Rookie Rankings

Apart from top-five-drafted quarterbacks, it's hard to think of a player that's entered the NFL in recent years surrounded by such massive expectations (and pressure). Playing the same position as your Hall of Fame father can do that, especially when you're 6-foot-4, a highly regarded recruit, choose Ohio State and then go on to produce back-to-back 1,200-yard seasons. Those are all good things in terms of the future projection, of course, and even the few negatives in Harrison's profile are easily enough explained away. He didn't play much as a 19-year-old freshman at OSU, but the three guys ahead of him -- Chris Olave, Garrett Wilson, Jaxon Smith-Njigba -- all ended up being first-round picks. And while Harrison opted out of pre-draft workouts, his ability to make that decision points to just how dominant his tape was (it helps that there's now tracking data to erase any concerns about speed). The fourth overall pick should instantly become Arizona's No. 1 wide receiver, teaming up with TE Trey McBride and RB James Conner to give Kyler Murray a solid group of weapons despite the lack of WR talent behind Harrison. It's about the fantasy situation you can hope for as a top-five pick with minimal chance of going to a team that has an elite QB.

Drafted second overall this year, Daniels took first-team practice reps all summer and was named as Washington's Week 1 starter in mid-August. He's an outstanding athlete, but at 6-4, 210, his slim build raises durability concerns. That's about the only concern. Armed with a quick release, Daniels is accurate all over the field. Unlike others in his draft, Daniels' 72.2 completion percentage last season (7th in FBS) was not built on accuracy-inflating short passes -- his average target depth (10.2) and YPA (11.7) both led the nation. Daniels has a strong arm, though not an elite one, and is an excellent deep-ball thrower. He operates well in the pocket but can also play on the run, and it's his dual-threat ability that is intriguing both for Washington and fantasy managers (he ran for more than 2,000 yards and 21 TDs at LSU the last two years). Daniels sometimes holds the ball longer than necessary, resulting in sacks, and his passing stats in college were solid-but-unexceptional prior to his Heisman-winning 2023 campaign. The Commanders have a few experienced targets in RB Austin Ekeler, WR Terry McLaurin and TE Zach Ertz, but they lack depth at the skill positions and may need quick development form rookie TE Ben Sinnott (Round 2) and rookie WR Luke McCaffrey (Round 3). Daniels is lauded for his high football IQ and seems to fit well in offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury's scheme, but even if the rookie needs time to figure out the passing game his rushing ability should create fantasy value.

Nabers was the second WR taken in the 2024 Draft, going sixth overall to a Giants team that was widely rumored to be interested in quarterbacks. He'd be a consensus WR1 in many other draft classes, but Marvin Harrison was the popular favorite for a loaded 2024 class. Nabers has looked the part since his initial year at LSU in 2021, when he started six of 11 games and had 417 receiving yards as an 18-year-old true freshman (after missing his senior season of high school due to a declined transfer waiver, no less). Nabers then progressed to 1,017 receiving yards as a sophomore and 1,569 as a junior, comfortably outproducing teammate Brian Thomas (also a first-round pick) in every key category besides touchdowns. Nabers scored 14 of those in 2023 to help QB Jayden Daniels win the Heisman Award, with highlights including a 13-239-2 receiving line against Miss. St. and a 10-171-1 showing at Alabama. Listed at 6-0, 200, Nabers is about 3-4 inches and 10-15 pounds shy of Harrison and fellow rookie Rome Odunze, but the LSU product is probably the fastest of the three and also the best YAC threat. While he didn't test at the combine, Nabers reportedly posted a 4.44-second 40-yard dash and 38-inch vertical... back in 2020 when he was still in high school. He should immediately become the Giants' No. 1 receiver ahead of Wan'Dale Robinson, Darius Slayton and Jalin Hyatt, albeit in an offense that has Daniel Jones (ACL) and Drew Lock at quarterback.

Thomas was a late-rising prospect, with his stock largely driven by a 1,177-yard, 17-TD junior season and then a standout performance at the 2024 Scouting Combine. He had only 720 yards and seven touchdowns over his previous two seasons at LSU, even though he made nine starts as a true freshman after coming in as a four-star recruit. Being part of the same class as mega prospect Malik Nabers was one factor in Thomas' lack of volume prior to 2023, though the other guys they competed with for WR snaps/targets were mostly late-round picks (Trey Palmer, Kayshon Boutte) or non-prospects (Jaray Jenkins, Jack Bech) and Heisman-winning quarterback Jayden Daniels helped everyone in 2022-23. Even the 17-TD season saw Thomas sitting 41 targets and 392 yards shy of Nabers, with a 21.8 percent target share (compared to Nabers' 31.9). While the on-field production thus raises questions about his ability to command targets, Thomas went 23rd overall to Jacksonville after running a 4.33 40-yard dash at 6-3, 209. He also did reasonably well in his other combine drills with a 38.5-inch vertical and 126-inch broad jump, and he's slightly on the young side for a rookie (turning 22 in November). It is possible that Thomas ends up more useful to the Jaguars than fantasy managers, as he and Gabe Davis could spend a lot of time clearing out safeties for WR Christian Kirk, TE Evan Engram and RB Travis Etienne. On the other hand, Thomas has the physical traits one looks for in a true No. 1 WR, giving him a much better best-case scenario than players like Kirk and Davis.

Bowers is the best tight end prospect since Kyle Pitts in 2021, and arguably a more complete player. In fact, Bowers looked NFL-ready as a true freshman back in 2021, catching 56 passes for 882 yards and 13 TDs for the national champs. He finished his Georgia career with 26 receiving touchdowns and five more on the ground, deployed as a primary weapon in a way that's almost unheard of for college tight ends. Bowers also was praised for his effort as a blocker, though he was listed at just 230 pounds for most of his college career and weighed 243 at the 2024 Combine. A hamstring injury prevented the 6-foot-3 tight end from doing pre-draft workouts and perhaps creates some doubt about the relevance of his bulked-up weight at the combine, but that wasn't enough to deter the Raiders when Bowers was available at No. 13 overall. Vegas isn't the best locale for immediate fantasy value, as the Raiders have Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell at quarterback and drafted 6-foot-4, 265-pound TE Michael Mayer in the second round last year. Bowers is much faster than Mayer and should immediately be one of the best tight ends at gaining yards after the catch, but it's nonetheless possible the rookie cedes some valuable snaps to the second-year pro. Young tight ends traditionally need a year or two to marinate anyway, though similarly talented players like Pitts (1,026 yards in 2021) and Sam LaPorta (10 TDs in 2023) have bucked that trend of late with big rookie seasons.