12 Dynasty Winners and Losers After the NFL Draft

Now that the dust has settled following the 2024 NFL Draft it is important to move past the exciting selection of new Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver, Xavier Worthy, and the demoralizing selections of Atlanta Falcons backup quarterback, Michael Penix Jr., and Las Vegas Raiders tight end, Brock Bowers. Below are other players who favorably or frustratingly emerged following the annual draft spectacle.

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Winners

Keon Coleman, WR - Bills

A slow, 4.61 40 time likely dropped Keon Coleman out of the first round of the NFL Draft and simultaneously plopped him right into the lap of one of the premier team landing spots. The Buffalo Bills needed a different body type than the collection of short, slot types currently comprising their depth chart. Coleman certainly fits the build with his 6’3 frame. With Carolina organizational roots, it won’t be difficult for Buffalo’s brass to remember and envision Cam Newton to towering Florida State rookie wide receiver, Kelvin Benjamin. It is nearly expected that the most recent Seminole product receives similar usage given the absence of alternative options in Buffalo’s wide receiver room.

Dalton Kincaid, TE - Bills

Another Buffalo pass catcher even though they added Coleman? In this case, yes. Jokingly, I felt that Buffalo was trying to follow the Kansas City blueprint by surrounding their quarterback with as few pass-catching options as possible. Jest aside, it does appear they will run their offense through a Travis Kelce-lite (very lite) role for Dalton Kincaid. All in all, this is great news for Kincaid who figures to be among contenders to lead the league in targets at the tight end position. During this semi-rebuild around superstar Josh Allen, it will take at least a year or two to sufficiently replenish the passing game behind Kincaid.

Even if he is not a supreme talent, Kincaid appears to be set up for a steady rise in dynasty value over the next 12 months, especially with Kelce, Mark Andrews, and George Kittle all aging out of the top of the rankings, Kincaid will compete with Sam LaPorta, Trey McBride, Brock Bowers, and (*gulp*) Kyle Pitts for the cream of the crop at the position in dynasty rankings.

Anthony Richardson, QB - Colts

With foundational pieces of Michael Pittman Jr. and Jonathan Taylor locked in for the coming years in the Indianapolis Colts offense, the spotlight was on what the front office would do to add supplemental pieces. Josh Downs flashed as a stable slot option during his rookie year prior to injury and Alec Pierce has shown to be a decent rotational player as a downfield threat. The fall of potential first-round pick Adonai Mitchell to the second round (52nd overall), provides legitimate upside as a number two option in the passing game and the final missing piece for the ascension of the offense. Now, it is wheels up for this young, Richardson-led, Shane Steichen squad.

Bo Nix, QB - Broncos

Regardless of what you thought or still think of Bo Nix as a prospect, landing as a hand-picked selection in Sean Payton’s scheme which emphasizes Nix’s strengths is fairly ideal. Is he Drew Brees? No, he is not. Is he set up with top-end pass-catching talent like Caleb Williams received in Chicago? No, he is not. Though, as it currently stands, you could do a whole lot worse than Courtland Sutton, Marvin Mims Jr., Josh Reynolds, and college teammate and fellow rookie, Troy Franklin as his receiving corps. That is without mentioning capable receiving threats out of the backfield, namely Javonte Williams and Jaleel McLaughlin, both of whom should be heavily involved in a check-down-focused approach that produced the likes of Pierre Thomas and Darren Sproles as well as maximizing the talent of Alvin Kamara.

Jameson Williams, WR - Lions

One of the biggest veteran winners of the NFL Draft was Detroit Lions third-year wide receiver, Jameson Williams. Despite a slight step forward during his sophomore campaign after being slowly eased in as a rookie coming off an ACL tear, he is set to be a full-time player on the outside and in two wide receiver sets after Detroit made no additions to the pass catchers during the draft. Even in a crowded offense, this should be one of the best, most efficient attacks once again this year. There's plenty of opportunity for Williams to eat and to rise in dynasty value.

Parker Washington, WR - Jaguars

Despite the Jacksonville Jaguars adding Brain Thomas Jr. with a first-round selection, coming on the heels of signing free agent Gabe Davis, these players serve to stretch the field and provide Trevor Lawrence big-play threats. The underneath should certainly be open for top target options Christian Kirk (one of my recommended pre-draft buys) and tight end, Evan Engram. However, Jacksonville also immediately parted ways with veteran receiver Zay Jones following the draft. This move slides second-year wide receiver Parker Washington in as fourth on the depth chart.

While that might not sound too exciting, he should rotate in frequently and is an injury away from significantly more playing time. If that injury were to Kirk, he would seamlessly assume the slot role which he briefly, yet successfully flashed in last season.

Losers

Kyren Williams, RB - Rams

It’s not so much that the Los Angeles Rams drafted a running back, or that third-round selection, Blake Corum is some sort of supreme talent. Rather, it is a clear desire from head coach, Sean McVay, to find another Kyren Williams. He noted the desire to limit some of Williams’ work last year once returning from injury. A playoff run and a lack of serious options in the backfield made that plan difficult to accomplish. Enter Corum: a steady, reliable option who can take trusted snaps from Williams. While a great story from last season, what made Williams special was his remarkable role. That’s not to take anything away from how he performed in the role; however, he received almost every snap when healthy which almost no other running backs in the league receives. Now, neither will Kyren.

James Conner, RB – Cardinals

The Arizona Cardinals left the draft with eyes toward an explosive offensive outburst around the core of Kyler Murray, Trey McBride, and fifth overall selection, Marvin Harrison Jr. While James Conner will certainly remain involved and is coming off of his first 1,000-yard season, there is concern for presumptive starting running back’s workload following the draft addition of Trey Benson. Even though the pair projects to be complimentary, it is difficult to see Conner fending off Benson for more than a handful of games before Benson’s skillset deserves a larger share of the backfield work.

Gabe Davis, WR - Jaguars

I mentioned on the Ship Chasing draft stream that Jacksonville’s draft selection of Brian Thomas Jr. in the first round of the draft set up a slight improvement on their existing version of a downfield threat.

Brian Thomas Jr.selection was my highlight on @ShipChasing draft stream pic.twitter.com/ENnfwtOzMK

— Jeremy Schwob (@jerschwob) April 26, 2024

While I think the drafting of “fancy Gabe Davis” is a great schematic move to help highlight the strengths of quarterback Trevor Lawrence, Davis himself takes another significant hit after leaving the potent Buffalo offense for more competition for targets and a rookie who plays very similarly to him. It is certainly possible that Davis flashes early with multiple touchdowns, but I believe the clock is ticking quickly on the remainder of his dynasty value.

Marquise Brown, WR - Chiefs

I highlighted new Kansas City wide receiver, Marquise Brown, in my pre-NFL Draft sells article, and things went about as badly as they could have for his dynasty value. While it appears to be Rashee Rice’s mission to ensure another sell window for Brown, managers with an eye past this season will see how bleak Brown’s outlook appears. The shine of the Kansas City offense and Patrick Mahomes has worn off ever-so-slightly with the addition of speedster Xavier Worthy.

Chubba Hubbard and Miles Sanders, RB - Panthers

The Carolina Panthers being in a full rebuild suggested that any position was viable to add during the draft. It was clearly imperative that overly involved owner, David Tepper, and exciting new head coach and offensive guru, Dave Canales, wanted to prioritize surrounding last year’s top overall section, Bryce Young, with as many new weapons as possible. While a running back in the early rounds is often a fairly questionable selection for a team that is not ready to compete, sometimes the talent of the top running back in the draft is too hard to pass up. This was an unfortunate development for both incumbent runners.

Israel Abanikanda, RB - Jets

After impressive flashes in limited work during his rookie year, New York Jets rising sophomore running back Israel Abanikanda appeared set up to be in a very exciting role spelling Breece Hall with atmospheric contingent upside in the event that Hall were to miss time. That was until the Jets selected both Braelon Allen and Isiah Davis during the NFL Draft. It is hard to imagine that even in the event of Hall getting banged up, Abanikanda ever acquires a significant share of the touches. Instead, it appears that with an ancient Aaron Rodgers, the Jets would prefer to have multiple running backs step in to support Hall in isolated roles not overly conducive to fantasy points or significant shifts in dynasty value increases.