5 Undervalued Players for Fantasy Football in 2023
Finding fantasy football success in 2023 goes beyond the well-known superstars and into the realm of hidden gems. As seasoned managers know, hitting on those late-round draft picks can be the key to securing a championship-winning roster. Taking advantage of highs and lows in value and in average draft position (ADP) can help you succeed in your fantasy drafts. Today, I’ll be breaking down 5 players who are undervalued in fantasy football drafts.
Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns
2022 was not good on or off the field for Deshaun Watson. With the legal stuff behind him and his first full training camp as a Cleveland Brown underway, there is a lot of optimism for Watson and the Cleveland Browns team.
I am willing to throw out Watson’s entire 2022 season as far as evaluating it goes. No training camp and no practicing until he returned in Week 13, which means no rapport with the players. Multiple games were played in horrible weather. The odds that Watson was going to return to the field and light it up were slim to none, given those factors.
This is Watson’s first full training camp with the Browns and head coach Kevin Stefanski’s offense. He plays behind a top-five offensive line and with the best runner in the NFL, Nick Chubb. He also has a plethora of good weapons that include Amari Cooper, David Njoku, Donovan Peoples-Jones, and newly added Elijah Moore. Overall, this Browns team is arguably the most talented that Watson has ever played on in the NFL.
Before coming to Cleveland, Deshaun Watson was a top-five fantasy quarterback in the three previous years in Houston from 2018-2020.
In the preseason game against the Commanders, Watson played 12 snaps. In those 12 plays, he had three runs for 20 yards, including a designed run inside the red zone. Even if Watson isn’t the polished passer or throws it 30 times like some other quarterbacks, the rushing ability gives him a very high floor.
Currently, my QB8 on the year, Watson has been my go-to when I have waited on a quarterback in drafts. Besides Anthony Richardson, Deshaun Watson has the highest ceiling outside the top five quarterbacks due to his history of top-five finishes and the rushing upside that quarterbacks like Justin Herbert don’t have, even with their pass-heavy offenses.
If you are missing out on the elite quarterback tier, Watson is the perfect choice to capitalize on later in drafts.
Tyler Higbee, Los Angeles Rams
Last year was a roller coaster for Tyler Higbee as far as fantasy production goes. He started hot to begin the year before cooling off mid-season. Once Matthew Stafford went down in Week 9, he stayed pretty hot and cold before blowing up with a 25.9 score in Week 16.
With Stafford and Cooper Kupp both back from injury, the offense should improve from the abysmal 2021 season, and Higbee should be a more consistent player for fantasy managers. Higbee should have the edge as the second receiving option over Van Jefferson, Tutu Atwell, Ben Skowronek and rookie Puka Nacua. Outside of Aaron Donald, the defense for the Rams is almost unrecognizable compared to their Super Bowl run just two seasons ago. The possibility of trailing in games is there, which means Higbee could be in line for a ton of work with teams double-teaming Kupp.
Per our Consistency Score, Higbee finished in the Top 12 of tight ends 47.06% of the time, which was within the top eight of tight ends overall.
You can currently get Tyler Higbee around pick 139 in round 11 according to our latest ADP. If Stafford stays healthy this year, Higbee is a safe mid-round tight end that you can start every week and should feel good about.
Rashaad Penny, Philadelphia Eagles
Trying to figure out the Eagles’ backfield this offseason has been the equivalent of doing a Rubik’s Cube in the dark. Reports have been all over the place, from Kenneth Gainwell being the RB1 to Rashaad Penny being cut for Trey Sermon, which seems like nonsense. I am trying to capitalize on the uncertainty and buy into Penny having the most value in this backfield.
Penny’s problem has been health since coming into the league, but when he’s been on the field, he has smashed.
Rich Hribar from Sharp Football brought up some great points below, including Penny averaging 7.0 yards per carry out of the shotgun formation, which the Eagles primarily run.
Along with that, Rashaad Penny has averaged a whopping 5.7 yards per carry in his career and now will play behind one of the best offensive lines in football.
For those who are going hero or even zero RB in drafts, Penny is a later-round find who can smash his current average draft position (ADP). Per our ADP, he goes around pick 102, which is the middle of the eighth round in 12-team leagues.
I see Penny, D’Andre Swift, Kenneth Gainwell, and even Boston Scott getting work in this offense. The Eagles will score a ton of points, and even if Jalen Hurts is getting a lot of goal-line work, I still see value in one or even two of these running backs to pay off. I am taking the chance on Penny to have the most upside in this backfield.
Mike Williams, Los Angeles Chargers
For all of the talk of offensive coordinator Kellen Moore coming to Los Angeles and sending the Chargers’ offense into the next stratosphere, people are undervaluing the wide receiver who should benefit the most from it.
It isn’t Keenan Allen, and it isn’t Quentin Johnston. It’s Big Mike Williams.
For a Chargers’ offense that could end up running the most offensive plays and being the most pass-heavy team in the league, Williams is the perfect target in the middle of the draft. I am having a hard time understanding why Williams is going outside the top 24 wide receivers in drafts.
He is getting drafted with wide receivers like DJ Moore, Drake London, Terry McLaurin, and DeAndre Hopkins. Williams should see more volume and have more upside than the rest here.
Reports have come out that Allen will move around to the outside and not strictly be in the slot, which means Williams could see snaps in the slot. That means easier targets and chances for more explosive plays besides the deep, contested catches that he is known for. Johnston has played 41 of 43 snaps out wide this preseason, so it seems he will stay strictly there. It also helps that we know Moore will want to push the ball downfield more, giving Williams even more chances at big plays since he is the most equipped for them in this offense.
Another thing to note. The Chargers start the season off with four games against teams that have secondaries ranked towards the bottom half of the league, with Miami, Tennessee, Minnesota, and Las Vegas. It’s a chance for the Chargers to come out blazing through the air.
With Allen getting older and Johnston being a rookie with a few holes in his game, this is the perfect opportunity for Williams to take over as the WR1 in Los Angeles and have a monster year in 2023.
Rashod Bateman, Baltimore Ravens
Another player who will hugely benefit from an offensive coordinator change is Rashod Bateman. With run-heavy Greg Roman gone and pass-heavy Todd Monken coming into Baltimore as the new offensive coordinator, this entire receiver room should benefit.
Before the injuries piled up last year, Lamar Jackson was the number one fantasy quarterback overall in Weeks 1 through 4 when he and Bateman were healthy. In the first two weeks of the season, Bateman’s stat lines were 2-59-1 and 4-108-1, and that was in a very run-heavy offense. The former first-round pick has flashed big time when he has been on the field and is now finally healthy, coming off a Lisfranc injury. This is the perfect scenario for him to show why he was taken so early in the 2021 NFL Draft.
The wide receiver room has been completely revamped with the additions of Odell Beckham Jr. and rookie Zay Flowers. Flowers has been hyped up in training camp and has looked great in preseason, where his ADP is climbing big time. Beckham can have his moments, but at age 30 and coming off his second ACL tear, it is hard to see him leading this room. Bateman has been the forgotten one, even though there is a case to be made that he is the WR1 in this receiver room when healthy.
All three receivers have been clumped together in drafts, but the Flowers hype has him being the first Ravens receiver off the board. I still believe Bateman is the WR1 in Baltimore and will gladly take the discount in drafts. Baltimore should be able to produce multiple fantasy receivers in 2023, and if Bateman can stay healthy, this should be the year he finally breaks out.
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