3 Fantasy Football Rookies to Draft in Dynasty Leagues: Underrated Players to Target

John Johnson fantasy football dynasty league sleepers - 3 undervalued rookies to draft and stash. Player analysis for Brashard Smith, Jarquez Hunter, and Kyle Williams.

In previous articles, I've named rookies such as Chicago Bears tight end Colston Loveland, New England Patriots wide receiver Kyle Williams, and Denver Broncos running back RJ Harvey as underrated rookies with massive upside. But thanks to the 2025 NFL Draft, I can't do that with those guys anymore.

This is because draft capital causes many fantasy managers to completely abandon their predraft opinions about certain players. Harvey provides the most drastic example. I pegged him as an elite prospect who would win leagues in 2024 over a month before the draft. Now that he was selected with such good draft capital, everyone seemingly changed their minds on him.

Now, if I talk about how these guys are sleepers, it's not quite as accurate. The NFL does a bit better job at cutting through the noise and finding great prospects. That said, it doesn't always get things right, and sometimes players fall way too far in the draft. So, let's break down a few of them!

• 2025 fantasy football rankings
• Running back (RB) fantasy football rankings
• Wide receiver (WR) fantasy football rankings
• Tight end (TE) fantasy football rankings
• Quarterback (QB) fantasy football rankings
• FLEX fantasy football rankings
• Defense (D/ST) fantasy football rankings
• Kicker (K) fantasy football rankings
• Dynasty fantasy football rankings

Brashard Smith, RB, Kansas City Chiefs

I watched the entire 2025 NFL Draft, for the most part. As Day 3 stretched on and Smith, a running back from SMU, didn't have his name called again and again, I was shocked. Smith has an elite skill set for a pass-catching running back who seemed perfect for a lot of teams' needs. Then the Kansas City Chiefs took him, and I was elated.

He's an underrated pass-protecting RB, largely because he weighs under 200 pounds. Yet, that might be something that gets him on the field more than expected in Year 1. Protecting the quarterback is paramount in the NFL.

Brashard Smith is the best pass catcher in the draft.
Running backs don't break out in their 5th year in the league (re: Elijah Mitchell)
Kareem Hunt sucks
Isiah Pacheco is not a good pass catcher
Smith is gonna be a beast in PPR leagues after midseason. Draft him everywhere.

— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) May 13, 2025

Better yet, he's the best pass-catching running back of all the rookies drafted this year. He's legitimately capable of running routes from the formation in wide receiver spots, like in the slot, and can be lethal running routes from anywhere in the backfield.

Combine this with a running back room currently in turmoil -- Isiah Pacheco, Kareem Hunt, and Elijah Mitchell have all had disappointing to plain irrelevant stretches recently -- and you have the formula for a player who should break out in the second half of the season in Andy Reid's offense.

SMU RB Brashard Smith with a nice catch pic.twitter.com/HcCEw5QqpI

— SCOUTD (@scoutdnfl) January 29, 2025

Smith will be used on passing plays more as the season goes on, and I wouldn't be surprised if he has a massive breakout at some point past midseason. He's an elite athlete. He ran a 4.39-second 40-yard dash and has impressive burst, and is a monster to handle in the open field.

33 yard catch by Brashard Smith pic.twitter.com/iCN8ytBABn

— Grant (@NMDgrant) September 29, 2024

Smith's matchups with linebackers will be genuinely unfair, and he should be able to challenge slot corners. But don't sleep on him as a pure runner. He racked up 1,332 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns, averaging 5.7 yards per carry, in his final season in college.

Every Brashard Smith breakaway run (15+yards) from 2024 #NFLDraft2025 pic.twitter.com/UAjbx36rBX

— Ray G (@RayGQue) March 21, 2025

Smith was an explosive-play machine in college. On runs that are well-blocked, he has a good chance of picking up huge gains. And in the NFL, it only takes one or two huge plays from rookies to signal an upcoming increase in workload. Smith might be the most talented RB on the roster right now, considering all aspects of the game.

He's easily better than both Mitchell and Hunt, so you should draft him like he's already the established RB2 on the team.

Jarquez Hunter, RB, Los Angeles Rams

The presence of Kyren Williams is giving many fantasy managers pause when it comes to Hunter, but he may be just better than Williams out of the gate. Of course, it will take time for Rams head coach Sean McVay to work him into the offense, most likely. But Hunter was far more impressive in college than Williams.

New Rams running back Jarquez Hunter had the 2nd-highest explosive rush rate (10+ yards) among FBS backs with 150+ carries in 2024.

That skill set will be a welcome addition to a Rams backfield that had the 4th-fewest explosive rushes in the NFL last season. pic.twitter.com/VETjNbrxVl

— Wyatt Miller (@wymill07) April 28, 2025

Immediately, the biggest issue for the Rams' run game was the lack of explosive plays. Williams was given the ball 316 times on rushes, the third most in the NFL (behind only Derrick Henry and Saquon Barkley), yet he managed just two carries over 20 yards. That's an abysmal rate. And you can't blame anyone but him for that one.

He simply doesn't have the speed or burst to make them happen consistently unless he has an elite run-blocking offensive line, like the unit the Rams fielded in 2023. That was an aberration, I suppose. Williams ran a 4.65-second 40-yard dash, compared to Hunter's 4.44.

My 2025 bold prediction: Jarquez Hunter outplays Kyren Williams and takes his job or at least makes this a committee backfieldhttps://t.co/zbIfkEPswK

— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) May 13, 2025

Williams and his backup, Blake Corum, were both bad at breaking tackles and creating explosive plays. And both are slower than Hunter. Hunter should immediately become this team's RB2 and could quickly challenge for the RB1 role. Sell Williams now if you have him.

Hunter has the talent to back up investing in him. He's somehow slept on despite having played in the SEC and averaging a ridiculous 6.4 yards per carry on 187 carries, good for 1,201 yards and a touchdown. A lot of players get slandered for their production in smaller conferences (selectively, of course, because Ashton Jeanty is excluded), but Hunter is legit.

Sean McVay has a type. But Jarquez Hunter had a lot more burst than Kyren and Corum coming out.

- Reception Share: Best-season mark in college
- Breakout Score: Schedule- and age-adjusted receiving yards per team pass attempt
- Career explosive run rate courtesy of PFF pic.twitter.com/uTTyRufR38

— JJ Zachariason (@LateRoundQB) April 29, 2025

It seems that the Rams aren't interested in extending Williams for a big deal after his contract is up. He's not worth a big contract, anyway, because his lack of explosive playmaking ability is a liability to the offense. Hunter can change that. And quickly.

Kyle Williams, WR, New England Patriots

Alright, I lied a little bit in the opening paragraph. But I wanted to write a section about Williams because I believe he could take over the WR1 role in New England almost immediately. His biggest competition is a 31-year-old Stefon Diggs, who will turn 32 in November and tore his ACL last season.

Kyle Williams (WR5/Tier 3/above average NFL starter) bringing a defender to his knees during Patriots rookie mini camp..
pic.twitter.com/hGuLQAXVqA

— Adam Carter (@SmartFootbalI) May 10, 2025

Not only is Williams a talented route runner with an impressive release package, but he blows Diggs out of the water with his after-the-catch abilities. It's hard not to imagine a player who produced so much after the catch won't be asked to handle plenty of screens and designed targets in his first year.

He's also a fantastic athlete -- he ran a 4.41-second 40-yard dash, and his speed and acceleration show up well on tape. In his first season at quarterback, Drake Maye impressed on film despite an absolute lack of receiving group and offensive line talent, so Williams is in a quality situation.

Kyle Williams isn't a secret anymore, he's a Patriot. And a bad man.

My top-60 WR taking 6⃣points like a bribe here on a straight up go.

Content 🎦coming up on how draft's best technician was always open at Washington State. pic.twitter.com/5j7rEAkGAI

— ZeeBee (@BellinoZee) April 27, 2025

Williams wins impressively and in many different ways off the line of scrimmage, and he's a menace with the ball in his hands. The suddenness of his releases is impressive. He'll be ideal for timing routes in which he's tasked with creating quick separation.

A lot of what's suppressing his value is that people still don't think he's a top-3 prospect from this year's class, but if he finished as the second-best rookie WR from 2025, I wouldn't be surprised. He's my second-favorite rookie WR, situation-inclusive, after the Jacksonville Jaguars' Travis Hunter.

That means he should have great production in Year 1, and his value will skyrocket when he does. Right now, he's not being selected in the first round of rookie drafts, but he probably should be. There's no reason to take running back TreVeyon Henderson above him. So, he's still a sleeper!

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