Fantasy Football 2021: 3 Rookie breakouts, 3 busts
Rookies are the most exciting players in the NFL to fans, especially fantasy football players. With nothing but potential attached to their names, they are frequently a topic of debate from the moment Roger Goodell announces their names at the podium. In a lot of ways, the NFL Draft is the unofficial start of the fantasy season.
With dynasty leagues becoming more popular (I find myself in far too many, I might have a problem) the NFL Draft is often followed by a flurry of moves and trades as players try and position themselves for that certain player coming into the league who will be the anchor of their fantasy football lineup for the next decade. If you aren’t a dynasty type of fantasy football player and rather the traditional redraft, don’t worry, this article is still going to apply to you.
In the past, rookies weren’t really all that fantasy relevant as teams were much more patient and willing to sit them and have them learn from the guys ahead of them. Those days are gone, as teams make moves quickly and if you cannot contribute, or if as a coach you can’t get the most out of your shiny new player, you will find yourself out of a job.
With the new push to get rookies involved quickly, they have found themselves fantasy relevant and even important pieces to championship squads (looking at you Cam Akers, Justin Jefferson, and Jonathan Taylor).
However, this is a tricky player to pick. Where do you take them? Do you move early and hope you haven’t overpaid? Or do you wait and potentially let that talented young whipper-snapper get snatched up by your buddy who took him just to spite you, even though you confided in him that you loved that player and he had absolutely no right to do that, I mean what kind of…whoa, sorry. Just got caught up in my own feels (it still hurts, Brian).
Anyway…let’s take a look at some of the rookies that are being drafted and see who will break out and who will bust this fantasy football season. Note that all ADP is based on 12 team leagues.