The 2023 NFL Draft is in the books. With the NFL Draft comes dynasty rookie draft season! We have you covered with our dynasty rookie draft coverage, and of course, you can complete fast and FREE dynasty rookie mock drafts using our mock draft simulator. While you take that simulator for a spin to prepare for your dynasty rookie mock drafts, check out our latest dynasty rookie mock and analysis from our analysts.
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Dynasty Rookie Mock Draft
1.o7 – Jordan Addison (WR – MIN)
Jordan Addison is fluid and silky smooth through his routes. He’s quick in and out of his breaks. He displays nuance in his routes with pacing, subtle head fakes and his understanding of leverage. His change of direction ability is effortless. He can gear down easily and jab step during a route without losing speed. Addison has a decent burst after the catch, but it’s not likely to ever be a calling card. He dealt with drops early in his collegiate career, with 14.3% and 9.9% drop rates before 2022. He displayed growth here in 2022, decreasing that mark to 3.3%. He has strong hands, though, with contested catch rates of 53.8% and 55.6% before 2022. Addison will never be confused as a body catcher as he routinely plucks the ball from the air away from this body. Addison is a versatile wide receiver that played from the slot in 2020-2021 (68.0-82.6%) before transitioning to the boundary (75.5% out wide) in 2022. His superb route running and short area separation skills allow him to play multiple roles fluidly. Addison’s varied release package at this stage of his career is impressive. Addison reminds me of watching DeVonta Smith with a difference in play strength. Smith played above his weight class, but Addison played at his weight.
Dynasty Outlook: Addison will be Justin Jefferson‘s running mate in Minnesota after the Vikings selected him in the first round of the NFL Draft. Addison should immediately fight T.J. Hockenson for the second spot in the passing game pecking order. There’s plenty of passing volume available for Addison to have a monster rookie season. Last year the Vikings were fourth in neutral script passing rate and second in red zone passing rate. With the addition of Addison and a wretched defensive unit, the Vikings will again challenge for the league lead in passing attempts.
2.o7 – Josh Downs (WR – IND)
Josh Downs has been a productive slot option at North Carolina (89% collegiate slot rate). He has a nose for the soft spots in zone coverage. He was utilized on screens and easy crossers to capitalize on his RAC ability. Downs weaves through traffic and sets up blocks after the catch like a running back. His first step and burst pop on film. Because of it, he can succeed on slants, drive routes and screens. Downs has some of the most dependable hands in this class. Among 53 wide receivers last year with at least 100 targets, he ranked second in contested catch rate (72.2%) and logged the eighth-lowest drop rate. He varies his tempo in his routes and releases constantly. He’ll utilize speed releases and then slow-play a corner on the next rep before exploding into this stem. His size shows up on boundary routes where he can get pressed into the boundary and off his route. While he’s elusive after the catch, this is because of his quick feet and vision. He’s not a tackle breaker and can be dropped by a decent wrap or corner catching him at the ankles. Downs can get open deep with subtle, smooth changes of direction on posts and corners, but if you’re asking him to win on out and ups or nines, you could have a problem. His lack of a third gear deep shows up on verticals. He routinely leaves corners unstacked, and without a homerun gear, it creates problems for him at the catch point. Downs should be an underneath zone beating option and YAC pillar in the NFL.
Dynasty Outlook: The Colts nabbed the former Tar Heel slot standout in the third round of the NFL Draft. Downs shouldn’t have any problems beating out Isaiah McKenzie for the starting slot position in camp. Another comforting factor towards his 2023 playing time projection is that Shane Steichen oversaw a Philadelphia offense that utilized at least three wide receivers on the field for 73.6% (seventh-highest) of its snaps. The biggest worries for Downs will be the overall passing volume, with the Colts likely to lean on the run and ease in Anthony Richardson versus NFL competition. He could be the second target in the passing attack behind only Michael Pittman Jr.. Downs is a late-second-round/early third-round rookie draft pick.
3.o7 – Luke Musgrave (WR – IND)
Luke Musgrave’s intriguing raw athleticism needs to translate to the field more. People will fawn over his testing metrics, but the sad thing is he is only a gym shorts hype machine. Musgrave managed only two missed tackles forced and 3.8 yards after the catch per reception in his collegiate career. These numbers are dreadful. Musgrave is a catch-and-fall down tight end. Musgrave can get knocked off his routes by physical linebackers easily. His lack of play strength also shows up at the catch point and in the blocking department. Musgrave secured only 38.9% of his contested targets in college. He is a matador in blocking. At this point, he lacks the tenacity required to become even an average blocker. He looks like a player just going through the motions when blocking, as he engages passively with oncoming defenders. He rarely anchors well and never drives a defender back. Musgrave does flash an impressive burst off the line with the speed to stretch the seam. His route running is raw at this juncture, but he does have fluid hips that allow him to turn on a dime. His catch radius is solid, especially when asked to adjust to shoestring targets.
Dynasty Outlook: We’ve seen Green Bay utilize a hyper-athletic tight end to some fantasy success (Robert Tonyan) in the past. I’m notably lower on Musgrave than consensus. His theoretical upside is tied to his impressive athletic profile. If you take that away, he has little on-field production to back up the hope and hype. If you’re looking for a mid or late-round tight-end dart for your dynasty squad, I get tossing it in his direction. Musgrave is my TE7 for this class (Tier 5). If you’re following my ranks closely for your rookie drafts, you’re unlikely to draft Musgrave much, and I’m OK with that. I’d rather dynasty managers attempt to move around in drafts to snag his teammate Tucker Kraft over Musgrave.
4.o7 – Chris Rodriguez Jr. (RB – WAS)
Chris Rodriguez Jr. has questionable vision on zone runs. Rodriguez Jr. will take the cut back often as he lacks the speed to get to the edge. He won’t stretch it to the boundary. He is best utilized as a gap scheme back with clear downhill running lanes. Rodriguez Jr. is a dependable volume back and solid interior rusher. Rodriguez Jr. will get what is blocked, but he displays little ability to get more than that. He has a power-back mentality inviting contact, but he doesn’t have the extra thump or leg drive to run over people. Rodriguez Jr. is a straight line & one-speed runner.
Dynasty Outlook: The Commanders picked up Rodriguez Jr. in the sixth round. Rodriguez Jr. is an early-down grinder type who, at best, is the early-down handcuff to Brian Robinson for Washington. With zero passing game upside, meh draft capital and abysmal testing (56th percentile 40-yard dash and 24th percentile burst score per Playerprofiler.com), Rodriguez is a player that I’m content with letting fall to waivers or the last round of a dynasty rookie draft before considering adding him to my rosters.
5.o7 – Dontayvion Wicks (WR – GB)
Dontayvion Wicks is a burner and a field stretcher. In 2021, Wicks ranked sixth among all FBS wide receivers in deep targets (37.6% of his target volume), 14th in deep receiving yards and 24th in deep passer rating when targeted (minimum 15 deep targets, 124.7). He has immediate lightning-fast acceleration off the line. He consistently stacks corners downfield with speed releases. Wicks does exhibit some body-catching. His ball-tracking downfield has been stellar, though. Drops are his big issue, as they cropped up heavily in 2022. He dropped 23.1% of his targets, which was the highest among FBS wide receivers with at least 50 targets.
Dynasty Outlook: Wicks is headed to cheesehead country. The Packers nabbed him in the fifth round. The Packers receiving depth chart is wide open after Christian Watson. Wicks could be the WR4 on the depth chart this season. If he pops in camp, I would take a shot on him through waivers, but I’m not wasting a top-four-round rookie draft pick on him.
Dynasty Rookie Mock Draft Results & Board
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