Fantasy football managers likely have seen pretty similar rankings, analyses, and takes from across the industry over the last few months. Yet, this article is all about making some bold predictions entering the 2024 NFL season.
Here is a bold fantasy take for every team in the league that you should consider when compiling a list of players to target or avoid this year.
Bold Predictions for All 32 Teams in Fantasy Football in 2024?
Arizona Cardinals: Trey Benson Will Be the Highest Scoring Fantasy RB on the Team
The Arizona Cardinals decided to invest third-round NFL Draft capital on running back Trey Benson for many different reasons — none of those were about him riding the bench for his entire rookie season.
James Conner’s ADP has crept inside the top 20 at the RB position, which I think is far too aggressive. Sure, Benson may have had a quieter preseason than many hoped for, but his explosive skill set could open eyes very quickly early in the year while he operates in a complementary role.
Once Benson starts to flash, don’t be surprised if he starts to see more work than Conner over the back half of the season.
Atlanta Falcons: Drake London Finishes the Year as a Top-5 WR
The Atlanta Falcons retooled offense should greatly raise both the fantasy floor and ceiling of the talented pass catchers in this offense. The biggest beneficiary should be Drake London, who I believe has top-five upside at the wide receiver position in this scheme.
The upgrade at quarterback is significant, and Zac Robinson’s offensive scheme — from the Los Angeles Rams under Sean McVay — has produced players like Cooper Kupp (WR1 in 2021) and Puka (WR4 in 2023) in recent years.
London has elite physical tools paired with underrated route-running chops to thrive in this new scheme with Kirk Cousins under center.
Baltimore Ravens: Zay Flowers Finishes as a Top-10 WR
The table is set more favorably than you probably realize for Zay Flowers to explode in Year 2.
Flowers has a great, high-volume floor in the manufactured touch game — finishing second in the league in screen targets at the WR position last year.
Yet, many fantasy managers don’t realize Flowers finished 21st in deep targets last year. This gives the explosive vertical threat a path to producing big plays at a much higher rate in 2024.
Odell Beckham Jr.’s exit should also help matters for Flowers, which makes him an intriguing breakout candidate after a promising rookie season.
Buffalo Bills: Khalil Shakir Is the Highest-Scoring Pass Catcher on the Team
The Buffalo Bills purged an obnoxious amount of receiving production off of the roster, so Khalil Shakir is the lone pass catcher in this wideout room carrying established rapport with Josh Allen.
The idea of Keon Coleman or Curtis Samuel being the highest-scoring fantasy option in this scenario is plausible, but Shakir was highly efficient when his role expanded last year when Joe Brady took over as the offensive coordinator.
Shakir finished behind only Deebo Samuel and Rashee Rice in yards after catch per reception, which objectively makes him an intriguing YAC threat in an offense with an undetermined target distribution. There’s a path to finishing the year as the most targeted player in Buffalo.
Carolina Panthers: Jonathon Brooks Finishes Outside of the Top 40
This isn’t meant to be Jonathon Brooks slander, but starting the year on PUP raises some major red flags regarding the talented rookie’s fantasy upside this season.
Brooks will automatically miss a minimum of four games this season, meaning he’ll play a maximum of 13 games in a Carolina Panthers offense projected to finish among the lowest-scoring units in the league this year.
Additionally, are we even 100% sure the team will simply hand Brooks a full workload in Week 5? We saw the New York Jets ease a player like Breece Hall back into the fold last year in a bad offense for an entire month.
Brooks is a nice three-down prospect, but the uncertainty regarding his availability and role entering Week 5 in the best-case scenario makes him a rather risky draft-day investment. He could finish outside the top 40 at the position when it is all said and done in 2024.
Chicago Bears: Roschon Johnson Leads This Team in Rushing Touchdowns
No matter what jersey D’Andre Swift is wearing, teams simply hate giving him carries near the goal line. His lack of power, along with his tendency to get east and west with his rushing creativity, makes him a candidate again to lose work near the doorstep of the end zone.
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This is where Roschon Johnson could carve out a role with the Chicago Bears. His physical rushing style at 225 pounds makes him a leading candidate to see work in goal-line situations, which could prove to have sneaky fantasy value in an offense many expect to be a more productive unit with Caleb Williams under center.
Cincinnati Bengals: Andrei Iosivas Finishes With More Fantasy Points Than Jermaine Burton
Jermaine Burton did have a nice preseason, but Andrei Iosivas spent most of his preseason resting with the starters, which is why I’m a bit confused as to why Burton is currently being selected ahead of Iosivas in fantasy drafts.
Burton could see his role expand as the season progresses or potentially split work with Iosivas in three-receiver sets this year, but the latter’s established chemistry with Joe Burrow could mean he is on the field more than the rookie. It could be just enough to outscore Burton as WR3 in Cincinnati.
Cleveland Browns: Jerome Ford Is the Highest-Scoring Fantasy RB on the Team
Nick Chubb will start the year on the PUP list, meaning he will be completely unavailable for the first four games of the season.
Additionally, the Browns decided to release veteran RB D’Onta Foreman earlier this week.
I think this tells us that Jerome Ford is positioned to be the leading ball carrier to start the 2024 season.
When Chubb suffered his season-ending knee injury back in Week 2 last year, Ford filled in admirably with 1,032 total yards and nine scores on 248 total touches, making him RB16 overall in full-PPR formats.
In a similar fashion to Brooks, there is no guarantee Chubb will immediately see a full workload upon returning to the roster, so Ford should be a consistent factor in this backfield all season long.
Dallas Cowboys: Jake Ferguson Finishes the Year As TE1 Overall
Targets can be a tight end’s best friend. Furthermore, garnering red-zone targets with one of the NFL’s highest-scoring offenses can make you a potential league-winner at the TE position.
Jake Ferguson checks both of these boxes. In his first season as the Dallas Cowboys’ top tight end, he ranked second in targets (102), receptions (71), and receiving yards (761).
The Cowboys brought essentially no additional target competition, which makes the aging Brandin Cooks the quintessential (and only) threat to finish the year as the second option behind CeeDee Lamb in the passing attack.
Throw in the fact that Ferguson finished fifth in the league in red-zone targets last year, and there is a plausible path to his reception and touchdown upside leading to a surprise TE1 overall finish.
Denver Broncos: Bo Nix Finishes as a Top-12 Fantasy QB
The Denver Broncos have named Bo Nix their starting quarterback this season, which means we can attempt to forecast whether he can be fantasy-relevant as a rookie.
Not only can he be fantasy-relevant, but I believe he can also be a fantasy difference-maker in 2024.
Nix looked incredibly comfortable in Sean Payton’s scheme in the preseason. He was able to diagnose coverages pre-snap, go through his progressions post-snap, be decisive and accurate with the football, and occasionally tuck the ball down and run when necessary.
These factors have me thinking Denver’s offense can be far more productive than most expect, which gives him an outside shot to produce a shocking fantasy campaign under center in his rookie year.
Detroit Lions: Sam LaPorta Finishes the Year Outside of the Top 5 at His Position
Sam LaPorta’s TE1 overall finish in his rookie year with 86 receptions for 889 yards and 10 TDs is nothing short of outstanding, but when you dig a bit further, there are some potential pitfalls to him repeating as a top-five producer at the position.
LaPorta’s 2023 Stats and Positional Ranks:
- Targets: 120 (fifth)
- Receptions: 86 (fourth)
- Yards: 889 (fifth)
- TD: 10 (first)
- YAC: 358 (seventh)
- Yards Per Route Run: 1.78 (sixth)
Most of the stability and usage metrics are hovering right around No. 4 and No. 6 at the position, which came with big-name options like Mark Andrews and T.J. Hockenson missing a significant amount of time — and the emergence of Trey McBride and David Njoku as elite options.
Another thing that could work against LaPorta is TD regression, which can get any player who scores north of 10 TDs.
I still believe LaPorta is an elite tight end option, but some metrics suggest a fall outside of the top five isn’t too farfetched.
Green Bay Packers: Dontavyion Wicks Is WR1 in Green Bay
This one is a bit spicier than most, but Dontavyion Wicks flashed as one of the most efficient receivers in the league when given opportunities in his rookie year.
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Wicks registered a healthy 2.07 yards per route run in 2023, which spoke to his ability to get open in the intermediate range of the field with crafty route running. He produced 5.4 yards after catch per reception, tying Ja’Marr Chase and putting forth a higher mark than Green Bay Packers teammate Jayden Reed last year.
In a receiver room that still feels somewhat undetermined, I could see Wicks’ role expanding enough in the Packers’ room to drastically exceed his ADP.
Houston Texans: Stefon Diggs Finishes Outside of the Top 35
The sluggish finish we saw from Stefon Diggs over the back half of the 2023 season doesn’t exactly fill fantasy managers with optimism. He’ll now be a part of a Houston Texans team that already features Nico Collins and Tank Dell on the roster at receiver.
From Week 10 to Week 18, he was WR44, with an average of just five receptions for 44 yards during that span. I’m not going to go as far as to say he is washed, but the signs of potential decline did make an appearance at the end of last year.
Diggs’ drop in efficiency and production — combined with his increased target competition — does put a disappointing fantasy finish outside of the top 35 in play here if he is WR3 in Houston.
Indianapolis Colts: Adonai Mitchell Is the Highest-Scoring Fantasy WR on the Team
Michael Pittman enjoyed a career year playing with the combination of Anthony Richardson and Garndew Minshew under center. He put up 109 receptions for 1,152 yards and four scores on 156 targets in 2023, which reasonably puts him in the driver’s seat for the alpha-target-earner role entering this season.
Yet, Adonai Mitchell has the elite physical profile and route-running chops to become an instant-impact player in the Indianapolis Colts’ attack as a rookie.
Mitchell projects as a far better vertical threat than Pittman but also can win a variety of ways as a separator on all three levels of the football field.
If Mitchell can unlock Richardson’s potential as a deep-ball passer, then we could be looking at the new WR1 in Indianapolis.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Brian Thomas Jr. Produces a Top-20 Season
The Jacksonville Jaguars gave Calvin Ridley every opportunity to succeed as a big-play producer after leading the league in end zone targets in 2023.
Fortunately for Brian Thomas Jr. supporters, this experiment didn’t go quite as well as Jacksonville hoped, which presents an immediate opportunity for the rookie to become an elite big-play threat for the Jaguars.
Kansas City Chiefs: The Chiefs Produce Two Top-20 Fantasy WRs
The retooled Kansas City Chiefs passing attack should give fantasy managers reason to believe in a QB1 overall fantasy ceiling again for Patrick Mahomes.
How can this come to fruition? Well, two receivers will need to emerge as top fantasy options alongside the aging Travis Kelce to make this happen.
If Rashee Rice doesn’t get suspended this season, I easily see him being a top-12 option at the position.
The other player I expect to have a big year is rookie WR Xavier Worthy, who is easily the best candidate to fill the vacated Tyreek Hill role.
Las Vegas Raiders: Brock Bowers Finishes as a Top-3 TE His Rookie Year
I can already hear people screaming that I am crazy for not picking Zamir White as the breakout fantasy player for the Las Vegas Raiders this year. Well, I’m equally crazy about Brock Bowers being the next great tight end in the NFL.
Bowers enters the league with arguably the best production profile of any TE we have ever seen. He combined 175 receptions for 2,538 yards and 26 receiving touchdowns with 193 rushing yards and five rushing scores at the TE position over his three years at a college football powerhouse. That gives him one of the most productive and dynamic prospect profiles in CFB history.
Some fantasy pundits will be quick to argue that Bowers’ landing spot is horrible because the Raiders’ quarterback play is terrible, and Michael Mayer is already there.
News flash: Bowers isn’t just a TE prospect; he’s a certified weapon who can create mismatches with linebackers, safeties, and even smaller cornerbacks. This was evident when we saw Bowers in his first preseason action, where he lined up at TE, slot WR, outside WR, and fullback over his first 10 snaps. That is the definition of a movable weapon.
Bowers’ lateral agility, twitchy acceleration, and play strength through contact are all objectively elite, which makes it difficult for him to get to the ground.
Better yet, problems have an answer. The best way to describe Bowers’ elite RAC ability is to label him a problem. I don’t believe an answer exists for opposing defenses.
Don’t overthink this; Bowers is an elite playmaking talent and will find instant fantasy success in the NFL. He could have a huge season in Year 1.
Los Angeles Chargers: Ladd McConkey Finishes the Year as a Top-15 WR
Keenan Allen was an absolute fantasy scoring machine in full-PPR formats with Justin Herbert over the last three years.
Unfortunately, Allen’s elite production wasn’t enough to save him from becoming a cap casualty under a new regime, which vacated a WR1 role in this offense.
No disrespect to Joshua Palmer, Quentin Johnston, or DJ Chark, but Ladd McConkey is easily the best separator on the roster and the most suited to fill the void Allen left behind in a go-to role.
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McConkey has the route running chops to be a chain mover and RAC threat underneath but also possesses the top-end vertical speed to threaten opposing defenses as a serious threat.
In an unsettled receiver room, McConkey could be a target hog his rookie year for one of the best quarterbacks in the league.
Los Angeles Rams: Kyren Williams Finishes the Year As RB1 Overall
All concerns about Kyren Williams being named the starting punt returner aside, what we saw from the Notre Dame product in 2023 was special from a fantasy perspective.
Williams was a highly efficient, high-volume ball carrier who finished second behind just Christian McCaffrey with 21.3 fantasy points per game.
Blake Corum is a good football player and will contribute as a complementary piece, but if Williams is healthy, he has an RB1 overall ceiling with the Rams.
Miami Dolphins: Jaylen Wright Produces a Top-24 Season His Rookie Year
Last year was the perfect case study to prove a dynamic playmaker doesn’t need 20 touches a game to be an elite fantasy option when in the right situation.
De’Von Achane in the Miami Dolphins’ offense is the player I am referring to, but I believe fantasy managers could be seeing a bit of deja vu with Jaylen Wright earning enough work to become a top-24 option at this position this season.
Wright’s 4.3 speed with a 210-pound frame could make him the perfect complement to Achane or Raheem Mostert should one of these players miss any time due to injury.
If Wright manages to get on the field early in the year, I have a hard time imagining they’ll prefer to sink carries into the 32-year-old Mostert while a talent like this gets sent back to the bench.
Minnesota Vikings: Justin Jefferson Finishes the Season Outside of the Top 10
This isn’t an easy one to write, but I do see a world where Sam Darnold struggles as the Minnesota Vikings’ starting QB. If this is the case, then a talent like Justin Jefferson could be a fantasy victim in the same vein as players like London and Garrett Wilson were last year.
Is Jefferson an exceptional talent? Yes, but elite WRs don’t always produce great seasons when the quarterback play is subpar.
Chase is in the same elite tier as Jefferson and finished as WR11 in 2023 with Jake Browning seeing a significant amount of snaps.
I’m not suggesting that Jefferson shouldn’t be drafted, but just be aware that his range of outcomes may be wider than most are willing to admit.
New England Patriots: Drake Maye Produces a Top-20 Fantasy Season
The logic behind allowing a young quarterback to develop behind a veteran sounds nice and all, but I believe Drake Maye is clearly the best quarterback on the roster and will be named the starter within the first month of the season.
If that comes to fruition, then Maye has plenty of fantasy value as a QB2 on your roster with QB1 upside because of his underrated athleticism.
New Orleans Saints: Taysom Hill Finishes the Year as a Top-10 Fantasy TE
Taysom Hill continues to be one of the most fascinating studies in fantasy football over his NFL career.
Hill’s impact in PPR formats has been somewhat limited because he caught just nine passes last season. Despite his lack of involvement as a pass catcher, he still finished as TE12 (2023) and TE9 (2022) in the last two years in full-PPR formats.
How did this happen?
Well, when you run the ball 81 times, catch 33 passes, and throw the ball 11 times, your path to generating fantasy points is drastically more versatile than any other tight end in the league.
Hill has thrown for a touchdown, run for a touchdown, and caught a touchdown in back-to-back years. His versatility is truly like a Swiss Army knife, but it makes his year-to-year production feel like a mystery.
Oddly enough, Hill actually posted career highs in both receptions (33) and receiving yards (291) last season.
Seeing that the New Orleans Saints didn’t bring in any noteworthy free agents or spend high draft capital at the wide receiver position, it is certainly within the range of outcomes for Hill to be utilized in this fashion again.
New York Giants: Malik Nabers Produces a Top-10 Season
The best way I can describe New York Giants WR Malik Nabers is that he is a WR1 stuck in a WR2 situation due to his level of quarterback play.
From a sheer talent perspective, I believe Nabers could be a top-10 fantasy option at the position from the moment he steps on an NFL football field. Yet, the biggest question mark surrounds the level of play we are going to see from his QB, Daniel Jones.
Nabers’ elite separation skills, dynamic playmaking ability after the catch, route-running nuance, and excellent ball skills make him the betting favorite to be the featured player in this offense.
Understandably, the Giants’ passing offense doesn’t get many people excited, but I’m projecting Nabers for a monster target share in 2024, which gives him a path to be an instant fantasy impact player — even with the potential efficiency concerns.
If you want to bet on a middle-round player, do it on somebody who has an elite ceiling and could see an elite target share. If Jones can provide even middle-of-the-road quarterback play, then the sky is the limit for Nabers.
New York Jets: Malachi Corley Finishes the Year as a Top-35 Fantasy WR
The Jets’ wide receiver room past Wilson isn’t all that exciting. Sure, Mike Williams and Allen Lazard are competent veterans, but both feel like potential middling options with question marks in their profiles.
This leads me to seek out a dynamic playmaker in this offense’s designated touch game, which fits rookie Malachi Corley to a tee.
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Corley is an exceptional RAC threat who could emerge as a great complement to the dynamic Wilson, which could allow Corley to feast underneath when opposing defenses divert extra resources to slow down the third-year wideout and Breece Hall.
Pittsburgh Steelers: Jaylen Warren Finishes the Season as a Top-10 Fantasy RB
Considering just how much of a mess the Pittsburgh Steelers offense was in 2023, Jaylen Warren managing to finish as RB22 overall in full-PPR formats on just 210 total touches should be viewed as a very encouraging sign.
Warren’s 5.5 yards per touch blew Najee Harris’ 4.2 mark out of the water by a wide margin as well, making him the most efficient back with the more valuable fantasy role in full-PPR formats.
Yet, the receiving production is what fantasy managers are trusting to justify selecting Warren this year.
Warren’s Receiving Production in 2023 (Positional Rank)
- Targets: 74 (tied for fifth)
- Receptions: 61 (fifth)
- Receiving Yards: 370 (13th)
In an offensive scheme that wants to run the ball often behind a potentially improved offensive line and an upgrade at quarterback, it’s entirely plausible Warren will take another big step up the fantasy rankings board.
Philadelphia Eagles: A.J. Brown Finishes the Year As WR1 Overall
A.J. Brown has been nothing short of an elite fantasy producer at receiver since the moment he put on a Philadelphia Eagles uniform.
Brown’s Fantasy Production With Philadelphia
- 2023: 106 receptions, 1,456 yards, seven TDs (WR5)
- 2022: 88 receptions, 1,496 yards, 11 TDs (WR6)
A pair of top-six fantasy finishes confirms Brown is among the elite fantasy WRs right now.
Brown’s 30.1% target share ranked sixth in the league, which resulted in a career-high 106 receptions on 158 targets in 2023.
Brown’s formation versatility was also on display last year, lining up in the slot 24.9% of the time. This matters because new offensive coordinator Kellen Moore has helped players with Brown’s versatility achieve fantasy excellence over the last two seasons (Lamb in 2022 with the Cowboys and Allen in 2023 with the Chargers).
Brown has a legitimate WR1 overall upside if quarterback Jalen Hurts’ passing production and efficiency can mirror his 2022 campaign in this new scheme.
San Francisco 49ers: Brock Purdy Repeats as a Top-6 Fantasy QB
Why has it become so popular to hate or doubt San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy? The man has been a top-six fantasy QB since the moment he became the starting QB in 2022.
Don’t believe me? Here’s the proof.
From Week 14 to Week 18 of the 2022 NFL season, Purdy was the fantasy QB6.
Well, guess where Purdy finished the 2023 campaign among fantasy signal-callers?
You guessed it: QB6 overall.
Unless Brandon Aiyuk gets traded, absolutely nothing has changed to suggest we won’t see more of the same from Purdy in 2024.
Seattle Seahawks: Kenneth Walker III Finishes Outside of the Top 25
This one is a bit painful, but Kenneth Walker III makes me a bit nervous this year.
Walker is an explosive playmaker and a threat to take one to the crib any time he touches the football.
Yet, his backfield partner (Zach Charbonnet) had a slightly better yards-per-carry average, had a narrow lead in yards per touch, and was virtually even with Walker on a fantasy-points-per-touch basis.
If you want to ignore the presence of a talented player like Charbonnet — who did nothing in his rookie year to suggest he is a far inferior play to Walker — that is your right.
I just don’t see Charbonnet’s role being reduced enough to prevent Walker from a potentially disappointing fantasy season, especially if his backfield competition continues to be the more efficient option out of the backfield.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Jalen McMillan Finishes the Year as a Top-40 WR
All Jalen McMillan did throughout training camp and the preseason was impress the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ coaching staff.
It may not be the most coveted pass-catching trio in the league, but McMillan seems to have secured the WR3 role in this offense, which provides a path to being on the field enough to be fantasy-relevant as a rookie.
McMillan’s formation versatility, route-running nuance, strong hands, and underrated RAC ability all suggest he can make an instant impact in this offense.
Quietly, Baker Mayfield had the best year of his career, so there’s reason to believe he could be even better this season with an improved offensive line and better playmakers on the perimeter.
With Mike Evans and Chris Godwin starting to get a bit long in the tooth, McMillan could surprise you with how involved he is in Tampa.
Tennessee Titans: Tyjae Spears Outscores Tony Pollard
The Tennessee Titans’ decision to sign free-agent running back Tony Pollard to a market-value contract may have deterred some fantasy managers from fully investing in Tyjae Spears this year.
I’m here to tell you that I still have my ticket to Spears’ breakout party.
Spears still managed an RB34 overall finish with 453 rushing yards to go with 52 receptions for 385 yards and three total scores as a rookie, operating exclusively behind Derrick Henry.
Spears’ 5.5 yards per touch actually ranked sixth at the RB position, and he flashed impressive elusiveness and burst over his entire rookie campaign.
To further the argument behind his efficiency, Spears averaged 2.7 yards before contact per attempt and 1.9 yards after contact per attempt — the exact marks we saw from Falcons running back Bijan Robinson last season.
Keep in mind that Spears did this while operating behind one of the worst offensive lines in the NFL.
If Spears maintains his encouraging per-touch efficiency metrics while Pollard continues to struggle, don’t be surprised if Spears leads this backfield in total touches and fantasy points in 2024.
Washington Commanders: Jayden Daniels Finishes as a Top-5 Fantasy QB
You can’t be bold if you don’t take some risks. One risky bet I’m willing to place money on is a dynamic dual-threat QB playmaker operating well in a Kliff Kingsbury scheme. It could lead to a top-five year at the position.
Jayden Daniels finds himself in a situation similar to Kyler Murray’s rookie year with Kingsbury, in which the latter finished as QB6 overall.
This may seem farfetched, but Cam Newton and Robert Griffin III also finished as top-five fantasy QBs as rookies, which gives Daniels an outside shot to become a league winner at the position in this RPO-heavy scheme.