TAMPA, FL - NOVERMBER 12: Tampa Bay Buccaneers Wide Receiver Mike Evans (13) runs with the ball after making the catch during the regular season game between the Tennessee Titans and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on November 12, 2023 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire)
This may appear to be an overly obvious choice but it's the right one. Mahomes is coming at a discounted rate this year being drafted as the QB3 in the fourth round. That's the cheapest he's been in years.
What he brings is a comfort level to your team that is impossible to put a price on. If you own him in a dynasty league, you fully understand. This is a guy you can plug in week in and week out and never have to worry about him. He has a strong floor every week with the upside of a guy who is one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever live.
Not only that, but he also has the best set of weapons around him since Tyreek Hill left for Miami. This is the only quarterback in the top seven aside from Lamar Jackson who doesn't have some serious concerns and question marks heading into the 2024 season.
Prescott may be an average real-life quarterback, nevertheless, there is no denying his consistency in fantasy. This was the top quarterback down the stretch last season. The reason for that is volume and yards.
If there's one thing we know about the Cowboys it's that they are going to throw the ball a ton. When you have CeeDee Lamb as your top target, you know that's going to work out most of the time. The fact that the running back room in Dallas is a nightmare only makes us more confident in the volume being there for Dak once again this season and probably even increasing. There is no doubt that he will pile up yards and TDs, and you can draft him as the QB9 based on his current ADP.
Henry has been the most consistent and reliable backs in the league for years now. You hand him the ball as many times as you want and he destroys defenses.
Now he goes from a terrible situation in Tennessee to one of the best possible situations in Baltimore. You can already pencil him in for double-digit TDs this season. He's a lock for 15-plus carries every week and will be a nightmare to deal with next to Jackson in the backfield.
Currently, he's being drafted as the RB10 and is a lock to outperform that ADP. The four running backs going before him are Jahmyr Gibbs, Travis Etienne, Kyren Williams and De'Von Achane. All of them have major upside, but Henry is infinitely safer.
This is another back who is as safe as they come this season and is being drafted as the RB16. He lands in a great offense in Houston that wants to run the ball a lot. The team traded for him when they didn't have to and gave him an extension, making it clear that this is their guy in the backfield.
Don't be shocked if Mixon is at or near the top of the league in touches this season. Every week they are going to hand him the ball 15-plus times and he knows how to create positive yardage. He also has a proven track record in the passing attack and near the goal line. While he may not be quite as explosive as he once was, there is a good chance Mixon has another RB1 finish in him this season when you look at the opportunity and situation in front of him.
They don't come more consistent than Evans, who proved all the doubters wrong last year producing another stellar season. He has been in the league for 10 years and posted 10 straight 1,000-yard seasons while averaging 9.4 TDs per season.
You can pretty much lock him in for 75 catches, 1,100 yards and eight TDs this season and that's his floor, not his ceiling. That's an incredible baseline for a guy being drafted as the WR17. When you look how risky the guys being drafted from WR9-WR20 are other than him, it only makes him look like a better choice.
Last season, Adam Thielen was as slow and inefficient as they come and was still a top-10 fantasy wideout after Thanksgiving. Johnson, who is much younger and more talented, now slides in as the clear-cut WR1 in Carolina.
This is a guy who has proven he can be a PPR machine thanks to his reliable hands and outstanding route running. If Thielen can catch over 100 passes and top 1,000 yards in that offense, there is no reason Johnson won't blow those numbers away this season.
Even if you don't love Bryce Young, he's a significant upgrade at quarterback compared to what he had in Pittsburgh and comes with little risk being drafted as the WR39. This is a guy being drafted as a WR4 who could finish as a WR2 in PPR leagues.
Kelce is cheaper this season than he has been in a very long time. The past few years you probably had to use a top-five overall pick if you wanted him on your team. This year, he is the TE2 for the first time in forever and can be had in the back half of the third round.
There is no denying that 2023 was a down year by his standards, but he still finished as the TE2 overall. After the run he was on, it's reasonable to consider that perhaps he's being judged a bit too harshly for having a bad month or so, especially when you consider what we saw him do in the playoffs. Now that he can be had later in drafts there is no reason to believe he won't be the safest tight end in fantasy football this season.
