No one’s roster stays the same as it looks on draft day in Fantasy Football. Even throughout the season, as news and reports of potential depth chart changes come out, we churn the lower rungs of our rosters. Some players you overlooked on draft day suddenly look like appealing fliers to take a chance on. Once play begins for real, the adding and dropping increases, as guys who went undrafted are eagerly scooped up. Here’s an advance look at some of the AFC players who may not be picked in your draft, but could become free agent adds soon thereafter. These are the players from the AFC who will be forgotten initially but soon remembered.
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Make Sure You Remember These AFC Players
Baltimore Ravens: When most fantasy owners think about TEs this year, they are going to look past second-year man Mark Andrews. But Andrews started to develop a rapport with Lamar Jackson late last season, catching a 68-yard TD pass in Week 16 and totaling 137 receiving yards in his final two games. He has familiarity with Jackson and could end up being one of his prime targets, enough to possibly push for fantasy relevancy.
Denver Broncos: Drew Lock is going to go undrafted in many Fantasy leagues, but you should not forget about him. It shouldn’t be long before he is starting over Joe Flacco, who seems to think he is better than he really is. Lock is a gunslinger who throws a terrific deep ball and has a very promising crew of pass-catchers, including dazzling rookie TE Noah Fant. By mid to late season, Lock will start drawing attention as a possible waiver add.
Houston Texans: D’Onta Foreman is not going to go fully undrafted, but injury issues have cut into the optimism surrounding him. While the focus of this series is mainly on guys that could go completely ignored, we do have to focus on some players that will be undervalued as well. As long as Foreman does not endure any more bad luck this upcoming preseason, he should prove to be more dynamic than Lamar Miller. He should overtake him as the Texans’ starting RB at some point early to midseason in 2019. Draft Foreman with confidence as one of your top reserve RBs and keep him stashed until he is ready to be unleashed.
Indianapolis Colts: No one is going to give Devin Funchess respect, because most Fantasy owners believe his story has already been written and won’t be willing to see the narrative changing. Funchess was a bust in Carolina, yes. But that is mainly because he worked with a QB who was an erratic passer. Now with a major upgrade to Andrew Luck, Funchess becomes the big WR target the Colts star QB was lacking. That could mean many TD opportunities, especially near the goal line. Rookie Parris Campbell will not be a factor or impediment to Funchess playing his role. They are two different types of WRs. Funchess is an intriguing Fantasy WR4 prospect who could be utilized frequently on key passing downs. He does have enough of a ceiling in the Indianapolis offense to become a Fantasy WR3.
Kansas City Chiefs: Carlos Hyde started to bounce around the league last season and now has quickly transformed into a journeyman backup in the eyes of many onlookers. He may not go undrafted, but Hyde is starting to become a Fantasy afterthought to the average owner. Damien Williams, though, must still prove he can be a featured RB over a full season, it is something he has never done. If he fails, at least a timeshare with Hyde could become a reality.
Miami Dolphins: We are not going to do this Devante Parker thing again, and I really don’t believe in what I saw of Albert Wilson last season. But Josh Rosen will have to throw to someone other than Kenny Stills. Even though his rookie season was unimpressive, TE Mike Geisicki has a real opportunity to become an important target for Rosen. He has the size/strength combo that most of the “better” Dolphins WRs lack and he may turn out to be the only true threat in scoring situations near the goal line.
New England Patriots: I am going to go further down in the Patriots pecking order at WR for this one, but it may work out. Demaryius Thomas has already shown us he is a has-been. N’Keal Harry is the popular Fantasy WR pick from New England, but rookies have often struggled to pick up the system. Dontrelle Inman flashed at times in Indianapolis last season and finished the year with nine receptions for 123 yards and two TDs in his final two games. He has some deep sleeper potential.
New York Jets: Chris Herndon was surprisingly productive for a rookie in 2018, as Sam Darnold developed an on-field relationship with him as soon as the two started working together in the preseason. The Jets stocked up nicely at WR, but Herndon may still be a favored big target for Darnold, especially when he needs a shorter TD pass option.
Oakland Raiders: Even when drafting top fantasy backups, many owners will pass on Derek Carr. As I have said on this site before, though, Carr is entering the 2019 season with his best supporting cast ever. It would not shock me to see him suddenly vault back into the rear of the Fantasy QB1 grouping. He knows this will be his last and best chance to prove himself.
Tennessee Titans: The love affair with Derrick Henry has been rekindled with Fantasy players. Dion Lewis has definitely become a forgotten man. But we have seen Henry fail before, and he has never sustained momentum over a full season. Lewis is obviously the better pass-catcher, and if Henry slumps again at any point, Lewis could at least earn back part of a timeshare. Lewis is tough and scrappy, and he may not fade away without a fight.
Check out the NFC players who will slip through the cracks on Draft Day 2019.
Scott Engel is an inaugural member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association’s Hall of Fame and a four-time award winner. He was one of the driving content forces in the rise of RotoExperts.com and was the lead host on the RotoExperts in the Morning for six years on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio. He was also instrumental in the launch of the FNTSY Sports Network. Scott was the first-ever Senior Writer and Managing Editor at CBS SportsLine and won a company Hall of Fame Award. He was also an Associate Editor and Fantasy analyst for ESPN.com. He has been the featured Fantasy Writer on Seahawks.com since 2012 and his work has been syndicated to the Associated Press, NFL.com, New York Daily News, New York Post, Yahoo Sports, Bloomberg Sports, Sports Illustrated and many others. He is a credentialed media member who won an FSWA award in 2016 for his Insider Fantasy Reporting. Known as “The King”, Scott is on Twitter @scotteTheKing
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