In this article, I’ll give rapid-fire takes on any skill players in Rounds 4-7 of the NFL Draft that I believe might be redraft viable. On Thursday, I wrote up the first round, on Friday, I did articles on the second and third round. Those links are at the bottom of this article. For these last four rounds, I’ll only pick out a few notable players that I expect to make an impact in redraft potentially. With each player, I’ll note their path to redraft relevance. It is important to note that any player listed below is, by definition, a long-shot. Very few late-round rookies hit in redraft.
#112: Joshua Kelley (RB – LAC)
Kelley comes to the NFL out of UCLA after beginning his college career at FCS school UC Davis. Kelley played decently in his two college seasons, taking 225 and 229 carries, but averaging just 5.1 yards per attempt. He played well in the passing game, though, catching 38 balls in his two seasons for 264 yards.
Coming into the Chargers’ backfield, Kelley will compete with Justin Jackson for backup work behind Austin Ekeler. However, Kelley is a smaller running back with blazing 4.49 speed, not the big back complement to Ekeler I might have expected the Chargers to draft. Either way, one of Kelley or Jackson will backup Ekeler and will receive enough carries to be redraft viable. The Kelley-Jackson battle will be one of the big camp storylines of the offseason. Make sure to keep an eye on it throughout the summer.
#120: Lamical Perine (RB – NYJ)
Perine was a mediocre prospect coming out of Florida. He averaged only 5.0 yards per carry in college and never managed to gain a workhorse role for the team. The only relevance he’ll have in 2020 is that he’s now Le’Veon Bell’s backup. I do believe Perine can be an upgrade over Bilal Powell and Ty Montgomery, who backed up Bell in 2019. Unless Bell gets hurt, you can forget about Perine. There won’t be any reason to roster a handcuff for the Jets’ putrid offense.
#124: Anthony McFarland (RB – PIT)
McFarland is an exciting prospect for 2020 redraft leagues. At Maryland, he lit the field on fire in 2018. He rushed for 1,034 yards on only 131 carries for an excellent 7.9 yards per carry. However, in 2019, he regressed on the ground, taking just 114 carries for only 614 yards and a much lower 5.4 yards per carry. He did make up for that through the air, improving from seven catches in 2018 to 17 in 2019.
McFarland will join the messy Steelers’ backfield. In 2019, James Conner, Benny Snell Jr., and Jaylen Samuels all saw work, with none performing well. Conner missed significant time due to multiple injuries, and the Steelers decided that they needed to add more insurance for 2020. I expect Conner to get the start in 2020, but if he falters, McFarland is an excellent alternative option. He will compete with Snell Jr. for the direct handcuff role to Conner to complement Samuels as the pass-catching back.
Given that I think of Benny Snell Jr. as “Benny Snail,” I expect McFarland to win the backup job. With Ben Roethlisberger returning, the Steelers’ starting running back will produce fantasy points. Keep an eye on McFarland, because he could easily see an opportunity in 2020 if things fall his way.
#144: DeeJay Dallas (RB – SEA)
Similar to the other running backs, Dallas will compete for a backup role behind an incumbent starter, in this case, Chris Carson. With both Carson and backup Rashaad Penny recovering from injuries, the Seahawks needed to draft another running back in addition to 2019 sixth-rounder Travis Homer. Penny will likely open the season on the PUP list, so there is certainly an opening for touches even if Carson makes a full recovery by Week 1.
Interestingly, Dallas and Homer both went to the University of Miami and competed for touches in 2017 and 2018. In both years, Homer won the battle, having more carries and receptions in each season. Also, Homer averaged more yards per carry than Dallas. However, Dallas received better NFL Draft capital, so this is truly an open competition. Since Carson’s health is still unclear, whoever wins the battle between Dallas and Homer has a high upside in Seattle’s run-first offense. Whoever is taking carries for Seattle as their starting running back will be redraft relevant, and Dallas has a small chance at that role.
Thanks for reading this article. You can find me on Twitter at @DFF_Karp. I love to interact with anyone in the community, so reach out at any time! I take fantasy questions and help with all formats, so keep sending those questions my way.
Round 1 Redraft Reaction, Round 2 Redraft Reaction, Round 3 Redraft Reaction
