The NFC East teams had a very entertaining draft.
We saw the Giants and Redskins both take who they hope are their future franchise quarterbacks.
There were a few running backs and wide receivers taken that were very productive in college as well. If you followed College Football at all in 2018, a lot of the players drafted by NFC East teams you will recognize.
If you read up on the overall draft grades for the NFC East teams they all did very well for themselves. These grades include defensive players and offensive lineman too. We won't be discussing them as I focus on the skill position players that you will be drafting in your fantasy football leagues.
2019 Fantasy Football NFC East NFL Draft Recap
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New York Giants
Daniel Jones, QB, Duke - 1.06
After a hot three-game stretch to start his year, Daniel Jones put forth mediocre grades the rest of 2018 (and his career).
He's a third-round prospect likely to get overdrafted (via @PFF_Steve)https://t.co/gBV4fjxotq pic.twitter.com/ZtwxSEzrLT
— PFF (@PFF) April 15, 2019
The Giants surprised just about everybody when not only did they take a quarterback with the sixth overall pick, they took the Duke quarterback Daniel Jones.
Jones had a lot of hype going into the draft thanks to his very prototypical size and athleticism. However, taking him over Dwayne Haskins was a huge surprise.
Jones is hardly a finished product as his passing is still work in progress. His running ability is obviously there and over time the potential is his passing skills will build.
I for one am not a huge fan of his. He threw a lot of short to intermediate routes in college and the throws he did make deep missed often.
Also, it’s clear the Giants are going to roll with Eli Manning for this season. At best I think Jones starts the last few games of the season if they get knocked out of the playoff race early making him an afterthought for 2019. Even in dynasty, it is not clear when the Giants will move on from Eli, especially after Dave Gettleman has come out and said "They could see him sitting behind Eli for three years...". Hard pass for me.
Washington Redskins
Dwayne Haskins, QB, Ohio State - 1.15
Dwayne Haskins isn't a finished product but still possesses a valuable skillset worth taking early in the drafthttps://t.co/t0rLjkcv33 pic.twitter.com/42qgTyF8Os
— PFF (@PFF) April 24, 2019
Haskins falling this far was a bit of a surprise. As a fan of the team, I’m not convinced he is the long-term answer at Quarterback, but the pick made absolute perfect sense. There were even rumors before the draft they would trade up ahead of the Giants to take him. Good thing they didn’t.
Haskins had an amazing 2018 season at Ohio State. He finished third in the Heisman race and set the Big 10 single-season passing yard record, previously held by Drew Brees. There is no doubt that he should have been one of the top QB prospects entering the draft.
My reservation is the lack of mobility. To put it bluntly, he has none. That could prove to be an issue in this new era of the NFL where edge pass rushers are getting to the quarterback faster than ever.
I’m not projecting much success for him his rookie season. First off there is a good chance he starts the season on the bench behind Case Keenum. Second, pocket passers typically struggle their first year (or two).
Overall, he reminds me of Jameis Winston. A big, sluggish quarterback who needs to be protected to be good. Winston has amazing arm strength, but sometimes thinks he can fit the ball anywhere due to said arm strength and makes poor decisions. I have a bad feeling (maybe just being a pessimistic Redskins fan) that Haskins turns out to be the same and I’m passing on him even in dynasty leagues.
Terry McLaurin, WR, Ohio State - 3.12
Haskins teammate was drafted in the third round. McLaurin is a fast receiver, posting the fifth fasted 40-yard time in this year’s combine among wide receivers (4.35).
His big-play ability, 11 touchdowns on just 35 catches last season, is appealing. However, he seems like a boom/bust type player in the NFL and not somebody you will be able to rely on from week to week.
Bryce Love, RB, Stanford - 4.10
A year ago, Bryce Love would have been a top draft prospect. However, a large dip in production and a torn ACL in his final game caused his stock to drop significantly.
There is a chance he won’t even play this season and even if he does, sitting behind Darius Guide and Adrian Peterson is not going to allow for much fantasy value.
Kelvin Harmon, WR, NC State - 6.33
Harmon was drafted in Round 6 and in my opinion, was a steal. He is the large-bodied (6-2, 222) receiver the Redskins desperately needed coming out of this draft.
He is not fast, which will be an issue for him in the pros, but he can catch the ball in traffic, catching 17 contested targets last year.
Speed will limit his upside, but I like him more than the Redskins third-round pick, McLaurin. Harmon has the potential to be a big over the top catch guy, especially in the red zone, just probably not this season.
Philadelphia Eagles
Miles Sanders, RB, Penn State - 2.21
Miles Sanders told us in an interview that he's the 'most complete running back' in the class. His numbers speak for themselves.https://t.co/PlsVFhRIqM
(via @PFF_AustinGayle) pic.twitter.com/lzv1oYqsfk
— PFF (@PFF) March 21, 2019
Sanders had the fun job of taking over for the great Saquon Barkley at Penn State. He did just fine averaging 5.8 yards per carry and scoring nine touchdowns. He is a shifty back but also showed power finishing the season with the eighth most yards after contact per attempt.
Landing in Philly did him no favors though. As we’ve seen in the past, Doug Pederson likes to use a committee of running backs. He will have his share to pick from this season too between Jordan Howard, Corey Clement, Wendell Smallwood, Josh Adams and Miles Sanders.
It is very possible that Sanders becomes the primary back because he has the most talent on the team, I just hesitate to draft Eagles running backs at this point.
JJ Arcega-Whiteside, WR, Stanford - 2.25
Whiteside is a very good receiver coming out of Stanford. He is a big receiver, 6-2, 225 and is fairly fast running 4.49 40-yard dash.
His most notable skill is catching contested passes as he finished fourth in the nation in that stat. He was able to use that skill to pull down 14 touchdowns this past season.
Whiteside will likely struggle to find much fantasy success in 2019 though only because of the depth at receiver the Eagles have. He will sit behind Alshon Jeffery, DeSean Jackson and Nelson Agholor. Although given the injury history of both Jeffery and Jackson, JAW could be relevant at times.
Dallas Cowboys
Tony Pollard, RB, Memphis - 4.26
Mike Weber, RB, Ohio State - 7.04
Dallas didn’t have a first-round pick thanks to the trade for Amari Cooper. They also did not draft an offensive skill player until the fourth round. That was special teams superstar, running back Tony Pollard, and running back Mike Weber.
Honestly, neither one is going to have any value this season unless Ezekiel Elliott gets hurt. I’m only mentioning them because otherwise, I would have nothing to talk about for the Cowboys.
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