Quarterback
Given that we are heading into the first week of the fantasy season, I hope you don’t need to stream quarterback or tight end yet. If you are, did you not think this was something you should have taken care of during the draft? Well, if you do need to wade into the stream, Bo Nix is your guy.
Nix unsurprisingly won the starting job in Denver after an elite preseason showing.
Bo Nix dropped back to pass 34 times this preseason, which is the equivalent of roughly one full game.
– 6.1-yard average depth of target
– Zero sacks
– Four scramblesThe Broncos produced 3 TDs, 205 yards passing, and 110 yards rushing with Nix on the field this preseason. pic.twitter.com/JD5p9eL8SW
— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) August 26, 2024
Pro Football Focus graded him as their No. 6 passer and No. 12 rusher at the position. Nix gets a solid matchup with Seattle to open the season. The Seahawks ranked 29th in EPA per dropback allowed and were slightly above average in fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks. The bigger win comes if Nix is simply better than fantasy managers expect. He was an elite statistical prospect who scouts said needed the right system to thrive. He then landed in that system with Sean Payton. You won’t need to stream quarterbacks anymore if Nix hits his ceiling.
Running Back
Jaleel McLaughlin, Denver Broncos
For most of the summer, Jaleel McLaughlin was part of a three-way committee featuring Javonte Williams and Samaje Perine plus himself. That made him a fairly uninspiring pick in redraft leagues. If you haven’t been grinding the NFL news wire—it’s fine, I have been—Perine has since been cut, leaving just Williams and McLaughlin as the clear starters. Audric Estime served as the starter in the team’s final preseason game while the other two got the day off. In their second preseason outing, Williams got the start among the rest of the first-team offense and McLaughlin subbed in for the majority of the work on passing downs. Now it looks like he will hold that role into the regular season. If McLaughlin is Sean Payton’s top option as the pass-catcher out of the backfield, he will be a PPR money-printing machine.
Every one of Payton’s offenses has finished top-five in running back targets over his past 10 seasons. McLaughin, in turn, ranked top-five in PFF receiving grade and yards per route run as a rookie. This is a match made in heaven.
Samaje Perine, Kansas City Chiefs
You may not have heard, but Perine was cut by the Broncos. Jerrick McKinnon scored 10 touchdowns as the Chiefs’ primary option on passing downs in 2022. He was a top-20 back in PRR scoring on 128 touches. Perine still has the pass-catching juice to be this type of player. He led the league in yards per route run last year at 2.1 last year. He was also top-five in PFF’s receiving grade and top-15 in ESPN’s Catch, YAC, and Open score. The Chiefs putting Clyde Edwards-Helaire on the NFI list after cutting Deneric Prince all but locks in Perine as a passing-downs specialist. Perine should be rostered in all formats.
Jordan Mason, San Francisco 49ers
Elijah Mitchell and Jordan Mason were competing for the RB2 job behind Christian McCaffrey during training camp and the preseason. It looked like we were headed for an ambiguous backup situation before the 49ers shockingly put Mithcell on season-ending injured reserve during their cut-down to the 53-man roster. That left Mason as the clear backup to the league’s most valuable fantasy player. He is one of the top handcuffs and is widely available even in less casual leagues.
Wide Receiver
Not much has changed at wide receiver because the position is driven by talent more so than running back. However, Mike Williams avoiding the PUP list while recovering from a torn ACL was a big win for his fantasy outlook. He will likely be limited in his first few games, but Williams was putting his best work on film and in the spreadsheets through three weeks last year. He averaged 6.3 receptions for 83 yards at 2.33 yards per route run. All three of those marks would have been good for career highs. He projects to be Aaron Rodgers’ No. 2 receiver this year.
Adonai Mitchell, Indianapolis Colts
Josh Downs looks unlikely to play in Week 1 because of an ankle injury, clearing the runway for second-round rookie Adonai Mitchell to get a full complement of routes in his debut. Mitchell was an outside receiver in college but the Colts moved him around in the preseason, running him from the slot on 70 percent of his routes. He also got some reps when the starting offense moved into 12-personnel. Everything is trending up for Mitchell and he’s available in over half of all Yahoo leagues.
Marvin Mims, Denver Broncos
The Broncos gave us one more news item at the roster cut-down date when they parted ways with Tim Patrick. Marvin Mims only played two snaps with the starters during the preseason, seemingly making him a distant WR4. However, Patrick’s usage was likely to give him a final shot at making the roster or to showcase him for a trade that never materialized. Mims could now step into a WR3 role with Josh Reynolds and Courtland Sutton as his competition for targets.
Tight End
Taysom Hill, New Orleans Saints
Justice has been served.
Hill is available in just over half of all Yahoo leagues. Now eligible as a tight end, that number should be close to 100 percent rostership. Kendre Miller will miss at least four weeks while on injured reserve and Jamaal Williams was one of the least efficient backs in the league last year. Hill took 9-of-20 preseason snaps from the backfield and punched in a short score as a fullback. There’s a strong chance he is the team’s best option at RB2 on top of his role as a receiver, tight end, quarterback, punt gunner, notary public, and minister.
