It’s that time again. Dynasty rookie FEVER SZN is HERE! The NFL Draft will come and go before we know it, and rookie drafts will start flying daily. Before you dive head first into our Draft Simulator and run 3,000 rookie drafts in preparation, please read up on this talented prospect class as I roll through my quarterback, running back, wide receiver, and tight end positional primers.
Motrin and Tylenol can’t quell this fever. The only medicine is more rookie mock drafts.
- DBro’s Dynasty Rookie Draft Primers: WR | QB | RB
- 2024 Dynasty Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- 2024 NFL Draft Guide
- 2024 Draft Scouting Reports
Dynasty Rookie Draft Advice
MarShawn Lloyd (USC)
Stats:
- 2023 (minimum 100 carries, 18 targets)
- Yards after contact per attempt: 20th
- Breakaway percentage: 3rd
- PFF elusive rating: 4th
- Yards per route run: 48th
- 2022 (minimum 100 carries, 20 targets)
- Yards after contact per attempt: 16th
- Breakaway percentage: 18th
- PFF elusive rating: 15th
- Yards per route run: 41st
- Career
- Former 5 star recruit
- Torn ACL in 2020
- 7 fumbles across the last two seasons (225 carries)
Scouting report:
- Lloyd runs like a Tasmanian devil. He has an every-down tenacity and a mean streak to him. He has the requisite functional strength and temperament to become a strong pass protector. He just needs to improve his pass-pro technique and gain consistency there. He’ll have one rep where he stands up a free rushing blitzer and then gets blown back on the next. The leg drive he exhibits on rushing plays combined with some strong reps in pass pro lead me to believe that if he gains more consistency in this area, he can develop into a trusted passing down back in the NFL.
- Lloyd is a functional receiver. He was utilized mainly as a checkdown specialist. He did motion out to the occasional snap as an outside receiver, but rarely was he asked to run routes from this alignment. He did have the occasional stop or curl route. Lloyd does have soft hands, and he is a QB-friendly target adjusting to space when his quarterback is in scramble mode.
- Lloyd is a scheme versatile rusher. He has the lateral agility, vision, and speed to operate in stretch zone as well as inside zone. Lloyd’s burst is above average but not elite, so you wouldn’t want him operating in a heavy outside zone scheme, but that’s not to say that he doesn’t have the speed to gain the edge.
- He runs with a profound mean streak. Lloyd isn’t seeking out contact, but that doesn’t mean that he can’t drop the hammer when needed. Rarely does the first defender bring him down, and it’s nothing for him to body bag a corner with a stiff arm. Lloyd also has plenty of plays on film where he’s asked to create yards on his own. He has more than a handful of runs I watched on film where he had to reverse course when the gap was clogged and create a play on his own, and he did marvelously.
- Lloyd is a more physical rusher than his size would lead many to believe. He has strong legs to finish runs well and push the pile. Lloyd can be a tone-setting back.
Player Comp: Tre Mason
Kimani Vidal (Troy)
Stats:
- 2023 (all FBS/FCS RBs minimum 100 carries, 20 targets)
- Yards after contact per attempt: 51st
- Breakaway percentage: 73rd
- PFF elusive rating: 21st
- Yards per route run: 143rd
- 2022 (all FBS/FCS RBs minimum 100 carries, 20 targets)
- Yards after contact per attempt: 106th
- Breakaway percentage: 171st
- PFF elusive rating: 84th
- Yards per route run: 174th
- Career
- 3.52 Yards after contact per attempt in his collegiate career
Scouting report:
- Downhill pinball. Vidal will ricochet off incoming defenders and produce hard-fought yards with a nasty stiff arm and solid footwork. Give him a runway, and he’ll chew up chunk yardage.
- Vidal has enough juice to bounce a run outside when needed, but he’s at his best when he builds up some steam and penetrates the second level of the defense. Vidal isn’t a home run hitter, though. His 35.2% breakaway percentage in college tells the tale. Vidal is built to churn out 5-15-yard runs with frequency. He has only an average burst and lacks a second gear to run away from defenders in the open field. Vidal is caught behind religiously.
- He’s a volume rusher who’s proven he can hold up to the workload, with at least 231 carries in each of the last two seasons and at least 23 carries in 57% of his games in his final collegiate season.
Player Comp: Devin Singletary
Daijun Edwards (Georgia)
Stats:
- 2023 (minimum 100 carries, 20 targets)
- Yards after contact per attempt: 100th
- Breakaway percentage: 57th
- PFF elusive rating: 78th
- Yards per route run: 61st
- 2022 (minimum 100 carries, 19 targets)
- Yards after contact per attempt: 87th
- Breakaway percentage: 60th
- PFF elusive rating: 69th
- Yards per route run: 82nd
Scouting report:
- Edwards has an average burst that is made less effective by his indecision at the line. Edwards would be better served to get the train rolling with conviction early, but he shimmies at the line with footwork that’s better served in the open field.
- Edwards is a tough runner who can get “the dirty yards.” His lively feet can be an asset moving forward, as they serve him well when necessary, getting skinny at the line.
- At this stage, he is a check-down option only. Edwards was passable, leaking out of the backfield or running the occasional stop route.
Player Comp: Charcandrick West
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