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The 2023 fantasy season is officially over, which means one thing for dynasty fantasy football. We’re at the best time of the year, the offseason! After taking a short break, it’s time to engulf yourself in some dynasty research and improve your team for 2024. That said, let’s look at five players you need to buy for your dynasty team this off-season.
1. Christian Watson
Despite struggling to stay healthy in his sophomore season, I’m buying the dip on Christian Watson. Heading into the 2023 season, Watson was being ranked as the WR19 on KTC, but since then, he’s dropped down to the WR33. Unfortunately, in 2023, Watson suffered a hamstring injury, which caused him to miss eight games. Even in games where Watson was active, it seemed like he was limited by his hamstring injury.
Near the end of the year, Watson finally seemed healthy and looked great. In week 12, we saw Watson draw seven targets, which turned into five catches, 94 yards, and a touchdown. Watching the film, Watson looked explosive and ended the game with 20.4 fantasy points.
It seemed like Watson was turning a corner when he went off for 27.6 points the very next week. Unfortunately, during that game, Watson went down for the regular season, and it’s unknown if he’ll be back for the playoffs.
If we look back to Watson’s rookie season, he posted an elite yards-per-route run mark. The only rookies with 2.25 or higher yards per route run were Odell Beckham Jr, Tyreek Hill, A. J. Brown, Justin Jefferson, Ja’Marr Chase, Chris Olave and Watson. At the end of the day, I’m trusting that Watson’s great draft capital, situation, athleticism, and rookie metrics will lead to long-term success.
7 WRs have scored at least a 2.25 or higher yards per route run as a rookie
Odell Beckham
Tyreek Hill
AJ Brown
Justin Jefferson
Ja'Marr Chase
Christian Watson
Chris Olave
2. Kyle Pitts
No, this is not a drill; Arthur Smith is officially gone. I could rant about how bad Smith was, but I’m just happy he’s gone. I wouldn’t say I’m a psycho football fan, but hearing Smith defend his antics genuinely made my blood boil. As long as the Falcons don’t bring in Bill Belichick, I’m going to be all in on Kyle Pitts.
As a 20-year-old rookie, Pitts broke the NFL rookie record since 2000 for receiving yards by a tight end (1,026). The only reason why Pitts still only had 10.4 PPG was because he only scored one touchdown the whole season. That said, touchdowns are a very volatile stat, and if we look back to Pitt’s college days, he had 12 touchdowns during his final season (eight games played).
We all know that since then, Pitts has dropped off due to injuries, poor quarterback play, and Arthur Smith. That said, looking at the bright side, in 2023 Pitts was tied for the 9th most targets among tight ends with 90. Pitts only had 53 catches, which says a lot about his offensive situation.
Just a year ago, Pitts was being valued as the TE1 on KTC, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see that happen again. Ranking Pitts above Sam LaPorta would be reckless after LaPorta’s unbelievable rookie season, but I expect Pitts to be a top-three tight end in the right situation. Let’s keep in mind that Pitts is only 23 years old and should be stepping into his prime. Currently, Pitts is ranked 65th overall on KTC, but I expect him to have a great season and double that price.
3. James Conner
If your dynasty team is contending, buying James Conner is one of the easiest moves you can make. I hate chasing outliers, but we just saw Conner have a career year rushing for 1,040 yards at age 28. Typically, running backs have a steep drop-off at age 28, but we saw Conner get even better. There’s nothing from 2023 that indicates Conner is about to fall off.
What’s even more impressive is that Conner did this without Kyler Murray for most of the year. Due to Murray’s absence, the Cardinals finished 24th in points per game (19.4 PPG). Considering that Conner only had 33 targets, playing this well in a bad offense is amazing. Conner was able to do this by averaging five yards per carry, which is the best mark of his career.
Right now, the Cardinals hold the fourth overall pick, which many speculate will be used on Marvin Harrison Jr. Taking Harrison Jr would improve the Cardinals overall offense, which is great for a power back like Conner. The only real reason why Conner would get worse is his age, but even if he slows down, the Cardinals improved offense will boost him up.
Marvin Harrison Jr would look incredible in a #Cardinals uni ? pic.twitter.com/Ce7nOe3Gv2
4. Rhamondre Stevenson
Bill Belichick is parting ways with the Patriots, making Rhamondre Stevenson a dynasty buy. Surprisingly, this coaching change hasn’t caused any movement, as Stevenson is currently the RB23 on KTC. Just a year ago, Stevenson was ranked as the RB10 after averaging 14.7 PPG in his breakout 2022 season.
Things all started to go wrong when the Patriots brought in Ezekiel Elliott for the 2023 season. Elliott wasn’t good, but he took away volume from Stevenson. On top of that, the Patriots had one of the worst offenses in the NFL, scoring a league-low 13.9 PPG. It’s impossible for any running back to be efficient in an offense that bad. It’s also worth noting that Stevenson missed time and only played in 12 games this past year.
Due to their struggles, the Patriots now hold the number three overall pick where they can draft a franchise quarterback. I expect Stevenson to return to his 2022 form, where he drew 88 targets and caught 69 passes. Now that Stevenson should be in a much better situation for 2024, he’s a perfect buy.
5. Marquise Brown
For some reason, Marquise Brown is being pronounced dead after having a down year with the 4-13 Cardinals. I can’t really understand why, considering his reception-to-target ratio is absurdly bad. Brown drew 101 targets but only had 51 catches. Brown had a 1% drop rate, meaning the issue is with his quarterback.
Even when Kyler Murray came back, he wasn’t great from a passing perspective. Despite playing in eight games, Murray never threw for more than 300 yards in a game. I don’t expect this trend to continue, as Murray is a good quarterback coming off an injury. In every season Murray has played 14 or more games, he’s thrown for over 3,700 yards.
As I mentioned earlier, the Cardinals are in a position to draft Marvin Harrison Jr, which will cause many people to sell Brown. Not only will that move give Brown more touchdown upside, but as an undersized receiver, he’s likely better off as a number two option. At only 26 years old, buying Brown as the WR41 is a risk-free move.
