Fantasy Football 2023: Hidden Gems to Target Late in the Draft
Finding value in the later rounds of a fantasy football draft is an absolute must for building a championship roster.
Avoiding outright busts in the first few rounds is a great start, but identifying those late-round gems is key to league domination.
Whether it's a late-round running back who makes going "Zero RB" worth it or the quarterback who ends up being a weekly must-start, unearthing a key starter while everyone else swings and misses on guys who will wind up on the waiver wire is a huge advantage.
Here, we'll take a look at a few names who are worth taking a shot on based on their potential to become a viable starter for your team this season.
We'll define a late-round pick as someone currently outside of the top 100 in FantasyPros' consensus points-per-reception average draft position. Let's dive in.
WR Zay Flowers, Baltimore Ravens
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ADP: No. 118 overall
The Ravens have traditionally been viewed as a run-heavy offense in the Lamar Jackson era, but that was also the Greg Roman era.
Now that Todd Monken is taking over as the offensive coordinator, the offense should be faster-paced and more pass-oriented.
The Baltimore personnel moves this offseason point toward that as well. It added Odell Beckham Jr. in free agency and drafted Zay Flowers with the 22nd overall pick in the draft.
It isn't that hard to envision the scenario in which Flowers rapidly exceeds his draft expectations. Rashod Bateman and Beckham are his biggest competition for targets.
Beckham is 30 and has two major knee injuries to his name. He sat out the entire 2022 campaign and there's no guarantee he's even the same player he was with the Rams and Browns, let along the version we saw in New York.
Bateman has not lived up his first-round pedigree in Baltimore. He's dealt with his own injuries and has just 800 yards across 18 games in his first two seasons. He's just starting to ramp up his practice activity while recovering from foot surgery.
Meanwhile, Flowers has been developing quite the chemistry with Jackson, who has taken to calling the young receiver "Joystick" for his shiftiness.
It's not a stretch to say Flowers could wind up being the No. 2 target behind Mark Andrews in Monken's new offense. That would make him a no-brainer in the later rounds.
RB Antonio Gibson, Washington Commanders
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ADP: No. 108 Overall
If you drafted Antonio Gibson last season, there's a chance you're rolling your eyes out of your head right now. He was the No. 10 running back in PPR leagues in 2021 but couldn't build on that success in 2022 when he finished RB28.
Brian Robinson Jr.'s arrival tanked Gibson's value as he became the leading rusher on the team.
But there's an opportunity for a post-hype bounce-back season for Gibson. His rushing value was impacted by Robinson, but his passing volume was also shared with J.D. McKissic who saw 40 targets in eight games with the Commanders.
With Eric Bieniemy taking over the offense, there should be some hope that the 25-year-old is going to be used more creatively. He was an intriguing prospect coming out of Memphis because of his background playing wide receiver.
Robinson is now the primary between-the-tackles runner, but Gibson should now be the full-time pass-catching back. He's also indicated that he might be lining up at some receiver this season.
Jerick McKinnon finished as RB20 in PPR leagues last season within the pass-catching role in the Chiefs offense. Gibson is even more dynamic than McKinnon and has a higher ceiling.
QB Daniel Jones, New York Giants
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ADP: No. 115 overall
It's hard to call Daniel Jones a "hidden gem" when he's a starting quarterback in one of the largest media markets and finished as QB7 last season.
Yet, here we are in August and the 26-year-old is being drafted outside of the top 100 as QB15. That qualifies him for this list and makes shrewd drafters wonder if others realize what the Giants did this offseason.
Jones was a top-10 fantasy option last season despite playing with a receiving corps that was led by Darius Slayton and Richie James. It's still not an elite group of pass-catchers, but they added some juice in the form of Darren Waller, Parris Campbell and third-round draft pick Jalin Hyatt.
That's two players with legitimate speed and a huge upgrade at tight end over Daniel Bellinger last season.
Add in the fact that this is Year 2 under Brian Daboll, and it's hard to understand why Jones is being drafted lower than where he finished last season. He provides the high floor that any rushing quarterback has with the potential to see much better passing numbers this season.
Those who wait until late in the draft to find their quarterback will be just fine rolling with Jones most weeks.
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TE Luke Musgrave, Green Bay Packers
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ADP: No. 216 overall
Putting a ton of stock in a rookie tight end is always a risky proposition. Cade Otton was the highest-scoring rookie TE in PPR leagues last season and he finished as TE22.
However, last year's position class was a little underwhelming to begin with. Jeremy Ruckert was the No. 1 tight end on the 2022 Bleacher Report Big Board, and he was the No. 51 overall prospect.
This year's class had four tight ends ranked in the Top 50.
Luke Musgrave (59th) didn't quite meet that threshold but he drew a comparison to Darren Waller in his scouting report. The 6'6", 253-pounder is a huge target and appears to be a big part of the Packers' offensive plan this season.
Matt Schneidman of The Athletic reported seeing the team even utilizing a jet sweep to Musgrave, accentuating its belief in his athletic ability. When the beat writer asked quarterback Jordan Love about it, he noted the versatility of the tight end.
"When you've got a guy that's as fast as that, like Luke, just try to find different ways to use him," Love said. "Yeah, it's interesting. It's a new play for us, something we haven't been able to do in the past, but with his speed, like I said, just trying to find ways to use him."
The Green Bay receiving corps is young and under construction. With Love taking the reins from Aaron Rodgers this offseason, there's plenty of room for Musgrave to create a big role for himself and wind up being a fantasy starter.
TE Chigoziem Okonkwo, Tennessee Titans
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ADP: No. 144 Overall
It's not a bad idea to target some second-year tight ends. Last year's class might not have been as dynamic as last season, but guys like Cade Otton, Greg Dulcich and Chigoziem Okonkwo should take steps forward this year.
The problem for both Otton and Dulcich is the competition for targets. Dulcich should get a bump in Sean Payton's offense, but Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton and Marvin Mims Jr. could take up a large share. Otton has Mike Evans and Chris Godwin in Tampa, with Baker Mayfield likely throwing the ball.
That leaves Okonkwo as the most likely Year 2 guy who can command a consistent role in his team's passing attack.
Treylon Burks and DeAndre Hopkins figure to be the top two wide receivers in the offense. Okonkwo outperformed Burks last season, and one NFL executive questioned what Hopkins has left athletically after his release from the Cardinals.
One thing is sure when you watch Okonkwo: He's a dynamic playmaker.
He is a versatile threat in an offense that desperately needs a spark. Even in the Titans' run-heavy offense, they are going to find ways to get him the ball and make him a top-12 tight end that you can get at a bargain price right now.
RB Zamir White, Las Vegas Raiders
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ADP: No. 237 overall
History has a way of repeating itself in the NFL. The 2023 Raiders running back situation is starting to look a lot like the 2019 Chargers backfield.
That season Melvin Gordon staged a holdout that ended up going into the regular season. He sat out four games before returning to the field. He ended up averaging 3.7 yards per carry, and Austin Ekeler supplanted him as the Chargers back to roster.
Ekeler had his breakout season and ended up as RB7 in PPR formats.
So, whether or not you are willing to roll the dice on Josh Jacobs ending his holdout, it would be wise to take a flier on second-year player Zamir White. With Jacobs still not coming to Las Vegas training camp, White is in line to become the primary back for the Silver and Black.
Some are going to be scared off by the 23-year-old's 3.3 yards per carry in the first preseason game, but he wasn't running behind the starting offensive line and the Raiders are thin up front.
There's so much uncertainty surrounding Jacobs. How long will his holdout last? What will he look like when he comes back?
Snagging White in later rounds provides some insurance against that ambiguity. It's a rare chance to grab a potential No. 1 running back in the final round of your draft.
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