Transactions are happening around the NFL, and we're seeing plenty of player movement. As a result, the Fantasy outlooks for these players -- and others impacted by these moves -- have changed.
Heading into Monday's legal tampering period of free agency, here is what's happened so far with the biggest transactions, from Tee Higgins getting the franchise tag in Cincinnati to Russell Wilson expected to sign in Pittsburgh. A lot more will happen this week, so buckle up, and we'll have you covered with everything that unfolds.
It's going to be a lot of fun.
Quarterbacks
Transaction: Signed a three-year, $100 million extension with TB
Fantasy impact: Mayfield just had the second-best Fantasy season of his career at 18.6 points per game in his first year in Tampa Bay. Mike Evans is back with the Buccaneers, which keeps Mayfield's weapons intact, but he does lose offensive coordinator Dave Canales, who is now the head coach for the Panthers. Mayfield ended the regular season in 2023 with at least 20 Fantasy points in four of his final five games, and hopefully he carries that type of production over to this year. Mayfield should be considered a No. 2 Fantasy quarterback in all leagues.
Russell Wilson
Transaction: Signed a one-year, $1.2 million contract with PIT
Fantasy impact: Wilson averaged 19.7 Fantasy points per game in 2023 in Denver, and he's coming off a rocky two-year tenure with the Broncos. He only posted 10 games of at least 20 Fantasy points in his past 30 games in Denver. At 35, Wilson is no longer a No. 1 Fantasy quarterback, and the Steelers will be a run-centric offense under new coordinator Arthur Smith. Wilson's signing should be a boost for the weapons in Pittsburgh, and hopefully Wilson can bring out the best in George Pickens, Diontae Johnson and Pat Freiermuth. I expect Pickens, in his third season in the NFL, to benefit the most with Wilson now the starting quarterback for the Steelers. For more on Wilson's fit with the Steelers, you can find my reaction piece here.
Transaction: Traded to JAC from NE for a 2024 sixth-round pick
Fantasy impact: Jones goes from the starting quarterback in New England to the backup in Jacksonville behind Trevor Lawrence. The only way Jones will help Fantasy managers is if Lawrence gets injured, so Jones shouldn't be drafted in any leagues in 2024. For the Patriots, we expect them to select a quarterback in the NFL Draft with the No. 3 overall pick. Currently, the only quarterbacks on New England's roster are Bailey Zappe and Nathan Rourke, and that will change before the season starts.
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Wide receivers
Mike Evans
Transaction: Signed a two-year, $41 million extension with TB
Fantasy impact: In 2023, Evans found the Fountain of Youth when he averaged 16.2 PPR points per game at age 30. He posted his 10th season in a row of at least 1,000 receiving yards, and he scored 13 touchdowns, which was the fifth time in his career with double digits in scores. We'll see if he can keep this up at 31, but staying in Tampa Bay was a good move, especially with Baker Mayfield back in the fold. Evans is worth drafting in Round 3 in all leagues, even if there is risk of him slowing down due to age. Chris Godwin remains a No. 3 Fantasy receiver now that Evans is back with the Buccaneers, and Godwin should be drafted in Round 7 in most formats.
Tee Higgins
Transaction: Receives franchise tag from CIN worth $21.8 million; requests trade
Fantasy impact: Higgins was limited to just 11 games in 2023 due to rib and hamstring injuries. He actually only appeared in four games with Joe Burrow last season where Higgins played more than 67 percent of the snaps, and in two of those games Higgins scored at least 19 PPR points (Week 2 vs. BAL and Week 9 vs. BUF). For the season, Higgins finished with 42 catches for 656 yards and five touchdowns on 76 targets, and he averaged a career-low 11.1 PPR points per game. But we know he's capable of more, and he averaged 13.4 PPR points per game in 2022 and 15.2 PPR points in 2021. Hopefully, he'll stay healthy, as well as Burrow (he missed seven games with a wrist injury), and we get the best of Higgins in 2024. He's worth drafting as early as Round 3 in all leagues.
A wrench can be thrown into the mix now that Higgins has reportedly requested a trade after contract extension talks have gone nowhere with the Bengals. It's too early to determine Higgins' trade market, and we're not even sure the Bengals will be willing to part with their young, talented receiver. However, if Higgins hits the trade market, it's going to be a lively market.
Michael Pittman Jr.
Transaction: Signed a three-year deal with the Colts, worth up to $71.5 million with $46 million guaranteed
Fantasy impact: I'm looking forward to seeing what Pittman can do in a full season with quarterback Anthony Richardson. We don't have a big sample size of Pittman playing with Richardson since he only appeared in four games in his rookie campaign. But Pittman did score 23 PPR points with Richardson in Week 1 last season with eight catches for 97 yards and a touchdown on 11 targets. For the season, Pittman was fourth in the NFL among receivers with 109 catches, and he averaged 15.1 PPR points per game. Hopefully, he'll score more than four touchdowns, and he should still dominate targets. He had 156 targets in 2023, which was ninth among all players in the NFL. And his 30.5 percent target rate was fourth best in the league. As long as he can develop a quality rapport with Richardson, Pittman should remain a borderline No. 1 Fantasy receiver in all leagues. He's worth drafting as early as Round 3.
Transaction: Signed a two-year, $30 million restructured extension with SEA
Fantasy impact: I was hoping that Lockett was going to change teams this offseason for the sake of Jaxon Smith-Njigba, but we're stuck with the same problem in 2024 that we had in 2023. There are too many mouths to feed in Seattle's passing game, which is great for Geno Smith, but it doesn't help maximize the potential of DK Metcalf, Lockett and Smith-Njigba. Despite 122 targets, which was the second-best total of Lockett's career, he only managed 79 catches for 894 yards and five touchdowns. He averaged just 11.6 PPR points per game, which was his worst season since 2017. He'll be 32 in September, and Lockett is only worth drafting in the double digit rounds in most leagues. Metcalf remains a No. 2 Fantasy receiver in most leagues, and he's worth drafting in Round 5. And while I'm still hopeful for Smith-Njigba even with Lockett staying in Seattle, he doesn't have the same breakout potential in 2024. Smith-Njigba should be drafted in Round 7 at the earliest.
Transaction: Traded to CLE from DEN for a 2024 fifth- and sixth-round pick
Fantasy impact: Jeudy was a disaster in his fourth season in the NFL in 2023, and he averaged just 8.5 PPR points per game. This was after a solid campaign in 2022 when he averaged 13.1 PPR points per game. Hopefully, a change of scenery from Denver to Cleveland will help his outlook, but this is a crowded receiving corps for the Browns with Amari Cooper, David Njoku and Elijah Moore. I'm not overly optimistic for Jeudy, but he's worth drafting by Round 10 in all leagues. Jeudy's addition helps Deshaun Watson, who should be considered a high-end No. 2 Fantasy quarterback. But Jeudy's presence lowers the Fantasy value for Cooper (Round 5 now), Njoku (Round 9 now) and Moore (should not be drafted). In Denver, we'll see what the Broncos do at quarterback to replace Russell Wilson, but Courtland Sutton remains a No. 3 Fantasy receiver worth drafting as early as Round 8 in all leagues. And Marvin Mims has the chance to be a sleeper, and he's worth drafting as early as Round 10.
Transaction: Signed a one-year, $4 million extension with LAR
Fantasy impact: We know all about the success of Puka Nacua and Kyren Williams last year, but Robinson also made a name for himself in 2023 with his performance to close the season. Robinson scored a touchdown in four straight games in December and had five consecutive outings with at least 13 PPR points, including two games with at least six catches for 82 yards on six targets over that span. Robinson will turn 30 in September and might still face competition for the No. 3 receiver job behind Nacua and Cooper Kupp, but the Rams could also be without Tyler Higbee (knee). Robinson is not worth drafting in most leagues, and his return to the Rams doesn't impact the Fantasy value for Nacua or Kupp.
Transaction: Signed a three-year, $19.5 million extension with NE
Fantasy impact: Bourne was having a breakout season in 2023 before he suffered a torn ACL in Week 8. Prior to that, he scored at least 12 PPR points in four of eight games with 37 catches for 406 yards and four touchdowns on 55 targets. We'll see when he's cleared to return this season and, more importantly, who will be the quarterback for New England in 2024. Bourne isn't worth drafting in most Fantasy leagues, but he could be someone to add off the waiver wire during the season if he's healthy and productive early in the year.
Tight end
Transaction: Signed a three-year, $36 million extension with HOU
Fantasy impact: With the Texans in 2023, Schultz did well as the No. 11 Fantasy tight end at 9.7 PPR points per game, and he had seven outings with at least 11 PPR points in 15 outings. I'm glad he's staying in Houston to continue to build a rapport with C.J. Stroud, and it works out well that Bobby Slowik also is back as the offensive coordinator. Schultz should be considered the No. 3 option in the passing game behind Nico Collins and Tank Dell, and Schultz is worth drafting with a late-round pick in all leagues as a low-end No. 1 Fantasy tight end.
Transaction: Signed a three-year, $27 million extension with NE
Fantasy impact: Henry decided to remain with the Patriots, which will hopefully help his Fantasy outlook. We'll see who ends up as the starting quarterback in New England this season, and that will determine if Henry can be trusted as a No. 1 Fantasy tight end in most leagues. Most likely, Henry won't get drafted in the majority of formats, but he did have some positive production in 2023 before missing the final three games with a knee injury. He had five games with at least 13 PPR points, and he could remain a go-to option in the passing attack if New England doesn't get significant help in its receiving corps.
Transaction: Signed a one-year, $5 million contract with WAS
Fantasy impact: We'll see if Ertz, 33, has anything left in the tank, as well as what kind of role he'll play in Washington. The Commanders are expected to draft a new quarterback with the No. 2 overall pick, and hopefully Ertz can emerge as the No. 3 option in the passing game behind Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson. Ertz had some positive production in the first seven games with Arizona in 2023 with four games scoring at least eight PPR points. He's not worth drafting in the majority of leagues, but he could end up as someone to add off the waiver wire during the season.
Transaction: Signed a two-year, $10 million contract with MIA
Fantasy impact: Smith isn't expected to have a big role with the Dolphins unless something changes in Mike McDaniels' offense. The Dolphins only targeted their tight ends 52 times in 2023, and Miami was the lone team to not have a tight end score a touchdown all year. Last season with Atlanta, Smith had career highs in catches (50), yards (582) and targets (70) while also scoring three touchdowns. I don't expect McDaniels to feature Smith enough to consider him worth drafting in most leagues.
