Fantasy Football 2024: Early Mock Draft, Sleepers after NFL Draft

The recently completed 2024 NFL draft will soon help populate the picks of fantasy football drafts.

While there isn't a great way to know for sure which of these prospects will make good on their potential right away, fantasy stardom should be coming for at least some of these NFL newcomers sooner than later.

Top pick Caleb Williams could be a serviceable starter in one-quarterback leagues if everything breaks right, while Marvin Harrison Jr. and Brock Bowers might be top-10 options at their position already next season.

If you want one of those headliners, though, you'll have to pay a premium at your fantasy draft. Name-brand rookies always require a significant investment.

Maybe you don't want to cover that cost, but you also don't want to neglect the rookie class. How do you make that happen? Well, coming here is the right place to start, since we're following our projected mock first round with spotlights of two sleeper prospects capable of making an instant impact.

1. Christian McCaffrey, RB, San Francisco 49ers

2. CeeDee Lamb, WR, Dallas Cowboys

3. Tyreek Hill, WR, Miami Dolphins

4. Breece Hall, RB, New York Jets

5. Bijan Robinson, RB, Atlanta Falcons

6. Ja'Marr Chase, WR, Cincinnati Bengals

7. Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Detroit Lions

8. Jonathan Taylor, RB, Indianapolis Colts

9. Justin Jefferson, WR, Minnesota Vikings

10. Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Arizona Cardinals

11. Kyren Williams, RB, Los Angeles Rams

12. Puka Nacua, WR, Los Angeles Rams

The Carolina Panthers not only made Jonathon Brooks the first running back selected in this draft, but they also traded up to get him. Clearly, they are big fans of what he brings, and they don't seem too concerned about the fact that he's coming off an ACL tear.

Perhaps that injury, suffered in November, puts the 20-year-old behind the eight-ball to start, but once he is healthy, he can pave a path to the top of this running back group. Carolina has other options in Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders, but both were around when the team made the trade for the Texas product.

"He's a bigger back, he's got range," Panthers coach Dave Canales said of Brooks. "There's so much that he brings from a versatility standpoint—that's probably the biggest thing that stood out. And just vision, patience, contact balance, acceleration. Like, he's got it all. He's the best back in this class and we're so fired up just to be able to bring him in."

Brooks could take control of this backfield sooner than later, and Carolina could wind up leaning pretty heavily on its running game.

Few things would make life easier for Panthers quarterback Bryce Young—who disappointed as a rookie after Carolina made him the top pick in 2023—than having a difference-making, defensive attention-grabbing back alongside him.

Carolina should give Brooks ample opportunity to become that player.

The Kansas City Chiefs might have a dynamic quarterback in Patrick Mahomes, but even he can only do so much without capable playmakers around him.

Without a 1,000-yard receiver on last season's roster, Mahomes wound up with the second-fewest touchdown passes (27) and the most interceptions (14) of his career.

Kansas City needed to put some pep into this passing game, and it just did that with Xavier Worthy, who zipped through a combine-record 4.21-second 40-yard dash in March. The Chiefs even traded up for the speedster, who had 26 touchdown catches over his three seasons at Texas.

"It's a speed game and the more speed you have on the field, the harder it is for defenses to take away different elements of the game,'' Chiefs general manager Brett Veach told reporters. "Anytime you can add speed and add a guy with that type of versatility, I think you're going to be interested."

The 21-year-old will have competition for touches. Kansas City's passing game still runs through star tight end Travis Kelce, while Rashee Rice and free-agency addition Marquise Brown could sit atop the receiver rankings.

Still, the Chiefs targeted Worthy for a reason, and there is a chance that his burst plus Mahomes' arm could equal fantasy magic as soon as this season.