It all comes down to this. All of the offseason fantasy football draft prep. All of the mock drafts. All of the time you’ve spent preparing for your 2023 fantasy football drafts will come down to the next few weeks. Are you ready? As always, we’re here to help. Our analysts have put in the work to identify players they are targeting in drafts. You can find a few of their favorite fantasy football draft picks below. And for all of their targets and avoids, check out our articles from each analyst.
- Pat Fitzmaurice: (Targets | Avoids) (Premium)
- Andrew Erickson: (Targets | Avoids) (Premium)
- Derek Brown: (Targets | Avoids) (Premium)
Must-Have Fantasy Football Draft Picks
Nick Chubb (RB – CLE)
As one of the league’s premier pure rushers, Nick Chubb quietly amassed an impressive 1,525 rushing yards (5.0 yards per carry again) and 13 touchdowns in 2022, finishing as the RB6 overall with a top 10 backfield opportunity share (64%). From Weeks 1-12, he was the RB4 overall and in points per game. However, his production tailed off towards the end of the season with the return of Deshaun Watson to the lineup, dropping him to RB23 overall in Weeks 13-17.
However, with Watson expected to raise the ceiling of the Browns’ offense with a full offseason back to football, Chubb’s fantasy production should remain more consistent throughout the 2023 season, making him a near-bust-proof draft pick. Last season alone, Chubb was just one of 3 running backs to finish inside the top-36 in every single game (Christian McCaffrey, Austin Ekeler).
Chubb is currently the betting market’s favorite to lead the NFL in rushing yards at +600 odds per DraftKings Sportsbook.
Additionally, with the departure of running backs Kareem Hunt and D’Ernest Johnson, Chubb could see an increase in opportunities in the receiving game. He demonstrated his ability in this area with a strong Week 18 performance, playing a season-high 75% snap share, running a route on 71% of dropbacks, and catching five-of-six targets (22% target share) for 45 yards. Chubb finished Week 18 as the RB1 overall.
Unproven 2022 fifth-rounder Jerome Ford is currently pegged as the No. 2 RB and has missed most of training camp with lower body injuries.
-Andrew Erickson
Antonio Gibson (WAS)
Commanders head coach Ron Rivera has been talking about wanting to get Gibson more involved in the Washington offense this year. Talk is cheap, but perhaps Washington’s new offensive coordinator, Eric Bieniemy, will be fonder of Gibson than former Washington OC Scott Turner seemed to be.
Gibson is as big and as fast as Jonathan Taylor and has extensive pass-catching experience as a converted college wide receiver. Gibson also scored double-digit touchdowns in each of his first two NFL seasons despite playing in a limited offense. With J.D. McKissic no longer on the Commanders’ roster, Gibson figures to see a lot more action on passing downs.
-Pat Fitzmaurice
Tony Pollard (RB – DAL)
I know my standing with Tony Pollard as my RB1 isn’t the most popular take, but I won’t back down from loving players with otherworldly efficiency, especially ones that step into a lead role. We have long pinned to see Pollard in a lead-back role, and now once we finally get it, people are backing off their Pollard love. Last year Pollard authored an RB8 finish while ranking 30th in snap share (50.9%) and 34th in opportunity share (48.1%). Pollard is a fantasy monster that will be unleashed in 2023. Last season he was top-five in breakaway run rate, yards created per touch, yards per route run, and yards per touch. Pollard will cede some snaps to another back this season, whether that’s Malik Davis, Rico Dowdle, or another replacement level shmo. This won’t deter Pollard from his destiny as a top-three running back in fantasy in 2023. His ceiling is Austin Ekeler 2.0.
-Derek Brown
Cam Akers (RB – LAR)
Akers led the NFL in rushing over the final six weeks of the 2022 regular season and ranked RB4 in half-point point per reception (PPR) scoring over that stretch. He had more than 100 rushing yards in each of his last three games. Now two years removed from the torn Achilles that wiped out most of his 2021 season, Akers doesn’t have much in-house competition for carries, and the Rams’ 2023 schedule is littered with opponents that had mediocre run defenses last year.
-Pat Fitzmaurice
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