What’s more fun than, immediately after your draft ends, going right to the waiver wire and marking free agents for your watchlist?
The answer, of course, is nothing. Because not single a thing is more fun than the quantum possibility of just how much an unowned player can benefit your fantasy roster. It’s what we live for.
To wit, I’ve listed here five names for your immediate watchlist consideration. They’re also great late-late-late-round draft picks. Everyone listed below has an ADP according to FantasyPros is 150.0 or lower.
Greg Dulcich, TE, Denver Broncos
In his rookie season, Greg Dulcich finished with some impressive stats, including, foremost, an average of 12.1 yards per catch. He also simply passed the eye test: 6’4″ with plus-grade speed, aggressive with the ball in his hands. He finished the 2022 season—his rookie year—tenth in fantasy points among tight ends.
With regards to pecking order, I really don’t believe Marvin Mims and Troy Franklin (the Broncos’s WR2 and WR3, respectively) are more talented pass-catchers than Dulcich. They might be able to stay on the field more consistently than him, but we’re stashing Dulcich for his upside, here.
He might be a bit streaky, what with that YPC figure suggesting a fairly vertical role in the passing offense. But would any of us be surprised if he became the number-two target behind Courtland Sutton? I sure wouldn’t.
When he’s healthy, he could routinely put up borderline TE1 numbers with Bo Nix helming the Denver offense. His talent will win out when he’s on the field.
Will Shipley, RB, Philadelphia Eagles
This is one of two insurance plays you’ll see on this list. Even better to target these guys if you don’t have rostered the backs to whom they play understudy.
Will Shipley’s career at Clemson, augmented by a 4.49 40-yard dash time at his pro day, impressed Philadelphia enough to draft him. And rightfully so. At 206 pounds, that’s a touch faster than you’d generally expect from an athlete of his frame. Because, he is, indeed, an athlete with multiple talents: Shipley had 85 total catches at Clemson on top of his 31 rushing touchdowns.
Even with that reception total, he didn’t have a huge target share in his college career. But he made the most of his receptions by converting them into 602 total yards. It’s unlikely he’ll see any significant uptick in an Eagles offense that doesn’t, historically, often throw to running backs. Although, with Saquon Barkley in the mix, that could change.
In any case, Shipley is a perfect weekly starter for the Eagles should Barkley go down. He’s thus a fine weekly fantasy starter under the same circumstances.
Shipley excels at the sort of option-style football you see in a Jalen Hurts offense, so he’s well worth the stash.
Jalen McMillan, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2024’s No. 92-overall pick Jalen McMillan very well could have had the season at Washington in 2023 that Rome Odunze had, were it not for health concerns. In the season prior (2022), McMillan broke out with 1,098 receiving yards and 9 receiving TDs.
A knee injury then seemed to derail any shot at reaching his potential. At Washington in 2023, he caught 45 receptions to 559 yards and five receiving touchdowns. Most recently, he scored a touchdown in both the CFB playoffs vs Texas and Michigan in the National Championship.
Good news: He didn’t appear at all injured at NFL combine, where he ran a 4.47 40-yard dash and registered a high jump of 37” inches. All this at 6’1″ and only 197 pounds—McMillan can get over the top of a defense and be physical at the point of contested catches.
The path to volume on the Bucs could be tough, and that’s why McMillan is purely a deep stash/watchlist guy for now. Trey Palmer still seems to be the WR3 in Tampa, and Chris Godwin will see a lot of work in the slot this year under his new OC. For what it’s worth, McMillan played over 90% of his snaps in 2023 from the slot.
Should any of the wideouts in Tampa get injured—which, we know, does happen quite reliably—McMillan might get an opportunity to flash some of that talent we saw briefly during his tenure as a Husky.
Rico Dowdle, RB, Dallas Cowboys
It feels like a foregone conclusion that Dowdle is going to beat out Ezekiel Elliott for the majority of touches in the Dallas backfield in 2024. He’s positioned nicely to improve on his line from 2023, when he was backing up Tony Pollard: 89 rushes for 361 yards and 2 TDs.
To be honest, I think the recent signing of Dalvin Cook is more of a Jerry Jones PR move than anything. Cook’s is a name that’s flashed in New York City lights before, and we know what a moth Jones is to the flames of any and all fame. It doesn’t hurt, either, that the Cowboys could use any sort of good press to quiet their fan base. I digress. All to say: I don’t value Dowdle any less with Cook’s signing.
As far as passing work goes, last year, only Dowdle and Christian McCaffrey averaged the same yards per route run out of the backfield at 1.35. Fairly impressive company, you ask me. And a good sign of things to come given the right opportunity.
Dowdle will top out at around 30 receptions this year, but they might be consolidated to a few ultra-productive weeks. Grab him for your bench.
Ray Davis, RB, Buffalo Bills
This is another insurance play, so I won’t provide much analysis. There might not be any besides my gut, to be honest. I took him a lot in mock drafts, and explained why in my 12-Team PPR Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Picking from the No. 6 spot column.
It was clear last year that, even once the Bills became more committed to the run, they didn’t want to hand James Cook the ball near the goal line. The Bills ranked 27th in red-zone carries on a per-game basis. Cook himself had only four rushing attempts inside the five-yard line. Like, big woof.
Enter 220lb Ray Davis, whose floor should be that of a touchdown vulture. His ceiling is absolutely unknown. He led all of college football in touchdown receptions last season, so we know he has the ability to shine in the passing game.
He’s the clear-cut backup to Cook in a Buffalo offense that looks different—sure. But maybe it’s different in a way that’ll benefit Davis and give him an immediate role.
Happy drafting! And be sure to check out some futures bets for all of these players on DraftKings Sportsbook.
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is thegreatdansby9) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information
