Post Draft Clarity: The 4 Players Whose Stock Rose the Most

With the NFL Draft over, we have noted players whose stock has dropped precipitously as a result here. But some players saw their stock rise due to the picks their team did or did not make. Here are the four players who saw their uncertain positions become a lot more promising .

Cam Skattebo, RB, Giants

Skattebo was a fantasy stud before suffering a gross, season-ending ankle injury after eight games. Up until that point, Skattebo was everything the Giants could have hoped for, amassing 617 yards from scrimmage and scoring seven total touchdowns. He ranked as PFF’s No. 13 overall running back, and while he surely lacks the pure speed and explosiveness of your typical top back, he notched grades over 80 on his rushing and receiving, proving his three-down qualifications. Still, rushers of his ilk are often good until the next exciting thing comes along, which makes the NFL draft scary for guys like him. Well the draft came and went, and no significant additions were made to the Giants’ RB room.

Now, that’s not to say Skattebo has this backfield to himself. Tyrone Tracy Jr. is still there as a lightning option to Skattebo’s thunder. We also have veteran Devin Singletary still in the mix. But Skattebo did have the lion’s share of the high-value touches for this team until he got injured and that will remain the situation entering 2026. From Weeks 1-8, Skattebo led the Giants with 23 rushing attempts inside the red zone, scoring five times. The next two on that list were Jaxson Dart (12) and Russell Wilson (6) before we get to Tracy, who only logged two such carries. Skattebo is built for that work, and while Tracy is a converted WR with the ability to house the ball from anywhere, Skattebo is the more reliable pass catcher and the better bet to move the chains. The 2026 Draft was a best-case scenario for Skattebo, because he’ll retain his leading role in this backfield and the Giants further beefed up the offensive line to create more push and opportunities for him. Mix in his receiving work, and with health, Skattebo can crush the 1,000-yard mark from scrimmage with a real chance at double-digit touchdowns. He can absolutely turn in an RB1 season, even if it’ll look a little unconventional.

Cam Ward, QB, Titans

Ward is unlikely to be drafted much at all in single-QB formats, and based on the thresholds for passing QBs to become QB1s, Ward isn’t a great bet to get there coming off a rookie campaign in which he threw for 3,159 yards and 15 touchdowns with very little ground production. With that said, he was playing with one of the league’s lowest-ceiling pass catching groups and the new regime in Tennessee has invested heavily in improving his weaponry. Ward will return veteran Calvin Ridley, who was miscast last year as a steady X receiver, and the Titans opened up the checkbook to sign Wan’Dale Robinson away from the Giants. Robinson’s numbers are definitely juiced up by Mickey Mouse targets, and he’s a bit one dimensional as a pure slot receiver, but Robinson made strides in 2025 to be more complete and he was highly effective. Robinson got experience as the focal point of a passing game when Malik Nabers was lost for the season, and now he’ll likely lead the Titans in targets. But on Draft Day, the Titans spent a Top 5 pick on Carnell Tate, a player who can arrive and be their X receiver immediately, as well as provide a legitimate threat down the field where Ward loves to live.

Tate’s arrival allows this trio to snap into place, with Tate at the X, Robinson in the slot, and Ridley playing the flanker where he’s more lethal. Tate was winning 68.6% of his nine routes, 80% of his posts and 82.6% of his digs at Ohio State last season, so his arrival should really increase Ward’s efficiency when he tries to make plays down the field. Tate, plus the arrival of Brian Daboll makes Ward the type of QB who can make a quantum leap in 2026.

DeVonta Smith, WR, Eagles

Placing Smith here requires a bit of projection, with that projection being a deal that sends incumbent Eagles WR1 A.J. Brown elsewhere, likely the New England Patriots. Smith has been WR1-quality since arriving in the NFL off a Heisman campaign at Alabama, but Brown’s arrival in 2022 has kept Smith as the de facto WR2 for most of his tenure, with his talent so great that he’s, at times, been a legitimate WR1A. Smith’s versatility is also a quality that makes him ripe for a chance to be the top dog in this hierarchy, but has also led to the Eagles utilizing him in ways he is overqualified for so that Brown can do his thing. In Round 1, Philly drafted Makai Lemon out of USC, signaling that they may be ready to revamp this receiving corps with Smith as the leader. It also signals that Smith might spend even more time on the outside with Lemon walking into the league looking like an instant, premier slot option.

We do not yet have the charting from Reception Perception on Smith in 2025, but we do know the Eagles offense hit the skids for long stretches last year, with the passing game running into a wall. Despite that, Smith clawed his way to 1,008 receiving yards on 77 catches, marking his third time in five seasons he’s cleared the 1,000-yard bar. His 2024 profile revealed a player who was defeating man coverage at a nearly 80% clip, a 95th percentile mark, and who defeated man at an 80% mark (91st percentile). The best way to use Smith is as a movable player, lining him up at all three positions to keep defenses on their toes and accounting for him. He’s been doing that to an extent, but the X receiver spot largely belongs to Brown. With him out of the picture, more targets will be funneled Smith’s way, and he will be able to keep opponents guessing. The Eagles’ occasional inability to produce big numbers through the air remains a concern, but less so when the largest piece of the pie belongs to Smith. I am expecting to view him as one of the best values in fantasy as our own Draft season approaches.

Davante Adams, WR, Rams

This offseason there was a lot of chatter about the Rams potentially trading or parting ways with Adams, or even drafting his replacement with the No. 13 overall pick. Instead, the Rams spent that pick on a QB of the future (Ty Simpson), and didn’t spend a pick on a WR until the sixth round when they selected CJ Daniels out of Miami. This was a major signal of confidence in Adams to have another nice season in Los Angeles, and with hindsight, it does make sense that they’d be happy to run it back.

Yes, he’s in his age-33 season and he’s diminished from his absolute peak, but Adams remained a monster in this offense last year. Puka Nacua is the No. 1 by a mile, and handled very heavy volume. But the role Adams plays now is very important not just to the Rams, but in fantasy. Adams isn’t the volume monster he once was, but he scored 14 touchdowns on 60 receptions and 789 yards. Nacua is clearly the man in LA, but the red zone was Adams’ kingdom. He led the Rams with 32 targets in the red zone to Nacua’s 17, and 12 of his 14 touchdowns came on targets from the opponent’s 20-yard line or closer. Touchdowns are fickle, and that’ll be a reason that Adams’ ADP becomes a value. Touchdown variability is something to pay attention to, but that’s why we look under everyone’s hood. When it comes to Adams, those touchdowns aren’t a fluke, it’s a design of Sean McVay’s offense. The Rams choosing to forgo adding impact pass catchers in the draft or in the offseason is a green flag for Adams’ 2026 prospects.