🏈 Top Fantasy Prospects at the NFL Combine

A little dynasty too!

Author

Jen of Deep Dive Fantasy
February 28, 2024

In today’s newsletter, I cover some of the top fantasy-relevant NFL Combine prospects, plus we’ll hear from Ryan McDowell at DLF on some pertinent dynasty info.

Grab some cocktail sauce for a virtual dine at Indy’s St. Elmo where the NFL folks like to hang out this time of year for their famous shrimp cocktail appetizer. It must be NFL Combine time, highlighting the best that college football has to offer the pros in the coming season. This year’s event is in Indianapolis (per usual) with the televised portion running from February 29th through March 3rd.

NFL Network’s Schedule of Events

  • Thursday, Feb. 29: Defensive line and Linebackers, 3 p.m. ET

  • Friday, March 1: Defensive Backs and Tight Ends, 3 p.m. ET

  • Saturday, March 2: Running backs, Quarterbacks, Wide Eeceivers, 1 p.m. ET

  • Sunday, March 3: Offensive Line, 1 p.m. ET

Top Fantasy Prospects at Each Position

💪🏼 Quarterbacks

1. Caleb Williams, USC - (Underdog ADP: 112.7)

Expected to be drafted No. 1 overall by the Bears, Williams is stylistically compared to Patrick Mahomes and is coming in with 8,170 passing yards and 72 passing touchdowns, plus 524 rushing yards and 22 ground scores in two seasons at USC. Williams will not be throwing at the NFL Combine.

2. Drake Maye, North Carolina - (Underdog ADP: 144.4)

This big-bodied QB (6'4", 230 lbs) put up his best numbers in 2022 with 4,321 passing yards and 32 touchdowns and also has wheels. He's a deep ball specialist and is projected to be drafted among the top players in 2024.

3. Jayden Daniels, LSU - (Underdog ADP: 119.9)

This Heisman Trophy winner is a dual-threat QB who is mature and NFL-ready. He won't be throwing at the NFL Combine, however, but will be available for interviews and meetings.

🦵🏼Running Backs

1. Jonathon Brooks, Texas - (Underdog ADP: 121.1)

He suffered a torn ACL back in November so won't participate in any combine drills but is expected to be ready for NFL training camp. Brooks is a workhorse back with downfield vision. With no clear top RB in this year's class, draft capital could be more important for fantasy purposes than in past seasons.

2. Trey Benson, FSU - (Underdog ADP: 135.5)

As a two-year starter, Benson posted an impressive 6.1 yards per carry with an elusive skillset. He could also be the first RB off the NFL Draft board.

3. Audric Estime, Notre Dame - (Underdog ADP: 157.1)

As the lead back last season, Estime ran for 1,341 yards and a school-record 18 touchdowns while also catching 17 passes for 142 yards.

4. Bucky Irving, Oregon - (Underdog ADP: 151.3)

Irving has a smaller frame but is explosive in and out of his cuts.

5. Braelon Allen, Wisconsin - (Underdog ADP: 153.6)

He's a bruiser at 6'2", 238 pounds but needs to work on receiving chops.

🫴🏼 Wide Receivers

1. Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State (Underdog ADP: 18.2)

He's the most hyped WR we've seen in a while and will likely be the first selected at his position. Harrison is big, fast, and can run a variety of routes.

2. Malik Nabers, LSU (Underdog ADP: 34.2)

Nabers is tough to bring down and exploded in his junior year with QB Jayden Daniels. He's super speedy and tracks the ball downfield as good as any NFL WR.

3. Rome Odunze, Washington (Underdog ADP: 54.1)

The Husky led the nation with 1,640 receiving yards on 92 catches with 13 touchdowns and projects as a Round 1 guy if he performs well at the NFL Combine.

4. Brian Thomas Jr., LSU (Underdog ADP: 75.3)

Also from LSU, Thomas averaged 17.3 yards per catch in his breakout season and could have immediate fantasy value depending on landing spot.

5. Keon Coleman, FSU (Underdog ADP: 115.8)

He transferred to FSU as a junior and finished the season with 50 catches for 658 yards and 11 touchdowns as their leading receiver. He could be a decent late-round star in best ball leagues as an NFL team's possible WR2.

6. Troy Franklin, Oregon (Underdog ADP: 99.1)

Franklin is a speedy deep-ball threat who can also thrive in the middle of the field. He projects as a Day 1 draft pick and is being selected in the eighth round of early Underdog fantasy drafts.

7. Ladd McConkey, UGA (Underdog ADP: 138.7)

Please allow me to homer out for a minute because I can. McConkey is a solid WR who battled injury last season but still made some huge plays for the Bulldogs. He shined at the Senior Bowl and will likely fall to Day 2 of the NFL Draft as a slot guy.

🍑 Tight Ends

1. Brock Bowers, UGA (Underdog ADP: 76.4)

After last season's performances by Sam LaPorta, Dalton Kincaid, and Luke Musgrave we need to change the narrative about rookies not being fantasy-relevant right away. Bowers led UGA in receptions, yards, and receiving touchdowns in all three seasons as a Bulldog and stands alone in the TE draft class top tier. He's currently being drafted as the TE7 in early best ball leagues and with a solid landing spot could live up to the hype.

2. Ja'Tavion Sanders, Texas (Underdog ADP: 171.9)

Sanders is the TE2 in this draft class but likely won't be much of a fantasy contributor in 2024.

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Welcome to DLF Roundup. Each week, Ryan McDowell brings you a quick look at some of the dynasty happenings taking place over at Dynasty League Football.

This week is the first of many impactful offseason events around the NFL. The annual Rookie Scouting Combine is already underway in Indianapolis and later this week, the top incoming rookies will be stepping in front of the microphone and onto the field to show teams, media, and NFL fans what they have to offer.

At Dynasty League Football, this is a huge event on the calendar, as we learn more about the incoming rookies, helping us to form the clearest picture of individual player value and the top-to-bottom quality of the class as a whole.

As the Combine unfolds, we’ll have an endless amount of content to keep you informed of everything that happened and how it impacts players and teams, but we already have a couple of pieces to get you ready for the week’s events.

First, in this week’s Monday Mock, I shared one final pre-Combine mock draft, along with a recap of all of our rookie content up to this point. Check out how I expect the top-24 players to shake out in 1QB dynasty leagues.

Also, Wyatt Bertolone let you know exactly what is important to focus on in his latest, 2024 NFL Scouting Combine: What We Should Care About. This is an excellent piece, especially if you find yourself playing catch-up with this rookie class. 

Here’s what Wyatt says about how dynasty managers should react once the Combine is wrapped up…

Stick with DLF for the next few weeks and months and we’ll continue to churn out rookie content to help you crush your dynasty drafts.

Still not a 4for4 subscriber? Our new packages are out for the 2024/2025 season so take advantage of early bird pricing for access to award-winning rankings, highly actionable content for redraft, DFS and betting, and much more. Head to 4for4 and check it all out!