WR Demario Douglas, NE - Save the New England slot receiver spiel for someone else. Tom Brady is no longer the quarterback. However, there are probably two things we can assume about the Patriots this year: 1) the offensive line will struggle and 2) they will probably be in negative game script more often than not. Offensive line struggles should lead to New England prioritizing quick passes to receivers who create early separation. Douglas proved he could do that last year in what was easily a bottom-five offense. The offense as a whole does not figure to be much better this year, but the quarterback play should be. While it is true Douglas may be too small to be a full-time perimeter receiver, New England may have little choice but to rely on 11 personnel (three receivers) as its base offense and make him a priority out of the slot given how often it will likely find itself trailing in the second half. Touchdown upside might be a problem again for Douglas, but target volume should not be.

WR Demarcus Robinson, LAR - For the cost it will take to him (undrafted in many formats), it is hard to say Robinson will bust almost regardless of how he performs. So how did he perform when he got his chance last season? From Weeks 13-17, he was the overall WR12 in fantasy. Over his last seven games, he was tied for fourth in a league in end zone targets. He gives the offense an element it does not otherwise have (a big receiver who can stretch the field). Even if the Rams play two tight ends more often in 2024, it seems highly unlikely that HC Sean McVay will stray too far from his 11 personnel leanings (which the Rams have played at the highest rate in the league since McVay took over). I am not saying I would expect consistency from Robinson, but there is a very good chance he is a solid WR5 at worst if he keeps the same kind of role he enjoyed at the end of last season - which he should.

RB Blake Corum, LAR - No, I do not expect Corum to steal the starting running back job away from Kyren Williams, at least not until 2025. What I do know is that Williams is a poor bet to stay healthy for a full season (having missed at least five games in each of his first two seasons). Williams is not built like a featured back either, so it would be pointless for McVay to run him into the ground as he did in 2023. However, Corum's potential standalone value is not the primary reason I want him. One of the many tweaks I have made in recent years is expecting backs to miss at least two games, unless history suggests we should expect more. This is one of those cases. If Williams misses another five games this season, Corum will almost certainly be ranked as a top-10 fantasy back in those weeks. That kind of upside - especially when he comes attached to a good offense - is exactly what fantasy managers need to stash on their bench, not a 1B back in a bad offense who may see five or six touches if he is lucky.

WR Andrei Iosivas, CIN - Iosivas is more of a contingent upside option, but one worth stashing. No matter how athletic the Princeton alum is, expecting him to match Tyler Boyd's 67-667-2 line from a year ago as the primary slot receiver seems like a lot to ask (and even that assumes he ends up as the full-time slot). However, Iosivas could quickly go from a late-round stash to a strong WR3 option if Ja'Marr Chase's absence from practice ends up costing him from a readiness standpoint (i.e. Josh Jacobs, 2023). Tee Higgins was also not the picture of good health last season, although he will likely play through whatever issue he needs to play through in 2024 so he can maximize his earning potential as a free agent next offseason. The point remains the same: Iosivas enters the season as the favorite in a role that allowed Boyd to push for 90-plus targets and 60 catches over the last three seasons. While he likely has not earned the same level of trust from the coaching staff, he is a significantly better athlete than Boyd. Iosivas has already earned Joe Burrow's trust in the red zone. How long will it be before Burrow trusts him all over the field?

RB Ray Davis, BUF - My stance has remained the same on Davis since Buffalo drafted him this spring: he is what the Bills wanted Zack Moss to be. The team cannot continue to expect Josh Allen to handle 100-plus carries and serve as the primary goal-line option year after year. This will come back to bite Buffalo at some point. Enter Davis, who is built to absorb the pounding that the Bills probably cannot afford Allen and James Cook to take. At worst, Davis handles roughly half of Allen's short-yardage work and logs about eight carries per game as the change-of-pace for Cook. In a best-case scenario, the Bills realize Davis is better suited to be a workhorse than Cook, who then takes over as the passing game weapon he was drafted to be. Davis is going to be a problem for Cook's managers. That much seems certain.

TE Jonnu Smith, MIA - There is going to be an advantage for fantasy managers who land one of the top nine or 10 tight ends in fantasy. For the unfortunate few who miss out, Tyler Conklin and Smith are two of my favorite options that are typically available late. By now, fantasy managers are well aware that HC Mike McDaniel has struggled to incorporate the tight end into his offense over his two-year tenure in Miami. Then again, his best options have been Mike Gesicki and Durham Smythe. Smith may not be as good as a blocker as Smythe, but he sure offers more as a receiver. Gesicki may be a better athlete, but Smith is a much better blocker and can make something happen after the catch. McDaniel was tied to the hip of Kyle Shanahan for far too long not to understand how valuable a tight end could be in his offense. Something along the lines of a repeat of last season in Atlanta (50-582-3) should be the expectation for Smith in 2024.

RB Kimani Vidal, LAC - Running backs who are projected to begin the season as third-stringers do not show up on the Big Board very often. However, Vidal is not a typical Day 3 prospect and his situation is anything but normal. Beginning with his situation first, the Chargers SHOULD have one of the best offensive lines in the league now. Gus Edwards is a great fit for what OC Greg Roman likes to do, but he is a 1B back at best who is 29 years old and has never topped 200 carries or 12 catches in a season. We are still waiting for the first example of a running back being useful - much less productive - in his first season post-Achilles, which makes J.K. Dobbins a poor bet to be a good fantasy option - and that does not even take into account he has played in only nine of 51 games since the start of the 2021 season. It turns out that Vidal was nursing an underreported (unreported?) injury early in camp, which put him on the roster bubble according to some close to the team. There is a good chance he put some of that to rest with his preseason performance against the Rams. Vidal is too good after contact and too good of a player in general not to be able to take advantage of a great situation. It just may take a couple of months before the deck is cleared for him to get the chance he deserves.