This may come as a surprise to you, but you don’t win your league in the first round. You need to have solid players up and down your lineup in order to come out on top at the end of the season. Finding some draft day steals in the later rounds will help you build a strong lineup. This, however, can be tricky. For every 2019 Lamar Jackson, you also have a 2019 Darwin Thompson. Some hype trains just never leave the station. Without further ado, let’s see if we can find some players to pick that could win you your league.

Early to Mid-Round Draft Day Steals

These are going to be players to take early with either upside to finish near the top of their position or a lot of opportunities giving them a safe floor. Volume is king in fantasy football. Sometimes that’s all a player needs to become one of the draft day steals.

JuJu Smith-Schuster

JuJu Smith-Schuster has been in the NFL for three seasons. He will play his fourth year at age 23 and 24. Wide receivers usually peak around age 27 or 28. Does this mean we have yet to see the best of JuJu? I’m going to go with “probably”. He is one year removed from posting a 111-1426-7 line as a 21 year old sophomore. Last year everything that could possibly go wrong for the Steelers star receiver went wrong. Big Ben went down with an injury, JuJu himself got hurt, and the whole offense was stuck in the mud. This year Smith-Schuster is moving back to the slot where he should see softer coverage and a healthy Big Ben will feed his best receiver. Coming off the board in the third or fourth round with the ceiling of a first-round player, JuJu could easily be the biggest draft day steal.

David Montgomery

Let’s be real here: you’re probably not going to be super excited when you draft David Montgomery, but you should be! After the first few rounds, it is difficult to find a running back with a guaranteed workload. The Bears running back should easily push for 300 carries plus targets. He’s going in the fifth round! You will not find a cheaper back with that kind of volume. The downside? He might not be that good. Montgomery is elusive for a big back, but as a rookie, he was limited by his athleticism. He has reported to training camp in much better shape though so it’s not outrageous to think he can improve upon last year’s numbers.

Will Fuller

Only one thing has ever held Will Fuller down. That thing, unfortunately, is his own body. Injuries have plagued the speedy Fuller throughout his career. When he plays it can be a beautiful thing. If you started him during his 14 catch, 217 yard, 3 touchdown outburst last year you most likely won that week. He also had multiple one catch, single-digit yard performances that likely cost you your week. So what is different now? DeAndre Hopkins‘ absence opens up a ton of targets. Fuller has great chemistry with Deshaun Watson. Most of the Texans’ other receivers can’t say the same. Fuller also cut off his dreadlocks over the summer. Remember when Julio Jones did that? I think that’s all the evidence one should need to be convinced Will Fuller will be a draft day steal.

Late-Round Draft Day Steals

These players may be overlooked for one reason or another but still offer safe floors or league winning upside. The risk is higher but that’s why they are being drafted later anyways.

Jamison Crowder

Spoiler alert: the Jets are probably not going to be a good offense this year. Adam Gase has an incredible knack for tanking his players’ fantasy production. But someone is going to get a lot of targets and that someone is probably Jamison Crowder. He runs the majority of his routes out of the slot which should allow him to see softer coverage and be a safety valve for Sam Darnold. It is possible Crowder sees over 120 targets which should allow him to easily outperform his draft spot.

Anthony Miller

Another slot receiver, another draft day steal. Anthony Miller is not the number one receiver on his team, that title belongs to Allen Robinson. That won’t prevent him from producing solid fantasy numbers in 2020. He started slowly last season while recovering from shoulder surgery, but came on strong down the stretch. Quarterback play is the biggest question mark for Miller, but I’m not too terribly concerned. I love his chances of a third-year breakout and being a draft day steal.

Zack Moss

Yeah, I know Devin Singletary still exists and is penciled in as the starter. I’m getting a serious 2014 Giovani Bernard/Jeremy Hill vibe here though. Zack Moss is reportedly outplaying Singletary in camp. Even before this, the Bills said Moss will be getting the Frank Gore role from last year. I firmly believe Moss will eventually win the majority of the touches in this backfield though. He is a big back that runs with a lot of power. Moss also has surprisingly good receiving skills, making him the better option for pass-catching duty. Bold prediction: Zack Moss is a top 10 back over the second half of the year. You can get him after the 10th round. One of the best draft day steals.

Well, there you have it, my list of draft day steals. While you’re here check out the other great articles we have at Belly Up to continue prepping for draft day. Follow me on Twitter @JimJamFF and we’ll see how these picks play out and maybe I’ll give out some more steals too!