The NFL is back, and with the return of football comes the season of fantasy drafts and all of the fun associated with it. Whether your league does online drafting or in-person drafting with stickers and a draft board, PPR or Standard, everyone who plays fantasy looks forward to drafting their team that will surely take them to the promised land. While I won't harp on this again, I am coming off of a championship win last year in my 12-person league, so I now feel capable enough to deliver advice to my audience, and today, I'm going to go over a few players that I will be avoiding on draft day at their current positions.
Kyren Williams, LAR: RB8, ADP 16.
This is nothing personal against Kyren Williams, I like him as a back and I have him as one of my keepers in a Keeper league that I am a part of. With that being said, he is currently being taken at the 16th spot on the FantasyPros ADP rankings and is listed as RB8 ahead of players like De'Von Achane, Derrick Henry, Josh Jacobs and Isiah Pacheco. The Rams are obviously always going to be a pass-first offense as long as Sean McVay is running the team, and when you look at the offensive line, it doesn't inspire a ton of confidence. Rob Havenstein is getting slower at the RT spot as he ages, Kevin Dotson and Alaric Jackson are underwhelming and Steve Avila is unproven, I don't think he'll see a lot of large running gaps to work with. Lastly, the obvious point: Blake Corum. Now I am not one of those people who thinks Corum is just going to come in and absorb the starting position, but I do think Corum was dominant as a goal-line back in college, and the Rams would be foolish to not use him in that role in at least some situations this year. When you combine a high-volume passing offense with two big mouths to feed in Nacua and Kupp with a questionable OL and a rookie Power Back joining the roster, RB8 is just too high of an ADP for me to reach here and there are other viable options to go with in this range that don't carry the same baggage.
2. Malik Nabers, NYG: WR23, ADP 44.5.
It hurts me to write this one as a Giants fan, but I fear even if Nabers is as good as people think he is going to be, it is still hard to justify him this high with as many question marks around the team as there are. Daniel Jones is returning from a bad injury, the offensive line, while improved, is still a work in progress. There is not as much of a running game to worry about anymore, which one may think is a good thing until you realize that the receivers will be getting all of the attention, and Nabers will be seeing the opposition's No.1 Cornerback as well as possible double teams. At this draft position, he is currently being taken higher than DeVonta Smith, Amari Cooper, Zay Flowers, and Tee Higgins, all of whom have more functional offenses. The Giants also start the season against several high-pressure defenses such as the Vikings, Browns, and Cowboys which could lead to fewer air-yard opportunities, and while the beginning of the season is not always indicative of how your fantasy season will go, when you are drafting a guy that high (within the first 4 rounds of a 12-team league setup) you are looking for more consistency than that.
3. Trey McBride, ARZ: TE3, ADP 47.5.
Trey McBride had a breakout season last year, and with fantasy owners desperate for steadiness in the tight end position, Trey McBride is being drafted ahead of well-established names such as Mark Andrews, Dalton Kincaid, and George Kittle. In my opinion, this is a little much. For starters, the Cardinals spent the 4th overall pick on Marvin Harrison Jr., and slot WR Greg Dortch has received an expanded role in training camp so far this season, which spreads the potential targets even thinner. Additionally, with James Conner back healthy, rookie RB Trey Benson ready to get some work out of the backfield, the Cardinals hoping to not be behind as much late in games as they were last year and Kyler's knee fully healed, I could see Arizona taking on more of a running identity. Similarly to Nabers, McBride surely will have a few big games that make his fantasy owners feel rewarded for spending such high draft equity on him, but I don't think they'll find the consistency they are looking for or the volume.
I will be doing more of these articles as the season gets closer, so make sure to follow @sourcepodcast11 on "X" and check here at sourcepodcast.com for the latest in fantasy football.
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