Must-Have Running Backs, Bounce-Back Candidates, and Rookies to Target
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
33 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Aug 19, 2026
Published
Wed, August 19, 2026
13
Player insights
13
Players mentioned
Topics
A.J. BrownBreece HallBucky IrvingCarnell TateChris OlaveChristian McCaffreyDenzel BostonJadarian PriceJayden DanielsJustin JeffersonKyren WilliamsMalik NabersNajee Harris
Player analysis
Player insights
A.J. Brown
PositiveBreakout22:22
AJ Brown is a top-tier bounce-back candidate for the 2026 season. His production is expected to return to top-five wide receiver levels because he is now in a heavy vertical offense led by Drake May, who excels at pushing the ball downfield. Brown's explosive playmaking ability makes him an X-factor for fantasy managers.
Insight pageBreece Hall
NegativeInjury4:58
Breece Hall is dealing with a groin injury, but Trevor Sikkema notes he is expected to be ready for Week 1. Despite the soft tissue concern, Sikkema remains a fan of drafting him, noting he has been fully healthy for three seasons since his rookie knee injury.
Insight pageBucky Irving
PositiveSleeper18:58
Trevor Sikkema labels Bucky Irving a must-have running back. Despite a difficult injury-plagued rookie season, Sikkema notes Irving is healthy and has received positive reports from coaches. Sikkema asserts that when healthy, this is Irving's backfield.
Insight pageCarnell Tate
PositiveSleeper26:02
Carnell Tate is a top rookie target who landed in a perfect spot with quarterback Cam Ward. The coaching staff is expected to lean into a vertical passing game, and Tate is viewed as one of the best vertical wide receivers from college football, making him an explosive play threat.
Insight pageChris Olave
PositiveProjection13:54
Trevor Sikkema identifies Chris Olave as a top-10 fantasy player candidate. Olave finished sixth in targets last year, and Sikkema notes that his production spiked to 19 points per game once Tyler Shuck took over at quarterback. The injury to Jordan Tyson further solidifies Olave's target share.
Insight pageChristian McCaffrey
NegativeInjury6:47
Christian McCaffrey is dealing with tightness, causing concern for Trevor Sikkema regarding his first-round draft status. Sikkema highlights the high usage history (400 touches) and the historical trend of injury following heavy workload seasons as reasons for caution.
Insight pageDenzel Boston
PositiveSleeper29:11
Denzel Boston is a high-upside sleeper who is currently going undrafted in many leagues. Todd Monken is expected to utilize him similarly to how he used Mike Evans, moving him between the slot and outside. Despite the murky quarterback situation in Cleveland, Boston is expected to see more targets than anticipated.
Insight pageJadarian Price
PositiveUsage27:38
Jadarian Price is a high-upside rookie for Seattle who has been working with the first-team offense during camp. Despite being banged up, he is expected to be a major part of the offense, serving as an explosive complement to Kenneth Walker.
Insight pageJayden Daniels
PositiveBreakout11:43
Trevor Sikkema projects Jayden Daniels to jump into the top 10 fantasy quarterbacks this season. Sikkema emphasizes Daniels' rushing production as a key driver, noting that even without Laramie Tunsil, Daniels will be forced to use his legs more, which increases his fantasy ceiling.
Insight pageJustin Jefferson
PositiveProjection21:44
Justin Jefferson is expected to bounce back after a career-low season of just over 1,000 receiving yards, which was largely attributed to a revolving door at the quarterback position.
Insight pageKyren Williams
PositiveValue25:09
Trevor Sikkema prefers Kyren Williams over Javante Williams in draft decisions. Sikkema argues that Kyren's presence in a high-powered Rams offense provides more touchdown upside and consistent scoring opportunities compared to the volume-based case for Javante.
Insight pageMalik Nabers
PositiveBreakout23:38
Malik Nabers is considered a major game-changer for the Giants if healthy following his ACL injury. With little competition for targets on the depth chart, he is expected to be utilized all over the field, including outside, as a flanker, and in the slot. Jackson Dart is expected to target him early and often, making him a significant value relative to his fourth-round ADP.
Insight pageNajee Harris
NegativeRole24:12
Najee Harris was signed by the Giants to provide steadiness to a run game that needs to stay on schedule. While he adds depth to a crowded backfield alongside Tracy and Singletary, he is viewed more as a player to note rather than a priority draft target for fantasy teams.
Insight pageFull transcript
Episode Transcript
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1:30The entire draft room groans because you just took the guy they wanted.
1:34There's no better feeling than crushing your fantasy football league.
1:37I'm JJ Zachary Eason, host of the award-winning Late Round Podcast.
1:40Before your draft, our players to target and players to avoid episodes tell you exactly who to circle and who to cross off.
1:47Listen to the Late Round Fantasy Football Podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
1:52We are creeping a little bit closer to the start of the season.
1:56Welcome to the NFL Fantasy Football Show. Mike Yam, along with my guy Trevor Sykima.
2:01And last week, Trevor, we were talking about all these mock drafts that you're doing.
2:05And I feel like you started to pump the brakes a little bit because you just adopted a puppy.
2:10So are you focused and ready for today? No, the new puppy means it's more time for mock drafts because the crate training, right?
2:17It's every couple of hours. You got to make sure that they're going out.
2:21And then it's like, hey, you know what? I'm up.
2:24I might as well hit another mock draft here because, again, anybody that knows me from Stock Exchange knows that I'm a
2:30mock draft guy, whether it's the actual NFL draft or fantasy draft.
2:34I'm just all about mock drafts anytime I can get it.
2:37All right. I know you're going to deliver some great analysis for us.
2:41By the way, some under the radar fringe guys that could both push themselves in the top 10.
2:46That's still to come here. But there's some news to get to.
2:49And it starts in the backfield. We know the value that some of these guys have.
2:54Some of them at the top, some of them sort of those middle round guys.
2:58But Brees Hall right now, well, he tweaked that groin injury.
3:01His head coach Aaron Glenn saying, look, this guy could be out two to three weeks.
3:06Here's the positive news. Should be ready to go in week number one.
3:09He's not the only running back that you're thinking about.
3:12Christian McCaffrey, also a little dinged up. We'll talk about CMC in just a moment.
3:17But Trevor, how do you handle the news of Brees Hall, who is coming off his first 1,000 yard campaign?
3:22Yeah, look, I don't love the groin injury designation anytime you have a running back where you're asked to truly just explode
3:29every single time that you touch the football. I don't love the fact that we're dealing with that kind of an injury
3:35here as a soft tissue injury, but seems like he'll be back for week one.
3:39Aaron Glenn said it's not a big deal. Obviously, I don't know if that's manifesting, hoping, but I'm okay with this.
3:45He's been fully healthy each of the last three seasons since having that knee injury, his rookie season.
3:50And I'm okay here. I'm not totally pushing a panic button or anything like that.
3:55I still believe in Brees Hall and everything he's going to need to be for that Jets offense.
4:00So I'm still a fan of drafting him appropriately.
4:02Okay. So Brees Hall is a guy that you're obviously not looking at in round number one.
4:07Christian McCaffrey, though, is one of those players. Been over a week.
4:11The dude hasn't been out there. Teams calling it tightness.
4:14This one worries me a little bit more about them than the Brees Hall injury.
4:18You feel in that same way? Yeah. And I wonder if it's just the Niners who have been bitten by the injury
4:24bug so hard over the last couple of seasons.
4:27Are they almost just being vague about this and telling Christian McCaffrey, look, man, we're just not going to play you until we get to the regular season.
4:35Everybody has the phrase where they're like, oh, bubble wrap this guy until we get to week one.
4:40I wonder if that's a little bit of the case here.
4:43If it's not, of course, I'm worried. We're going to see the average draft position drop a little bit for him because you just never know.
4:51And with McCaffrey specifically, he had 400 touches last year, right?
4:54Last time he had 400 touches. Well, he got hurt the year after.
4:57And when it was just under 400, the next highest usage year that he had, same thing.
5:02He got hurt the year after. So there's a little bit of weariness, not only the age, but also the history of,
5:09hey, when you have a lot of usage for running back, it's kind of tough to think that they're going to be
5:15fully healthy that next season, especially for the workload that Christian McCaffrey is going to have to have for this team.
5:21But I'm still remaining optimistic, although this does kind of put a wrench in drafting him in the first round with confidence.
5:27It's a little bit of a risk. There's no doubt about it.
5:31Would you draft him in the first round? I don't know if I would.
5:35I think I, and I was on this show last week talking about how much I still really liked Christian McCaffrey, but
5:41a week is a long time in fantasy land.
5:43And so I think I might stay away from him.
5:46And I think we might have some other options that you feel a little bit more confident with.
5:51Yeah. And some of my drafts, I'm sitting there going, you know what?
5:55I hope someone else decides to go and take Christian McCaffrey.
5:58So I'm not forced into that decision, but it's hard to argue.
6:02And it is that the guy is a future hall of famer.
6:05He's as talented as they come in that backfield.
6:08And Trevor, speaking of Christian McCaffrey, there's a reason why everyone would love to have him on the roster, even with maybe some of these injury concerns.
6:16You look at the top 10 fantasy scores from last season, McCaffrey sitting at number one, not far behind Puka Nakua, Bajon
6:22Robinson, Jameer Gibbs, those two players just getting paid.
6:24Josh Allen rounding out the top five. And then at six, Jonathan Taylor, another running back who got paid.
6:30JSN was on a historic pace a season ago.
6:32He checks in at number seven, Drake May at eight, Matthew Stafford at nine, and it's another quarterback in Trevor Lawrence rounding out the top 10.
6:40So Trevor, as I'm thinking about some of these top 10 guys, I'm also thinking about a list that could look a
6:46whole lot different at the end of next season.
6:49Give me two players. Give me a guy that you feel really confident wasn't in the top 10 that you think could land there this upcoming season.
6:56So I talked about this player a little bit last week, but I got to bring him up again because I think
7:03he fits for what we're talking about here. I'm going to talk about Jaden Daniels, obviously the quarterback for the Washington commanders.
7:09And some people might go, well, hold on a second, even without Laramie Tunsil with the Laramie Tunsil injury.
7:15Yeah, kind of even more because what you want to see from quarterbacks is rushing production, rushing yards.
7:20And I think if you don't have Laramie Tunsil out there, Jaden's going to have to use his legs a little bit more.
7:26And when you go back to that rookie season, that sensational rookie year that he had in 2024, he was 16th overall
7:33in total fantasy points for those standard leagues. I think that this year he could have an even bigger jump, right?
7:39It's a year three. He's had more time to acclimate to the NFL.
7:42I know he's gotten, he's needed to get a lot more healthy since that time he was really lighting things on fire
7:49as a rookie, but I've got a lot of faith in Jaden Daniels.
7:52I just think he's a supremely talented player. And every time we've seen him on the field, even going back to his
7:59last year at LSU, he has been unbelievably productive and he has been so tough to stop, whether it's been with his arm or with his legs.
8:06So I'm a big Jaden Daniels believer. And even without Laramie Tunsil, like I said, I think that rushing production is going
8:13to be up for him and that's going to give him a chance to hop into that top 10.
8:18Yeah, I was looking at the rundown and I couldn't help but notice the next player who's coming up.
8:23And I got to tell you, I think it is a great selection and a great call by you, especially because of
8:30another injury on that roster, which we can get to in a minute.
8:34But Chris Olave is a guy that you really love.
8:36Yes. I mean, Olave, when you look at the total targets last year, he was sixth in the NFL.
8:42So already last year, they were building the entire passing attack around him.
8:46But when it came to overall yards, yards per game, I mean, the quarterback carousel that they had last season really did
8:52not help him no matter who was out there as their quarterback.
8:55They were targeting Chris Olave, but it really wasn't until Tyler Shuck became that starting quarterback for them in the last month
9:02of the season that you really started to see the best of Olave.
9:05I think this year we're going to get that no matter what.
9:09And like you were talking about hitting them out right there, Jordan Tyson, he's got the hamstring injury, so he's not going
9:15to be as much of a factor as we thought through the first half of the season.
9:20I think those targets are going to continue to go to Olave.
9:23And then when Jordan Tyson comes back, I think that only opens things up for Olave more.
9:28So whether Tyson is out there or not, I think Olave has the chance to be a top 10 type of fantasy player this season.
9:35Yeah, look, Jordan Tyson, the hamstring injury, you mentioned it.
9:38It's going to be at least two months since he can get back out onto the football field.
9:43Hammies are a little bit of an issue there.
9:46By the way, just context on Olave, Tyler Shuck becomes a starting quarterback.
9:50If you think about his production from week nine through the rest of the season, 19 points per game fantasy-wise is what he was averaging.
9:57The only guys better in the NFL during that span, Puka and JSN.
10:01That is really good company to keep. So I think the Olave call by you, Trevor, really makes a ton of sense.
10:07Top 10 fantasy running backs based on the average draft position, one through five.
10:11Gibbs, Robinson, CMC, Jonathan Taylor, Devon Achan. And then you got James Cook, Saquon, Gentie, Love, and Derek Henry.
10:16I like this list, but I think there's another player, and I think you would agree with me, Trevor, that you think
10:23could really have a great season, and he's an old face on a new team.
10:27When we talk about must-have running backs, obviously we want to talk about the guys that aren't necessarily the ones that are obvious, right?
10:34I'm talking about the players that I kind of want to get a little bit later in the draft.
10:39I like Travis Achan's spot here when it comes to his average draft position and where you could get him.
10:45I think he could be the offense for that Saints team, and I know a lot of people are scared just because Alvin Kamara is on the team.
10:53Obviously, Alvin Kamara's got the MCL injury that he's now dealing with, but even before the injury, I was okay with Achan's
10:59average draft position because when you look at what he did in Liam Cohen's offense last year, he was a runner, but also he was a pass catcher.
11:07I think that's going to exist whether or not Alvin Kamara is healthy.
11:11I think they're going to get the ball in this guy's hands for a reason.
11:15They paid him all that money to showcase that kind of talent, so I think he's getting slept on.
11:21I really do. I think he's going to be an X factor this year and somebody who I'm trying to walk away
11:27trying to have him as my RB2 and RB3, obviously, if I'm really stashing running backs, but I think this guy can
11:33do it all in the Saints offense. Fifth round ADP for Achan in the sixth round.
11:38Bucky Irving is a guy that's falling in that spot.
11:41You think he's a must-have? Yeah, I do, and when you go back to that second half of his rookie season, I mean, he was incredible.
11:48He had those three 100-yard games. He was what they needed on offense.
11:52He was a short yardage guy. He was a goal line guy.
11:55He was the set the tone on first and 10 type of a player.
11:59You see him there in the clip. He's also great in the receiving game.
12:03They lean on him as if he is a third down back, and last year was tough for him because he even
12:10said himself, it was the first time in his career when he was really having to deal with injury, and not only
12:16did it tax him physically, it was also mentally.
12:18He seems to be in a much better place now.
12:21The way that he has talked throughout training camp, the way the coaches talk about him, the interviews that he has done,
12:28and I think that I know Kenneth Gainwell is on the team, and he's going to be a factor for what they
12:34have in their running back rotation, but make no mistake, when he is healthy, this is Bucky Irving's backfield, so to me,
12:40he's getting underrated just because of how tough last year was for him from an injury perspective.
12:45If he's anything health-wise close to what he was in that rookie year, you're going to love the return that you get,
12:51especially for where he's getting drafted right now. Trevor, you know what this is like.
12:56You're in one of those middle rounds, or maybe even early into your draft, you're like, I like this guy, I like
13:02this guy, which way do I go? I got some dilemmas for you, because we all face it in our drafts.
13:08We're going to start with some running backs here.
13:11Omari and Hampton, Kenneth Walker, third round, I don't even know which way I would lean, and I feel like maybe I
13:17got some intel yesterday that has me thinking one way, but which way do you go?
13:21I think I would take Omari and Hampton here in this spot.
13:25He is going to be the bell cow, he is going to be the lead.
13:29I know they have a couple of other running backs that they could go to, but I also think that's the case with Kenneth Walker.
13:36Now, Walker, obviously, you pay him a pretty penny to be a mainstay in that running back room, and man, the Chiefs
13:43just could not move the ball on the ground last year, but I wonder if those struggles still exist for them a
13:49little bit, and they've got Emmitt Johnson on the team, Brashad Smith's going to be a factor for them as well.
13:55Both of these instances, you have the threat of touches and carries being taken away, but I think Hampton is going to
14:01have the opportunity in Mike McDaniel's offense to hit some more home runs, showcase that athleticism, and give you a little bit more explosiveness.
14:08The Chiefs, they want to keep things on schedule with their run game, or at least that's how they operated over the last couple of years.
14:16The Chargers, McDaniel, go back to what he was doing in Miami, they want to be explosive, and I think that's why
14:22I would lean Omari and Hampton there. And think about what McDaniel had in terms of the running backs.
14:27There was a high usage rate for those guys coming out of the backfield.
14:31I'll say this in the conversation, Trevor, you know this better than most around the Chiefs, is the addition of Walker.
14:37So there's so much hype. One of our buddies, Steve White, was actually at the joint practice between the Niners and the Chargers.
14:44I had asked him, I'm like, hey, who was kind of standing out to you?
14:48First name, out of his mouth, Hampton. He felt like he was going to be a beast.
14:53I saw some video online of what Hampton was doing in that practice.
14:57I'm like, oh my Lord, I think he could be the guy.
15:00Of all the dilemmas, I think that's actually the toughest one.
15:03I'm with you on Hampton here. I got another one for you in the fourth round, based off of ADP.
15:09Javante Williams or Kyron Williams? Which Williams are we leaning?
15:12I think I'd go with Kyron. And I think the reason why is just because I have so much faith in that offense, right?
15:19It's a little bit like what we talked about with Jameer Gibbs last week, with the debate of him versus B.
15:25John Robinson. I just think Kyron's going to have more opportunities to score touchdowns.
15:29That offense is going to be humming so well.
15:31That passing game for the Los Angeles Rams, we saw what it was last year.
15:36I think it's going to be just as explosive this year.
15:39And because of that, I just feel as though Kyron's always going to have an opportunity to pick up first downs, to
15:45get in the end zone, to be somebody who they can lean on in the receiving game.
15:50I think Javante is going to get a good amount of volume.
15:53So if that's the way you like to kind of feel good at night, if it helps you sleep, you know, going
16:00into your Sunday or Monday matchups, I could understand why you like Javante because I think he's going to get a lion's
16:06share of everything they do from the backfield. But give me the player that's on the better offense.
16:11I tend to lean that way with a lot of guys because they have the opportunity to hit pay dirt, especially at that running back position.
16:19Yeah, I'm with you. I like the call here.
16:21Seventh round, we'll move to that ADP spot for these two guys, Trevion Henderson and Basial Tootin.
16:26By the way, I'll let you answer because it is obviously the question that I'm asking you, but I think this is abundantly clear.
16:33I think it's Tootin. So I'm very, you're okay.
16:36Okay. Okay. You, you were giving me, I thought we were going to, I thought we were going to, yo, trade blows
16:42here on the second show that we're doing of the season, but I take them two rounds earlier.
16:47I take them in the fifth. I have so much faith in what Liam Cohn wants to do from an explosiveness standpoint.
16:53And I feel like we got flashes of that.
16:56I just spoke highly of what Travis HM was able to do in this backfield.
17:00But I think a lot of those carries, a lot of those touches, a lot of those targets, they're not going to
17:06be afraid at all whatsoever to give them to Basial Tootin.
17:10And so this is somebody who we saw him at Virginia tech and we saw him a little bit last year.
17:16This is the explosive player. This is the guy who could hit a home run, who could be a major difference maker for you.
17:22And I think that he is going to round out his usage this season.
17:26So I'm glad that we agree here. I'm glad we don't have to come to blows here again on the second show that we're doing in the season.
17:34Cause I agree with you. I'm just a big fan of everything that Liam Cohen's been doing over the last couple of years.
17:41And Trevor, you and I both watched the college game and we cover, I was, I was covering the ACC for a while to never genie attack.
17:49People don't realize this. He was their offense. So I think it's an opportunity here in Jacksonville.
17:54Like I said, I maybe I'm crazy. Cause we're talking about ADP spots and he's in the seventh.
17:59I really would. And maybe you would disagree with this assertion.
18:02I would consider him in the fifth round tour two rounds earlier.
18:05Look, if you're a believer in what Liam Cohen has, I can't, I can't fall you for it too much, honestly, because
18:12I think this is a really good point that you make there.
18:15This is not a, um, change of pace back that they just happened to be giving more carries to.
18:21He was the guy at Virginia tech. So it's not like that's totally out of character for him.
18:26So I think the more that they put on his plate, the more he is going to be willing to return to them for doing so.
18:33All right. We're just scratching the surface here. Uh, as we continue to roll through some significant names and players that need
18:39to go and target some bounce back players that you need to focus in on not to mention some rookies to watch
18:46Trevor's got all of those dudes and it's coming up next.
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20:20You know the feeling. You make a pick in your fantasy draft and the entire room groans because they wanted that player.
20:27Or you grab a small school rookie off waivers and you start him right before he goes off in primetime.
20:32There's no better feeling than crushing your fantasy football league.
20:35I'm JJ Zacharyson, host of the Late Round Fantasy Football Podcast.
20:38Before your draft, our players to target and players to avoid episodes tell you exactly who to circle and who to cross off.
20:45We've got data-driven analysis, historical trends, and the strategies that separate winners from the rest.
20:49And your dominance doesn't stop with the draft. All season long, we have our 15 transactions, 10 trends, sleepers, and the mailbag.
20:55Data-driven, quick-hitting episodes to help bring home that league trophy.
20:58Listen to the Late Round Fantasy Football Podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
21:04Well, we're back here on the NFL Fantasy Football Show.
21:07And of course, we're hoping Justin Jefferson bounces back coming off a career low in terms of those receiving yards, just over a thousand.
21:14But it was a revolving door at that quarterback spot.
21:17We do know it's Kyler Murray as QB1. So Trevor, give me the bounce-back candidates that you have for 2026.
21:22I got to go with AJ Brown. Again, I know we talked about him last week, but it's too perfect, right?
21:28When you look at the two years when he was most productive with the Philadelphia Eagles, it was because they were using him in a heavy vertical offense.
21:36Well, guess what? Drake May, furthest average depth of target, most yards per pass.
21:40I mean, like every stat that you look at of how Drake May wanted to push the ball down the field vertically, he was already doing that.
21:48And now they just added one of the best over the last half decade in AJ Brown to be on the other side of those passes.
21:56So to me, I think he's at home. I think he's at home in this offense and he's going to look a
22:02lot closer to what was, I believe it was that 23, 24 seasons that were there where he finishes a top five
22:08wide receiver in fantasy because of those explosive plays.
22:11So not only is he somebody that I think could put up a lot of points for you overall in a season,
22:17he's one of those guys who, man, if he goes off, like if it's a big AJ Brown day, that can carry you in and of itself.
22:25Like this is somebody who could truly be an X factor for you every single week because the explosiveness numbers are there.
22:31So huge fan of AJ Brown's skillset now in an offense that is already tailored to get advantage of what he does really well.
22:38There's another wide receiver who wasn't even healthy last year, who I think is a complete game changer for the giants.
22:44If he's ready to go coming off the ACL Malik neighbors, Trevor, I heard a quote from him the other day saying
22:50his, his, um, it felt like his soul was dead having to be away from this team.
22:55I have said it before, Harbaugh, if, if this dude is healthy, like let's, let's, you know, kind of resurrect this soul
23:01here and get some big time production. Yeah. I mean, and when you look at the rest of the depth chart, there's
23:08just not a lot of targets that are going to be taken away from him when he is healthy, you know, whether
23:14it's an outside X on the line of scrimmage type of a receiver, whether he is the flanker and they're moving him
23:20a lot pre-snap, whether it's from the slot to get those slot fades and those two way go advantages that he could have with extra space.
23:28I mean, Malik neighbors can do it all for you.
23:31And we saw that at LSU. We saw that in his rookie season.
23:34And I think that we could see a ton of it this year.
23:38Jackson darts, a quarterback that's going to want to find his superstars early often.
23:42And always his superstar is Malik neighbor. So I think that it's a, he is an obvious bounce back candidate type of
23:48receiver, but I don't know if people just are taking into account how much of a bounce back player he can be
23:55given where his average draft position is. I think he could be a, a major, major X factor for you every single week.
24:01Yeah. The ceiling, um, significantly higher than a fourth round ADP for him.
24:05I'm just curious, cause I'm going to sprinkle in a little more giants talk.
24:09You know, I'm a fan here and we're talking about bounce backs.
24:12Najee Harris just signed, and this is already a crowded, uh, running back room with, with Scadaboo, certainly in the mixed time
24:19row and Tracy, I'll throw Singletary's name there as well.
24:22Wow. Is, is he a guy you'd at all consider coming off of injury to, to make sure you go and draft at some point?
24:29I mean, I think he's more of someone to note than someone to maybe prioritize.
24:33Like, I think that offensive line from a run blocking perspective has to get a lot more consistent as well.
24:39So of course, like they want the explosiveness, they want the big plays, but I think they just want the steadiness.
24:45And I think that's why you go sign a player like that as well, right?
24:49There's a veteran he's been around in the league a while.
24:52And I think that Harbaugh is of that mindset of like, Hey, we need somebody who can maybe keep the run game on schedule.
24:59I think that's good for the giants. I don't know if that's great for your fantasy team though.
25:04I feel like it's much more of a sort of a, keep the offense on pace, more of a New York giants
25:10type of a thing than it would be a, your fantasy team type of it.
25:15Yeah. I'm with you on that. And it makes a whole lot of sense, by the way, I'm already thinking about some
25:21of the younger stars in the NFL who we haven't even seen play a game just yet.
25:26Notable rookies in the first round Fernando Mendoza, by the way, getting some first team reps in joint practices this week against the Texans.
25:33Jeremiah love little dinged up Carnell Tate, Jordan Tyson.
25:35We told you about the hamstring injury for him.
25:38He's going to be out at least two months because of that.
25:41And Ty Simpson, all of a sudden, looking like a superstar in the one preseason game that we saw a little bit
25:48later, we saw Kenyon Sadiq, Makai Lemon, Casey Concepcion, who also look good in some preseason action, Omar Cooper, and Jadarian Price,
25:54just to name some of these first round rookies that we're thinking about here of the list.
25:59I mentioned some of these guys, Trevor, who stands out to you?
26:02Yeah. Cardinal Tate's at the top of the list for a reason, right?
26:06I know that he was drafted the highest of a lot of those guys that were there, but I think he also
26:12went to a really good spot, sort of similar of the way that we talked about AJ Brown going to the New England Patriots.
26:19I think Tate's in a perfect spot with Cam Ward as his quarterback.
26:23When you look at what Cam Ward does really well, you can go back to Washington state, Miami, and even what he
26:29did well last year was throw the deep ball, but very clearly, they just didn't want the deep ball to be a big part of their offense.
26:37Now, that might have been because they didn't feel like they had the right wide receiver.
26:41Obviously, it's a whole new coaching staff now, but I think they're going to lean into the vertical passing game a lot
26:48more this year, and that's also why they prioritized Cardinal Tate in the draft because he was one of, if not the
26:54best vertical wide receiver in all of college football last season.
26:57So, I'm not really worried about it from a Cam Ward efficiency standpoint because if Cam Ward still struggles with some of the turnovers, guess what?
27:05That only means he needs to continue to push the ball deep down the field when we get into the third and fourth quarter.
27:12So, I think that this is an explosive play waiting to happen type of a connection there with Cam and Cardinal Tate,
27:18and I think that he should be drafted appropriately high because of it.
27:22I'm glad you addressed the Cam Ward stuff because I had a little bit of concern about your call just based off
27:28of what I saw in that preseason game. You mentioned the turnovers as well, but Tate obviously supremely talented.
27:33This one felt like a lock when Seattle decided to go and draft Jadarian Price.
27:38Kind of a game changer when he's out there.
27:40I know everyone was talking about Jeremiah Love, but this dude can ball.
27:44Yeah, and I think that you can go to his kick return tape to look at how explosive a player this guy was, right?
27:51They had Jeremiah Love, and he was behind Jeremiah Love last year, and they were like, dude, this guy's so talented.
27:57We got to put him on special teams. Put him back there for kick returns, and he was somebody who returned kickoffs
28:03for touchdowns because he's got great vision. He's got good contact balance, and he's explosive, and I think that you don't draft
28:09even at the back part of the first round to not play him, and I know he's been a little bit banged
28:16up this training camp in preseason, but when he's been out there, he's been out there with the ones, and of course,
28:22you know, when Jack Charbonnet gets back, whatever that is, he'll factor in, but this guy is going to be a major
28:28part of what they do, and Seattle's offense is going to try to remain as potent as possible, try to match what
28:35they did last year with having Clint Kubiak as their offensive coordinator.
28:38I know there's change there, but Jadarian Price, I think they're hoping is the good change.
28:43I think they're hoping it's a one-in-one out with Kenneth Walker, maybe not quite from an efficiency standpoint, but from an explosiveness
28:49standpoint, they want that to stay the same, so that guy's going to be on the field quite often.
28:54Trevor, I think about the last, I don't know, 10 years or so at Washington.
28:59You know, the Huskies have kind of been DBU, but more recently, some of the wide receivers they put in the league are super talented.
29:06I think about Roman Dunze, certainly more recently, but the point is Denzel Boston's a guy that you like too.
29:11And I like the fit with him in, with Todd Munkin.
29:15Look, I know the quarterback situation is murky, is probably the best way to put it, with the Cleveland Browns, but I
29:21think Todd Munkin, from his time in Tampa Bay, how he utilized Mike Evans, not just on the outside, but in the slot.
29:28I think he's going to view Denzel Boston as that same type of player.
29:32So we're going to see those same types of targets.
29:34And I think that whoever is the quarterback, they're going to run the offense a lot more through Denzel Boston than people
29:41might expect, especially for the fact that he feels like he's going undrafted in some leagues right now.
29:46He's got more talent than that. And I think his opportunities are going to be there much more than you would expect for a guy who's going undrafted.
29:54So yeah, Denzel Boston, he is my guy this year amidst a murky situation at quarterback for the Cleveland Browns.
30:00Who's your comp for him? Because I thought it was interesting when you name dropped him before we started rolling here.
30:06Yeah, I think that the Mike Evans usage one, I can't remember exactly what I put in my draft guide for him.
30:12It wasn't Mike Evans, but I think that usage to me makes sense and how he is going to be utilized.
30:18They're going to be able to move him all over the field because he runs routes a lot better than you'd expect for a player of his size.
30:26I think we're going to see that a lot this year.
30:29Trevor, there was no question Boston was a receiving touchdown machine.
30:3220 of them in his final two seasons at Washington that tied for the third most in FBS play.
30:38But of course, good luck as we get you set for your mock drafts and your real drafts at Around the Corner.
30:44Appreciate you checking us out on the NFL Fantasy Football Show.
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