As you prepare for your league, let’s take a look at recent trends among fantasy football draft players: We’ll show you which players are trending up and down in fantasy football draft value.
The rise and fall of fantasy football players
With preseason games providing more information each week and training camp bringing nonstop highlight reels and reporter whispers, Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR) is seeing some big changes in how we rank players. With two weeks remaining, here are the players who have risen and fallen the most in fantasy football draft positions.
Fantasy Football Riser
Jalen Naylor (WR – MIN) +67
The Vikings' WR3 position is vacant due to KJ Osborne's departure from Minnesota. With Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison entrenched as the WR1 and WR2, it's debatable whether the position will be fantasy-worthy, but Addison's legal issues could surface at some point. TJ Hockenson is still recovering from an ACL injury, but they may need another pair of hands to catch the ball. Jalen Naylor appears to be the favorite over Brandon Powell at the position. If Sam Darnold is talented, he could be worth picking in deep leagues and will continue to rocket up the fantasy football rankings.
Jalen Naylor this season:
??? 82.9 PFF grade
???? 4 receptions
???? 4 first downs
??? 94 yards
???? Four explosive plays
???? Target rating: 109.7 pic.twitter.com/y2qsA9wUFW
— PFF MIN Vikings (@PFF_Vikings) August 21, 2024
Jordan Whittington (WR – LAR) +54
When the Rams acquired Puka Nacua and had great success, it sparked a never-ending debate about who the next Puka Nacua would be, a topic that would be talked about for years. After Jordan Whittington had a big preseason, many began to wonder if the Rams could repeat their success with Nacua in 2024 with Whittington. In his preseason debut, Whittington caught six of nine passes for 74 yards. Rams reporter Jordan Rodrigue reported that the team views Whittington as a backup to Nacua and Cooper Kupp. Whittington would still have to get past Demarcus Robinson to play in a 3WR set, but that's not the highest hurdle. Whittington would be a popular player to be selected in the later rounds of the draft purely on potential.
Gerald Everett (TE – CHI) +51
It was clear that the Bears weren't satisfied with Cole Kmet as their lone pass-catching tight end, so they acquired Gerald Everett as soon as free agency opened. Everett played with offensive coordinator Shane Waldron for four of his five years in the NFL. That trust was on display immediately in preseason games, with Everett and Kmet playing roughly equal amounts of snaps. Neither player would be trustworthy enough to use in redraft leagues, but they have more potential in best ball.
Justin Fields (QB – PIT) +14
The Steelers quarterback battle continues to be a struggle as neither Russell Wilson nor Justin Fields seem to have a full grip on the position. It's the first week of training camp that Wilson and Fields have both been healthy and on the practice field, so we may see more information this week. Fields has played exactly how you'd expect him to in preseason games: erratic, dynamic, inaccurate, but exciting all at the same time. The Steelers have yet to make an official decision, but if Fields is going to be QB1, he'll be worth having on the roster for as many games as he can before he loses the position. Act now before the fantasy ADP catches up with you.
This is one of the most entertaining plays I have ever seen. pic.twitter.com/PDlTajJjtu
— Ian Kenyon (@ikenyonFB) August 18, 2024
Ruchy Rice (WR – KC) +11
The threat of a suspension for Ruchy Rice in 2024 seems to have disappeared somewhat after the Chiefs told reporters they haven't heard anything from the NFL on the matter for some time. Rice has averaged 17.0 points per game since Week 11 in 2023 and has been a favorite target of Patrick Mahomes. With Xavier Worthy and Hollywood Brown keeping defenses busy downfield, Rice could take a big step forward in Year 2 with added volume for the middle relievers.
JK Dobbins (RB – LAC) +9
The Chargers are not exactly healthy at nearly every position right now, but they do have one surprisingly healthy player in JK Dobbins. He tore his Achilles in Week 1 of the 2023 season, but has looked good since. The running back corps is as iffy as the rest of the lineup, with Dobbins competing with Gus Edwards (who is recovering from offseason surgery) and Kimani Vidal, who seemed completely out of favor until recently. Justin Herbert has favored checkdowns for the past few seasons. If that continues, Dobbins will likely catch the majority of targets over Edwards. It's not a good idea to bet on Dobbins' health long-term, but it wouldn't hurt to look forward to his early season performance.
Will the Chargers actually do any run blocking?
Can tight ends block??? pic.twitter.com/re5Gg4yR6B
— Hayden Winks (@HaydenWinks) August 18, 2024
Cooper Kupp (WR – LAR) +5
Puka Nacua is recovering from bursitis but should be back for Rams training camp soon. But that hasn't stopped Cooper Kupp from climbing the fantasy football rankings. Kupp continued to perform well in 2023, posting a target share of 25.6%, very close to Nacua's 28.8%, and a higher route participation rate than Nacua's 92.8% vs. 91.2%. Kupp will likely continue to climb until Nacua is healthy again.
Jayden Daniels (QB – WAS) +4
If there was less enthusiasm for Jayden Daniels, a rookie quarterback who threw for 3,811 yards and 40 touchdowns and ran for 1,250 yards and 10 touchdowns in his final season at Louisiana State, the enthusiasm would be much higher, to say the least. Daniels lived up to the hype in the preseason and is now officially named Washington's starter. The only surprise is that he hasn't improved further.
Fantasy Football Losers
Kendre Miller (RB – NO) -27
No coach in the NFL seems more frustrated with the players on his roster than Dennis Allen. Allen, in particular, is quick to give tough love to Kendre Miller whenever he has a microphone in front of him. Miller struggled with injuries in his rookie season and that trend has continued into his second year. Miller was a third-round pick, but if he can't get healthy, his chances of making an impact may be numbered.
There's a good chance Kendre Miller won't make the team, and the Saints spent a top 75 pick on him a year ago. https://t.co/5ClneiQQKg
— Brett Kollmann (@BrettKollmann) August 22, 2024
Kimani Vidal (RB – LAC) -25
A week ago, Chargers reporter Daniel Popper left rookie running back Kimani Vidal off the 53-man roster. Since then, Vidal has returned healthy and appeared in the Chargers' second preseason game, rushing 11 times for 49 yards, during which he looked dynamic. Popper then retracted his prediction, saying he was now seeing everything he hadn't seen from Vidal. With this change in mood, don't be surprised if Vidal starts to rise again.
Hollywood Brown (WR – KC) -18
The Chiefs seemed like the perfect landing spot for Hollywood Brown to continue his trend of playing with some of the NFL's best quarterbacks while also pursuing a Super Bowl victory. Early reports out of camp were positive, but Brown suffered a fractured sternoclavicular joint on his first catch of the preseason, putting Brown's early season availability in doubt and raising the evaluation of Xavier Worthy and Rushe Rice.
DeAndre Hopkins (WR – TEN) -13
Another injured wide receiver is DeAndre Hopkins, who recently turned 32. Hopkins had a great 2023 season with the Titans and was poised to be the WR1 for this offense thanks to his relationship with Will Revis. Unfortunately, a lower leg injury has kept him out of camp for two weeks. It remains to be seen if Hopkins will be fully healthy by the start of the season.
Tyler Lockett (WR – SEA) -8
There are rumors floating around Seahawks training camp that Jackson Smith-Njiba has been very impressive and after a somewhat subdued rookie season, is poised to make a leap in 2024. Tyler Lockett has always been underrated in fantasy football circles, but he turns 32 in September, so this could finally be the year his value is properly recognized.
Oh my goodness JSN pic.twitter.com/aYPZJZBX4I
— ᴅᴏxx ⚡️ (@new_era72) August 15, 2024
George Pickens (WR – PIT) -5
The longer things drag on, the less likely it seems Brandon Aiyuk will stay with the Steelers. Some might consider that good news for George Pickens. But it's worth remembering that no wide receiver has ever had more than 72 catches in a season in Arthur Smith's offense. It's also worth noting that the Steelers have been looking to upgrade their wide receivers, which shows how much they think Pickens is up to.
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