9 Rookies in the 2024 Draft Who Deserve More Love
Undervalued Rookie Sleepers: 2024 NFL Draft
I’m sure by now you’re familiar with names like Marvin Harrison Jr, Malik Nabers, Brock Bowers, Rome Odunze, Caleb Williams, etc. But with the NFL Draft just around the corner, it’s important to shine some light on a few of the lesser known prospects in the 2024 class. These are the guys you’re going to want to know when it comes to the late rounds of dynasty rookie drafts. We’re all looking for the next Puka Nacua or Tank Dell, right? Maybe it will be one of these undervalued rookie sleepers.
Roman Wilson, WR, Michigan
Roman Wilson had a breakout 2023 season that included 12 touchdowns, a national championship, and concluded with an impressive performance at the Senior Bowl. Despite three underwhelming seasons prior to 2023, Wilson was able to showcase his exceptional speed, reliable hands, and quality route running during his senior season. Wilson proved versatile enough to work from both the slot and out wide. He uses his speed to stretch the defense vertically and horizontally and uses his high football IQ and awareness to find the holes in the defense to create a consistent target for his quarterback. Wilson is a smooth runner who often eats up defenses on crossing routes, both shallow and deep.
Wilson shined at the NFL Combine that included a 4.39 40-time. He is an overall exceptional athlete. However, there are plenty of concerns across his profile. The most glaring of which is the underwhelming production and late breakout. Michigan was a low volume passing offense but his team share numbers were still not up to snuff until his senior season. There are also concerns about how he will hold up against physical play at the NFL level, given he didn’t usually fare well when he found himself challenged at the line of scrimmage at Michigan. Finally, Wilson is not a guy who is going to gain a bunch of yardage after the catch. Outside of just pure speed, he is not hard to bring down in the open field.
In the NFL, Roman Wilson projects as a starting slot receiver who can bump out to Z when needed as well. He will use his speed and separation skills to work himself open on all three levels. Wilson is looking like an early Day 2 pick. In dynasty, he will be a second round target in rookie drafts with the hopes he develops into his athleticism to become a playmaker and reliable fantasy producer.
NFL Comp: Jayden Reed
Performance Score: 52.8 (79th-percentile)
Ricky Pearsall, WR, Florida
Ricky Pearsall is a crafty route runner with a high football IQ and full field awareness. He is a reliable target for his quarterback with good hands and the ability to win in traffic. He consistently finds the holes in the defense and sits down to create an open target. While he can line up at multiple positions on the field, Pearsall is destined for a slot role in the NFL. That will allow him to maximize his skill set as a route runner and chain-mover while also avoiding physical man coverage. Pearsall will live in the short and intermediate areas of the field as he poses little threat to win vertically. NFL draft capital will likely come in the third round. In dynasty, Pearsall will be a play in round three with a chance of becoming a top-36 fantasy producer if he develops into a steady starting slot.
NFL Comp: Brian Hartline
Performance Score: 53.3 (80th-percentile)
Malik Washington, WR, Virginia
Malik Washington is one of the most fun wide receiver prospects in the 2024 NFL Draft class. He is severely undersized at 5-8, but he is quick and shifty with great ball skills and an intriguing production profile. Washington is a quality route runner who pairs that with his athletic traits and high football IQ to consistently create separation and get open. He has natural and reliable hands and he works well in traffic, making him a go-to target for his quarterback in just about every situation. And that’s how things played out for him in his one year at Virginia. The Cavaliers made Washington the focal point of their offense and found ways to get the ball in his hands in as many ways as they could.
Despite his size, Washington is a tough tackle in the open field. Not only does he use his elite quickness to make guys miss, but he is more than willing and capable to break through arm tackles as well. He has a running back mentality with the ball in his hands and he will fight for every inch.
In the NFL, Malik Washington projects as a depth wide receiver who could compete to be a team’s starting slot. He will thrive in the quick game and underneath routes and be a reliable option in must-have situations. Washington is likely to be a fourth round pick on draft weekend. He will make for an intriguing option, yet low(ish) upside play, in the later rounds of dynasty rookie drafts.
NFL Comp: Zay Flowers
Performance Score: 56.5 (83rd-percentile)
Isaac Guerendo, RB, Louisville
Isaac Guerendo is an intriguing running back prospect despite his lack of college production. His combination of size and raw athletic traits—speed, explosion, agility, etc—is about as impressive as it gets. Guerendo was a little-known player prior to the NFL Combine. That was until he ran the fastest 40-time of all the running backs (4.33), and jumped out of the stadium. It’s no surprise, then, that Guerendo is a threat to take it to the house every time he touches the football. Guerendo is a decisive runner who hits the hole with purpose. He has the explosion to get to the next level quickly. He’s not one to make a defender miss with his open-field elusiveness, but at 221-pounds, he’s not exactly easy to take down when he gets a head of steam.
While his speed makes him a constant home-run threat, Guerendo can sometimes try too hard to find that big play. He has good vision to find the hole, but he tends to bounce things outside more often than he needs to. In the passing game, Guerendo is serviceable as a check-down option out of the backfield. He has good hands and is a quality pass protector.
The glaring hole in Guerendo’s profile is the lack of production. He played sparingly at Wisconsin while backing up Jonathan Taylor and Braelon Allen. He then continued to play the No. 2 role at Louisville behind Jawhar Jordan. That will likely be his role in the NFL, as well. Guerendo will be a team’s No. 2 or No. 3 running back who can provide value on all three downs. He can act as a change-of-pace guy and an explosive element out of the backfield. However, if he is to ever develop his game to the point where a team makes him their primary ball carrier, Guerendo would become one of the most dangerous running backs in the league. He certainly has the frame and athleticism to do it.
Despite his underwhelming production profile, Guerendo is likely to garner heavy attention on draft weekend. It’s hard to see a guy this athletic fall beyond the middle rounds. Some NFL team is going to call his name with the hopes he develops into his athleticism and they get a steal in the fourth or fifth round. In dynasty, Guerendo is worth a similar shot in rookie drafts based on the tantalizing upside of a 100th-percentile athletic specimen.
Javon Baker, WR, UCF
Javon Baker is an above average route runner who particularly thrives in the deep and intermediate quadrants of the field. He doesn’t exactly have “burner” speed and he takes a minute to get going, but that doesn’t stop him from making plays vertically. His ball skills and ball-tracking ability are exceptional. When the ball is in the air, Baker uses his natural instincts to find the football to attack it at its highest point. After the catch, Baker’s lateral agility and explosion kick-in to help him gain additional yards. At the NFL level, Baker projects as a team’s third or fourth option who will primarily play out wide at Z or X. Draft capital won’t come until Day 3, but that won’t prevent him from being one of the more intriguing sleeper wide receivers in the third or fourth round of dynasty rookie drafts.
NFL Comp: Josh Doctson
Performance Score: 52.2 (79th-percentile)
Dylan Laube, RB, New Hampshire
Dylan Laube is one of the funner running back prospects in the 2024 NFL Draft class. He was wildly productive over the last two seasons, albeit at UNH in the FCS. Still, Laube showed he can be a quality runner between the tackles with good vision, patience, and a knack for finding the cut-back lanes. He has enough speed and burst to create breakaway runs. Where he really shines, though, is in the passing game. He creates matchup problems from the backfield as well as lining up in the slot or even out wide. Laube is a legitimately good route runner with good hands and the athletic profile to make plays after the catch. His willingness and ability in pass protection will help him carve out a role on passing downs early in his NFL career.
NFL teams are going to appreciate Laube’s versatility on offense and experience in the return game. That will help him not only get drafted but make a 53-man roster as a rookie and work his way into a role that could eventually make him fantasy relevant. That will likely be as a change-of-pace guy and primary option in passing situations. Draft Capital will come in the middle rounds to a team looking to add a receiving threat to its backfield. In dynasty, Laube is a fun pick in the third round of rookie drafts with the longshot hope that he becomes the next Austin Ekeler.
NFL Comp: Chase Edmonds
Jacob Cowing, WR, Arizona
Jacob Cowing is an undersized slot receiver who was massively productive during his five year college career. Cowing has 4.38 speed with impressive acceleration and lateral agility. He checks several key analytical boxes like breakout age, yards per team pass attempt, dominator rating, and receptions per game. Cowing proved his skill set is valuable across different offensive styles and can fit multiple roles. In fact, his yards per reception average was 18.4 during his three seasons at UTEP. At Arizona, it was 10.8 as the Wildcats chose to use him as a close to the line of scrimmage guy whereas UTEP liked him as a downfield playmaker. That versatility, plus his added value in the return game, will be appealing to NFL teams.
The concerns in Cowing’s profile are centered around his ability to create consistent separation and how he operates in traffic and versus physical defenders. It’s not often that we see Cowing win a contested catch which is especially concerning if he is not a big separator. To help combat that, Cowing would be best to land in an offense that likes to spread the field and utilizes motion and other tactics to help their receivers get into space. Draft capital will likely come on Day 3. In dynasty, Cowing is a fun pick in the later rounds of rookie drafts.
Performance Score: 47.8 (74th-percentile)
Jermaine Burton, WR, Alabama
Jermaine Burton is a playmaking wide receiver with exceptional top-end speed and acceleration to get open vertically quickly and consistently. He bursts off the line of scrimmage, burning past his defender early in the route. Then when the ball is in the air, Burton is excellent at tracking it down and adjusting to the throw as necessary. Even when he is challenged at the line of scrimmage, Burton does an excellent job of fighting through that and getting into his route.
While Burton was primarily asked to run vertical patterns at Alabama, he showed enough to instill confidence that he can become a more well-rounded route runner at the next level. He won’t be just a one-dimensional deep threat, even if that is what he does best. In the NFL, Burton has the upside to become a team’s No. 2 or No. 3 option in the passing game, while serving as the primary vertical guy.
NFL Comp: Kenny Stills
Performance Score: 40.8 (65th-percentile)
Kimani Vidal, RB, Troy
Kimani Vidal was a highly productive runner over his final two seasons at Troy. He has good size to be an NFL workhorse with impressive size-adjusted speed and burst. He is a between-the-tackles runner with the explosive traits to break off chunk plays. Vidal follows his blockers well and is rarely tackled for loss yardage. Once he’s in the open field with a head of steam, Vidal is difficult to bring down. And even when you get hands on him, Vidal is always driving his legs and pushing forward to squeeze out one extra yard or two.
In the passing game, Vidal is a very capable receiver, but you won’t mistake him for a receiving weapon. Instead, he’s a reliable target on swings, screens, and check-downs. He will need to improve in pass protection if he is to become a true three-down option, however.
At the NFL level, Vidal will have to fight for a roster spot, but assuming he makes a team, he has a shot to develop into a solid RB2/RB1b, a la a Jaylen Warren type. He has the traits to be a workhorse back if ever given the opportunity, too.
NFL Comp: Jaylen Warren
Performance Score: 49.0 (42nd-percentile)
RANKINGS | DYNASTY | ROOKIES
