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The Case For Players Nobody Wants
In the fantasy football world, there are always players that nobody wants to roster. Whether it’s because they’re injury prone or not flashy, people simply refuse to draft them. While everyone wants an exciting pick, this isn’t necessarily the way to go. Every year, plenty of “unsexy” players contribute and sometimes carry teams to championships. Last year, players such as Kirk Cousins, James Conner, Hunter Renfrow, and Hunter Henry would have fit this criteria. They all finished top 12 at their position. The players I’m going to discuss are obviously being drafted at some point, but they are usually players that are passed on for more exciting prospects, for various reasons. Whether you’re prepping for best ball or redraft leagues, here are some guys you should consider taking that others won’t.
Cam Akers, RB, Rams (ADP 45.3, RB19)
Last year, everybody was chomping at the bit to draft Akers in the late first/early second round. After his Achilles tear, he miraculously came back to play in Week 18. He then started all four playoff games, totaling 77 opportunities (carries + targets) in that time frame. I get he was terribly inefficient, but can we really fault him? He was still recovering from his injury, and he faced a string of really tough run defenses. How much does it say that despite the injury, Sean McVay still trusted him to be the workhorse in the most crucial point of the season? I know McVay makes it hard for fantasy managers to trust him, but it seems he really believes Akers is capable of being a feature back. Dating back to 2020, Akers has started 10 games and has received 228 total opportunities (22.8/game). For reference, Jonathan Taylor received 24.8 opportunities per game last year. This is elite usage for Akers.
The Rams are also bound to have some regression in the touchdown department. They scored 78% of their TDs last year through the air, which was first in the league. The Rams had never topped 56% under McVay prior to last season. The upgrade from Goff to Stafford definitely influenced this, but 78% is still an outlier. Only one team has surpassed that rate in the last four years: The Jaguars in 2019. Consequently, the Rams’ 18% rushing TD rate was dead last in 2021. This is extremely unlikely to happen again, so expect Akers to get some of those rushing TDs. If he’s healthy, you’re getting a feature back in an elite offense in the late fourth/early fifth round. Sign me up.
Treylon Burks, WR, Titans (ADP 95.4, WR39)
I contemplated leaving Burks off this list because he’s a rookie, but he fits the criteria I’m looking for. Very few players have seen their ADP drop as far as Burks has in the past couple of months. At one point, he was going in the late 60s/early 70s. Then, reports of his asthma issues surfaced and his stock plummeted. Stop me if you’ve heard this story before: A talented rookie WR is drafted in the first round and garners hype. He then has a trivial issue during the summer, and his draft price drops like a rock. He performs great in the regular season and shows that the concerns were meaningless. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I’m talking about Ja’Marr Chase. While his issue was dropping passes instead of asthma, I see the situations in a similar light.
Burks was taken in the first round for a reason, and head coach Mike Vrabel knew about the issue before selecting him with the 18th overall pick. Burks dealt with asthma in college, and he was still able to produce at an elite level. In 2021, he recorded over 1,200 scrimmage yards and 12 total TDs en route to a first team All-SEC selection. He did this while playing in a run heavy offense, too. I recently wrote about Robert Woods, Burks’ running mate, but at these ADPs both WRs could pay off their prices easily. If you’re still not convinced, I implore you to watch this video from the gentlemen at Underdog Fantasy.
Kenny Golladay, WR, Giants (ADP 121.2, WR56)
If you drafted Golladay last year like I did, you were extremely disappointed. After going around the 5th/6th turn last year, he now goes at the beginning of the 11th round. However, I believe there’s reason for optimism. To start, his talent level didn’t change. He’s still the same player he was with the Lions, where he was a WR1 in 2019. His situation improved immensely this offseason, and you’re getting a massive discount on him compared to last year. The Giants went from Joe Judge to Brian Daboll at head coach, which is arguably the biggest coaching upgrade in the NFL. Daboll, of course, was the offensive coordinator for the Bills and led one of the league’s most explosive passing attacks. Daniel Jones is no Josh Allen, but he doesn’t have to be for Golladay to pay off this draft capital.
New York also upgraded their offensive line from one of the worst units in the league, to at the very least, average. That should give Jones a little more time to throw downfield to Golladay, which is where he exceled when he led the league in receiving TDs just three short years ago. In 2019, Golladay led the league in deep targets with 43 (per Player Profiler). He received just 14 deep targets last season, which ranked 43rd. Expect that to change under Daboll’s new offense.
PROJECTIONS TEMPLATE – GET NOW!
Devante Parker, WR, Patriots (ADP 141.8, WR65)
Parker has a strong chance to be New England’s #1 receiver, yet he goes well after plenty of #3 and even #4 receivers for other teams. He will undoubtedly start for the Patriots, even if he isn’t the true #1. For what it’s worth, I think he’s clearly the most talented receiver on the team, and I’m sure coaches will see the same thing. While the Pats were a run-heavy offense last year, I think they’re gearing up to let Mac loose. For one, it makes sense to be run-heavy when you have a rookie QB. The Pats traded for Parker, of course, and upgraded their OL through the draft. Parker is a big-bodied receiver (6’3″, 220 lbs) that should be utilized heavily in the red zone. Parker got a bit unlucky last year, averaging just 9.3 0.5 PPR PPG when he was expected to score 11.5 PPG (courtesy of Upside Stat Factory). 11.5 PPG would have tied for 24th in the league last year. Parker actually started the season pretty well, turning 32 targets into 18 catches for 242 yards and a TD through the first 4 games. After that, he got injured and never looked quite the same. Parker’s biggest issue in his career has been staying healthy. It’s obviously hard to predict injuries, but if he can remain on the field, I believe Parker has WR2 potential.
Julio Jones, WR, Free Agent (ADP 188.9, WR75)
Jones is obviously not on a team at the moment, but I’d be shocked if he decides to hang up his cleats. It’s likely that he doesn’t want to go through training camp, and will choose to sign with a team afterwards. Despite what people may tell you, Jones wasn’t a bad receiver last year. He just struggled to stay healthy and didn’t have good QB play. When Jones played last season, he was able to post the following metrics (per Player Profiler):
- 4th in contested catch rate
- 8th in juke rate
- 13th in true catch rate
- 22nd in yards per target
- 26th in yards per catch
- 33rd in yards per route run
Now, imagine he signs with the Packers, Ravens or Colts, all of which need help at receiver. Do you really think 74 receivers will outperform him? Most other receivers in this range are 4th or 5th options on their teams at best. If Jones were to sign with any of the teams mentioned, he would at the very least be the WR3 for them, and likely start. At the end of the 16th round on Underdog, he’s basically free. Take a shot on him with one of your last picks.
Summary
The point of this article isn’t to convince you to take every one of these players in the same draft, but rather to urge you to reconsider them when you’re on the clock. It’s important that we set aside our personal biases when drafting, and not always just taking the player who “feels right”. Branch out, open your mind, and draft like you’ve never drafted before. Good luck out there!
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