Ask the Experts

August 03, 2023

Which rookie are you most interested in?

Bijan, Smith-Njigba and Bryce earn nods

ASK THE EXPERTS appears weekly from training camp through the Super Bowl with answers to a new question being posted Thursday morning. How the guest experts responded when we asked them: Which incoming rookie are you most looking forward to seeing?

SAM HENDRICKS

Believe it or not, Jahmyr Gibbs has me intrigued. Detroit went out on a limb to draft him No. 12. I thought he might go late Round 1 but not that high. They must have big plans for him, especially after jettisoning D'Andre Swift. Gibbs has super pass catching skills which could lead to a top-10 running back finish. How Detroit uses him is another question; he will play with David Montgomery, who the Lions picked up in the offseason. It will be an interesting dynamic to watch.

Hendricks is the author of Fantasy Football Guidebook, Fantasy Football Tips and Fantasy Football Basics, all available at ExtraPointPress.com, at all major bookstores, and at Amazon and BN.com. He is a 30-year fantasy football veteran who participated in the National Fantasy Football Championship (NFFC) and finished 7th and 16th overall in the 2008 and 2009 Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC). He won the Fantasy Index Open in 2013 and 2018.

DAVID DOREY

Hard to limit to just one, but it is probably Vikings wideout Jordan Addison. The rookie running backs really only have two of interest and they'll take it easy with them. Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Quentin Johnson end up behind two talented wideouts and Zay Flowers is a Raven and there hasn't been much reason to track Baltimore receivers for several years. But Addison will join Justin Jefferson who attracts every available defender each play, and fourth-year and former fifth-round wideout K.J. Osborn who fills a role but it isn't as a No. 2 receiver. Addison comes in as the Vikings first-round pick and was a star between Pitt and USC. Dalvin Cook is gone and the rushing effort won't be as reliable as previous years. There will be more passing and Addison is in a spot where he could make noise as a rookie wideout. He has the best combination of proven talent and pathway to meaningful playing time.

Dorey co-founded The Huddle.com in 1997. He's ranked every player and projected every game for the last 23 years and is the author of Fantasy Football: The Next Level. David has appeared on numerous radio, television, newspaper and magazines over the last two decades.

MICHAEL NAZAREK

As a big Crimson Tide fan and fantasy fanatic, I'm excited to see how Bryce Young looks in a Panthers uniform this summer!

Nazarek is the CEO of Fantasy Football Mastermind Inc, celebrating 25 years online! His company offers a preseason draft guide, customizable cheat sheets, a multi-use fantasy drafting program including auction values, weekly in-season newsletters, injury reports and free NFL news (updated daily) at its web site, www.ffmastermind.com. He has been playing fantasy football since 1988 and is a four-peat champion of the SI.com Experts Fantasy League, a nationally published writer in several fantasy magazines and a former columnist for SI.com. He's also won nearly $30K in recent seasons of the FFPC High Stakes Main Event. Nazarek can be reached via email at miken@ffmastermind.com.

KEN HOLIZNA

There are three players I am really looking forward to seeing action: Bijan Robinson, Jalen Carter, and Anthony Richardson. The one I am most looking forward to, as hard as it is to choose, is Richardson. The other two have a clearer path to success and production. Richardson, a premiere athlete, had the highest RAS (Relative Athletic Score) score in the draft at quarterback (a perfect 10). In doing a little research I uncovered that Richardson would have finished first with a perfect 10-RAS at linebacker and wide receiver also. Richardson has all the size, strength and athleticism you could ask for. The only things he lacks is consistent passing production and experience. Only time on an NFL field will tell us if he is another Daunte Culpepper, Cam Newton, Lamar Jackson, or just a JaMarcus Russell. He is a generational athlete -- some say by the testing, possibly the best quarterback athlete ever in the mold that Bo Jackson was at running back. This doesn't mean I will be taking him higher than his ADP, but I can't wait to see him take the field against NFL athletes.

Holizna is a 29-year fantasy football enthusiast and founder of Faith-Family-Fantasy Football in 2019, a family-friendly, faith-based, G-rated fantasy football platform. Rankings contributor to the 2023 Fantasy Index magazine. Find him on Twitter @holihandicapper

SCOTT SACHS

I'm definitely stoked to see Jaxon Smith-Njigba this season. Flanked by two very productive teammates in Metcalf and Lockett, JSN should be almost uncoverable from the slot or in motion, going against their opponent's 3rd-best defensive back. I saw him play every game at The Ohio State University, including his record-breaking effort in the Rose Bowl, flashing 15 catches for 347 yards with 3 TDs. Even with an unsettled running game, Seattle's 3-headed monster at receiver will be must-see-TV. Since I have him rostered on my Fantasy Index Experts Auction team, rest assured I'll be watching!

With 2 perfect seasons and multiple league championships to his credit, Scott Sachs runs Perfect Season Fantasy Football, featuring LIVE Talk & Text Advice. He is a 3-time Winner of the Fantasy Index Experts Auction League, as well as a previous Winner of the Fantasy Index Experts Poll.

JASON WOOD

Anthony Richardson. He’s literally the most athletic player ever at the position and yet we aren’t sure if he can effectively throw. He may not have to if he runs as much as we think Shane Steichen intends.

Wood is Senior Editor at Footballguys.com and has been with the company since its start in 2000. For more than 20 years, Footballguys has provided rankings, projections, and analysis to help fantasy managers dominate their leagues.

ANDY RICHARDSON

It's tricky to answer because some of the ones I'm most interested in seeing won't necessarily actually play very much in these practice games. But I'll go with the running backs anyway, Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs. It's rare for running backs to be selected in the top 15 picks, so when it happens, you know their teams are really excited about them. I don't know if Bijan will actually play much in the preseason. Most of the practice highlights I've seen so far have him lining up as a wide receiver. So I'm interested to see if the Falcons actually roll out that look in the exhibitions. With Gibbs, I'm wondering if the Lions give him a chance to move past David Montgomery. Aside from those guys, it's hard not to want to see the rookie quarterbacks, Young-Stroud-Richardson, as well.

Richardson has been a contributing writer and editor to the Fantasy Football Index magazine and www.fantasyindex.com since 2002. His responsibilities include team defense and IDP projections and various site features, and he has run the magazine's annual experts draft and auction leagues since their inception. He previews all the NFL games on Saturdays and writes a wrap-up column on Mondays during the NFL season.

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