The DFF Army got together again after the NFL Draft for its analyst-only 2023 Rookie Mock Draft. Here we randomly selected spots and ran the draft in a linear order; the settings are Superflex and PPR. Hopefully, this can help give you an updated sense of the players you should be considering in your draft and the gems you will want to target later. This time we start with the fourth round first followed by the third round. Check out every selection below and each writer’s reasoning behind their pick. Rounds 1+2 to come later!
4.01 – Darnell Washington, TE, Pittsburgh Steelers
Doug Harrelson – @DougHarrelson
After the NFL Combine, I saw people on Twitter discussing Washington in the 1st round of rookie drafts. That may have always been a bit too rich but we have seen a substantial drop in Washington’s ADP following the NFL Draft. All the things from the combine are still true with his freakish athletic profile and size. Rumors seem to be circulating that teams are worried about a recurring foot injury in college so there is some decent risk involved here but in the fourth round of rookie drafts, you have to deal with some negatives. If the Steelers’ medical team can keep him healthy though, he has some huge upside and all I want to do at this stage is swing for the fences.
4.02 – Kayshon Boutte, WR, NE Patriots
Chris Miles – @ChrisMiles1017⚙️
Kayshon Boutte was talked about being a first-round NFL Draft pick in February. The character concerns surface followed by a very poor combine and his stock tanked. I am not treating Boutte like a day-two pick but I will treat him like a former elite college producer at a young age who holds great upside. Athleticism doesn’t matter much for WRs and he meets the minimum speed threshold with a 4.50 40-time. At this cost, I love taking a swing at Boutte’s massive upside. I am comfortable taking him as early as the mid-third, or when all of the day two WRs are gone.
4.03 – Evan Hull, RB, Indianapolis Colts
Paul Patterson – @paul_dff
Evan Hull has a combination of size, athleticism, and receiving ability that I love to chase late in rookie drafts. He obviously won’t be stealing the starting job from Jonathan Taylor, but he does have the talent to cement himself as the top backup in Indianapolis. That contingent upside makes Hull more likely to enter my starting lineup than any of the remaining WRs.
4.04 – Deuce Vaughn, RB, Dallas Cowboys
Billy Beaman – @WillieBeamanDFF
Deuce Vaughn is easily one of the best stories of the 2023 NFL Draft. He was drafted by the team his father works for. His father was able to make the call to tell him he was drafted. Just unbelievably cool stuff. That said, his dad did impact this decision, he actually stayed out of the entire scouting process when the team reviewed his son. Deuce is just a stud, even at 5’6” he dominated his competition in college. He rushed for over 1,400 yards in each of the last two seasons. Tony Pollard is the only running back worth his salt so there is nothing but opportunity ahead of Vaugn. He certainly has a lot to overcome given his size, but it appears he’s always been able to overcome. Why stop now? He immediately slots in as Pollard’s backup in my mind and we know how valuable that position can be for the Cowboys. I’m buying in at this dirt cheap price.
4.05 – Zack Kuntz, Tight End, NY Jets
Chris Museezer – @force_fantasy
There is a hive of people who feel very strongly about the correlation of athleticism to future tight-end success. That hive would be all over Zach Kuntz in rookie drafts. Kuntz scored the maximum 10 out of 10 on the relative athletic score. He sat behind Pat Freiermuth at Penn St before transferring to Old Dominion. His senior year was marred by injury but his junior year was a breakout with 692 yards and five touchdowns.
Billy Beaman did a great film breakdown of his game here.
4.06 – Luke Schoonmaker, TE, Dallas Cowboys
Tim Riley – @FF_Reez
After the departure of Dalton Schultz, the TE room in Dallas is up for grabs. This second-round pick out of Michigan could see major playing time in 2023. He has Soft hands and an Innate ability to separate from defenders. At 25 years old, he’s one of the older rookies this year. However, in the 4th round of rookie drafts, I have no problem taking a shot on him.
4.07 – Xavier Hutchinson, WR, Houston Texans
Doug Harrelson – @DougHarrelson
Xavier Hutchinson had some frustrating film to watch because he does have some impressive traits but he also has some major weaknesses in his game. Some of this could be worked out by coaching and he will get a chance to learn behind some vets in Robert Woods and Brandin Cooks that have been around the block for a while now. This is a taxi squad stash and see if he climbs the depth chart. If not, I will feel fine moving on as the investment here is very low.
4.08 – Eric Gray, RB, NY Giants
Chris Miles – @ChrisMiles1017⚙️
It’s time for the boring “take only RBs in the late rounds” spiel, but it is true and it will help you gain advantages in your Dynasty leagues. The hit rate for day three WRs drafted since 2014 is 4.88%, for day three RBs it is 14.4%, almost three times as high. Make the safer bet and take a guy like Eric Gray late in your draft who possesses workhorse size and good receiving ability. These are the guys you will potentially be able to sell to your desperate league mates for a second-round pick if he becomes a starter for a few weeks. Stock up at RB, not WR.
4.09 – Charlie Jones, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
Paul Patterson – @paul_dff
From an analytical perspective, Charlie Jones has bust written all over him. He broke out in his fifth college season at age 24 and fell to Day 3 of the NFL Draft. However, the cost at this point is nothing and some film analysts are high on his route-running ability. If he can find his way onto the field, he’ll be catching passes from Joe Burrow, which has to count for something, right?
4.10 – Puka Nacua, WR, Los Angeles Rams
Billy Beaman – @WillieBeamanDFF
Puka Nacua is a receiver I have had my eyes on for a few years. Solid college recruit who lost some value in Devy leagues and I took a few shots on him in the later rounds. He’s got really good size and ability but is just a bit raw due to beginning his football career a bit later in life. You really have to love the landing spot for his chance to develop and carve out a role. The Rams receiver room is fairly thin behind Cooper Kupp, so if Nacua has anything we should find out fairly quickly. I like taking this shot in the fourth round, very little risk and a lot of upside.
4.11 – Andrei Iosivas, Wide Receiver, Cincinnati Bengals
Chris Museezer – @force_fantasy
Consistent with my last pick I like to take athletic specimens in the later rounds of Dynasty rookie drafts. The hope is they figure out how to harness their raw talent to compete at the NFL level. Iosivas is a former track athlete who scored 9.95 out of 10 on his Relative Athletic Score. He was also productive his last year at Princeton with a 40.8% weighted dominator and 2.70 receiving yards per team pass attempt. Sixth-round wide receivers have very low hit rates but so does every prospect available at this point in the draft.
4.12 – Keaton Mitchell, RB, UDFA
Tim Riley – @FF_Reez
A consistent producer at East Carolina for the last 3 years, Mitchell is expected to sign with Baltimore. 1,452 yards on 201 carries earned him first-team All-ACC honors last year. He’s An elite receiver out of the backfield, with home run(4.37) speed. His small size often shows in pass protection, as he struggles against blitzes. I can’t deny the innate talent Mitchell possesses. He’s one of my favorite picks at the end of rookie drafts.
3.01 – Zach Evans, RB, Los Angeles Rams
Doug Harrelson – @Doug Harrelson
In hindsight, I think I should just take Hendon Hooker here. Zach Evans was a guy that I liked a bit predraft but his draft capital is concerning. The landing spot is something I am a fan of, however. Sean McVay has an offensive scheme that has been good for running backs in the past and I believe will be again. Cam Akers has had some issues in the past so he is hardly locked into the number one job. I know there is a really good chance that he is never the guy in Los Angeles but I think there is enough upside with his big play ability for me to feel okay taking a stab here.
3.02 – Hendon Hooker, QB, Detroit Lions
Chris Miles – @ChrisMiles1017⚙️
Hendon Hooker is my favorite QB in this class that was not ranked in the top three, and he went to an awesome landing spot. Hooker gets to sit behind Jared Goff and learn the game while rehabbing with no rush to come back and play too early. And then once he does get an opportunity the Lions have a great O-Line and good young receiving weapons. I am very excited about Hooker and will be storing him on my taxis for future use. I am comfortable taking him as early as the late second round in most drafts.
3.03 – Jayden Reed, WR, Green Bay Packers
Paul Patterson – @paul_dff
Jayden Reed had an interesting journey in college. He performed well as a freshman at Eastern Michigan before transferring to Michigan State and sitting out the 2019 season. For the next three seasons, Jayden Reed provided strong per-game production in the context of a run-heavy offense. The concern with Reed’s profile is that he declared for the draft as a fifth-year senior and will be 23.5 years old before he steps onto the field. However, as a second-round pick with early college production, I am happy to take a shot at him here.
3.04 – Chase Brown, RB, Cincinnati Bengals
Billy Beaman – @WillieBeamanDFF
I recently posted on Twitter how I simply can’t seem to let Brown fall out of the end of the second round of rookie drafts but I see that I can let it happen and still acquire him with the DFF crew! I love the talent here and was very in pre-draft and post-draft I’m still there. Questions remain in terms of what the Bengals will do with Joe Mixon so I can easily see Brown falling into a ton of work his rookie year which is all you can ask for at the end of the second or beginning of the third round in your rookie drafts. Even with Mixon there, I’d expect Brown to take over the Samaje Perine role, which was very useful for fantasy purposes.
3.05 – Israel Abanikanda, RB, NY Jets
Chris Museezer – @force_fantasy
Abanikanda had elite production last year with 1431 yards rushing and 20 rushing TDs. This was good for a 97th percentile dominator rating. His 5’11″, 216 lbs. size is perfect for the NFL grind. He has good speed for his size.
The landing spot isn’t great with the Jets. Breece Hall is the workhorse there. Abanikanda is the backup and can contribute to fantasy teams if Hall misses time.
3.06 – Rashee Rice, WR, Kansas City Chiefs
Tim Riley – @FF_Reez
Normally, I fade Kansas City wide receivers, but for Rice, I’ll make an exception. After letting Juju Smith-Schuster sign with New England, the Chiefs are left with a barren wide receiver room. Rice profiles as a possession receiver and should provide a different target type for Mahomes. As a third-round pick, he can compete for immediate opportunities with a strong showing in training camp. Guys don’t let Rice fall to 3.06 like my colleagues.
3.07 – Luke Musgrave, TE, Green Bay Packers
Doug Harrelson – @DougHarrelson
Luke Musgrave is not getting anywhere near the love of the other tight ends in this class but he had a fantastic landing spot to go with some pretty good draft capital himself. I feel like he is a player I will end up with a lot of shares of in this range right about here. Musgrave has some decent upside with his ability to make catches down the field and is a good enough blocker to see the field early in his career.
3.08 – Tank Dell, WR, HOU Texans
Chris Miles – @ChrisMiles1017⚙️
I am not usually a fan of taking receivers in the third through fifth rounds of rookie drafts but in this spot, I had to Tank. Tank is a small WR but he was very productive at Houston and was drafted on day two in the NFL draft. If there is one thing I will make an exception for, it would be the day two WRs that fall. Tank seems like he will be that guy this year and I think I will find myself drafting him in some places. He may be small but he is over 25 BMI, which is a more important mark in my opinion. If you want to worry about Tank you should worry about his late declaration status, and his poor breakout age, not his height.
3.09 – Sean Tucker, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Paul Patterson – @paul_dff
I don’t typically invest in UDFAs with third-round rookie picks, but here we are. Sean Tucker has an excellent analytical profile, but he fell out of the NFL Draft mostly due to medical concerns. He has a three-down skillset and he landed on a shallow depth chart in Tampa Bay. If anyone can be the James Robinson of this class, it’s Tucker.
3.10 – DeWayne McBride, RB, Minnesota Vikings
Billy Beaman – @WillieBeamanDFF
McBride really fell in the NFL draft but the landing spot is ideal. There has been a ton of buzz around a potential Dalvin Cook trade which would leave Alexander Mattison and McBride to most of the touches. That’s the allure for me. McBride is limited in the passing game so he’s more of a bruiser. I don’t see a ton of upside but he can increase his Dynasty value if Cook leaves and that’s really what I am after.
3.11 – Tyler Scott, Wide Receiver, Chicago Bears
Chris Museezer – @force_fantasy
Tyler Scott is another wide receiver whose draft capital gets pushed down because he primarily plays the slot. The slot is wide open in Chicago with only Dante Pettis and Velus Jones on the depth chart. Scott had a healthy 2.62 receiving yards per team pass attempt. He is also an early declare which has a strong correlation to future fantasy success as it is an endorsement by the NFL that they think you are ready for the league.
3.12 – Michael Wilson, WR, Arizona Cardinals
Tim Riley – @FF_Reez
A third-round NFL pick, Wilson has dealt with multiple injuries throughout college, he’s been productive when healthy. With a great combination of size and speed, he can make people miss after the catch. His willingness to block could lead to early opportunities in the Cardinals’ offense. If Deandre Hopkins gets traded, Wilson could log significant snaps as the outside Z receiver.
Wow, you read all the way through! Thank you, we really appreciate you using your time to enjoy our content. Come join the #DFFArmy where we provide #Dynasty, #Redraft, #Devy, and #Analytics content. Thank you so much! Also, look out for round two of the mock draft coming soon!
Did you enjoy this article and want more Dynasty, Devy, IDP, and Redraft content? Click here for a 12-month DFF Membership.
