Fantasy Football: 3 late-round quarterbacks with league-winning potential

• QB Daniel Jones, New York Giants (75.8 PFF 2022 offense grade): His downfield pass-catcher upgrades will carry him to new heights in 2023.

• QB Geno Smith, Seattle Seahawks (72.1 PFF preseason offense grade): His QB15 average draft position (ADP) across all three major home-league platforms is far too low.

• Dominate your fantasy league in 2023: For up-to-date fantasy draft rankings and projections, check out PFF’s fantasy rankings tool!

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

As discussed in the “Breakouts and Sleepers for each position in 2023“ article, a rift grew within the top-12 QB1 group last year. Quarterbacks possessing a dual-threat, passing-and-rushing production profile separated from the rest. Below are three NFL quarterbacks available via double-digit average draft positions on nearly all three major home-league platforms.

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QB Daniel Jones, New York Giants

New York quarterback Daniel Jones (75.8 PFF 2022 offense grade) produced career highs in both passing (3,642) and rushing (805) yards en route to the 2022 QB7 fantasy football finish. General manager Joe Schoen then re-invested in him, signing Jones to a four-year contract worth $40 million in average annual value, tied for ninth most among NFL quarterbacks. Schoen quickly bolstered Jones’ pass-catching corps by acquiring or re-signing players, including tight end Darren Waller (71.5 PFF preseason offense grade), Day 2 rookie wide receiver Jalin Hyatt (59.3 PFF preseason offense grade) and wide receivers Isaiah Hodgins (70.2 PFF preseason offense grade), Darius Slayton (52.3 PFF preseason offense grade) and Parris Campbell (66.6 PFF preseason offense grade).

Jones is available as the QB12 or later despite the personnel upgrades and his developmental improvements shown last year in head coach Brian Daboll’s first season. Savvy fantasy managers should happily exploit this mispriced ADP on draft day.

The table below reflects Jones’ late-August ADP on home-league platforms.

Jones’ shallow 6.5-yard average depth of target is his 2022 passing profile’s lone serious deficiency, ranking 34th among 34 NFL quarterbacks with at least 250 dropbacks in 2022. Jones maintained his sterling accuracy on downfield throws, though, indicating unearthed scoring potential, should Daboll dial up more deep shots. Among 33 NFL quarterbacks with at least 45 passing attempts with a 15-plus-yard aDot, Jones’ 55.1% adjusted completion rate last season ranked fourth.

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