Surprise, Surprise…These Players will Finish in the Top 5!

If you havent heard yet, its fantasy football season. We are a couple weeks removed from when most drafts will take place, but alas, is there every too much information on fantasy football? With that I mind, lets discuss something everyone wish they had prior insight too. Every single year there are players that shock the system and surprise everyone with an unreal season. These players are usually “has beens” or mid-round draft picks, or Day three rookies that go completely unnoticed. Sometimes they are one year wonders (David Johnson on the tail end). Sometimes they are players who were initially great, fell back down to earth, and are thrust into the right situation. Sometimes they come out of left field. Players like this are hard to predict, but I’m going to do my best and give you four guys I believe can shoot up from their projections and make their way into the top five PPR standings at their position at the end of the season. 

QB – Kyler Murray (Arizona Cardinals)

Ok, so this one may come as a surprise to some, but to my wrinkly brained readers, this one is obvious. Kyler Murray is primed for a big season. This may possibly be the best skill room he’s had in his career thus far: Marvin Harrison Jr, Trey McBride, Michael Wilson, Zay Jones, James Conner and Trey Benson. I’m a firm believer that this skill room will be very good. McBride finished inside the Top 10 last year at Tight End and had Kyler for only half the season. During the last five weeks of the season (in which Murray played) James Conner put up over 15 points per game. This offense is going to be dynamic, especially now that Kyler is more than a year removed from his ACL injury. When he played full seasons without injury, he has never finished below QB10. The addition of Marvin Harrison Jr. gives Arizona their most skilled receiver since prime Larry Fitzgerald. Michael Wilson had a sneaky good season in 2023. Jones has some of the best hands in the NFL. With a skill room that complements itself the way this one does, there’s no reason for Murray not to replicate the type of fantasy seasons he had before his injury. After finishing as QB6 during his rookie season and QB3 in year two, there is no reason to believe that Murray can’t come back to prominence with a Top 5 finish in 2024.

RB – James Cook (Buffalo Bills)

I have no idea why people aren’t talking about him. The absence of Stefon Diggs does a lot for Cook’s ceiling. We know what his floor is as he finished as RB12 in 2023. The reason I attribute Diggs’ absence to Cook’s ascension comes in the passing game. He averaged a whopping 10.1 yards per catch last year through the air. Not too bad. With a full head of steam, Cook was one of the most efficient backs in both the running and pass catching department. I think he benefits with at least 100 targets in 2024 because of the void of Diggs and Davis. In the games Cook received over 12 carries, the Bills offense looked incredible. The foundation of their offense should start with the run game. As we all know, a good run game opens up play action, long shots and the screen game. And that starts with Cook. He should have an increased workload after establishing he’s here to stay.

WR – Garrett Wilson (New York Jets)

This position might be the most difficult one to predict. Wide Receiver is the most unpredictable position in terms of fantasy production because it’s a pass happy league. There’s room for every receiver with talent to flourish. There’s so much value in the position that you can find guys late who turn out to be solid WR2s/WR3 on your teams. So, I’m actually going to base this off of history and current situation. Garrett Wilson has been hampered by abysmal Quarterback play since he came in as a rookie. 2024 is poised to be different. Wilson was targeted over 145 times in both of his 2 seasons. With guys such as Zach Wilson, Joe Flacco and Chris Streveler playing quarterback during those years, Wilson finished as WR 21 and 26 respectively. Good for a WR2 finish and FLEX play. More than likely, he’ll receive the same target share if not MORE with Aaron Rodgers (an actual quarterback). Rodgers is one of the most accurate passers in NFL history. When Aaron Rodgers had his WR1 in Green Bay, the two of them consistently set records. Davante Adams had over 100 receptions in 5 seasons with A-Rod. In those five seasons, he finished top 3 three times. I think Garrett can replicate some of that success. Maybe not to the same pedigree as Adams, but with a target share that big already in this offense, it’s 100% possible. 

TE – Kyle Pitts (Atlanta Falcons)

As of now, some experts have him close to top 5 finish, while others have him further down the list. But due to the recent injury of Rondale Moore, I think he’s now going to finish as a Top 5 TE. Pitts finally has a quarterback that can get him the ball consistently. Kirk Cousins was in the MVP discussions prior to his achilles injury last season. When Cousins played with a Tight End of Pitts’ caliber, which was TJ Hockenson, Cousins targeted him over 120 times in a full season. It’s pretty safe to say he likes that position. Pitts finished as TE6 last time he was targeted 100 times (2021), and that was with bad QB play. With the Moore injury, there’s also a world where Pitts’ target share goes up even more! Bijan is the star of that offense, but don’t get it twisted, Kirk has proven to feed his top weapons a lot, even with a crowded skill room.

Week 8 Must Starts

We are now truly in the middle of the season. This is the time of year where streaming and free agent pickups are VITAL to fantasy success. How much money do you have left in your FAAB? I know you spent most of it on Puka Nacua, Kyren Williams, Jaleel McClaughin, DeVon Achane and many others. But now is the time. It’s all about matchups. Injuries are starting to pile up and you need to make sure that the players in your lineup are the right ones. That’s where I come in. Let’s get you that Week 8 win!

WEEK 8 MUST STARTS

Falcons D/ST (vs. Titans)

The Titans made it known this week when they traded away Kevin Byard that they aren’t looking to win and they are looking to sell; parlay that with Tannehill missing the game due to injury and Tennessee giving the old college football “dual quarterback” thing a try. I think it could be a big day for a very good opportunistic Falcons Defense.

Kareem Hunt - RB, Browns (vs. Seahawks)

Kareem Hunt finds himself back in the primary role in Cleveland with the injury to Jerome Ford. He has been RB 12 and 14 the last two weeks while playing less then 40% of snaps in both games; throw in 3 TDs there as well and I see a big day for Hunt in most formats. Fire him up as a high end RB2 this week.

Rashee Rice - WR, Chiefs (vs. Broncos)

Last week was Rice’s best game as a Chief. His numbers have consistently gone up since the beginning of the season and now Mahomes is starting to trust him. Outside of Kelce, he has been become a nice Redzone target for the Chiefs and is clearly option B in that offense, overtaking Skyy Moore and MVS. Rice played a season high in snaps last week and posted a 4/41/1 line on 6 targets. I like him as a high end flex in PPR formats.