The NFL draft is like Christmas in April for football fans and dynasty fantasy football managers. However, like Christmas, as soon as it's here, it's gone. We must look back and assess what happened over the exciting three-day span. For the sake of this article, we are looking at some of the IDP fantasy ramifications from what went down in the first round of this year’s draft.
Who were some players who saw a boost in value? Who potentially took a hit? And what other stories came out of Thursday night? Let’s dive in!
Fantasy Football Winners
Jack Campbell (LB-DET) - If there was a debate on who the top linebacker prospect was in this class for IDP, it could now be put to rest. Jack Campbell was in those discussions and now possesses the landing spot and first-round draft capital (18th overall) to accompany his impressive profile. In Campbell, Detroit now has its anchor in the middle for the future and an upgrade over incumbent Alex Anzalone. Campbell is a tackle machine with an excellent pairing of size and athleticism for the linebacker position. Campbell will likely warrant an early-second-round selection in rookie drafts, with a chance he sneaks into the late-first in aggressive leagues with tackle-heavy scoring.
Lukas Van Ness (EDGE-GB) - Green Bay has a history of prioritizing traits with its early picks, and Lukas Van Ness certainly brings that. At 6-foot-5 and 272 pounds, Van Ness is an imposing figure with length and impressive athleticism, as seen by his 4.58-second 40. The knock on Van Ness is he’s a bit raw and didn’t log a single start in college. Although, he has logged 940 snaps over his last two seasons at Iowa.
Rashan Gary might not be ready when the start of the season gets here, and Green Bay could choose to bring him along slowly at first. Van Ness should at least be involved in a rotational role as a rookie, but his long-term outlook with the Packers is alluring. Preston Smith will turn 31 this year and has a potential out in his contract after this season. If Van Ness develops his pass-rush plan to go along with his speed-to-power traits, it could lead to some nice IDP production, as he and Gary could form a dynamic duo in the future.
Felix Anudike-Uzomah (EDGE-KC) - The Chiefs had a need at edge rusher and addressed it with their 31st overall pick by selecting Felix Anudike-Uzomah. Anudike-Uzomah comes in with solid production, compiling 25.5 tackles for loss and 19.5 sacks over his last two seasons at Kansas State. With Frank Clark gone, there are snaps available out on the edge opposite George Karlaftis. Anudike-Uzomah not only has long-term appeal but could find a significant role as a rookie if he proves ready. The landing spot and draft capital are a nice boost to Anudike-Uzomah’s value within this rookie edge-rusher group.
Jalen Carter (DT-PHI) - There was no questioning Jalen Carter’s talent, but his pre-draft process was anything but ideal. With Philadelphia selecting Carter ninth overall, it’s a great situation for the talented rookie to come into. Carter will get to play with his old college teammate Jordan Davis and learn from a solid veteran like Fletcher Cox. Not to mention the Eagles are looking to replace Javon Hargrave’s production after he left for San Francisco in free agency. Carter is a disruptive interior player with big-time potential as a defensive tackle in IDP true-position leagues.
Bryan Bresee (DT-NO) - Bryan Bresee has always been talented, but the injury bug has plagued him during his time at Clemson. However, Bresee showed he was back and healthy at the combine by running a 4.86-second 40 at 6-foot-5 and 298 pounds. Bresee received first-round capital (29th overall) and goes to a Saints team that could use some juice on the interior after losing David Onyematta in free agency. In true-position formats, Bresee is an upside defensive tackle target later in drafts.
Fantasy Football Losers
Alex Anzalone (LB-DET) - After reading about Jack Campbell, I’m sure you saw this coming. Anzalone is far from an exciting name in IDP, but he did hold a 95% snap share (1,080 snaps) and produced 125 tackles (77 solos) in 2022. Detroit even re-signed Anzalone to a three-year $18-million contract this offseason. However, Campbell is a far better player and will likely be given ample opportunity to push for that lead role in Detroit early on. Anzalone seeing 1,000+ snaps again in 2023 is, well, unlikely.
Preston Smith (EDGE-GB) - Preston Smith will be an important part of the Green Bay defense for this upcoming season, but it gets bleaker after 2023. Smith’s age, contract situation (potential out in 2024), and new arrival Lukas Van Ness all put his role and long-term status with the team in question. Smith is still a fine edge rusher option for deeper IDP leagues this season, but his outlook past that is a bit murky.
Milton Williams (DT-PHI) - After Javon Hargrave departed for San Francisco, Milton Williams was a sleeper garnering some buzz to help fill the void along Philadelphia’s interior. Williams, the Eagles’ third-round pick in 2021, had four sacks last season, and his size/athleticism pairing made him an intriguing name for an expanded role. With Philadelphia selecting Jalen Carter, the quest for extra snaps became a much tougher journey for Williams.
Logan Hall (DT-TB) - Logan Hall was Tampa Bay’s second-round pick (33rd overall) in last year’s draft. Hall struggled as a rookie and now has talented rookie Calijah Kancey to contend with, who the Buccaneers selected 19th overall Thursday night. While there are some questions on how this front will look, it doesn’t seem Hall’s role is set to grow much in year two at the moment.
Biggest Stories
The Texans go all-in on Will Anderson Jr. - After selecting C.J. Stroud second overall, Houston made a big move to secure Will Andeson Jr. with the very next pick. In the trade-up with Arizona for the third pick, Houston gave up the 12th overall pick, the 33rd overall pick, their 2024 first-round pick, and a 2024 third-round pick. Anderson is a blue-chip player, and Houston pushed their chips in to land him.
With Stroud being the new face of their offense, Houston is looking for Anderson to be just that for their defense. Anderson is a premier talent and goes to a defensive-minded head coach in Demeco Ryans, who will know how to get the best out of him. Anderson has all the makings of a long-term IDP edge-rusher asset and is worthy of a late first-round selection in rookie drafts.
The Philadelphia Eagles continue to load up on Georgia defenders - Jalen Carter wasn’t the only Georgia Bulldog selected by the Eagles Thursday night. They returned to the national championship well and drafted edge rusher Nolan Smith at pick 30. Carter and Smith will now be paired with former college teammates Jordan Davis and Nakobe Dean from last year’s draft class. Not a bad plan of attack here being implemented by the Eagles.
From an IDP lens, Nakobe Dean and Jalen Carter are the most intriguing of the bunch for this year. Dean is set to see a big role increase in year two, and Carter is a gap-penetrating defensive tackle while Davis is his block-eating counterpart. Nolan Smith has an appealing dynasty outlook, but this year he’ll likely serve as a rotational player who can learn from Hassan Reddick—a player he profiles similarly to.
Cincinnati now has serious depth at EDGE - The Bengals kicked their draft off by adding talented Clemson pass rusher Myles Murphy to their defense in Round 1. Cincinnati already had a talented edge-rusher group with Sam Hubbard, Trey Hendrickson, and Joseph Ossai. However, it just got deeper. Murphy is a big, athletic edge rusher who can play both the run and pass with success. This will be a fun rotation for NFL purposes but does hinder Murphy’s IDP outlook a bit early on. However, Cincinnati could explore ways to get Hubbard, Hendrickson, and Murphy on the field together in some packages. Murphy still profiles well for dynasty purposes, even if he cedes some snaps early on. Just exercise a little patience because the talent is there.