07: Jahan Dotson 

5.08: Austin Ekeler 

Player Notes: 

Omar Cooper, WR, Indiana, New York Jets 

LRQB loves Cooper.  Drafted 30^th overall by the Jets who moved up to snag a 3^rd 1^st round pick this year.  Cooper was known for breaking tackles at Indiana and helped Mendoza and company win a title.  His stats were very close to Elijah Sarratt, the other Indiana WR.  But Cooper’s comps are tasty.  Rashee Rice and Deebo Samuel.  Jets are a bit crowded right now (Garret Wilson, AD Mitchell, Kenyon Sadiq, Mason Taylor), so this is a bet on talent, hope it shoots up later type situation. Fits in perfectly into the slot.  Geno/Klubnik offer intriguing options at QB and Jets have multiple picks next year for the 2027 QB class. 

Nick Singleton, RB, Penn State, Tennessee Titans 

I was high on Singleton two years ago.  Wrote in my notes to watch him as a high draft pick for 2026.  Then Penn State imploded in spectacular fashion.  He dropped to the end of Round 5 where the Titans took him.  Racked up 5,586 all-purpose yards, 55 total career TDs at Penn State.  End of the 5^th round.  He just seemed to get worse as the college years progressed.  His comps wind up as Jaydon Blue, Rachaad White, and Jay Ajajai.  But Pollard is 29 and on the last year of his deal.  Spears is on the last year of the deal.  If he can get himself back in the game the opportunity could be there for him.  This class RBs are pretty terrible, making Singleton shoot up to a 1^st round pick based on his potential from yesteryear.   Maybe he didn’t want to get hurt in college and played conservative?  How much effort do you put in when your team lost its starting QB and fired its coach midseason? 

Oscar Delp, TE, Georgia Bulldogs, New Orleans Saints 

Who Dat!  Delp gets paired with young stud Tyler Shough.  He has some comps to Chig Okonkwo and Julius Thomas which is intriguing.  At his pro day he ran a sub 4.50 40 (4.48). He’ll play behind Juwan Johnson and Noah Fant to start his career.  But they are both 30 and 29.  Could be something in a year or two.   

Jahan Dotson (Free Agent), Atlanta Falcons 

Falcons let Darnell Mooney walk in the offseason.  They drafted Zachariah Branch and signed Jahan Dotson to fill in the gap.  1^st round pick in 2022.  Maybe he’s waiting for a Year 5 breakout. 

Austin Ekeler (Free Agent), Free Agent 

31 year old skat back tore his achilles last season.  We’ll always remember that legendary 2022 season.  RIP. 

Draft Grade: B.  Solid.  I liked Stowers over Cooper because he isn’t on the Jets.  But loved the Singleton pick and I’m sure that made Andy upset.   

8. Mike Dickinson 

4.01: J’Mari Taylor 

4.02: Kaelon Black 

4.06: Eli Heidenreich 

5.09: Deion Burks 

5.12: Sam Roush 

Player Notes: 

J’Mari Taylor, RB, Virginia, UDFA signed with Jacksonville 

Bhaysul Tuten, Chris Rodriguez, LeQuint Allen (who was also available via free agency in Dynamo).  This guy’s measurements are pretty much all bottom 50% amongst prospects.  He went undrafted.  He’ll be buried on the depth chart, but maybe he can fight Allen and Deejay Dallas for the 3^rd down role (he won’t).  

Kaelon Black, RB, Indiana. San Francisco 49ers 

Black was a surprising 3rd round selection by Lynch and company.  LRQB didn’t even originally have him in his first prospect guide.  He’s older at 24.5.  What are they doing?  LRQB comped to Dameon Pierce or Damien Harris.  Draft Buzz comped to Pierre Strong.  So he’s a running back. 40 wasn’t bad being under 4.50.  Most impressive thing was his bench press. He did 27 reps of 225. Which was one more than Kenyon Sadiq, the first round rookie tight end.  This was at his pro day because he wasn’t invited to the combine.  Alright anyway we know he’s strong.  Maybe Shanahan and company just wanted a bruiser to slam into the defensive lines at the end of the game instead of adding more wear and tear on CMC.  Still, if he beats on Jordan James as the RB2 that’s a valuable position if CMC were to miss any time.    

Eli Heidenreich, RB/WR, Navy, Pittsburgh Steelers 

If you hate Eli Heidenreich, then you hate America.  Drafted in the 7^th round by his hometown Steelers.  Versatile and productive.  Fun pick.  But he’ll be 3^rd on the depth chart at RB behind Jaylen Waren and Rico Dowdle.  Or 4^th on the depth chart at WR behind Pittman, Metcalf, Bernard.   

Deion Burks, WR, Oklahoma, Indianapolis Colts 

Worth a flier.  7^th round pick.  Colts have Alec Pierce who had offseason ankle surgery and Josh Downs as their main WRs.  Burks will compete and ran a 4.30 40 yard dash to pair with some insane hops.  Comps to Sky Moore 

Sam Roush, TE, Stanford, Chicago Bears 

Loveland, Kmet, then Roush.  Caleb Williams was recently interviewed by the Kelce brothers.  They said you got two “absolute dogs” and Williams responded “we have a third one now” referring to Roush.   

Draft Grade: C+.  Black was a good pick.  Heidenreich and Burks and Roush are fun.  Taylor is an abomination of a pick and you should be ashamed of yourself.   

9. Adam 

2.09: Zachariah Branch 

5.05: Drew Allar 

5.10: Noah Gray 

Player Notes: 

Zachariah Branch, WR, Georgia, Atlanta Falcons 

If Wan’Dale is the PPR King, then Branch is the PPR Prince.  Wan’Dale was taken 43^rd overall in 2022.  Branch was taken 79^th overall this year.  Branch is an inch taller, same weight, slightly longer arms and wingspan, same exact size hands.  Branch had a faster 40 time, higher vertical jump, and elite 10-yard split.   Undersized play makers.  His uncle was Hall of Famer Cliff Branch.  He caught 81 passes last year.  Reliable hands.  If only his starting QB would be an accurate short yardage passer.  Then he might explode and outperform his ADP.  If only… 

Drew Allar, QB, Penn State, Pittsburgh Steelers 

 I was high on Allar and eyeing him with my late picks.  But then reports from Steelers camp came back.  Glowing reviews of will Howard and flabbergasted coaches about Allar’s poor mechanics.  To the point they said they are trying to get him to unlearn everything he learned before.  Yikes.  But Rodgers will be done after this year.  Then it can be Howard vs. Allar or insert free agent next season.  Allar is talented and sets up a beautiful team name of Praise Allar! If he hits 

Noah Gray, TE, (Free Agent), Kansas City Chiefs 

Depth piece behind Kelce.  Has a TE2 finish in his career. 

Draft Grade: B. Loved Branch pick.  I would’ve taken him at 2.02 and he fell to you at 2.09.  Tremendous value.  PPR King baby.  Allar can chill on Taxi a couple seasons to see what happens. 

10. Justin (JO) 

1.06: Fernando Mendoza 

1.10: Chris Bell 

2.11: Emmett Johnson 

3.09: Aaron Rodgers 

4.05: Bryce Lance 

5.01: Tyreek Hill 

Player Notes: 

Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana, Las Vegas Raiders 

1.01. National Champion.  Heisman Winner.  Aura Farmer.  He might sit behind Kirk Cousins for awhile this year, but if they miss the playoffs he could be inserted early.  Or they could start him from the jump if he outperforms Cousins in the preseason.  But he is the Raiders future.  Their young core of Mendoza, Jeanty, Bowers is exciting.  Kubiak is a high potential coach who did great things with a healthy Saints roster, and amazing things with Seattle’s JSN last season.  Can you imagine if they have a high draft pick next year and add Jeremiah Smith?  Mendoza would shoot up to a Top 6 Dynasty QB asset almost immediately.  1.01 drafted QBs tend to hold their value well in dynasty.  See Ward, Burrow, Baker, etc. (All drafted by Cuz, interesting…) 

Chris Bell, WR, Louisville, Miami Dolphins 

Bell is different from some of the other prospects because those other prospects went to teams that have talent already.  Bell went to the Dolphins whose pass catchers consist of Malik Washington, Caleb Douglas (R), Greg Dulcich, and Jalen Tolbert.  Not exactly Chase/Higgins over there.  So there’s opportunity.  Bell is pound for pound a decent prospect.  ETR comped him to Michael Thomas, Jayden Higgins and Michael Pittman, but also Chase Claypool and Jonathan Mingo.  LRQB agreed on the Mingo comp, but also listed DK Metcalf as a comp for him.  Another big bodied X receiver.   

Emmett Johnson, RB,  Nebraska, Kansas City Chiefs 

Johnson went four picks before Nick Singleton in the middle of the 5^th round.  He doesn’t have great breakaway speed as evident by his 40 time, but his lateral quickness reminded Andy Reid of LeSean McCoy.  I like Emmett Johnson as a pass catching back and Kenneth Walker has missed games every season of his career except for last year when he was in a time share for most of the year.  Can Johnson carve out a Jerick McKinnon type role for himself this season?  Or perhaps be thrust into more work if KW were to get injured?  LRQB comps him to James White and Kenneth Gainwell, making him an intriguing add in a PPR dynasty league such as this. 

Aaron Rodgers, QB, (Free Agent), Pittsburgh Steelers 

One Last Ride.  Has better weapons.  Will backup JO’s young stud Jaxon Dart after he shipped out Jayden Daniels.   

Bryce Lance, WR, North Dakota State, New Orleans Saints 

Who Dat!  Loved this pick.  Very productive.  4^th round pick by New Orleans.  I joked that Tyson is Olave insurance, Lance is Tyson insurance, and Barion Brown is Lance insurance.  Saints have a ton of WRs now and they’ll battle it out in camp.  I think Lance can beat out some of them!  

Tyreek Hill, WR, (Free Agent), Free Agent 

Hill’s leg snapped off last year.  But he’s got child support payments to make.  So look for him to sign somewhere midseason.  Can someone be put on IR if they aren’t signed on a team though?   

Draft Grade: A+.  You did it JO!  You drunken bastard did it!  To steal a quote from Parks and Rec: “That was amazing. That a flu ridden Michael Jordan at the 97’ NBA Finals.  That was Kurt Gibson hobbling up to the plate and hitting a homer off of Dennis Eckersley.” That was Justin Overman 

11. Andy 

1.11: Denzel Boston 

1.12: Eli Stowers 

2.02: Germie Bernard 

4.09: Zavion Thomas 

4.11: Nate Boerkircher 

5.11: Demond Claiborne 

Player Notes: 

Denzel Boston, WR, Washington, Cleveland Browns 

With the addition of Concepcion and Boston, the Browns have totally revamped their pass catchers.  Going from Jeudy, Tillman, and Njoku to Concepcion, Boston, and Fannin is a massive upgrade on all three levels.  Boston is the new X receiver.  He’ll take the outside and be a TD threat.  LRQB comps to Jayden Higgins, Courtland Sutton, and Mike Williams.  Make no mistake, this was a Cedric Tillman replacement pick drafted as a high 2^nd rounder.  ETR agreed with comps like Sutton, Metcalf, Pittman, Higgins, and Keon Coleman.  X receivers are people too. 

 Eli Stowers, TE, Vanderbilt, Philadelphia Eagles 

Drafted in the 2^nd round, pick #54 by Howie Roseman.  75.4 LRQB prospect score, which is alright.  Comps to Mike Gesicki and Luke Musgrave.  But the landing spot is what makes Stowers intriguing.  Dallas Geodert is getting older and on a one year deal.  Jalen Hurts likes his tight ends.  Stowers was productive at Vanderbilt.  He had a few catches against LSU, but it was against Texas when he popped off.  8 catches, 146 yards, 2 touchdowns.  He has potential.   

Germie Bernard, WR, Alabama, Pittsburgh Steelers 

I like Germie.  Fun name to say.  Germie did some cool things at Alabama including playing a decent amount of RB snaps.  He looks to be more of a slot option for the Steelers and we know Rodgers loves his slots.  His LRQB comps are Parris Campbell and Mohammed Sanu.  ETR called this a “classic” Steelers pick whatever that means.  Pick #46 draft capital.  Aaron Rodger old noodle arm.  I could see WR4 in his rookie year, increasing if Metcalf or Pittman were to miss time.  Seems like he’ll be a floor guy, not a ceiling guy as he progresses through his career. 

Zavion Thomas, WR, LSU, Chicago Bears 

Andy caught us sleeping.  Bears drafted Zavion Thomas 89^th overall in the 3^rd round.  That’s a few picks ahead of Chris Bell.  Thomas has blazing speed.  But his fit is more undersized outside X receiver.  Ben Johnson can deploy him.  He’ll have defenses worrying about Odunze, Burden, and Loveland only to have this speed demon catch a bomb from Caleb Williams.  Thomas has been in the south his whole career so I worry about adjustment to Chicago’s cold winter climate.  But fun pick and great value. 

Nate Boerkircher, TE, Texas A&M, Jacksonville Jaguars 

Older rookie (24.8), prototypical tight end size (6’5″, 245), drafted 56^th overall in the 2^nd round by the Jaguars.  He didn’t catch much in college (38 catches in 5 seasons), but he showed incredible run blocking ability.  He’ll open up lanes for Tuten and could have some fantasy relevance if Strange gets injured. 

Demond Claiborne, RB, Wake Forest, Minnesota Vikings 

ETR has Claiborne as their 35^th highest rookie in the draft saying “On the smaller side, but ran well and has a strong pass-catching background.”  This is an Aaron Jones backup.  Mason will be the grinder, but he doesn’t catch much.  Jones is 31.   

Draft Grade: B+.  Solid solid draft by Andy.  Blocking TE was meh but loved the value of Zavion Thomas and Demond Claiborne picks.  Many rankers have Stowers over Sadiq.   

12. Mike B, King, Champion, Commissioner 

3.06: Kaytron Allen 

4.07: Caleb Douglas 

4.12: Greg Dulcich 

Player Notes: 

Kaytron Allen, RB, Penn State, Washington Commanders 

Allen was drafted in the 6^th round, pick #187 and joins an ambiguous backfield in Washington.  They have Rachaad White, Bill Croskey-Merritt, Jerome Ford, Robert Henry (R), and now Allen.  What they don’t have is Chris Rodriguez, a punishing between the tackles runner.  That’s where Allen comes in.  He’s a bruiser.  He only caught 70 balls across four years in college.  I think White is the pass catching back.  Bill should get first crack at RB1 duties.  But Allen could take the Chris Rodriguez role.  C-Rod had 112 rushes, 500 yards, and 6 rushing tds last season.  ETR did note that Allen blocks well, ate into Nick Singleton’s work, and does things coaches love that could increase his chance of playing time.   

Caleb Douglas, WR, Texas Tech, Miami Dolphins 

Douglas was a surprising 3^rd round pick, 75^th overall.  The entire industry said no thanks and immediately pivoted to Chris Bell.  Bell has consistently gone in the 1^st round of rookie drafts and Douglas fell to Mike here in the backhalf of round 4.  WR room is wide open.  Another ambiguous situation.  Someone has to catch the football in Miami right? 

Greg Dulcich, TE, (Free Agent), Miami Dolphins 

Dulcich has been getting great reviews at OTAs as Malik Willis’s go to receiver.  He’s always been a pass catching specialist and now Miami doesn’t have any entrenched pass catchers.   

Draft Grade: C+.  Mike took his shot in some ambiguous situations.  I really liked the Dulcich pick after Njoku signed with the Chargers.  Gadsen could get hurt a tad volume wise, so best to shore up the backup TE in case McBride goes down.  Only knock is I liked Black and Randall better as sleepers than Allen.   

There you have it folks!  I hope you enjoyed my thoughts on the 60 picks we made together.  Best of luck to all of you this season with your sleepers.   

Thanks, 

Fantasy Football Brad