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Which AFC East players should managers buy in Dynasty fantasy football leagues? John breaks down the best players to buy from the AFCE in Dynasty ahead of the 2025 season.
The AFC East, comprised of the Buffalo Bills, New England Patriots, Miami Dolphins, and New York Jets, only produced one winning team this season. The Bills predictably failed in the playoffs against the Kansas City Chiefs, but they're at least in great shape heading into next season.
The same can't be said for the Pats, Dolphins, or Jets, all of whom had losing seasons and two of which fired their head coaches from 2024. But regardless of overall team success, there are a few players from among these teams that are worth buying in Dynasty fantasy football before 2025 rolls around.
While three of these teams had lukewarm-to-bad offenses, change is on the horizon, and it's best if you get out ahead of it so you can try to get good deals on players before their prices rise. You're always better off predicting improvements in production rather than lagging behind them. Let's dive in.
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QB Drake Maye
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye was somehow a serviceable starter in many fantasy football leagues this season. This was despite him having the worst supporting cast of any signal-caller by a mile. New England fielded the weakest wide receiver and offensive line rooms in the league, with no notably good players in either of those position groups.
Drake Maye is balling like no one else, RN.
Top 8 in league 🎯accuracy & top 3 in play creation.
He might be the QB genius.🤯
-📊a remix of @PattonAnalytics og tracks. pic.twitter.com/3j0ISvIXiR
— ZeeBee (@BellinoZee) December 26, 2024
He was one of the more accurate QBs in the league in 2024. The stats weren't great, but football is a team game, and Maye's supporting cast was one of the worst imaginable. His rushing upside was also tantalizing, as he excelled at producing on the ground when his offensive line gave him any kind of space to work.
"Drake Maye throws too many interceptions"
Lolz pic.twitter.com/pgxck6YuPR
— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) December 2, 2024
It's hard to blame him for plays like this. In fact, we should be praising that he's consistently able to hit his receivers in the hands.
This Drake Maye throw was incredible pic.twitter.com/rY1LltrtLQ
— Savage (@SavageSports_) January 26, 2025
He was able to make incredibly tough NFL-level throws and proved himself to be a great building block for the team to move forward with in the future. If the Patriots can put together a semblance of an NFL offensive line and get one or two good receivers for him to throw the ball to, things will be very different in the near future. Jayden Daniels-esque seasons are probably on the horizon for Maye.
That makes him a buy in our books.
WR Keon Coleman
Buffalo Bills wide receiver Keon Coleman had his rookie season cut short by injury, but when he was healthy and able to get into a rhythm, he put together some solid games for his team. Coleman gained 195 receiving yards and scored a touchdown through the air in Weeks 7-8 before suffering a wrist injury in Week 9 that held him out of action for four games.
Keon Coleman put DJ Reed into a blender on this play #BillsMafia | #GoBills
pic.twitter.com/lcfNL4pT6I— Peter DiBiasi (@DibiasiPeter) December 30, 2024
He wasn't the same after returning from the injury, but it wouldn't be surprising if it still held him back massively. We also saw Bills WR Amari Cooper do very little after returning from his wrist ailment, and those can be notoriously difficult recovery processes as the wrist is a complicated amalgamation of bones and ligaments.
Coleman, if healthy, could become the primary target for quarterback Josh Allen, and that has potentially massive fantasy football value. He's the best combination of youth and draft capital in that position group by a mile, and it would probably be more surprising if he didn't have a big breakout season in 2025 than if he did (barring injury, of course).
This makes Coleman a clear buy target.
RB Rhamondre Stevenson
Usually, Dynasty fantasy managers are more willing to trade away players that had disappointing seasons and logged a few games with absolutely terrible production. This was the case with Stevenson. A new coaching regime, good draft capital, and plenty of cap space should improve the former Oklahoma Sooner's chances of improving from here on, though.
RHAMONDRE STEVENSON 64 YARD RUSHING TOUCHDOWN
OH MY GODpic.twitter.com/GEKw7cl7fq
— JPAFootball (@jasrifootball) November 5, 2023
The fumbling issues weren't pretty in 2024, but he might be a little better off if the team can put together an offensive line that can block for him. New head coach Mike Vrabel will presumably head a very run-heavy offense as well, as he did with running back Derrick Henry in Tennessee. Though Stevenson doesn't hold a candle to Henry, Vrabel's arrival should help Stevenson.
And 2024 was a worst-case scenario for New England's offense. They had the weakest offensive roster at WR and OL in the league, as has been mentioned above in the Maye write-up. It's hard to see this not improving. Stevenson presents an excellent buy-low option for Dynasty fantasy managers right now.
WR Malik Washington
Miami Dolphins wide receiver Malik Washington had an unremarkable first season, but rookies often take time to develop, and with the team's WR1, Tyreek Hill, will be 31 when the 2025 NFL season starts. There's a clear path for Washington to step into at least the WR2 position soon.
There's target competition in Miami from the likes of Hill, WR Jaylen Waddle, tight end Jonnu Smith and running back De'Von Achane, sure. But the whole offense had a down year in 2024, and if they're able to bounce back consistently, we could see Washington being worth rostering down the road.
Absurd anticipation and a great catch from Malik Washington pic.twitter.com/I5x1LGYKHQ
— FinsCentral (@finscentral) December 23, 2024
The team could reasonably trade or cut Hill after the 2025 season, giving Washington a great opportunity to step up. Of course, in leagues that count kickoff or punt return yards as points, Washington is much more valuable, and in those that don't, he won't return value quickly. But he should be extremely cheap to buy, since he's buried on the depth chart right now.
RB Jaylen Wright
Miami Dolphins running back Jaylen Wright had a forgettable rookie season. He remained buried on the depth chart behind lead the lead back Achane and his now-backup, Raheem Mostert. And the run-blocking was seriously unimpressive, which didn't give him much space to work.
Jaylen Wright’s First NFL Touches —
Back to Back First Down Runs 🐬 https://t.co/v3NIwJojpJ pic.twitter.com/q7pf53sCQn— Doηmεgαh Mεdïα (@donmegah) August 10, 2024
He wasn't able to get many free releases to the second level, and he was often being hit close to the line of scrimmage or in the backfield. This didn't help his production. Miami does need to address the offensive line, and while drafting offensive tackle Patrick Paul helped, they need better run blockers along the interior. Perhaps more time for them to gel will also help, but the depth there isn't great.
Wright is extremely talented and has game-breaking speed, as do many of the Dolphins players, which gives him great upside. Miami head coach Mike McDaniel showed us in 2023 that he can support two great fantasy producers at RB, and Wright seems in line to replace Mostert, who will turn 33 before the season starts, soon.
Like Washington, Wright is a nice stash for your benches that could pay off handsomely for the price he's fetching down the road.
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