The 2019 NFL Draft is in the rearview mirror, and it’s time for the next part of the NFL calendar. That’s right… massive, rampant speculation! They will go through drills in shorts, and we will endlessly project and prognosticate on their fantasy football futures. There are 78 guys who might have fantasy football relevance after their names were called in Nashville. Our goal with our Fantasy Football Rookie Roundup series is to give you a quick hit on every one of these guys. By the end, you’ll know these guys better than their mothers know them. Because it’s not like their mothers are necessarily good at fantasy football.
The Jacksonville Jaguars took a huge step backward in 2018, and it cost Blake Bortles and Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken their jobs. In for 2019 are Nick Foles and John DeFilippo, who spent 2018 coordinating the Vikings offense. The Jaguars took three offensive depth pieces in the 2019 NFL Draft, so it’s unlikely these guys will contribute to the offense immediately. Still, at least one of them presents an intriguing option for 2019 and beyond.
Round 3, Pick 69 overall – Josh Oliver, Tight End, San Jose State University
Oliver is the only guy of these three who has a definite path to fantasy football relevance in 2019. Unfortunately for us, rookie tight end is the hardest position to squeeze out drops of fantasy football usefulness. However. Oliver is certainly talented. He has a good adjustment to passes, and is fast for a tight end and ran great routes. He was a slot tight end in college, and profiles as a longer Hayden Hurst. For reference, Hurst spent last season getting drafted over, and producing less than, Mark Andrews.
I like Josh Oliver as an option to do the late-season Ian Thomas move from last year, where he squares away the transition to the NFL and provides fantasy football value down the stretch. There’s no true number one in Jacksonville, so it’s a wide-open competition for targets with a new QB and a new OC in town. He could work his way into that rotation by season’s end and could be that roster spark you need in Week 14, 15 and 16.
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2019 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Round 5, Pick 140 overall – Ryquell Armstead, Running Back, Temple
I didn’t have high hopes for Armstead, as before I watched his tape, I saw that his general consensus upside is “low-end starter.” Yeesh. Well, I have some good news! His tape looked better than that. He runs with decent speed and power, and good vision. He runs with a frenetic pace that puts his feet ahead of his eyes sometimes, but that’s something Jags coaches can reign in. He’s a good player and is definitely worth a roster spot in a dynasty league. He has a potentially long career ahead of him somewhere between the Lamar Miller and Latavius Murray profiles.
For 2019 fantasy football redraft leagues, however, he isn’t going to be worth a look. The lead back, Leonard Fournette, is injury-prone, but they are nagging injuries. He’ll have potential spot usefulness here-and-there if he can climb ahead of Alfred Blue, Benny Cunningham, and Thomas Rawls. His injury history is a big impediment to getting enough reps to climb the depth chart. The big kicker? He’s already hurt, nursing a hamstring until training camp.
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2019 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Round 6, Pick 178 overall – Gardner Minshew, Quarterback, Washington State
He’s not good! He’s not overwhelmingly bad, either! Gardner Minshew will have a long career in this league as a backup, picking up the clipboard from guys like Shaun Hill, Mike Glennon, and Charlie Whitehurst. He had good enough accuracy, and makes quick decisions, but has a pea shooter for an arm. He has limited upside, and that upside is “not vomiting all over himself.” He bounced around college and wasn’t even a solid starter for multiple seasons there. He’s a fantasy football junk bond, and he’s unlikely to beat out Chase Daniel in 2019. That last part is probably all you needed to know.
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2019 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Like what you see? Looking for more hot content like this? Check out the rest of our 2019 Fantasy Football Rookie Roundup pieces, here!
