It’s that time of year to clean out the bottom of our dynasty rosters and restock with players still on the upslope of their career, preferrably with opportunity on the horizon in a good situation. This week, quarterbacks and tight ends.
Quarterback
I love that superflex and 2QB leagues have made dumpsterdiving at quarterback valuable again. Obviously in typical 1QB league, the threshold for tying up a roster spot on a quarterback prospect is a lot higher.
Snorkel
Jimmy Garoppolo, NE - I won’t be shocked if he’s traded for a high pick (to Cleveland?) in the offseason. At worst, you’re holding for a year before he gets a chance to start somewhere. He showed enough promise in his short stint, and showed a big leap from Week 1 to Week 2 before getting hurt.
Brett Hundley, GB - Hundley requires sitting on for two more years before he gets a chance, and Aaron Rodgers is tough and durable, so spot starts likely not on the horizon. Hundley can be a dual threat and has the highest fantasy ceiling of any backup quarterback. If Tyrod Taylor can get a shot to start on his second contract, Hundley can too.
Mike Glennon, TB - Glennon has the advantage of immediate opportunity as a 2017 free agent. I’m not sure that he could ever be a fantasy stud, but I think he’s one of the best 32 quarterbacks in the league.
Robert Griffin III III, CLE - Griffin has a high fantasy ceiling if he can ever get it together again. The chances of that might be low, but the payoff is clear.
Teddy Bridgewater, MIN - Bridgewater might not play again, but Jimmy Graham seems to be even better after a catastrophic knee injury, so you never know.
Scuba
Matt McGloin, OAK - Like Glennon, McGloin is a free agent next year. He probably isn’t viewed as highly as Glennon around the league, but he came alive with Bill O’Brien at Penn State, so O’Brien could seek him to push Brock Osweiler in Houston.
Brandon Allen, JAX - Allen is an accurate, quick-strike passer who doesn’t fit the NFL prototype “toolsy” profile like Blake Bortles, but the Jaguars might prefer anything to Bortles soon. Forget Chad Henne, if there’s a replacement for Bortles in the near future on the roster, it’s Allen.
Cardale Jones, BUF - Jones didn’t have the most auspicious first camp, but he’s still in Buffalo and Tyrod Taylor is slipping. Jones has the dual threat fantasy profile that can elevate poor passers to fantasy relevance.
SUBMARINE
Trevone Boykin, SEA - Boykin is only a rookie and he’s behind Russell Wilson, so this is a long term stash. Still, he’s a dual threat quarterback and a Super Bowl contender carried him as a backup as an undrafted rookie. Buzz around him as a future starter could start building at any time.
Christian Hackenberg, Bryce Petty, NYJ - I’ll hold my nose when it comes to the actual players, but a chance to start is a chance to start.
Tom Savage, HOU - Savage can’t beat out Brandon Weeden to back up Brock Osweiler, so the odds are long, but Houston could look elsewhere at quarterback at some point next year.
Tyler Bray, KC - Alex Smith’s hold on the starting job might not be so firm entering 2017. The team traded for Nick Foles, but they also extended Bray last year. Someone is going to give Bray a longer look at some point in the quarterback-starved NFL.
Ryan Nassib, NYG - Nassib was highly thought of by some talent evaluators, it’s not crazy to think that someone high up on another team likes him. He’ll be a free agent next year and could throw his hat in the ring on a team without an entrenched starter.
Matt Barkley, CHI - Barkley has been surprisingly competent and could be retained by Chicago or get a valuable backup job elsewhere if he keeps it up through December.
Tight End
Snorkel
Tyler Higbee, LA - Higbee is next in line in the “Baby Gronk” mold. His situation is terrible, but the buzz will begin to build again this offseason. Travis Kelce’s situation wasn’t great when he was drafted, either.
Erik Swoope, IND - Swoope is only in his third year, so the Colts will likely retain him in 2017. If they don’t re-sign Jack Doyle, Swoope will be the second tight end behind oft-injured Dwayne Allen. Swoope has shown great speed for a tight end and the basketball convert has the ball skills that come with that background. He’s averaging 18 yards per catch. Even on the small sample size of ten grabs, that’s impressive.
Austin Seferian-Jenkins, NYJ - Talent was never the problem with Seferian-Jenkins. He’s a huge smooth athlete with soft hands. His durability record is sporadic and he has off field issues, but if he can stick in New York, he can be a core part of the passing offense.
Clive Walford, OAK - Walford is growing slowly as a player, but tight end is not one of the easier positions to play in the NFL. He flashes ability that could blossom in year three or four in a great pass offense.
Maxx Williams, BAL - The second-round pick has not made much noise in his early career, mostly because of injuries. He’s still only 22 and has plenty of football ahead of him on a team that doesn’t have a long term answer at tight end.
Scuba
Dion Sims, MIA - Sims has shrugged off concussions to settle into the role Jordan Cameron vacated. He doesn’t have a high fantasy ceiling, but in the right situation the 2017 free agent could at least establish Charles Clay-esque value.
Jack Doyle, IND - Doyle showed he was functional as a receiver and will be a free agent in 2017. He could land in a plum spot, or even just stay with the Colts, where he has Dwayne Allen injury upside.
A.J. Derby, DEN - Derby has drawn an Owen Daniels comparison from Gary Kubiak, and we remember what Kubiak did for Daniels’ fantasy value. Derby is a comparable athlete and he’s getting immediate playing time. Starting in 2017 is not out of the question.
Darren Waller, BAL - Waller is former size/speed wide receiver prospect from Georgia Tech. He has taken to the conversion to tight end and Dennis Pitta is no long-term answer at tight end for the Ravens.
Neal Sterling, JAX - Sterling is another wide receiver convert. He is playing well in limited time while Julius Thomas is hurt, and it’s fair to wonder if the Jaguars have soured on Thomas.
Thomas Duarte, MIA - Yet another wide receiver/tight end ‘tweener, Duarte has the Jordan Reed game we want to generate fantasy value from a “tight end”. He’s also on a team that has no entrenched starting tight end for 2017.
Seth DeValve, CLE - DeValve had one shining moment, getting open on Eric Weddle for a touchdown pretty easily. He’s a size/speed/athleticism specimen from Princeton who the current regime liked enough to spend a fourth-round pick on him. Gary Barnidge looks like a player in decline.
Submarine
Stephen Anderson, HOU - The Texans love Anderson as a “h-back/move tight end”, but he is mired in a poor pass offense with good wide receivers. A long term project.
Ben Braunecker, CHI - “Bronk” is a physical wonder and Zach Miller just went on injured reserve with a broken foot. He’ll have a chance to generate momentum this offseason on a team that was desperate at tight end this year.
Logan Thomas, TE, BUF - Thomas has an ideal physical profile for an NFL receiving tight end. The ceiling is high even if the odds are long.
Jace Amaro, TE, TEN - Amaro was once a second-round pick on his “big slot” receiving skills. The Jets got tired of him after a shoulder injury robbed him of his second year and he didn’t develop during his time there. He’s only 24, you never know.
Rico Gathers, TE, DAL (ps) - Basketball convert on a team that has an ancient starting tight end. Gathers is in the practice incubator right now, but that should change next year.
Devon Cajuste, WR/TE, GB (ps) - Cajuste is a tweener with gaudy athletic numbers. Oh he also happens to be in the organization that has Aaron Rodgers at quarterback with no entrenched receiving tight end.
Beau Sandland, TE, GB (ps) - Sandland is another impressive athlete at tight end on the Packers practice squad. He had a good summer with the Panthers this year in a failed bid to make the team.
Hakeem Valles, TE, ARI - The Cardinals are warming to the tight end as an eligible receiver. Valles made the team as a longshot and could threaten for more playing time in his second year.
