3 Must-Draft Players for Fantasy Football in 2024
Every NFL season, there are a few players I like to target as must-draft players for fantasy football purposes. Depending on your format, some players may not be available for you to draft. If you are in a serpentine league, you may never get a chance to draft certain players because they are usually picked at the beginning of the first round. However, in an auction league, you can draft any player you want if you are comfortable paying for them. For this article, we will assume it’s a serpentine format because cost is easier to project.
3 Must-Draft Players for Fantasy Football
Today, I will identify three players who I believe are must-draft players in 2024 for fantasy football. I want to provide a few guys in this article who are deeper players that you will be able to acquire cheaply on top of some more well-known, pricey players. These players will be priced based on the PPR redraft format. Let’s go ahead and dive in.
Najee Harris RB Pittsburgh Steelers
Najee Harris has become a polarizing player this fantasy offseason. It seems managers are either completely out on Harris or marking him down as a must-draft player at his cost. You can go ahead and put me in that category for must-draft. It is no secret Harris has been disappointing for owners the last 2 seasons. Harris was drafted in the first round in 2022 and burned a lot of managers, finishing 19th in fantasy points per game. Last season, he finished even worse at 30th in the NFL for fantasy points per game at the running back position. Harris will bounce back this season, and here is why.
The Steelers made significant upgrades across the board this offseason. They hired Arthur Smith, a highly-regarded offensive coordinator known for boosting fantasy production for running backs. While Smith’s tenure in Atlanta was challenging, not every coach is suited to be a head coach. It’s difficult to do worse than Matt Canada did in the NFL as an offensive coordinator. The team also bolstered its offensive line with new talent, addressing a position that has been underperforming.
Finally, they’ve improved at the quarterback position with the addition of Russell Wilson and Justin Fields. The team’s quarterback situation was dismal last year, and this upgrade should elevate their performance. Wilson targeted running backs with 150 passes last season, so it’s likely that players like Harris and Warren will benefit greatly from this.
Tyron Tracy RB New York Giants
Tracy was selected in the 5th round of the 2024 NFL Draft by the New York Giants. For what it’s worth, he is 5’11 and 209 pounds. More importantly, the Giants moved on from Saquan Barkley this offseason, leaving a hole at the position. Now, he joins a running back room that is not necessarily oozing with talent. His competition is Devin Singletary, whom the team brought in this offseason, and Eric Gray, who was also selected in the 5th round.
This team upgraded their offensive line this offseason through free agency, so it should have improved from last season. Singletary will get the first crack at the starting job but he certainly is not a sure thing. Notably, the Giants are his third NFL team in the last three seasons. Gray showed some flashes but not enough to deter the Giants from drafting another running back this season.
With Tracy, he has a very real pathway at meaningful snaps this season, and his current ADP has him going in the 22nd round. You can pretty much get him for free. All things considered, I am targeting him as a must-draft player in redraft this season.
Kyler Murray QB Arizona Cardinals
Kyler Murray is probably my favorite player on this list and one that I will be drafting everywhere this season. If you are like me, you don’t love to pay up on quarterbacks in fantasy football. When you don’t draft one of the big dogs like Mahomes, Allen, and Hurts, you want to look for value. Murray is the definition of value in fantasy football this season.
Murray got a significant upgrade at wide receiver this offseason as the team drafted Marvin Harrison Jr. That is not a shade on Hollywood Brown, but Harrison will be better, in my humble opinion, day one than Brown ever was in a Cardinals uniform. Trey McBride had a true breakout last season and will only get better in 2024. Additionally, the Cardinals’ offensive line is young and they have a lot of draft capital invested at the position. In the end, I believe they will progress this season.
Furthermore, Kyler has finished in the top-5 for fantasy points per game two times in his career. He is another year removed from his ACL injury so he should only improve. Additionally, I believe the Cardinals will simply be a better football team in 2024. Murray should use his legs more which is a huge asset for him in fantasy football. Look for him to have a bounce-back season and personally, I will try to own in every league I play in this season.
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