Expert Analysis

4/29/23

5 min read

2023 NFL Draft: Best Fantasy Football Fits for Day 2 Prospects

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Ryan Reynolds and Josh Larky break down their favorite fantasy football fits from the second and third rounds of the 2023 NFL Draft.

Best Fantasy Fits

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Lions select TE Sam LaPorta with No. 34 Pick

    • Sam LaPorta (scouting report) lands on a team that has zero tight ends of consequence.
    • The depth chart is crowded at wideout, but there’s room for LaPorta to carve out a role working in the intermediate part of the field.
    • His 4.59 40-time and elusiveness portend fantasy relevance long-term, at minimum.
    • He’s in the low-end TE1 conversation, along with about a dozen other tight ends, like Greg Dulcich and other fellow rookies like Michael Mayer (scouting report) and Dalton Kincaid (scouting report).

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Raiders select TE Michael Mayer with No. 35 Pick

    • Darren Waller is with the New York Giants, and Foster Moreau won’t play in 2023.
    • Mayer is behind Davante Adams and almost certainly behind Jakobi Meyers for targets.
    • There isn’t too much upside here, but a 500- to 600-yard rookie season with four to seven touchdowns is realistic, as Jimmy Garoppolo is competent enough.
    • Overall, this landing spot is great long-term, and he’ll be playing at least 80 percent of the snaps from Day 1.

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Packers select WR Jayden Reed with No. 50 Pick

    • Jayden Reed (scouting report) is a dynamic player after the catch who was productive throughout his college career at Western Michigan.
    • He has a chance to usurp Romeo Doubs for the WR2 role in this offense.
    • Jordan Love will determine how much touchdown upside Reed has, but this was one of the thinnest wide receiver depth charts for a rookie wide receiver to be dropped into.

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Chiefs select WR Rashee Rice with No. 55 Pick

    • Kadarius Toney is oft-injured, Skyy Moore is unproven, and Marquez Valdes-Scantling is a deep threat.
    • Rashee Rice (scouting report) is athletic and put up 96 receptions for 1,353 yards and 10 TDs at SMU as a senior in 2022.
    • This is a fantastic landing spot long-term, but even in Year 1, Rice has a chance for 700 yards and 7 TDs.
    • He’s a fantasy WR5 type who should be drafted in Round 10 or 11 in redraft.

Denver Broncos Marvin Mims

Broncos select WR Marvin Mims with No. 63 Pick

    • Marvin Mims (scouting report) is speedy and was often used down the field in college.
    • He pairs well with Russell Wilson and his signature deep ball.
    • We can transfer any and all K.J. Hamler hype to Mims, and he’s a great late-round best ball pick.
    • Should Jerry Jeudy or Courtland Sutton get traded, Mims becomes a viable redraft option in the later rounds.

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Lions Select QB Hendon Hooker with No. 68 Pick

    • Hendon Hooker (scouting report) lands in the best position out of any of the top five quarterbacks in this draft.
    • Detroit has a premium offensive line with a talented and well-rounded skill group.
    • The Lions are also well-coached on offense.
    • Hooker can recover from his injury behind Jared Goff this season.
    • If Hooker gets his number called, he has back-end QB1 upside in fantasy with this Lions team.

Tennessee Titans Tyjae Spears

Titans select RB Tyjae Spears with No. 81 Pick

    • Small but explosive, Tyjae Spears (scouting report) ran for nearly 1,600 yards at Tulane last season.
    • He’s an underrated receiver who could be a hot waiver wire add midseason.
    • He’s a pure upside handcuff to Derrick Henry.
    • Should Henry get traded, Spears enters the RB3 conversation.

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Dolphins select RB Devon Achane with No. 84 Pick

    • This was the perfect landing spot for Devon Achane (scouting report), a college sprinter who is built like Tarik Cohen.
    • He’s unlikely to garner goal line work, but there’s potential for receiving touchdowns in this high-powered offense, and Mike McDaniel is a creative play-caller.
    • He’s a fun late-round fantasy pick who could hold Nyheim Hines-type PPR upside down the stretch (50-60 total yards and three to five receptions per game).

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Tags: 2023 NFL Draft, De'Von Achane, Denver Broncos See More

Ryan Reynolds

Ryan graduated with distinction from the University of Minnesota as an accounting major, but some of the most valuable business and investment lessons he has ever learned came from spending weekends learning the sports collectibles business from his father. At a young age, Ryan would voluntarily spend hours sifting through minor league baseball statistics, using his father’s analytics-based system to identify potential targets. Even then, the hitter’s swing or the pitcher’s “stuff” mattered more to Ryan than the perspective granted through just data.

Josh Larky

Josh Larky is the Director of Fantasy and Gambling at The 33rd Team.  He joins us with a unique blend of educational and professional experience.

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