Fantasy Football All-Breakouts Team - Ellis' Picks for 2024 Drafts

August 26, 2024

Ellis' favorite fantasy football breakouts and draft sleepers. These are players who have the talent and opportunity to become league-winners.

After completing an article series and identifying a breakout candidate from each NFL team, I have decided to create a starting fantasy football roster with my favorite selections. Welcome to Ellis’ All-Breakout Team.

Previously, I had divided my breakouts by division and selected a player from each team. Although the term “breakout” is subjective, I made a point of avoiding rookies and popular breakout selections.

If you would like to check out all my breakout selections, the articles can be found here. There were many players who I was excited about this season; however, I have narrowed it down to these eight players. Thank you for checking out my work, I hope you enjoy the article.

Quarterback Breakouts for Fantasy Football

Anthony Richardson (QB, IND)

If you were in a lab and tried to create the perfect NFL quarterback, you’d walk out with Anthony Richardson. That’s not just because of his football prowess, but his community work. As a trained first responder and firefighter, Richardson is a true community icon. 

The fourth overall pick in 2023 blew up the NFL Combine, posting the most athletic numbers for a QB of all time. His 6-foot-4, 240-pound frame that ran a 4.43-second 40-yard dash is so wild you probably think it’s a typo. I promise you that it’s not.

Last season, we saw glimpses of Richardson as a dynamic rusher with a cannon of an arm. I don’t say this lightly, but he looked like a faster Josh Allen at points last season. As much as I am tired of hearing about “if he can stay healthy…” it would be unfair of me to overlook him. 

In 2023, Richardson only played four games and failed to finish two. Although that’s terrifying, you think a player of his size and athleticism would be one of the few who could remain healthy at the NFL level. Last season was a huge wave of bad luck but the NFL better watch out if he plays a full 17 games in 2024.

#Colts QB1 Anthony Richardson signed autographs until a team staffer forced him to leave. The rookie even signed and gave away his cleats when a few kids repeatedly begged for them.

There’s also a cameo from AR’s little bro, Corey Carter, who was rocking his big bro’s helmet. pic.twitter.com/6Oav4KbhMy

— James Boyd (@RomeovilleKid) August 17, 2023

Running Back Breakouts for Fantasy Football

Rico Dowdle (RB, DAL)

I don’t think the Rico Dowdle story gets enough attention. Joining the Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2020, Dowdle fought injury issues to start his career. Despite having only seven carries for 27 yards over his first three years, the Cowboys kept bringing him back on the roster each year. Additionally, after they lost Ezekiel Elliott last offseason, they re-signed him on a one-year deal. For an undrafted free agent, this team has given him a lot of leash.

Last year, working in tandem with Tony Pollard, Dowdle showcased some hard-nosed running and at times looked like a better all-around back than Pollard. Again, free agency came and the Cowboys lost their lead back in Pollard, electing to re-sign Dowdle again on a one-year deal before Elliott returned.

Everything out of camp so far indicates that Elliott is not the back he used to be. In camp, Zeke has looked slow and has failed to take advantage of space. Although on a worse offense, this lines up with the 2023 version of Elliott. Last season, Zeke failed to have a rush of 20+ yards on 184 attempts (technically he had one but it was called back on a holding penalty), whereas Dowdle had more total runs of 10+ yards on 100 fewer attempts. To me, it’s Dowdle’s backfield to lose, not the other way around.

Cowboys RB Rico Dowdle “has to be the favorite to lead the team in rushing”, per @jonmachota of The Athletic.

The current Cowboys depth chart is:

RB1 - Zeke
RB2 - Dowdle
RB3 - Royce Freeman
RB4 - Deuce Vaughn pic.twitter.com/doDVXlfjsu

— SleeperNFL (@SleeperNFL) August 8, 2024

Zack Moss (RB, CIN)

​​I will not stop pounding the table for Zack Moss this offseason. As a fellow Canadian, I love the hype around London, Ontario’s Chase Brown. However, this is the classic situation of overemphasizing camp reports. We had a taste of what a Zack Moss breakout could be last season. After starting the season for the injured Jonathan Taylor, Moss was incredible. Over the first six weeks of the season, he had four weeks as a top-10-scoring RB. That production was good enough to land him a starting job on one of the best offenses in the league.

The Bengals went out of their way to trade an aging Joe Mixon and acquire Moss. As a result, the role that is vacated is salivating for fantasy managers. Last season, Mixon had 77.8% of the team’s rushes inside the 20 (Derrick Henry was second in the league with 67.9%). He also had the most touches inside the 5-yard-line of any RB. On a team like the Bengals, that’s top-10 fantasy RB usage.

One of my favorite facts from last year is that Moss was one of the most efficient runners out of the shotgun formation. Interestingly, Mixon was never a great shotgun runner, making me believe this was a very deliberate offseason target. Additionally, we know Joe Burrow lives in the shotgun and has a massive offensive line to help protect him while he dissects defenses.

This is a perfect scheme fit for Moss, with no clear competition for the early down work. Fire him up, and buy the discount from the Chase Brown hype. Let’s see what happens when the pads come on and Moss can demonstrate his physical running ability.

#Bengals OC Dan Pitcher on Zack Moss and Chase Brown:

“I’m super pleased with both. Zack’s been the consummate pro. He’s where he needs to be, every single play, regardless of what we ask him to do. He’s caught every ball we’ve thrown to him — like, a lot of contested, hard… pic.twitter.com/vdSJVPQLGZ

— The Coachspeak Index (@CoachspeakIndex) August 8, 2024

Wide Receiver Breakouts for Fantasy Football

Jaxon Smith-Njigba (WR, SEA)

​​JSN is the perfect post-hype sleeper. The first WR off the NFL Draft board in 2023 certainly doesn’t lack talent. I believe his lackluster rookie campaign was due to the coaching staff and scheme not fitting his strengths. Plus, the Seahawks ran into some passing regression in 2023.

This offseason, there has been a lot of excitement for this passing game. The team brought in offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb from the University of Washington. Grubb organized a high-flying offense last season with Michael Penix Jr. under center and heavily using three main receivers (Rome Odunze, Ja'Lynn Polk, and Jalen McMillan), who were all selected in the first three rounds of this year's draft. That opens the door for JSN to produce even if Tyler Lockett continues to take snaps away from him. This could be the first pass-heavy Seattle team we’ve seen in a while and JSN could be a huge part of it.

#Seahawks HC Mike Macdonald on Jaxon Smith-Njigba:

“He’s got this fluid explosiveness about him. Can run the entire route tree. Incredible ways to track the ball. Body control. Explosive in and out of his cuts… The mentality of what we want, he has that.” pic.twitter.com/uXDiaZuHCo

— The Coachspeak Index (@CoachspeakIndex) August 6, 2024

Adonai Mitchell (WR, IND)

I'm breaking my own rule here and selecting a rookie receiver. This wide receiver rookie class is already looking unbelievable. The 2024 draft class had four receivers who were athletic monsters and had the physical size to back it up. Three players were first-round picks, Rome Odunze, Brian Thomas Jr., and Xavier Legette. The fourth player, Adonai Mitchell, was taken in the second round by the Colts.

One of the biggest critiques of Mitchell heading into the draft was his work ethic and the advantage of playing opposite of first-round receiver Xavier Worthy. So far in camp, neither of these concerns has held any water.

Throughout camp, Mitchell has earned praise from coaches and players. Most recently, Michael Pittman Jr. said, “His (Adonai Mitchell) releases are the best I’ve seen. I’ve been studying him because they’re that good.” Of course, camp hype needs to be taken with a grain of salt, but that’s one heck of a quote.

This entire offseason, the vibes out of the Colts’ camp indicate that this offense is going to be incredible. With Shane Steichen controlling this team, you are going to want every piece for fantasy. Plus, Josh Downs is dealing with an ankle injury that may linger into the season. As a result, Mitchell has already been moved around from the outside to the slot.

I am a huge believer in this offense. I also think Anthony Richardson’s passing ability is being overlooked. I’ll put it on record, I believe Mitchell will outscore Brian Thomas Jr. in 2024. 

Adonai Mitchell is an absolute stud. pic.twitter.com/yMRtw6FfTq

— Colts Enjoyer (@AR5Renaissance) August 14, 2024

Tight End Breakouts for Fantasy Football

Jake Ferguson (TE, DAL)

Lost in the mix of the CeeDee Lamb drama and the Cowboys not paying Dak Prescott is Jake Ferguson. The third-year tight end has quietly worked as a top-2 target all offseason in Lamb’s absence.

You could argue that last season was a breakout for Ferguson; however, I think it was only the beginning. Ferguson was the clear second target on this team last season and dominated red-zone targets. Leading the position with 24 red-zone targets, his five touchdowns on the season are bound to positively regress.

The good news from Jerry Jones’ definition of “all-in” is that nothing has changed. That means Fergo is primed for another dominant target share and red-zone usage. If he can find double-digit touchdowns, he very well could be top-5 at the position this season.

#DallasCowboys TE Jake Ferguson dropped a hype video on IG to get #CowboysNation fired up. 👀

Huge Year 3 loading for Ferg. pic.twitter.com/JFITMr8udb

— Tony Catalina (@Tony_Catalina) May 9, 2024

FLEX Breakouts for Fantasy Football

Andrei Iosivas (WR, CIN)

I’m digging deeper with this one and will take it as a huge success if Iosivas is ever in weekly flex consideration this season. As a Bengals fan, I have seen a lot of Iosivas and was very impressed with his rookie season. Even after the Bengals selected Jermaine Burton in the third round, I believed Iosivas was the Tee Higgins replacement. That combined with the character issues pushed me away from Burton and ready to double down on “Yoshi.”

The Japanese-born, Filipino-American has been turning heads at the Bengals’ training camp. Selected in the sixth round of the 2023 draft, the Princeton product is in contention for the role vacated by Tyler Boyd. At first glance, Iosivas is primed to be an outside receiver, with a 6-foot-3, 205-pound frame and a 4.43-second 40-yard dash time. However, they have moved him into the slot in camp, and all reports have been glowing.

With Ja'Marr Chase expected to move around the formation more this season, a receiver like Iosivas who can play both in the slot and out wide could push him ahead of Burton on the depth chart. He may not be consistent for fantasy, but I would keep an eye out in case he starts stringing some decent games together.

"He's basically telling me what he's looking for and how I can win." https://t.co/lExltpXRe0 pic.twitter.com/zLT5ZDyuXb

— Joe Danneman (@FOX19Joe) August 5, 2024

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