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As another fantasy football season comes to an end, now feels like the perfect time to discuss the league winners for 2023. What is a league winner? A league winner is a player who significantly contributes to a fantasy team’s success. They are often a consistent piece for a team throughout the entire year.
These players tend to be the ones who exceed expectations rather than the Christian McCaffrey's of the world who are expected to carry a team. No matter if it’s a waiver wire pickup, a midseason trade, or a late-round draft pick, every championship team has at least one league winner.
Quarterback: Jordan Love
Just like in real life, the quarterback position is a key part of any fantasy team. For example, a poor year for Derek Carr had him averaging 14.7 PPG. In 2023, my quarterback league winner is Jordan Love. Love had everything to prove this year, following in the footsteps of arguably the best thrower of a football we have ever seen.
Jordan Love off his back foot... pic.twitter.com/VgDfwJSNuv
- Love started every game this year for the Green Bay Packers.
- On a per-game basis and in total fantasy points, Love finished as the QB5 in fantasy football.
- Love finished the season with a 96.1 QBR, 4,159 passing yards, 32 TDs, and 11 INTs.
- This allowed Love to finish above notable quarterbacks such as Patrick Mahomes, Trevor Lawrence, Justin Herbert, and more.
- Honorable Mentions: Brock Purdy, Baker Mayfield
Running Back: Kyren Williams
Although 0RB has become very popular in the fantasy community, it is pretty clear that if you drafted Christian McCaffrey in round 1, you had an enjoyable fantasy season, and he’s very much in the conversation for league winner. I’m going to go with the traditional definition and choose a running back that we didn’t expect to be great this year. Kyren Williams should be the league winner, as he took a stranglehold on the Rams backfield and dominated.
- Sean McVay entrusted Williams to be “The Guy,” and he responded by finishing as RB2 in PPG
- Williams was the RB4 in total points amongst running backs despite his injury.
- Williams’ ADP was round 21.3
- On the year, Williams beat out names like Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley, Tony Pollard, and Alvin Kamara.
Honorable Mentions: Christian McCaffrey, Raheem Mostert, James Conner
Wide Receiver: Puka Nacua
Wide receiver is one of the positions where you will see all the usual suspects year after year: Justin Jefferson, Ja'Marr Chase, and CeeDee Lamb. That said, the only answer for the 2023 league-winning wide receiver is Puka Nacua. The rookie out of BYU had a historic season, breaking almost every rookie record on the way.
Puka Nacua hit him with the hesi…
Goddamn. pic.twitter.com/IaXPmFfARm
- Nacua finished with multiple rookie records, including most receiving yards in a single season with 1,486 (NFL Rookie Record) and 105 catches (NFL Rookie Record).
- Matthew Stafford showed his trust in the rookie and peppered Nacua with 160 targets, which is just behind Anquan Boldin for most in a rookie season.
- Nacua’s ADP was 27.3, and he was able to finish his spectacular rookie season above standout receivers such as Mike Evans, Stefon Diggs, Ja'Marr Chase, and AJ Brown.
Honorable Mentions: Nico Collins, Brandon Aiyuk, Mike Evans
Tight End: Sam LaPorta
The tight end position gets a lot of scrutiny for it being a very shallow position, but this year, we had some young guys ready to change all of that. Between Dalton Kincaid, Trey McBride, Sam LaPorta, and even Isaiah Likely, at the end of the year, we had a lot of fun with young tight ends. However, there is one tight end that stood out more than the rest, and that’s none other than Sam LaPorta.
The Lion’s offense felt like it was destined to reach another level with the drafting of Jahmyr Gibbs and the signing of David Montgomery. Little did we know that Sam LaPorta was the key all along.
- LaPorta finished as TE1 overall
- Lead tight ends in PPG, total points, and touchdowns.
- LaPorta had an ADP of round 13, pick six. (13.06)
- LaPorta finished the season averaging 11.5 points per game, and more importantly, the Lions won their division for the first time since 1993
Honorable Mentions: Trey McBride, David Njoku
Congratulations to everyone who was able to bring home the gold this year, and although the season is coming to a close, never forget that champions are born in the offseason. Heading into 2024, the Fantasy Trading Room team will be here to help build your league-winning team.
League Winner Review
QB: Jordan Love
RB: Kyren Williams
WR: Puka Nacua
TE: Sam LaPorta
