Day old bread. DVDs from seven years ago for three dollars. Pretty much anything (besides food) at the Dollar Store. These all fall under the category of bargains, baby. Same goes for fantasy football players in the later rounds of the draft. We're mid-preseason and fantasy draft bargains are showing themselves every single day. Whether it's identifying unlikely preseason performances, underrated running backs with volume upside and players getting selected stupidly late for whatever reason, this is how to dominate your draft. I'm not going to waste any more of your time with pointless drivel. Plus it's Friday, and I have a plane to catch (on Spirit Airlines, obviously). So dive in and WIN.
*ADP data from FantasyPros.com
Kelvin Benjamin, WR, Carolina Panthers (ADP: 57 overall | WR26): A player who ranks highest in ADP on this list, Kelvin Benjamin needs to be owned at his current cost. He's notched 100-plus targets and over 60 receptions in each of his last two healthy seasons for the Panthers and led the team with 15 red zone targets in 2016. There was negative buzz in the offseason surrounding Benjamin because of conditioning issues, but he is clearly in great shape during the preseason and that's been reflected in his high level of production. With 106 yards on six receptions and two touchdowns through three preseason games, Benjamin should be a focal point for Cam Newton in the passing game. Not to mention his size advantage. At 6-foot-5 he towers over most defenders, especially in the end zone. Benajmin is not going to burn anyone on a go-route, but he can high-point a catch and gain yards after with his toughness and ability to shed tacklers on the run. If you're drafting him as your flex wideout in Round 6, your fantasy roster is already in amazing shape.
Robert Kelley, RB, Washington Redskins (ADP: 88 overall | RB35): A underwhelming end to 2016 followed by a less-than-impressive preseason has Rob Kelley's fantasy value depressed in a major way. Many draft pundits believe rookie back Samaje Perine is in line to steal the job from Kelley, but he hasn't made much headway thus far. Kelley, a rookie last season, only honed his skillset this offseason and lost a few pounds too, according to reports. At least early on, Kelley should be the team's primary back, and while he won't get much work in the passing game, he'll get all of the goal line looks. Ball security and consistently gaining positive yardage are two attributes that have kept Kelley on the field frequently for Washington. He's well worth a post-Round 10 selection for some bench depth or flex spot rotation. And if he holds onto the starting job, more power to you, value shoppers.
Terrance West, RB, Baltimore Ravens (ADP: 100 overall | RB37):Kenneth Dixon is out (suspension, injury). Danny Woodhead is injured. That leaves Terrance West in line for a high-volume workload out of the gate after pushing for 200 carries in 2016. And he can catch the ball too, as he showed last year with 34 receptions on 44 targets. The Ravens would obviously like Woodhead to be their pass-catching back, but he's got question marks given his age (32) and injury history coming off a season-ending knee injury. He is already dealing with a hamstring issue that's kept him sidelined during preseason action. Even with Woodhead healthy, West's volume should remain in the 200-touch range at a minimum and he projects as the team's goal-line option too -- he saw 63.6 percent of Baltimore's rush attempts inside the five-yard line last year. When the chance presents itself to draft a running back with West's volume upside, even in a mediocre rushing offense, it's worth investing in.
Pierre Garcon, WR, San Francisco 49ers (ADP: 96 overall | WR38): So maybe Pierre Garcon's fantasy value took a hit moving from a high-flying Washington offense to, well, San Francisco. But it shouldn't take this much of a hit. Garcon led Washington receivers a season ago in targets (114) and receiving yards (1,041) and finished the year as fantasy's WR32. He wasn't single-handedly winning your week, but his production was pretty consistent, especially down the stretch. If nothing else, he gets a target share upgrade as the No. 1 in San Francisco. The 49ers new head coach, Kyle Shanahan, targeted Garcon in free agency as the two have an affluent history together statistically. In 2013 when Shanahan was the OC in Washington, Garcon was force-fed 181 targets and hauled in a career-high 113 receptions for 1,346 yards and five touchdowns, finishing as the fantasy WR13 that year (WR11 in PPR). The dude hasn't missed a game since 2012, so he's as durable as they come. When you can draft a wideout in the 10th round who has averaged 116 targets, 70 receptions, 881 yards and five touchdowns per season since 2009, you slide that man to the top of your queue and laugh in the face of your competitors once you roster him.
Rishard Matthews, WR, Tennessee Titans (ADP: 107 overall | WR48): After a nine-touchdown season in which he collected nearly 1,000 yards, Rishard Matthews is getting disrespected in fantasy drafts this year. There's reason to be excited about Tennesse's additions of rookie Corey Davis (19 scores in his final collegiate season) and red zone specialist Eric Decker. But Davis has been sidelined for nearly all of August with a hamstring injury and Decker has a new ankle injury. With Davis missing valuable preseason reps and Decker's durability in question, Matthews could push to lead the team in targets again after seeing 108 last year. It's unlikely he sees nine touchdowns again, but you're not looking for that kind of production in the double-digit rounds of your fantasy draft. He's a steal at his current value and should be able to put up WR3 numbers at worst.
Jonathan Stewart, RB, Carolina Panthers (ADP: 101overall | RB38): The Panthers veteran running back has collected 200-plus carries in each of the last two seasons, and has finished as a top 25 fantasy RB in each, but you can get him in your fantasy draft in Round 10 or later. Bargain hunters can thank the Christian McCaffrey hype for Stewart's depressed ADP this year. McCaffrey is as talented as running backs come and will likely be a huge factor in fantasy. But Stewart is still going to get hefty volume and should continue to be a monster around the goal line. Stewart's 40 red zone rush attempts a season ago was enough to rank him fifth in the NFL among running backs. And 16 of those came inside the five-yard line which was good enough for 69.6 percent of the team's total carries in that range. So, we have a guy with 200-touch upside, who punched in nine of his 16 goal-line attempts that you can draft in the late rounds? Sign me up! Excuse me, I was here first, get in line please.
Thomas Rawls, RB, Seattle Seahawks (ADP: 112 overall | RB43): From what we've seen this preseason, the Seattle backfield is one of the most unclear situations in the league. Eddie Lacy has not impressed, but at least he's healthy. The same cannot be said about C.J. Prosise who already tweaked his groin and can't seem to avoid injury, while Thomas Rawls is dealing with what the team is calling a "minor" ankle injury. But at the end of the day, Rawls is the best running back on the Seahawks roster. He's falling in drafts because of an injury-riddled 2016 campaign, so the preseason ankle injury is a concern. Coach Pete Carroll said earlier this week that if it was regular season, Rawls would be pushing to start which is a positive sign for his long-term outlook. We saw Rawls break out in the second half of 2015 in place of an injured Marshawn Lynch and despite his lack of production last year he still owns a career 4.4 yards per carry average. The fact that he had the chance to split first team reps with Lacy in camp and preseason action says the team wants to use him early and often. Lacy is more of a plodder while Rawls can explode through the line and wiggle away from defenders with his violent running style. He's the best bargain in Seattle's backfield with the easiest path to playing time as long as he can get the ankle issue cleared up.
Ted Ginn Jr., WR, New Orleans Saints (ADP: 149 overall | WR52): When you can get a Saints wide receiver for free in a fantasy draft, you throw that dart. Ted Ginn was added by New Orleans, not exactly to replace Brandin Cooks, but to fill the role of a deep threat for Drew Brees. Cooks ate up 117 targets last year, some of which will likely be distributed to Michael Thomas, Willie Snead and Coby Fleener. But Ginn will get his, too. Is Ginn susceptible to drops that will want to make you quit fantasy football altogether? Yep. But he's also capable of scoring long touchdowns too. In fact, just last year in Carolina, the veteran scored on receptions of 88, 55, 40 and 38 yards. And while he is getting up there in age at 32, he still created the second-most yards of separation when pressed at the line of scrimmage in 2016, according to NextGenStats. He still has his speed and can burn defenders in man coverage, and if he gets behind a corner you can bet Brees is going to find him open downfield. With Brees among the league leaders in pass attempts frequently, his top three targets have absorbed at least 100 targets each in the last two seasons. Ginn should be able to benefit from this volume though his week-to-week consistency will be volatile. Still, you can't go wrong taking him if he's still on the board in Round 15.
Cameron Brate, TE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (ADP: 175 overall | TE19): Go ahead and call me a broken record if you'd like; I've been pounding the table for Cameron Brate the entire offseason. With all of the attention on rookie O.J. Howard, who is a freakish athlete, but all the news out of Bucs camp this summer has pointed to the rookie focusing on being a blocking tight end in Year 1. Brate has an undeniable connection with quarterback Jameis Winston and there is trust between the two in the red zone. In fact, 20 percent of Brate's 81 targets last season came in the red zone, leading to eight touchdown grabs, tied for most at tight end in 2016. He's basically a low-end TE1 that you can get for free in redraft formats, so why wouldn't you?
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