Fantasy Football Recap: NFC West Post Draft
With the dust settling from the NFL Draft, and training camps in full swing. Now is the perfect time to take a look at the post-draft values of each NFL division. We will take a look at each new fantasy-relevant addition and I will also give my current rankings for all of the startable fantasy options on each team. This week we will take a look at the NFC West! Make sure you are following me on Twitter at @JGalt93 as well as the podcast @TheHateful8FF!!!
Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals are definitely a work in progress. They made some solid moves for the future in this year’s draft but the near future certainly looks bleak for the Cardinals. They only selected two fantasy-relevant players in this year’s draft Michael Wilson, WR, Stanford(3rd round), and Clayton Tune, QB, Houston(5th round). I like Wilson as a prospect but expect a little from him in his first year in the league. I would add him in your dynasty rookie drafts in the late 2nd/early 3rd rounds as he could grow into a main role as he continues his pro career. He has all of the attributes we would want from a WR in the NFL. Tune is an interesting prospect, mainly due to the fact that the Cardinals QB situation is a mess due to Murray coming off of an ACL injury. I am not high on Tune, but we could see a situation where he starts a few games for the Cardinals this season. Tune would be a solid late-round addition in your dynasty rookie drafts, especially in Superflex leagues. Even though the Cardinals are looking at a complete rebuild, there is still value in the roster. I am a big fan of James Conner heading into the season, as I believe they will have to rely upon him heavily with whichever QB is starting. I also like Marquise Brown, especially in full PPR leagues. He should receive a huge target share, we just don’t know how valuable those targets will be as of right now which is why I have him ranked as a high-end flex versus a low-end WR2. I like the Cardinals tight end group, especially where they are being drafted as of right now. Both McBride and Ertz have the ability to be a top-tier TE option, but it is unclear how involved they will be with the current offense. If Ertz were not ready for the beginning of the season, McBride would move up my rankings a little bit. I could see the Cardinals utilizing McBride heavily in that case and McBride being a security blanket for the Cardinals starting QB. The Cardinals should have a very interesting season, to say the least.
Current redraft rankings:
Kyler Murray-QB25
James Conner-RB24
Marquise Brown-WR36
Rondale Moore-WR58
Trey McBride-TE21
Zach Ertz- TE29
Los Angeles Rams
The Rams mainly attacked their defense in the draft but were able to add some depth at their offensive positions later on throughout the draft. The fantasy relevant players drafted were Stetson Bennett, QB, Georgia (4th round), Davis Allen, TE, Clemson (Round 5), Puka Nacua, WR, BYU( Round 5), and Zach Evans, RB, Mississippi( Round 6). All of the players listed outside of Allen should immediately be on your radar in dynasty leagues. The depth chart on the Rams is not necessarily deep and there are opportunities to be had. Bennett could be the Rams backup QB come September. He isn’t the prototypical type of NFL QB that you’d want but may start a game here or there, especially with the injury issues Matthew Stafford has had in the past. Bennett is worth an add in the 4th/5th rounds of your Superflex dynasty leagues. Nacua and Evans are some of my favorites adds in dynasty rookie drafts this year. Evans has as good of a chance as anyone behind Akers to be the backup. I have been adding Evans in dynasty rookie drafts in the 3rd round and have been very happy with that value. The reason I like Nacua is that there is pretty much no real threat for targets behind Cooper Kupp, so I like his chances at potentially taking the WR2 role over for the Rams. I currently have Van Jefferson slotted in as the WR2 but only time will tell if he is able to hold onto that spot. I would recommend adding Nacua in the 4th/5th rounds of your dynasty leagues for the pure upside he would have if he did become the WR2 for the team. The Rams will have players that are valued outside of Akers and Kupp, but at the moment it is hard to know exactly who it is going to be. The good news is everyone else on the team is going decently late in drafts and you should know pretty early in the season who to keep and who to cut.
Current redraft rankings:
Matthew Stafford-QB22
Cam Akers-RB21
Cooper Kupp-WR3
Van Jefferson-WR77
Tyler Higbee-TE16
San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers did not have any draft picks until the 3rd round, and their first offensive pick was a kicker. Similar to the Rams, the 49ers decided to fortify their already strong defense. The fantasy-relevant players they took were Cameron Latu, TE, Alabama( Round 3), Brayden Willis, TE, Oklahoma( Round 7), and Ronnie Bell, WR, Michigan (Round 7). None of the players listed above offer any immediate fantasy value. The only one I would consider adding to my dynasty roster as of right now is Latu. Latu figures to be the backup to George Kittle and has all of the attributes that we would want from a starting TE. Latu doesn’t even have to be drafted, I have been getting him off of the waiver after the rookie drafts. The QB situation for the Niners is still not sure, I am still on the side that Trey Lance will be the starting QB for the team. My current draft rankings reflect the confusion concerning the current QB situation. Once it is clear who is the starter, I will update my rankings accordingly. The 49ers have the best RB, two great receivers, and an elite tight end. No matter who is the starting QB, the 49ers offense is set up to succeed once again in 2023.
Current redraft rankings:
Trey Lance-QB26
Brock Purdy- QB33
Christian McCaffrey-RB1
Deebo Samuel-WR21
Brandon Aiyuk-WR27
George Kittle- TE5
Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks certainly made some fantasy-relevant draft picks in 2023 and they are easily the most exciting team I have written about so far. The fantasy-relevant players selected were Jaxon Smith- Njigba, WR, Ohio State(1st round), Zach Charbonnet, RB, UCLA (2nd Round), and Kenny McIntosh, RB, Georgia(7th round). JSN is one of my favorite prospects in this entire draft and for good reason. JSN does enter a crowded receiver room with DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett already there, but I like his upside regardless. It may take some time to produce at a high rate but even early on I believe JSN will be worthy of a mid-late round pick in redraft leagues in 2023. JSN should be the 2nd/3rd pick in non-superflex dynasty leagues, a top 5 superflex dynasty pick, and a high-end flex pick in redraft leagues in 2023. I know that I was totally bummed when the Seahawks selected Charbonnet in the 2nd round, especially as a KWIII manager. Charbonnet was my 2nd ranked RB before the draft and now he is my 3rd ranked rookie running. Unfortunately, he landed in one of the worst spots for an RB. Now that does not mean that he has zero value, but there is a good chance that KWIII and Charbonnet will split the backfield. Which would ultimately cap both of their upsides going forward. I believe that the WR group for the Seahawks is one of the best in the league and all 3 WRs listed below are valued at their current ADPs. My favorite value on the Seahawks has to be Geno Smith though. The Seahawks not only heavily invested in Geno, but they also surrounded him with as much talent as possible to succeed. Geno is currently the QB14 in draft rankings on the fantasy pros rankings, which gives him an ADP of 112. Getting your starting QB in the 11th-12th rounds is a great value, especially when I believe Geno will outproduce that ADP decently in 2023. The Seahawks are poised to have one of their best seasons from a fantasy perspective in a while and I am all for it.
Current redraft rankings:
Geno Smith-QB12
Kenneth Walker III-RB18
Zach Charbonnet-RB42
DK Metcalf-WR15
Tyler Lockett-WR28
Jaxon Smith- Njigba-WR35
Noah Fant-TE25
