Our analysts have put together fantasy football outlooks for all fantasy-relevant players. You can find them on our player pages and via our Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR). These will be updated throughout the preseason to help you navigate your fantasy football drafts utilizing our bevy of tools, including our FREE draft simulator and cheat sheet creator. We’ll cover players in different groups to help you identify those to target and others to avoid. In this series, our analysts took a look at some of the biggest storylines from 2022 and predicted players who could fit that mold in 2023. This means hyped players who busted instead of breaking out, unheralded sleepers who finished in the top tier of their position, rookie breakouts, and more.

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This Year’s Brandin Cooks

Calvin Ridley (WR – JAC)

This year’s Brandin Cooks: Player with a top-60 ADP who is touted as undervalued to such an extent that he becomes overvalued.

If you think Calvin Ridley still has WR1 upside, you’re delighted that you can typically get him at a low-end WR2 price. On the other hand, should Ridley be regarded as a top-25 receiver after being away from football for nearly two years and having only one 1,000-yard season under his belt? I think we’ll see/hear some vigorous debate about whether Ridley is undervalued, overvalued or properly valued in the run-up to the regular season. – Pat Fitzmaurice

This Year’s Michael Pittman Jr.

Garrett Wilson (WR – NYJ)

This year’s Michael Pittman Jr.: A consensus WR breakout candidate (inside the top 12) who doesn’t meet expectations (outside the top 24).

This, by no means, is an indictment on Garrett Wilson as a talent. I mean, there’s a reason that he won Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2023. As a rookie, Wilson was 9th in PFF receiving grade at 85.9 in addition to posting a very solid 1.85 yards per route run. However, his situation is changing dramatically, and in more ways than one. First, Aaron Rodgers will be under center for New York. While he’ll undoubtedly provide better quarterback play than what the Jets had last year. But Rodgers has notably focused on targeting receivers with whom he has the most chemistry. And that leads to the second point that the Jets have brought in a ton of target competition, including Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb, who both played with Rodgers in Green Bay. Though his efficiency could go up, Wilson may struggle to maintain his team-leading 24.6% target share from 2022. -Sam Hoppen

This Year’s Evan Engram

Mike Gesicki (TE – NE)

This year’s Evan Engram: Tight end outside the top 20 who finishes top 5.

Mike Gesicki, a tight end known for his versatility as a slot receiver hybrid, was not used correctly last year (finished as TE23). But there should be optimism regarding his new fit in the New England Patriots’ wide-open offense, which is begging to give targets away. Recall that in 2021, Gesicki finished sixth in receptions, ninth in receiving yards, fourth in route participation (78%), and fifth in target share (17%) over 18 weeks. These impressive numbers translated to a TE9 finish (TE8 Weeks 1-17) in PPR (TE11 in half-PPR). His utilization as a slot receiver or wide alignment accounted for 94% of his snaps in 2021, granting him an advantage in creating mismatches. And that’s how he projects to play in the 2023 Patriots offense. It’s the perfect fit in Bill O’Brien’s system that puts players in positions to exploit mismatches. Particularly tight ends, such as Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. Gesicki has frequently shined brightest when opportunities arise due to injuries or lack of talent to other players within the offense. And that’s exactly how the situation plays itself with him in New England. The fact that he already has multiple TE1 finishes on his resume (TE7 in 2020, TE11 in 2019) bolsters his case as a great late-round tight-end option in 2023. -Andrew Erickson

This Year’s Chigoziem Okonkwo

Jelani Woods (TE – IND)

This year’s Chigoziem Okonkwo: Going real deep. Tight end outside the top 30 who rises to relevance.

Over the final six weeks of the 2022 season (2.6), Colts rookie tight end Jelani Woods ranked second in yards per route run among all tight ends. With top-tier athleticism and whispers that he is the favorite to take over the Dallas Goedert role in Shane Steichen’s new-look offense in Indianapolis. In Steichen’s first year as the Eagles OC, DG was top-5 in target rate (22.4%) among TEs. That mark also ranked first among all Eagles players. Woods is a great late-round tight-end bet to rise to relevance amid the desolate position’s landscape. Woods’ 8-catch game last year was an extremely rare feat for a rookie tight end to accomplish. -Andrew Erickson

If you want to dive deeper into fantasy football, be sure to check out our award-winning slate of Fantasy Football Tools as you navigate your season. From our Start/Sit Assistant – which provides your optimal lineup based on accurate consensus projections – to our Trade Analyzer – which allows you to instantly find out if a trade offer benefits you or your opponent – we’ve got you covered this fantasy football season.