With the 2024-25 NFL season officially in the rearview mirror, it's time to turn our sights to dynasty fantasy football.

When it comes to dynasty, there is no offseason. So, to kick things off, Jonathan Fuller and Sam Wallace are going position by position evaluating where the market stands on some of the buzziest names.

QB Risers For Dynasty Fantasy Football

Jonathan: Jayden Daniels - Commanders

How high is too high to draft Jayden Daniels in a dynasty startup? It's a difficult question to answer, but an important one for fantasy managers to think through.

On one hand, Daniels just completed one of the most impressive rookie campaigns in NFL history. On the other hand, last year's rookie sensation, C.J. Stroud showed that we can't just assume a young player will improve from one season to the next.

That being said, Daniels is still one of the clearest risers at the QB position. His ability as a deep passer translated to the NFL right away and he ran for the second most yards at the QB position, behind only Lamar Jackson. That is a dynamic combination for a fantasy QB and it showed down the stretch with Daniels averaging 30.8 fantasy points per game over the final five weeks of the fantasy season. This stretch propelled many fantasy managers (myself included) to a championship.

 

At this point, we have to treat Daniels as a top-five dynasty QB. He was already top-five in EPA per play and fantasy points per game as a rookie which speaks to his ability as both a franchise QB and a fantasy asset. At just 24 years old there are very few QBs I would rather have on my roster for the long-term. For a team built to win now, I would still prefer Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson, but for a team that is still building toward a championship window, there is a strong case to be made for Jayden Daniels as the dynasty QB1.

The only real concern is whether or not he will stay healthy with how much he runs, but you can't play scared in fantasy football.

Sam: Bryce Young - Panthers

One of the most common discussions I had at the end of the 2023 fantasy season had to do with Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud. The stark difference between the two as rookies didn't help the perception of Young in particular, but I was convinced that the difference between the two wasn't as broad as we saw in Year 1.

Fast forward to the end of the 2024 season and, while I can't quite victory lap this take yet, it was awesome to see Young finish as strong as he did in Year 2. While Stroud certainly experienced his own sophomore slump, Young was straight-up benched at one point.

Yet, football has a way of telling some of the best stories.

Following his Week 11 bye, Young averaged 21+ points per game over his final seven games. Perhaps even more impressive was the five rushing TDs he tallied during that stretch.

Bryce Young Game Log

 

It doesn't get much better than that for fantasy managers. Fantasy (and real football) tends to be about "what have you done for me lately" and recency bias can be a heck of a drug. Even so, with so much optimism surrounding Young, where do the Panthers go from here?

Thankfully, Ian Hartitz is already on the case. In his recent Carolina Panthers Team Needs article, he highlights the need for aggressively helping Young. Just to give you a hint of how bad it was for Panthers' pass-catchers this past season, their WRs and TEs ranked last in "Open Score" and their pass catchers ranked last in yards after the catch per reception.

Obviously, the Panthers need to add some help. Currently, they have the No. 8 overall pick and Matthew Freedman has them taking Mykel Williams (EDGE) in his latest mock draft. It's hard to argue with that as their league-worst -193 point differential reflects a significant need.

The Panthers could still pursue someone in free agency and/or draft someone to fill their need at wideout. Regardless, Young is someone I am targeting as a rising QB2 in Superflex dynasty formats. He finally looked comfortable orchestrating an offense, especially late in games, and even added some mobility and rushing which will only boost his fantasy value.

Sam: Drake Maye - Patriots

What happens when a No. 3 overall pick heading into Year 2 gets a quality head coach after a turbulent rookie season? Well, we're about to find out and I am getting quite excited for Drake Maye dynasty formats.

While he didn't get the start to open the season, he flashed play-making ability as soon as he stepped foot on the field. He topped 27 fantasy points in each of his first two full games. In all, he threw for 200+ yards in eight of his nine full games.

 

However, he greatly lacked help. I mentioned how the Panthers' WRs and TEs ranked 32nd in "Open Score" and the corresponding positions on the Patriots ranked just one spot ahead of them (31st). In addition, Pats WRs ranked last in receiving yards (1,723) which was the sixth-lowest single-season mark among any offense since 2020.

Mike Vrabel has work cut out for him as he begins his stint as the new head coach. Even so, he has the tools and resources to make something happen.

Currently, the Patriots have the No. 4 overall pick in the NFL Draft. Freedman has them taking Abdul Carter (EDGE) with that selection after Cameron Ward, Travis Hunter, and Shedeur Sanders come off the board in his latest mock draft. I'm curious to see if the Pats sit tight or try to trade back if one of the top three guys falls to No. 4.

The team has the most effective cap space in the league with $112.2 million. They could be in the running to sign Tee Higgins or any other assortment of wideouts to give Maye the help he needs. In addition to the 1.04, they have one 2nd, two 3rds, one 4th, one 5th, and three 7th round picks.

I'm buying into Maye as a dynasty riser this offseason because of Vrabel and the ample resources at his disposal to make this team objectively. When looking at how Maye performed in Year 1 with limited offensive help and a head coach who might have been in over his head, it's hard not to get excited about what this talented young player can do for your fantasy teams.

QB Stock Fallers in Dynasty Fantasy Football

Jonathan: Anthony Richardson - Colts

This one pains me because I had high hopes for Richardson entering his second year. Unfortunately, his erratic play continued and a mid-season benching showed that Indianapolis isn't going to give him a very long leash when he struggles. Whether that is right or wrong from a developmental perspective is irrelevant, it's a reality that fantasy managers need to be aware of.

I expect the Colts to bring in some veteran competition for Richardson this offseason which would confirm that the benching risk remains. The ceiling is still sky high (who could forget this throw!?) if he can improve his mechanics and become a more consistent passer in the short to intermediate areas but fantasy managers are rightly concerned about the lack of progress so far. Richardson ranked dead last among QBs (min. 250 plays) in completion percentage over expected (CPOE) in 2024.

 

If you have Richardson it is going to be difficult to trade him for anything of value. Flipping him for an aging veteran like Dak Prescott would be a best-case scenario but more than likely the best option is just to hang on and hope that his offseason work will pay dividends with more consistent play in 2025.

Jonathan: Trevor Lawrence - Jaguars

Trevor Lawrence is such an interesting dynasty case study. He's still only 25 years old and already has two seasons with 4,000+ passing yards under his belt. By most measures, that would be considered a very successful start to a career.

Unfortunately for Lawrence, he entered the NFL with such high expectations that his performance thus far has caused fantasy managers to significantly discount his dynasty value.

He is now in the QB15-20 range in most dynasty rankings that you'll see. That isn't entirely unfair given his fantasy results in recent years and the promising rookie seasons we saw from most of the 2024 rookie class which pushed many of the veterans down.

Trevor Lawrence points per game rank by year:

  • 2024 - QB24
  • 2023 - QB17
  • 2022 - QB12

As ugly as that trend is, there are still reasons for optimism. First of all, the Jaguars appear to have hit on a potential superstar WR in Brian Thomas which gives Lawrence the best weapon he has had to work with so far. Additionally, the coaching staff is being overhauled this offseason with a young offensive mind now leading the organization in Liam Coen. A new coach always creates a wider range of outcomes but in Lawrence's case that might be just what he needs.

The Doug Pederson/Press Taylor combo rarely seemed to make things easy on their QB while Coen's system did a much better job keeping defenses off-balance and creating easy completions. It also caught my attention that Coen was the offensive coordinator and QB coach for Will Levis's best season at the University of Kentucky. Lawrence has some stylistic similarities to Levis but is much more talented so I'm excited to see what Coen can do with his new signal caller.

The slide down dynasty rankings is understandable but I'm starting to think it might look like an overreaction by this time next year. If you can acquire him for something close to QB20 value I think it is a great move to make.

Sam: Sam Darnold - Vikings

This one hurts a bit because it was such a great story. While I'm glad Sam Darnold will likely sign a lucrative contract extension (which he absolutely earned and he should), it's not going to be with the Minnesota Vikings.

In 2024, Darnold finished as the:

  • QB5 in passing yards
  • QB7 in passing completions
  • QB5 in passing TDs
  • QB6 in QBR

Moving forward, he's all but a lock to sign a big money deal somewhere else as the Vikings look to move forward with J.J. McCarthy. Regardless of where Darnold ends up, he won't have Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson, or Aaron Jones.

Honestly, the piece he'll miss the most is Head Coach Kevin O'Connell.

Darnold is still young and talented but has shown that he needs the perfect system and supporting case to truly be fantasy-relevant. Unfortunately, his dynasty price is likely at its peak (for the short term) barring a resurgence over the second half of his career.

Hey, it could happen, but it's not something I am willing to bet on heading into 2025.