Draft skills, not opportunities.
We repeat the mantra frequently in our columns and videos at ESPN Fantasy, as the most skilled players usually have a way of working themselves into prominent positions. These fast risers often play significant parts in deciding fantasy football leagues, thanks to their combination of sky-high upside and low acquisition cost.
Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Michael Wilson is a prime example from last season. He was at best the team's No. 3 option at the onset of the season, behind a pair of target magnets in Trey McBride and Marvin Harrison Jr. He was an almost complete nonfactor in fantasy drafts, selected in fewer than 10% of ESPN leagues. Then, because of an injury to Harrison in Week 10 as well as Jacoby Brissett's emergence as the team's quarterback, Wilson scored the second-most fantasy points among wide receivers over the season's final nine weeks (169.5), Wilson was also one of the most-rostered players among ESPN Fantasy championship teams.
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As you make your lists of late-round sleepers or early-season pickup candidates, including a few players in similar situations to Wilson's can prove wise.
This isn't to say that a fantasy football manager should entirely construct a team, or even merely its bench, around upside plays lacking in opportunity. After all, players who don't play can't help your team. For example, we've all been waiting for three years for Denver Broncos wide receiver Marvin Mims Jr. to pop, and to date he has only seven games with 10 or more fantasy points and just eight with five or more targets. Mims now enters this season in a receivers room that's as cluttered as ever.
To help guide these picks, Matt Bowen and Tristan H. Cockcroft have selected their favorite candidates to turn their intriguing skill sets into prominent roles for their NFL teams. None of the 10 names that follow are being selected among the top 100 picks in fantasy football drafts, but every one has the upside to make a major difference for your team at some point.
Elijah Arroyo, TE, Seattle Seahawks
AJ Barner is the No. 1 tight end in Seattle, and veteran Eric Saubert is in the mix, too. That isn't surprising given the NFL's move toward more two- and three-tight-end personnel groupings. It's Arroyo, however, who has the receiving skills to elevate to the top spot if Barner were to miss significant time.