As we reflect on the 2024 fantasy football season, we asked our ESPN Fantasy writers to answer a few questions.
Each season brings with it the unexpected, sometimes delicious and sometimes not so much. While it can be difficult to point out something that caught your attention, nine of our writers (Stephania Bell, Matt Bowen, Mike Clay, Tristan H. Cockcroft, Daniel Dopp, Eric Karabell, Liz Loza, Eric Moody and Field Yates) took on the task.
What was the biggest surprise of the 2024 fantasy season?
Yates: CJ Stroud’s disappointing season
Stroud didn’t enter this season with the expectations of Lamar Jackson, Jalen Hurts and Josh Allen, but he did offer promise after a stellar rookie season and the addition of Stefon Diggs via trade during the offseason. While each of his top three receivers dealt with injuries, Stroud was a disappointment in fantasy, averaging just 13.0 fantasy points per game, 28th among quarterbacks. He only had one game with 20 or more fantasy points and nine with less than 12.5. He finished with fewer passing yards and touchdowns than his rookie season, despite playing two more games. To make matters worse, he threw more than twice as many interceptions (12 to 5) in Year 2 and had no rushing touchdowns in 2024 after three as a rookie.
Cockcroft: Sam Darnold becomes a fantasy superstar
After entering the preseason as a barely-thought-out backup in Minnesota, he took the starting job in place of the injured JJ McCarthy, remember him? — and scored more than 300 fantasy points. Surprisingly, he averaged less than half that in his first six NFL seasons. An honorable mention goes to the Vikings’ defense, which was picked in just a quarter of ESPN leagues but finished as the season’s No. 2 D/ST scorer.
Karabell: Four rookies with 1,000 receiving yards, but no Marvin Harrison Jr.
Four 1,000-yard rookies is a record! Brian Thomas Jr., Brock Bowers, Malik Nabers and Ladd McConkey did it. However, the first rookie selected in most fantasy leagues, and the first non-QB selected in the NFL draft, fell short by 115 yards. Harrison, with just two weekly top-10 finishes and more single-digit PPR efforts, wasn’t even in the top 50 among flex-eligible options. And he played in all 17 games. That’s pretty surprising.
Moody: Brian Thomas Jr. finishes as WR4
Thomas finished his rookie season as a high-end WR1, proving he could overcome inconsistent quarterback play. Coming into the season, all the rookie hype revolved around Harrison and Nabers, but it was Thomas who stole the show. He came through when Fantasy managers needed him most, delivering six straight games with 10+ goals and at least 16 fantasy points in Weeks 13-18, including three games with 24 or more. He capped it off by becoming just the seventh rookie in league history to record 1,100 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns in a season.
Bowen: The Resurgence of Bryce Young
Remember when the Panthers benched Young for Andy Dalton after Week 2? I basically wrote him off for this season. And he wasn’t sure he would ever play football in Carolina again. Now, fast forward to the second half of the season, with Young back under center. From Weeks 12-18, Young averaged 20.7 points and recorded at least two total touchdowns in each of his final four games. Young’s eye level improved, he trusted his pocket much more and was really instrumental in his decision making as a runner and thrower. In short, Young fought on the tape I saw. The arrow is pointing up and Young should be a player to watch heading into the 2025 season.
Earthenware: The powerful duo Bo Nix/Courtland Sutton
I didn’t have Nix finishing his rookie campaign as a top-10 fantasy QB on my bingo card (he was actually QB7). I also didn’t expect Sutton to be a top 15 WR. In fact, it was Javonte Williams who entered the season as Denver’s most coveted fantasy asset, earning an ADP of 76 from ESPN users. Sutton wasn’t considered until about two rounds later (94th overall), behind names like Jake Ferguson (82nd) and Christian Watson (89th). Nix excelled over the final half of the season, racking up 2,529 passing yards and 25 total touchdowns in his final 10 games. As expected, Sutton’s conversion rate increased as Nix’s passing prowess developed. The 29-year-old scored 60 of 88 goals in those last 10 games. Nix’s ADP is projected to skyrocket to the fifth or sixth round of the draft next year. Sutton will likely enter 2025 as a high-end veteran option, although his target share will decline with Sean Payton aiming to build around his franchise QB.
Clay: Fight for tight end
Perhaps it shouldn’t come as a surprise considering the history of the position, but the tight end position proved disappointing after a ton of hype during the offseason. There were some successes (Bowers, Trey McBride and George Kittle among them), but there were many more failures, including 2023’s highest-scoring TE Sam LaPorta, as well as Mark Andrews, Dalton Kincaid, Evan Engram, Ferguson, Kyle Pitts, Cole Kmet. and Dalton Schultz. Some of these players improved as the season progressed, but the draft day investment and early season failures were costly.
Bell: The success of veteran RBs who got new contracts in new homes
Personally, I was not surprised that could They have a resurgence (I’ve been talking about the value of “mature” running backs for quite some time), but the level at which they performed exceeded my expectations, all to the benefit of both managers and Fantasy fans. Saquon Barkley now becomes the benchmark for this type of deal, reaching 2,000 yards with his new team. and leading all running backs in fantasy points. Not far behind him in terms of fantasy value were transplants Derrick Henry and Josh Jacobs, and while they weren’t as dominant, Aaron Jones, Joe Mixon and Tony Pollard also found success in their new homes.
Dopp: James Cook becomes a touchdown machine
We all remember how good he was last season, totaling over 1,500 yards from scrimmage, but finishing with just six touchdowns (two rushing, four receiving). However, Cook’s role changed significantly in his third NFL season, with more carries this season (27) than in his previous two years combined (16). After having nine total touchdowns over his first two seasons, Cook became a fantasy superstar with 18 touchdowns in 2024. Only Jahmyr Gibbs (20) finished with more.
