We are just days away from the NFL Draft. With that comes plenty of Dynasty fantasy football rookie drafts. That brings a ton of excitement and dreams of future championships. It also brings the pitfalls that many of us have fallen into over the past few years. Drafting a guy who is good but not as good as a player at the same position, a few picks or maybe rounds later. Let’s examine the must-have rookies in this year’s draft. We will be using the draft board from the Too Much Fantasy Football show, done not too long ago.
Must-Have Rookies
TreVeyon Henderson (RB)- 1.08
How crazy a year makes. Last year, we were all talking about how TreVeyon Henderson was going to be the top running back in that class. He then shocked everyone and went back to Ohio State for another year. Henderson went on to have just as good, if not better year, helped them win the national championship, and yet is being overlooked. He goes off the board here at the 1.08 as the fourth running back off the board.
Henderson had a better yards per carry average in 2024 than he did in 2023. He saw a bigger workload despite still sharing the backfield with fellow draftee Quinshon Judkins. Henderson is a fast rusher who has good size for the next level. He may lack some of the exciting cuts and highlight reel-making burst, but he is fast and hard to bring down. I still believe he should be considered with Ashton Jeanty as the 1A/1B leading backs in this class. Getting a top-end talent this late makes it a no-brainer. I imagine in a year or two, we will be talking about him like we do Jahmyr Gibbs compared to Bijan Robinson. Just as Gibbs was a value then, so is Henderson now.
Jalen Milroe (QB)-3.01
Maybe this is a product of it being a 1-QB mock draft, or perhaps slow to adjust to the news of Jalen Milroe moving up the team’s boards in the real draft. Jalen Milroe is a screaming value at the 3.01 spot. Milroe comes off the board as the QB4 and almost a full round behind Jaxson Dart. Milroe looks poised to be selected in April’s draft by a team that values him as a starter. He may have to wait a few games before he takes over, but he is worth the wait.
Milroe has the rushing upside we want from our fantasy quarterbacks. Probably more than any other quarterback in this class. It will give him a solid fantasy floor. Something that can’t be said about other quarterbacks taken after him. We saw Jayden Daniels land squarely after Caleb Williams last year, and people who took that value were probably league winners. Even someone like Bo Nix was a value in drafts due to his rushing upside. At the start of the third round, you are looking for someone who can return early 2nd if not 1st round value. Milroe is that player. If you hope to get him there in a draft with me, you will be sadly missing out. Milroe will be taken much higher come May. I expect to see him closer to the 2.01 than the 3.01. Even at that price, at the right landing spot, he will be a must-have rookie.
Jack Bech (WR)- 4.06
Jack Bech is more than just a good story. He is a solid wide receiver prospect. Is he perfect? No, but he provides a solid role for an NFL team. While Bech may have only had one good college season, his route running is solid. I love seeing Jack Bech in the middle of the 4th round. Bech can easily start Week 1 for an NFL team as their slot receiver. His route running and ability to use that to get separation. Bech is a great runner after the catch. His size, 6’2” 207 lbs, allows him to beat smaller corners. In the right system, he could easily see produce on a low target volume. Finding that in the 4th round is a rookie I must have.
He comes off the board as the WR13. At that point, I’m taking a flyer on someone. Bech has flirted with the second tier of wide receivers this offseason. He is one of the few bigger receivers in this draft class, and that will allow him to fill multiple roles on an offense. We could see a Ladd McConkey-type season from him this year, depending on landing spot.
Colston Loveland (TE)- 2.01
Who doesn’t love a versatile tight end who basically plays wide receiver? That is what Colston Loveland is. A true weapon for an offense. He may not have the eye-popping stats of some prospects, but Loveland’s ability to dominate and win at every level of the field makes him a threat on every play. Loveland is projected to be drafted early in the April Draft. Most likely to a team looking to add a pass-catching weapon. He could easily become a fantasy-relevant tight end early in the 2025 season.
I like Colston over other tight ends like Harold Fannin Jr, who was drafted at the 3.04. At 2.01, Loveland provides value, especially compared to Tyler Warren, who was drafted at 1.07. After the NFL Draft, we could see those two values switched. Loveland has the same ability as Warren and comes from a college team that won a ton of games and had plenty of other talent to feed. Even with that, Loveland put up solid numbers and impressed on tape. I expect him to be in the conversation as a weekly tight end streamer this year and a potential starter every other year of his career.
