2024 Fantasy Football Awards: MVP, Biggest Bust, Best Waiver Pickup & More!

And just like that, the fantasy football season is over (unless you’re in a league that plays into Week 18). Trophies have been won, bragging rights have been earned, and unlucky losers around the country are preparing for 24-hour trips to Waffle House. 

I’m already tempted to start building rankings for 2025, but first, I want to take a second to reflect. With the never-ending rush of the season, it’s easy to miss the bigger picture. Let’s look back at some of the best (and worst) performers from the 2024 fantasy football season by handing out some Fantasy Football Awards. From MVP, to biggest bust, to best waiver pickup, this article will cover all of the standout players (and a couple of coaches) from the 2024 fantasy season. Without any further ado, let’s get started!

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2024 Fantasy Football Awards

2024 Fantasy Football MVP: WR Ja’Marr Chase, Cincinnati Bengals

This was a close race, but I have to give the nod to Chase given how thoroughly he lapped the rest of the field at wide receiver this season. The Cincinnati superstar finished Week 17 with 318.9 Half-PPR points. The receiver in second, his former LSU teammate Justin Jefferson, was over 20% behind at 259.1. 

Chase got it done in every possible way. He had week-winning outings, including a 49.9-point Week 10 that was the highest non-QB score of the year and just one of three times he finished as the overall WR1 in a given week. But he was also consistent, finishing as a WR1 nine times and outside the top 36 receivers only twice. Barring a massive reception total from Amon-Ra St. Brown in Week 18, Chase will bring home the receiving Triple Crown, leading the NFL in each of receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns. How could he not be the fantasy football MVP?

Honorable Mention: RB Saquon Barkley, Philadelphia Eagles

In most years, the overall RB1 is the fantasy MVP, and it took a historic season from Chase to prevent that from being the case this season … and even then, it was close. Thriving in his new home in Philadelphia, Saquon averaged an absurd 21.2 Half-PPR points per game. He finished as a top-five RB seven times and outside the top-30 RBs only once. Just like in the real NFL, we had multiple viable fantasy MVP candidates this year, and I certainly wouldn’t argue with anyone giving the nod to Barkley over Chase. 

The REAL 2024 Fantasy Football MVP: WR Brian Thomas Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars

I know I just talked all about how historic Chase’s season was (not to mention Saquon's), but there are two flaws in the premise of naming him the fantasy MVP. For one, he was a first-round pick. Yes, he was incredible, but it’s very hard for a player drafted that high to be the most valuable option in a game that’s all about value vs. replacement. 

More importantly, there’s only one part of the fantasy season that truly matters: the playoffs, which in most leagues is Weeks 16, 17 and 18. To truly be the most valuable fantasy football player of the year, someone has to have carried managers to championships in those three weeks. Chase was solid in the playoffs, but he wasn’t as dominant as he was for most of the season, finishing as “just” the WR14 with 16.0 Half-PPR points per game. 

Enter Brian Thomas Jr., another former LSU Tiger who already looks like one of the best receivers in the league. The rookie led all receivers with 71.6 Half-PPR points during the fantasy football playoffs, including zero games below even 20 points. Those performances also carry extra value because you likely got BTJ onto your team for fairly cheap — his ADP during draft season was outside the top 100 players. While his performances for the whole season weren’t as dominant as Chase’s, I wouldn’t be surprised if Thomas Jr. is on the highest percentage of championship-winning rosters of any player, making him the real fantasy football MVP.  

Honorable Mention: RB Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions

This spot could have gone to Jonathan Taylor, who was the RB1 for the fantasy football playoffs. But Taylor was mediocre for most of the season and also scored just 9.6 Half-PPR points in Round 1 of the playoffs (Week 16). I can’t imagine many managers survived to reap the rewards of his huge Weeks 17 and 18. Instead, Gibbs, who was just behind JT in total scoring during the playoffs but much more consistent with 23.4 as his lowest score of the three weeks, gets the nod. The sophomore RB took advantage of David Montgomery’s absence to finish strong, likely carrying plenty of rosters to fantasy championships. For what it’s worth, Gibbs was also very productive throughout the season, finishing as the RB3 just behind Derrick Henry. 

Fantasy Football Bust of the Year: WR Marvin Harrison Jr., Arizona Cardinals

This feels a little harsh. After all, MHJ wasn’t entirely terrible, finishing as the WR32 for the season. He even posted a couple of top-five finishes, including a WR1 overall finish in his second-ever NFL game. That’s not bad at all, especially for a rookie. But fantasy is a game about beating expectations, and Harrison Jr. did the complete opposite of that. 

With an ADP just outside the first round, fantasy managers were expecting Harrison Jr. to dominate as soon as he stepped on an NFL field. Instead, he finished as just the WR43 in points per game, essentially a replacement-level player. What’s especially disappointing is that, instead of finishing strong as you might expect from a rookie receiver, Harrison limped to the finish line. He had zero top-20 finishes after the Cardinals’ Week 11 bye and posted an average finish of WR49 over the final four weeks of the season. I wouldn’t call Harrison Jr. a real-life bust (yet), but he was the biggest fantasy bust of the 2024 season.

Honorable Mention: QB Anthony Richardson, Indianapolis Colts

He actually finished the season relatively strong with a few decent fantasy outings, but we can’t forget how bad this year overall was for Anthony Richardson. His ADP was QB6, as fantasy players (myself included) were tempted by his sky-high upside if he could provide even mediocre passing numbers. Instead, Richardson failed to be at all competent as a passer. Not only was he so bad that he was benched for Joe Flacco, but he wasn’t even a useful fantasy quarterback prior to his benching. Especially given that he was probably dropped by his original managers prior to his slight late-season resurgence, Richardson was easily one of the most disappointing fantasy picks this season.

Waiver Pickup of the Year: QB Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

With an ADP of QB21, Baker went undrafted in just about every 1-QB league. That likely didn’t last long, as he came out of the gate with back-to-back top-five finishes. He proceeded to finish as the QB5 for the season, racking up 22.4 points per game. He came through when it mattered most, too, with 29 points per game throughout the fantasy playoffs, including a 34.6-point explosion in Week 17.

Normally, it would be hard for a quarterback to be the best pickup of the year, as only truly elite players at the position are genuine game-changers. But Baker managed to put up points like a truly elite QB1, giving a huge boost to anyone who snagged him off waivers early in the season. In a year without any truly elite RB or WR pickups (his teammate Bucky Irving comes close, but I have to count some late-season injuries and inconsistency against him), that’s enough for Baker to claim this award.

Honorable Mention: TE Jonnu Smith, Miami Dolphins

Coming into this season, Jonnu wasn’t even on the radar in most fantasy leagues, with an ADP outside the top 20 tight ends. But he thrived in Mike McDaniel’s Miami offense, which leaned into the quick-game to help compensate for terrible O-line play. In a year where many highly drafted tight ends disappointed, Jonnu likely saved plenty of fantasy managers en route with a TE4 finish. 

Fantasy Football Rookie of the Year: QB Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders

This was a hotly contested category this year. The aforementioned Thomas Jr. had an incredible season, as did his LSU teammate Malik Nabers. Bucky Irving and Tyrone Tracy both came on strong late in the season at RB, Brock Bowers was incredible, and we got decent fantasy production from multiple quarterbacks. But Daniels, who will almost certainly win the real-life Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, stands alone at the top.

The second-overall pick finished as the fourth-highest-scoring player in the whole league, racking up 360.6 fantasy points. He was also the QB4 in points per game, with a very solid 22.5-point mark. He did slow down in the middle of the season while dealing with a rib injury but finished the fantasy season on an absolute tear with 30.8 points per game in Weeks 12-17. With elite dual-threat ability, Daniels looks set up to be a fantasy stud for the foreseeable future and starts his fake career off with a nice piece of fake hardware. 

Honorable Mention: TE Brock Bowers, Las Vegas Raiders

So much for the idea that rookie tight ends can’t score fantasy points. After taking over as the top target in Vegas just a few weeks into his career, Bowers finished as the fantasy TE2 with an excellent 12.1 Half-PPR points per game. The only reason he loses out to Daniels is that he was still inconsistent, including scoring fewer than 7.0 points in three of his final six games. But he also finished as a top-five TE seven times, including two TE1 overall finishes. Bowers will almost certainly be the first tight end drafted in fantasy leagues next year, and he deserves it. 

Fantasy Football Comeback Player of the Year: QB Sam Darnold, Minnesota Vikings

The NFL may have issued a memo that their “Comeback Player of the Year” award should go to a player overcoming an obstacle, not just someone who sucked in previous years, but I have no such restrictions. As such, the Fantasy Comeback Player of the Year is Sam Darnold, who overcame years of being bad at football in order to finish as the fantasy QB8 this season. 

With a QB-friendly coach in Kevin O’Connell and some of the best weapons in the league, Darnold posted a very respectable 19.5 points per game. Despite having started at least 11 games in his first four seasons in the league, this was his first finish inside even the top 24 fantasy quarterbacks. Whether the Vikings will choose to retain Darnold heading into 2025 is yet to be seen (and likely depends on how he performs in Week 18 and the NFL playoffs), but this was an excellent career revival for our fantasy purposes.  

Honorable Mention: RB J.K. Dobbins, Los Angeles Chargers

If he hadn’t suffered an injury that caused him to miss Weeks 13-16, Dobbins might have won this award outright. Once a fantasy football darling, Dobbins came into this season as an afterthought after suffering multiple devastating injuries during his time with the Ravens, including an ACL tear and an Achilles tear. But he thrived in LA, quickly establishing himself as the RB1 in Jim Harbaugh and Greg Roman’s offense. He was the RB13 in Weeks 1-11, averaging a very solid 14.5 points per game. Those missed weeks do hurt his story, but returning in Week 17 to score one more touchdown and 14.8 more Half-PPR points is enough to secure Dobbins an Honorable Mention. 

Fantasy Football Coach of the Year: Zac Taylor, Cincinnati Bengals

I know coaches don’t score fantasy points, but they still deserve credit for their contributions to the fantasy season. And although Zac Taylor isn’t going to garner any NFL Coach of the Year buzz with the Bengals set to miss the playoffs, he was the best fantasy coach of the season. He absolutely let Joe Burrow cook all season, with an NFL-leading pass rate over expectation of 11.1% (no other team was at even 8%).

Taylor gets an extra bonus for doing what we as fantasy managers love and running a hyper-condensed offense. The Bengals had two of the top six players in targets per game in Ja’Marr Chase (second) and Tee Higgins (sixth) who were both elite fantasy receivers. Meanwhile, Taylor also absolutely fed sophomore RB Chase Brown after Zack Moss was ruled out for the season with a neck injury. From Week 9 to Week 16, Brown handled 170 of the Bengals’ 175 backfield opportunities and led all running backs with 22.7 expected points per game. That kind of workload plus the Bengals’ passing avalanche earns Taylor this unconventional award.

Honorable Mention: Kevin O’Connell, Minnesota Vikings

KOC basically gets this honor as a reward for making Sam Darnold look like a real NFL quarterback. Maybe Darnold did just suddenly take a massive leap forward in his seventh year in the league, but even in that case, O’Connell would deserve a fair share of the credit. Darnold’s production allowed not just him but also Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson, and Aaron Jones to be solid fantasy assets. As thanks, we honor KOC to end this article.