RADIO
The 2020 NFL season is going to be a weird one because of COVID-19. With fewer offseason activities and fewer preseason games, teams will rely on veteran talent more than usual, pushing young players down the depth charts.
One thing that means for dynasty managers is that if you're in win-now mode, you have less use for young players than usual. And if you're rebuilding, it means some young players who aren't projected to make an impact will pushed even farther down depth charts.
So, let's ignore 2020 and focus on 2021. Below, I've identified five players who are either rookies or second-year NFL players who aren't likely to make an impact in 2020, but should be bought on the cheap and stashed for 2021.
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Lamical Perine (RB, New York Jets)
Don't let the last name "Perine" scare you away.
Perine wasn't used a ton at Florida, leaving him fairly fresh as he enters the NFL. Perine's an aggressive runner who can affect the game running north-south, and he started to show up as a receiving threat last season as well. There's three-down potential here, but we'll have to see if he can adapt to a larger role, especially because he's not the most elusive runner.
Where my interest in Perine is really piqued is when I glance at this depth chart. The Jets can get out of Le'Veon Bell's contract after 2020 with just a $4,000,000 cap hit vs. the $13,500,000 that Bell would cost if he was on the 2021 Jets. With how poorly his first season in New York went, I'd be shocked to see Bell on this team next year, even if he has a bounce-back 2020.
Behind Bell is a mix of guys who don't seem to have much of a long term future. Frank Gore has to retire one day. Trenton Cannon, Kenneth Dixon, and Josh Adams have all played in the NFL and looked like decent-at-best running backs. If someone on this roster is going to emerge as the 2021 lead back here, it's hard to see it being anyone but Perine. It's more likely that the Jets draft a running back in the second or third round next year to pair with Perine, but with how cheap Perine is right now, I wouldn't let that worry dissuade me.
Donovan Peoples-Jones (WR, Cleveland Browns)
Another player here whose situation intrigues me is Peoples-Jones.
Drafted in the sixth round, DPJ is an extremely talented player who didn't quite put it together at Michigan. The top receiver in his class out of high school, Peoples-Jones has great size and can make tough catches, but there are some serious concerns about his quickness.
But Cleveland's wide receiver situation is interesting. Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry are the undisputed top dudes here for 2020, but the Browns can get out of both of those contracts in 2021 for very little money if things don't go well this season.
Beyond those two, the Browns receiver depth chart is a mess of "oh, him" guys. Rashard Higgins, who we're all still waiting on for a breakout. KhaDarel Hodge. Damion Ratley. Taywan Taylor. J'Mon Moore. Basically, no one who has the upside to be a top-two guy on this team should either or both of Beckham and Landry not be here next season.
Isaiah Coulter (WR, Houston Texans)
Isaiah Coulter is a fast, big-play wide receiver on a team that's very clearly built to emphasize fast, big play wide receivers:
As long as head coach Bill O'Brien and quarterback Deshaun Watson are here in 2021, someone like Coulter has a chance of playing a role, especially with the chance that both Will Fuller V and Kenny Stills are gone.
Coulter's got a lot of development to do still and still faces an uphill battle to make this year's roster, but if he can land a spot at the bottom of the depth chart or on Houston's practice squad, he'll have a chance to get comfortable with an offense that's built around hitting long shots to outside receivers. It would be a huge surprise to see both Fuller and Stills on this team next season, so there's at least one opening for a receiver who can give you a similar skill set.
Kelvin Harmon (WR, Washington Redskins)
I actually like Harmon decently as a 2020 option, but also think he still needs some development time.
Right now, the only guy who we can be sure is part of the long term future in Washington is Terry McLaurin. Behind him, though, is a wide-open field of potential receivers, including Harmon, Trey Quinn, Steven Sims Jr., and Antonio Gandy-Golden.
Sims has been the guy bubbling up to the surface in a lot of Washington discussions, but let's talk about Harmon for just a second.
In particular, I want to talk about his usage down the stretch. In five December games, Harmon was targeted three or more times in each game while never playing fewer than 83 percent of the team's offensive snaps. By the end of the year, he'd moved into the No. 2 receiver role for the team.
I don't know if I expect a ton from him this year because I don't know what to think of Dwayne Haskins, who really needed a full offseason of preparation and didn't get it because of COVID-19. But Harmon's cheap right now, talented, and will be on this team in 2021 when the passing game situation might be a lot more stable. Worst case, he's a low-end flex option because of his situation. Best case, he becomes a solid WR3 behind McLaurin.
Foster Moreau (TE, Las Vegas Raiders)
And lastly, let's talk tight end with Foster Moreau.
What we know about the Raiders: Derek Carr likes to throw to his tight ends, as does backup quarterback Marcus Mariota, who some think will basically Ryan Tannehill Carr this year.
What else we know: Darren Waller is really, really good. But Moreau might be too, as he caught five touchdowns as a rookie, and his workout metrics are great:
The Raiders used two or more tight ends on 38 percent of their snaps last year, so even in a reserve role, Moreau should see the field plenty, both with Waller and also occasionally in place of Waller.
We also don't know what the future of Waller's contract is. Right now, he's on a team-friendly contract for multiple years, but that contract also allows the Raiders to release or trade him without dead cap space starting in 2021. Anything can happen there, from Waller wanting a new deal to the Raiders dealing him for draft picks and turning things over to Moreau. Is that all likely? Probably not, but Moreau's got more long term upside than a lot of similarly priced tight ends, and now is a good time to go after him.
