2021 NFL Draft: Fantasy analysis of Round 2 picks, including Javonte Williams, Rondale Moore and Elijah Moore

The Fantasy Football Today team brings you live updates for Round 2 of the 2021 NFL Draft

The first round of the NFL Draft was dominated by offense. All in all, 13 skill position players were taken and 18 players on the offensive side of the ball in total were drafted Thursday night. We broke it all down last night in this live blog, and you can read about the biggest winners and losers from Thursday here.

It was an important night for Fantasy football, but obviously the first round isn't the only round that matters for the draft. We'll be here for Rounds 2 and 3 tonight in the live blog, providing instant analysis for every move and every pick that goes down. You'll be able to read instant analysis for the players selected, plus the fallout for their new teammates, projected stats, and more right here.

Plus, you can follow along with the rest of the Fantasy Football Today crew on the Fantasy Football Today Watch Party on YouTube, where Jamey Eisenberg, Dave Richard and Heath Cummings will be joined by NFL analysts like Pete Priscilla and Ryan Wilson, plus former NFL players like Brady Quinn and Bryant McFadden. They'll be breaking down everything from every angle, and they'll be answering your questions live in the chat too. So, head on over to YouTube.com/FantasyFootballToday to watch right through the end of Round 3 tonight.

• QB: Lawrence to JAC | Wilson to NYJ | Lance to SF | Fields to CHI | Jones to NE
• RB: Harris to PIT | Etienne to JAC
• WR: Chase to CIN | Waddle to MIA | Smith to PHI | Toney to NYG | Bateman to BAL
• TE: Pitts to ATL

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:36 pm ET · Chris Towers]

Trask broke out a little bit in 2019 -- 8.3 Y/A, 25 TD, 7 INT -- and then broke out a lot in 2020 -- 9.8 Y/A, 43 TD, 8 INT. But he's going to be essentially nonexistent in the running game, and by the time he ever gets the opportunity to play regularly, who knows what the offense around him will even look like. Even in 2QB leagues, Trask has no 2021 value, and he's a pretty fringe late-rounder even in Dynasty 2QB leagues.

And that'll do it for the live blog. Thanks to everyone for following. We're still going on the Watch Party, and we'll have coverage of the rest of the prospects on CBS Fantasy and the Fantasy Football Today podcast.

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:45 pm ET · Adam Aizer]

Kellen Mond is an exciting prospect, but if you draft Justin Jefferson in the second round this season you should root for Kirk Cousins. I wouldn't want to see a QB change. I would predict that Cousins would be a better passer in 2021 than Mond would.

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:44 pm ET · Adam Aizer]

As we enter Round 3, I'm not sure there are any RBs I'm going to be extremely excited about, and Dyami Brown is probably the last WR I'm excited about. That could change depending on destination. If Trey Sermon or another RB in that range goes to Atlanta or Miami, that changes things.

In the last 6 seasons, we have had 20 RBs selected in Round 3. David Johnson, Alvin Kamara and Kareem Hunt were Top 8 RBs as rookies. Antonio Gibson was Top 14. They were the only Top 20 RBs. David Montgomery was a Top 24 RB.

Here are the Round 3 RBs from 2019 and 2020:
2019: Darrell Henderson David Montgomery (#24 RB in Fantasy. 242/889/6 and 25/185/1 receiving) Devin Singletary (#33 RB in Fantasy. 151/775/2 and 29/194/2 receiving in 13 games)

2020:
Antonio Gibson: (#14 RB in Fantasy. 170/795/11 and 36/247 receiving in 14 games) Ke'Shawn Vaughn Zack Moss Darrynton Evans

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:30 pm ET · Chris Towers]

And the sixth QB of the draft goes to Tampa Bay, as they take Kyle Trask from Florida.

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:28 pm ET · Chris Towers]

I think I might like Rondale Moore more than Marshall as the No. 4 rookie WR for 2021, at least. And I might like him more in the long term, too. I definitely feel a lot better about the QB situation in Arizona than Carolina, and I think Marshall's best-case scenario is he's the No. 3 option there, while Moore could be No. 2

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:19 pm ET · Adam Aizer]

Love Terrace Marshall. I know a lot of people do. And I am NOT a Robby Anderson fan, so this guy might be my #4 rookie WR. If the Saints or Packers select Dyami Brown I think that would #4 for me.

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:18 pm ET · Chris Towers]

Hey, Terrace Marshall, there's a big guy. Tumbled a bit further down the draft board than some might have expected, but he scored 23 touchdowns in 19 games between 2019 and 2020, and emerged as a go-to guy last season. Don't love the landing spot with the Panthers unfortunately, because he'll be the fourth option at best, and likely a distant fourth. But I like him more than Eskridge and Atwell, and he's probably closer to Rashod Bateman and Kadarius Toney. 

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:16 pm ET · Adam Aizer]

I think I probably overreacted to the Eskridge pick and you brought me back to reality. He probably doesn't have much of an impact in 2021, but he's yet another very fast WR in this class. Who do I like more in 2021? I guess Atwell. I'll take Eskridge in Dynasty. He's raw because he flipped between defensive back and WR. Could pay off down the line.

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:16 pm ET · Chris Towers]

One thing that Eskridge and Atwell going back to back brings up in my mind, and it's something I've been thinking about since I started doing draft research ... Are we sure this WR class is particularly good? It seems like everyone is way undersized for the NFL, and while you could say that's the direction the NFL is trending, there aren't that many impact Fantasy WR who are like 180 pounds. But there are a lot of guys who are 180 or less in this draft going real high. Sure, you've got Tyreek Hill, Tyler Lockett, Brandin Cooks, T.Y. Hilton, Diontae Johnson, but ... overall, it's still pretty rare. 

I dunno, I may fade this class. 

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:09 pm ET · Chris Towers]

And that is damning with faint praise.

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:08 pm ET · Chris Towers]

Ha, Adam, I was just about to point out that Atwell went with the same pick as Jefferson. Though I will point out that Jefferson turns 25 in July and had 19 catches in 16 games as a rookie, so it's entirely possible Atwell emerges as the No. 3 receiver. I think I like him more than Eskridge, at least?

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:06 pm ET · Adam Aizer]

Tutu Atwell to the Rams!

I hate it. They drafted him 57th overall. Last season they drafted Van Jefferson 57th overall. They just signed Robert Woods to an extension. They still don't have a legit downfield threat. I don't see much value for Atwell in 2021. This is not a need for the Rams and this is not a team that has a lot of draft picks. Hate it

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:05 pm ET · Chris Towers]

I think Eskridge is the next David Moore/Paul Richardson, who tricks you into thinking one of the good Seahawks receivers scored a long touchdown when they cut to it on Red Zone four times a year. 

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:03 pm ET · Chris Towers]

I'm very skeptical Russ is going to get the opportunity to cook -- it sounds like the Brian Schottenheimer departure might have been tied to Schottenheimer not wanting to run the ball more, somehow. I would be shocked if Eskridge has much Fantasy relevance at all in 2021, and with Lockett signing an extension, I don't know if there's a ton of appeal there in the long term, either. Not a good landing spot. 

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:01 pm ET · Chris Towers]

DeVonta Smith is a top-50 WR for me! 

I think Tennessee, Houston, Green Bay, Detroit, New Orleans, and maybe the Chargers could have a top-50 WR if they took one of the top remaining guys on the board. If the Saints grab a talented wide receiver and start Jameis Winston, I think that's probably the best situation left, but Tennessee is probably being overlooked as a landing spot, too. There's so much opportunity available there, and they've got replacement-level guys at WR and TE surrounding A.J. Brown. Someone could easily step into 100 targets there.  

[Apr 30, 2021 at 9:00 pm ET · Adam Aizer]

Oh, no? D'Wayne Eskridge to the Seahawks!

Is this going to knock D.K. Metcalf and/or Tyler Lockett down a bit in the rankings? History should say no. I've noticed that rookie WRs don't typically affect great veteran WRs much. They would be more likely to impact players like DeVante Parker or Sterling Shepard. But this is the Seahawks we are talking about and this is not an offense that has had three great options in the passing game. They want to run the ball. Eskridge could be the best #3 option Seattle has had in ... the Russell Wilson era?

On the flip side, maybe this means they're gonna "let Russ cook." That would be fun

[Apr 30, 2021 at 8:57 pm ET · Chris Towers]

I think Moore could very easily emerge as the No. 2 WR for the Cardinals and a Fantasy relevant player. But, I also think there's a very real possibility that DeAndre Hopkins ends up with twice as many targets as anyone else on the Cardinals offense. That's what happened last season, and with the addition of A.J. Green and Moore, I think all three of them could end up being very close in targets. 

[Apr 30, 2021 at 8:56 pm ET · Adam Aizer]

Hey Chris, give me a team/WR combo that would get you to rank someone in the Top 50 at WR. I think any of Terrace Marshall, D'Wayne Eskridge or Dyami Brown going to the Saints, Bills or Packers would be awesome. I'm thinking any of those combos would be my #4 rookie WR in 2021.

[Apr 30, 2021 at 8:54 pm ET · Adam Aizer]

Let's do some "Moore" research on the Cardinals passing game (get it?).

There was actually a stretch before Kyler Murray's shoulder injury in which the Cardinals had two WRs worth starting. Oddly enough, it was Kirk who was the Fantasy star and Hopkins who was just OK. I'm talking about a stretch of five games (six weeks) in which Kyler Murray was QB1 per game, Christian Kirk was Top 10 per game (20 catches, 343 yards, 6 TDs) and DeAndre Hopkins was Top 30 per game (28 catches, 378 yards, 2 TDs).

Kirk was solid during that stretch but so inconsistent throughout the season.

The point is: This is an offense you want to bet on. They were fourth in plays, sixth in yards and 13th in scoring. Murray threw 26 TD passes and that was with a 4.7% TD rate that ranked 19th in the NFL.

[Apr 30, 2021 at 8:42 pm ET · Chris Towers]

Moore is WR68 in my first look, so that's ahead of Toney, Waddle, and Bateman. So, he's WR3 among the rookies for me. 

[Apr 30, 2021 at 8:32 pm ET · Chris Towers]

Here's what Chris Trapasso had to say in the NFL Grades post: "Giddy. Up. If Moore is healthy (big if) he's a clear-cut first-round talent. Andy Isabella hasn't materialized to much with Cardinals, but Moore is a different animal. Short not small. Insanely explosive with contact balance. Fun piece."

The Cardinals desperately need more playmaking in the passing game. I don't know if Moore will be a big Fantasy contributor right away, but there's definitely an opportunity. Agreed with Adam, he's more like a late-round Fantasy pick, but Dave just dropped a heck of a stat on the Watch Party: 71% of Moore's yards came after the catch. That should fit very, very well with how Kliff Kingsbury's offense has worked. 

[Apr 30, 2021 at 8:29 pm ET · Adam Aizer]

Rondale Moore to the Cardinals!

Good news for Kyler Murray, probably not going to impact DeAndre Hopkins but maybe takes targets away from Christian Kirk. Moore is small, but he's yet another very exciting and explosive wide receiver in this draft class. He's another player who can turn a short completion into a big play. He can help Murray the way Kadarius Toney can help Daniel Jones.

Is Moore worth anything more than a late round Fantasy pick? I'll say no. He's certainly not a Top 100 player right now, but I'm intrigued. I gotta be honest, I didn't love Moore because I thought he was the type of college playmaker whose talent wouldn't necessarily translate to the next level. But if he can be the number two option in Arizona's passing offense, that's worth having on your Fantasy team.

This is one of the negatives our Emory Hunt points out about him:
"Not much of a route runner, which in a way, makes him a bit one-dimensional as a player. Really has to work on that area of his game. Routes tend to be a bit all over the place"

[Apr 30, 2021 at 8:26 pm ET · Chris Towers]

I think that definitely matters, but I've only got Gaskin with a 10% target share, so I don't think I'm being too aggressive there. The key thing with Gaskin is, he was an incredibly efficient pass catcher, hauling in 87.2% of his targets for 8.3 yards per target. Those are elite numbers for a running back, and while I'm regressing him to league average quite a bit, even an 80% catch rate and 6.4 yards per target, he looks pretty good. 

[Apr 30, 2021 at 8:23 pm ET · Adam Aizer]

Chris - does it matter to you that Ryan Fitzpatrick threw to RBs a lot more than Tua did? If you take away the two games in which Fitzpatrick replaced Tua, then both of them started and finished 7 games. Fitzpatrick targeted RBs on 21.4% of his pass attempts. Tua on 15.4% of his pass attempts

[Apr 30, 2021 at 8:21 pm ET · Chris Towers]

A lot of defensive players off the board in Round 2 so far and a lot of offensive line. 

[Apr 30, 2021 at 8:20 pm ET · Chris Towers]

Maybe more like 240 carries, not 260, is a more fair expectation. But the point is, he should get a ton of work. He's one of those guys who the math really favors. Obviously, he could be so mediocre that the Dolphins just bench him, but ... for who? An RB drafted at 81 overall? Malcolm Brown?