🛑 Free Agency Over? NOT SO FAST...
The Ravens make a move...
The Ravens signed that dude who made that one-handed catch in 2014...
In today’s Fantasy Life Newsletter presented by The Athletic:
- OBJ lands in Baltimore
- OverReaction Monday: Figure it out, Rodgers/Jets
- A sleeper rookie RB
- QB Landing Spots: The Top 2 teams
- 2023 NFL Mock Draft: Pick 2
- It's 4/10. Take it away, Peter Overzet...
It's not the resolution to the Aaron Rodgers saga we crave, or even a bow on the Lamar Jackson fiasco, but Easter Sunday did bring an end to one long-standing question...
Is Odell Beckham Jr. ever going to sign with a team?
The 30-year old WR, who missed the entirety of the 2022 season while recovering from an ACL injury, announced on his Instagram yesterday (in very cute fashion) that he finally found a home:
More details on Odell Beckham Jr.‘s one-year deal with the #Ravens:
$13.835 million signing bonus
$1.165 million base salary
$3M in reachable incentivesSo OBJ will make at least $15 million and as much as $18M on the deal negotiated by agent Zeke Sandhu. twitter.com/rapsheet/statu…
My first thought upon hearing the news? That's a significant chunk of change for a veteran WR who hasn't played a snap of football since February 13, 2022.
My second thought was the same as Matthew: Did he sign with the understanding that Lamar Jackson would be his QB or is he rolling the dice that it won't be Tyler Huntley?? But if this FaceTime is any indication, these two plan to play together:
😈
Ok, now that the fun is over, let's get back to a tough convo about Odell's fantasy value...
There are certainly plenty of targets up for grabs in the Ravens offense, though I will be fading him in drafts. This is a player who has had two ACL tears in his last two seasons and averaged 38.1 yards per game with the Rams.
His ADP pre-signing (130.7) was already pretty rich, and I would not be surprised to see the Ravens still devote some draft capital to the WR position.
Couple this with QB uncertainty, Rashod Bateman returning at full health and second-year TE Isaiah Likely, err, likely commanding more targets, and Odell feels more like a late-round flier than a priority target.
Remember when a then 33-year old Julio Jones signed with the Bucs last year and everyone chased him up draft boards in August? Ya, that was a flop:
As for the Jets, who were initially rumored to be in the OBJ sweepstakes, there are still some nice consolation prizes out there, lol:
Since the Jets didn't get Odell Beckham Jr., there is still time for plan B of Jake Kumerow and Randall Cobb.
We're humans who play fantasy football, which means we are prone to overreact. Today, Kendall is running out of patience with Aaron Rodgers and the Jets...
⏰ Let’s get this show on the road, Jets
Alright, now it is just getting ridiculous.
No one is on the edge of their seats anymore for this Aaron Rodgers trade. Will it be great when it happens? ABSOLUTELY. But right now it’s like showing up too early for a movie — sitting through all the previews waiting for the big show! BRING IT ON WE ARE READY.
On Friday, Jets general manager Joe Douglas was asked about Rodgers and his response was: “he’s going to be here.”
But what could the timeline be?
We got a little glimpse last week from Peter King’s Football Morning in America of when we can expect the news, and now our focus is on the second day of the NFL Draft. King speculated that April 28th is the date to circle in your calendars. The Jets have two picks in the second round (42 and 43 overall) which might be the key to getting this whole saga wrapped up.
👋 Just a reminder that Jameson Williams still exists
The conversations around wide receiver Jameson Williams have been interesting as of late.
The Lions traded up to snag Williams at No. 12 overall even after tearing his ACL in his final college game. He did not make his debut until Week 13 but managed a few highlight reel plays during 2022.
Still, it’s understandable to be cautious. Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson is hoping fellow first-round pick Williams will have an incredible upcoming (full) season and so are we.
This might be the player heading into 2023 that we stay cautiously optimistic about, because the talent and pure athleticism is all there. Williams alongside Amon-Ra St. Brown and Marvin Jones Jr.? Restore. The. Roar.
📈 A sleeper rookie RB could go higher than expected. It's time to escape Bijan's shadow.
😎 This TE class is insane. But who's the best?
🐎 The end of an era in Denver. A Broncos legend calls it quits for good.
⁉️ The Patriots did a workout with who??? It would be very New England to draft another low profile WR out of left field.
⚾ Don't quit your day job, Travis Kelce. Tough scene.
🤔 Could this be Patrick Mahomes' new favorite weapon? A name to watch.
🚑 Great news for the Jets. He's going overlooked in drafts right now.
📻 An update on the Kareem Hunt situation. Where will he end up?
❓ We need your help! Can you make Fantasy Life better?
💪 The Big Daddy of Scouting Reports
…aka The Beast.
Does The Athletic ring a bell?
You know…where the leagues’ top sportswriters provide us, the loyal fans, with expert coverage, comprehensive analysis, and breaking news.
Well, every year, The Athletic also provides a scouting report called “The Beast”.
It’s one of the most compelling and informed NFL Draft Guides, covering every angle of every draft-relevant player that you need to know. Just ask Dane, who might be a *little* familiar with it.
“If we all saw each player the same, the draft wouldn’t be as much fun to talk about and debate. Use this draft guide as a resource. Full analysis, verified testing data, insight from NFL scouts and coaches, and more.”
Dane Brugler, The Beast’s Creator
What more can we say? This thing’s a beast…literally.
Stay informed about the NFL, NBA, MLB (and much more) & celebrate the ramping up of our favorite season — The NFL Draft.
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What follows is a breakdown on the most fantasy-friendly QB landing spots available for free agents, trade targets and draft picks alike. *Fantasy* is the key word here; we’re looking to see which offenses would optimize fantasy points, not necessarily real life wins. Take it away, Ian...
Supporting cast goodness and ease of pathway to the starting job were the main factors considered. Landing spots are only being considered for 2023. Cool? Cool.
💥 Best available QB landing spots:
🎖️ Washington Commanders
Currently rolling into 2023 with 2022 fifth-round QB Sam Howell and journeyman Jacoby Brissett. Not great:
- Howell’s deep-ball goodness and 183-828-11 rushing line in his final season at North Carolina paint the picture of a fantasy-friendly QB. It’s too early to completely give up on Howell; just realize the hit rate of day-three picks isn’t good.
- Brissett was legit good in 2022 – he ranked third in completion percentage over expected (+2.8%) and 11th in EPA per dropback (+0.12) among all QBs to play at least 300 snaps – but the other six years of his career painted a far more depressing picture.
This is an offense with an awfully good trio of WRs in Terry McLaurin, Jahan Dotson and Curtis Samuel to go along with the league’s reigning seventh-ranked scoring defense. More help on the offensive line would be nice too; just realize Washington isn’t that far away from fielding a potential contender inside of the relatively weak NFC.
Seriously: Terry deserves better.
Terry McLaurin career quarterbacks:
Carson Wentz
Taylor Heinicke
Alex Smith
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Dwayne Haskins
Colt McCoy
Case Keenum
Kyle Allen
Garrett Gilbert
…
Sam Howell
Here’s to hoping the organization doesn’t let last year’s Carson Wentz-induced scars prevent them from making a more serious effort to address the QB room ahead of next season.
💭 Dream match: Florida QB Anthony Richardson
Head coach Ron Rivera’s successful history with Cam Newton makes it easy to imagine “Cam Jackson“ rocking burgundy and gold. Richardson easily profiles as the most fantasy-friendly rookie QB thanks to his absurd rushing upside; giving him this crop of weapons would make his NFL transition that much easier.
🏴☠️ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The current plan is to enter next season with ex-Browns/Panthers/Rams QB Baker Mayfield and 2021 second-round pick Kyle Trask. I’m not crying, you’re crying.
Glass half empty on Mayfield: He’s spent the better part of the last two seasons being an objectively bad QB.
Glass half full: Mayfield has at least flashed more best-case upside than your typical low-level QB, setting the NFL record for touchdown passes by a rookie (27 before Justin Herbert broke it) and leading the Browns to their first playoff victory since 1994.
Meanwhile, Trask’s most newsworthy moment through two seasons is probably his own coaching staff dubbing him a slow learner.
This offense still boasts one of the game’s better WR duos in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin; any young QB could do a lot worse than getting to throw to those guys while learning the game. It’s unclear exactly how badly Tampa Bay wants to try to seriously contend in 2023; just realize the pass-game weapons are good enough to provide some 2022 Seahawks vibes.
💭 Dream match: Tennessee QB Hendon Hooker
It’s easy to envision Hooker establishing an early downfield connection with Evans, while Godwin is one of the better security blankets a first-year signal-caller could hope for.
The third best landing spot...
Fantasy Life's Eliot Crist has put together a finely crafted first-round mock draft that considers many factors, including betting odds and teams' drafting history, while pulling the curtain up on draft rumors and smoke screens. Today we are spotlighting his No. 2 pick to the Texans...
2.) Houston Texans - QB, Bryce Young, Alabama, Jr.
- 6’0, 204lbs, 21 years old
- Rookie Rank: QB:3, Superflex: 6
If Bryce Young didn’t have size concerns he would likely be hearing his name called over Stroud to kick off the draft night. Our own Dwain McFarland called Bryce Young “the best pure passer in the class.”
Young currently sits at -130 to be the second overall pick and the exact order of Stroud and Young to start the draft is +110. QB chalk is often good chalk to eat and if I didn’t already have the opportunity to win 20 units on Stroud going first overall I would bet Young -130 to go second overall.
That said, you can still make the bet on BetMGM AND get up to $1,000 paid back in bonus bets if your first bet does not win. Claim your First Bet Offer and bet on Bryce Young here.
Make sure you are in our FREE betting discord to get all of my draft betting picks as I place them.
Trade Alert: Tennessee Titans trade for the third overall pick.
Who did the Titans trade up for??