Dynasty Pulse – My Favorite Dynasty Startup players in Rounds 5 to 8

A couple of days ago, I wrote an article, talking about the players I liked the most at ADP, according to KeepTradeCut in rounds 1 to 4 of Dynasty Startups. If you have not already checked out that article, you can find it here.

Today I am going to continue the article series and go through the next four rounds. That means rounds 5 through 8. I will be discussing a few players that I like in each round in terms of a win-now team and who I like for a team that plans to win one or two seasons down the road. The format will be for a 12-team 1QB league.

Round 5

This round has a lot of talent that could be amazing, but also might not turn into what we want in the long term.

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If you want some players that we have seen produce very well, your best options are George Kittle or Mike Evans. I like taking Evans more if you want to win this season, as Kittle historically always misses games. Furthermore, Godwin is probably going to miss the beginning of the season, leaving Mike Evans as the far-away top target for Tom Brady in the Buccaneers’ passing game.

For anyone looking to build for the future, I like Marquise Brown, Elijah Moore, and Cam Akers. I am not super high on Akers, and I do think we could see more of a committee in Los Angeles than people expect, especially now that Kyren Williams is there. Williams is a very good pass-catcher and could take work away from Akers.

That leaves us with Marquise Brown and Elijah Moore. I like both, but I have to go with Marquise Brown here. Brown has proven that he can produce, yet he is still young at just 24 years of age. He was just traded from the Ravens to the Cardinals, where he reunites with his college quarterback Kyler Murray. This makes Brown one of my favorite startup players.

Deandre Hopkins is coming back after serving a six-game suspension, but until then, Hollywood is going to be the #1 target for Kyler Murray, and there is no guarantee, that Hopkins takes over that role straight away, or at all, when he comes back. The rapport between Murray and Brown might just be too good.

Elijah Moore is in consideration, but his offense might not be nearly as prolific as the Cardinals’ and Moore is also going to contend with Garrett Wilson, who was drafted by the Jets.

Round 6

This is the round where I would look to get my tight end if I wanted to build a team going for it right away. Darren Waller is there, and I would snag him up if possible. If I am not looking to draft a tight end here, I would look at options like Amari Cooper, Aaron Jones, or Keenan Allen. Keenan Allen is the one I would look to, as he could easily see 140+ targets from Justin Herbert.

Amari Cooper could be without Deshaun Watson for some or all of the 2023 season. If that is the case, his value for a win-now team drops significantly. Aaron Jones is a very good running back, but he is locked in a committee with AJ Dillon, who likely gets more of the goal line work, somewhat capping Aaron Jones’ scoring upside. Give me Keenan Allen!

If you are looking to draft young in round 6, I would go for Josh Jacobs or Skyy Moore. I like Josh Jacobs better of the two, as a 24-year-old RB who has already produced in the league. We have yet to see anything from Skyy Moore, so taking a shot on him already in the sixth round is too early for me. Jacobs on the other hand has shown he knows how to score fantasy points, and this past season he proved he can be a pass-catching back too in the NFL.

Even if Jacobs is not with the Raiders beyond this upcoming season, he could become the lead back somewhere else next offseason, and possibly be utilized more than he has been so far with the Raiders. Alternatively, you can go with Darnell Mooney or Brandon Aiyuk, but I am not sold that either is going to be long-term producers in this league.

Favorite Dynasty Startup players in Rounds 1 to 4
Favorite Dynasty Startup players in Rounds 1 to 4, Leonard Fournette in round 7

Round 7

This round is very interesting if you are looking to win right now. There are several ways to go. Leonard Fournette is my favorite in this round without a doubt. He signed a 3-year deal to stay in Tampa, and is the best RB in this round, over Ezekiel Elliott and James Conner. Sign me up for Playoff Lenny in the seventh! This could turn out to be incredible value for a startup player.

As for the young guns in this round 7 of ADP at KeepTradeCut, the choices are Elijah Mitchell, Christian Watson, George Pickens, or James Cook. I am not a believer that Elijah Mitchell is ever going to be healthy for a full season, nor a believer that he will remain the 49ers RB1 for more than this season tops. If the 49ers believed in Mitchell, I don’t see why they would draft an RB in the third NFL Draft round (and with the second pick they had in the draft).

With the three rookies that are left, the easy choice for me is George Pickens, who is far and away the better talent. I had him ahead of Watson and Cook before the draft, and I still do.

However, there is another option in this round. This is the range where I like to start grabbing my starting QB in a dynasty startup. And right now, Jalen Hurts is sitting here with round 7 ADP. To me, it is the perfect place to pick him up. Last season, I would not touch Hurts anywhere, but now the Eagles have invested around him and put him in the best possible position for Hurts to succeed. His rushing ability gives him an incredible floor for fantasy football, and if he improves his passing, Hurts has enough upside to finish the 2023 season as the QB1, which has made him one of the startup players I try to target in the middle rounds.

Round 8

Like round 7, this round mostly consists of older players who have produced previously in their careers but are now facing new situations. There are also some young, interesting players and a few players in their mid-twenties who could have tremendous upside in a year or two.

For the win-now team, I would be looking to draft either Allen Robinson, Juju Smith-Schuster, or Brandin Cooks. The one I am personally leaning towards is Brandin Cooks. He just continues to produce every single year, regardless of who his QB is. Another year with Davis Mills, and Cooks is assuredly going to break 1000 yards receiving and 6 touchdowns yet again, which is good production for a round 8 player.

Looking at the young(er) players in this round, my favorite picks amongst startup players here are Gabriel Davis and Tony Pollard. If I had to pick one for a “win-next-year” team, I would go with Gabriel Davis. Pollard is very intriguing, as he might be the RB1 for the Cowboys in 2023, however, this is no sure thing as the next rookie draft class is full of interesting RB prospects. Or they might keep Zeke against all logic.

Gabriel Davis is the WR2 for one of the best and pass-happiest offenses in the NFL. The Bills have not really done much in the way of adding competition next to Davis, as neither Crowder nor Khalil Shakir will be able to take away snaps from Davis, who has earned Josh Allen’s trust and produced in high level games against high level competition.

These are my favorite startup players in rounds 5 through 8, and now you have all of them through the first eight rounds of a new dynasty startup draft. Keep checking in at RotoHeat.com for when I drop the next article in the series, with rounds 9 to 12.

Thank you for reading My Favorite Dynasty Startup players in Rounds 5 to 8

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