With the NFL regular season starting in just over two weeks, fantasy football draft season is officially upon us. Every year, fantasy managers scour ADP lists, trying to find players who are being over or undervalued in drafts. I’m here to save you time. Here are three fantasy football targets, and three players that you should avoid.
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Fantasy Football Targets and Fades
Target: Amari Cooper, WR, 41.7 Yahoo ADP, 45.5 ESPN ADP
Cooper finished in the top 10 for both PPR and half-PPR leagues, despite Deshaun Watson’s struggles. With Watson now having a full offseason to attempt to return to form, Cooper could easily repeat as a low-end WR1. Despite this, he is the 17th receiver off the board on Yahoo and the 19th on ESPN. It feels as though he is being drafted much closer to his floor than his ceiling, and fantasy managers can take advantage of that.
DESHAUN WATSON 53 YARD PASS TO AMARI COOPER. pic.twitter.com/6LIi55vit1
— JPAFootball (@jasrifootball) August 26, 2023
Avoid: Rhamondre Stevenson, RB, 30.4 Yahoo ADP, 42.5 ESPN ADP
The PPR RB7 last season, Stevenson was a heavy target for many early in the draft process. However, New England signed former Dallas Cowboy Ezekiel Elliott last week, cutting into Stevenson’s upside. Stevenson is still the clear lead back in the Patriots’ offense, but Zeke might cut into his touches more than people expect. Instead, take running backs like Najee Harris or Joe Mixon at this spot in the second round, or take a receiver like Devonta Smith. Stevenson can be drafted at his current ESPN price, but steer clear on Yahoo.
Target: Chigoziem Okonkwo, TE, 123.8 Yahoo ADP, 160.5 ESPN
Okonkwo, a fourth-round pick last year, shared tight end duties with Austin Hooper, and put up a very similar stat line. With Hooper now in Las Vegas, Okonkwo is the clear TE1 in Tennessee. He is an elite athlete and could easily go for 600 yards and five touchdowns, a similar projection to that of Evan Engram, who is being selected almost 50 picks earlier than Okonkwo on Yahoo. If you play on ESPN, Okonkwo can be had basically for free and is a huge fantasy football target.
Avoid: Darren Waller, TE, 61.4 Yahoo ADP, 51.0 ESPN ADP
Fantasy managers are drafting Waller an entire round before Kyle Pitts on ESPN, which is absurd. While both tight ends are coming off disappointing seasons, Waller is eight years older and changing teams. Daniel Jones hasn’t thrown for more than 15 touchdowns in any of the last three seasons, while Pitts is likely upgrading at QB now that Desmond Ridder is throwing him the ball instead of Marcus Mariota. Waller has also been unable to stay on the field for two straight seasons. If you need a tight end, take Pitts here instead. Otherwise, look at Drake London on Yahoo and Christian Watson on ESPN.
Target: Anthony Richardson, QB, 119.3 Yahoo ADP, 131.3 ESPN ADP
Indianapolis fell in love with Richardson, and it’s easy to see why. He has been named the week-one starter by the Colts and has game-breaking upside as a rusher. His passing numbers will likely be underwhelming during his rookie season, but, similar to Justin Fields last year, he might run so well that it doesn’t matter. He’s going in the 12th round of 10-team leagues and the 11th in 12-teamers on Yahoo and even later on ESPN. Richardson is the perfect fantasy football target who can be an upside backup QB and could even be your starter if you like to wait on a quarterback.
Avoid: Cam Akers, RB, 54.3 Yahoo ADP, 77.0 ESPN ADP
While Akers finished last year’s campaign strong, we can’t ignore the first half of the season. Akers was not used in the workhorse role many expected and did not play in three games amid a trade demand. After his strong showing to close the season, he should be Los Angeles’ starting running back. However, the team around him is terrible, and Akers has been a non-factor in the passing game during his career. If LA can’t keep games close, Akers will struggle to produce points. Similarly to Stevenson, Akers’ ESPN price is acceptable, but his Yahoo cost is much too steep. Draft a QB such as Justin Herbert or Trevor Lawrence during the sixth round instead.
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