With devy drafts coming up, we are going to explore the players with the highest ceilings, floors, and some dark horses who could make a difference on dynasty fantasy teams in the upcoming years. Whether you are in rebuild mode or a strong contender, if you plan on using your devy draft picks then your strategy is relatively the same. Always take the best player available, always take a sure thing over a wildcard, and always stay up to date with the DFF Devy Team.
Class of 2021
Quarterbacks
Highest Ceiling – Justin Fields, Ohio State
Highest Floor – Trevor Lawrence, Clemson
Dark Horse – Jamie Newman, Georgia
The combination of his passing and running capabilities gives Fields the highest ceiling in dynasty leagues. He and Lawrence should be the first and second draft picks in the 2021 NFL Draft. Fields at 6’3” and 230 lbs. has the build of a prototypical quarterback and should be in contention as the superflex/2QB devy 1.01 pick.
Trevor Lawrence has the highest floor as he is the cleanest prospect since Andrew Luck. Lawrence has 247 Sports second-highest QB rating out of high school ever and has followed that up leading Clemson to two consecutive College Football Playoff Championship games. Lawrence has the inside track to being the first overall pick in 2021. He showed off his above-average ability to take off and run on broken plays. All things considered, Trevor Lawrence has the highest floor of all devy prospects.
The past season was defined by transfer quarterbacks headlined by Joe Burrow and Justin Fields. Quincy Avery is something of a quarterback whisperer, working as a personal coach for QBs in the offseason. He has mentored high profile players such as Deshaun Watson and Justin Fields; this season Jamie Newman worked with Avery prior to transferring to Georgia. Georgia has also led the nation in money spent recruiting since 2015 totaling over $12.7M in that span. With a strong season, as a capable runner and passer, Newman could jump up draft boards this offseason and get the opportunity to start for an NFL team in the next few years.
Running Backs
Highest Ceiling – Chuba Hubbard, Oklahoma State
Highest Floor – Travis Etienne, Clemson
Dark Horse – Journey Brown, Penn State
Chuba Hubbard led CFB in rushing last year with 2,094 yards at a strong 6.4 yards per attempt. His 21 rushing TDs were tied for the third-most in the country. He also proved to be more than capable in the passing game the last two seasons with over 20 catches each season. A breakout in pass-catching this season would go a long way and show that despite his relatively small build, at only 208 lbs., Hubbard has everything needed to be an effective three-down back in the NFL.
Travis Etienne not coming out this season was a shock to the fantasy world; there were rumors that his decision was based on a poor draft grade. Per Etienne, he received a late first or early second-round grade and his decision to remain in school was based on wanting to create a legacy at Clemson, win another championship, and perfect his craft to the point where he could teach the position to anyone at any level in football. Based on this, it is clear to Etienne that NFL running backs don’t last as long as other positions and he is positioning himself for a solid NFL career as well as for life after football.
Journey Brown took over the duties of primary running back for Penn State in 2019 and he showed flashes of recent greats, namely Saquon Barkley and Miles Sanders. Brown had a productive year with just over 1,000 scrimmage yards and 13 TDs. Brown was the most efficient back for the Nittany Lions averaging almost seven yards per carry despite having the heaviest workload. An increased workload would do wonders for Journey Brown, but where Brown can really pop is at the NFL Combine next year. Coming out of high school, Brown ran a 4.54 40-yard dash and jumped 39.6” in the vertical jump. Compare that to 4.58 and 35” for Sanders and 4.66 and 36” for Barkley. Clearly Penn State strength and conditioning coaches are producing some elite athletes and I’d bet on a similar effect for Brown.
Wide Receivers
Highest Ceiling – Rondale Moore, Purdue
Highest Floor – Ja’Marr Chase, LSU
Dark Horse – Sage Surratt, Wake Forest
Rondale Moore out of Purdue had one of the best freshman WR seasons in CFB history. He is an electric athlete, similar to Percy Harvin without the migraines. If Moore is healthy and gets back on track from his freshman season, that production combined with his raw athleticism should result in a high-end first-round draft pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Ja’Marr Chase showcased in 2019 what he can do from a production standpoint with the second-best statistical season among Power 5 sophomore seasons, behind only Michael Crabtree in 2006. One could argue that Chase had a better sophomore season based on his 21.2 yards per catch, while Crabtree was driven by an abundance of targets that yielded a yards per catch average of only 14. Saying Chase has the highest floor does not imply that he does not also have a high ceiling, as you could make a legitimate argument that Chase has a higher ceiling than the aforementioned Moore. What it comes down to is Chase checks all of the boxes that evaluators want to see in a WR. He has the size, speed, skill and football IQ to get any scout all hot and bothered. With the depth coming in at WR in the 2020 NFL Draft, teams that miss out will likely be more willing to pay up for Chase in 2021, potentially as the WR1 off the board.
Sage Surratt’s sophomore season ended during their eighth game against Virginia Tech. Before going down with a shoulder injury Surratt already had 66 catches and surpassed the 1,000-yard mark with 11 TDs. If he stayed healthy, Surratt’s season would extrapolate out to a 14 game pace of 115 catches, over 1,750-yards, and 19 TDs. This isn’t too far off from Chase’s stat line, with a significantly worse offense than LSU (because every offense was significantly worse than Burrow’s Tigers). Surratt had an incredible high school career, finishing top 10 historically in career catches, receiving yards, and receiving TDs. Surratt came to Wake Forest with 348 catches (7th), 5,626-yards (6th), and 73 TDs (8th) when his Lincolnton career ended. He will have to build rapport with a new QB, with Jamie Newman transferring to Georgia, but playing like he did in his sophomore season could result in a day two selection in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Tight Ends
Highest Ceiling – Pat Freiermuth, Penn State
Highest Floor – Kyle Pitts, Florida
Dark Horse – Jeremy Ruckert, Ohio State
When it comes to the tight end position, you’re only considering these players in a deep devy league or if the scoring has drastic tiered formats. Freiermuth is probably the best receiver of the class, he was eligible to declare for the 2020 draft due to taking a post-graduate year in Massachusetts. Freiermuth is currently being called “Baby Gronk” a name due to his highly coveted scoring ability and 6’5” and 250 lbs. frame. However, his best trait may actually be his versatility. He lined up both as an in-line TE as well as a wing-back and has the capability to line up out wide on certain plays at the next level. What truly gives Freiermuth the highest ceiling is his pass-catching combined with his blocking capabilities, Freiermuth has the skillset to stay on the field in all situations.
Kyle Pitts has the highest floor of the 2021 TE class; he can be a matchup nightmare in the NFL. At 6’6” and 240 lbs. Pitts is too fast for linebackers and too big for safeties. As a pass-catching specialist, Pitts may see action only in passing situations early in his career. Pitts is probably the most likely TE1 in the 2021 NFL draft at this point in time, thus having the highest floor.
As Parris Campbell and Terry McLaurin left Ohio State in the 2019 NFL draft, we expected Ruckert to have a breakout season after posting just 19 yards his Freshman season. Ruckert again disappointed by posting just 142 yards and four TDs his sophomore season. Ruckert was a highly rated recruit out of high school, but we have seen a late breakout age trend out of Ohio State. This year, K.J. Hill, Binjimen Victor, Austin Mack, and J.K. Dobbins will all be moving on leaving Ruckert as the third leading remaining receiver.
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