Head coach Sean Payton and the Denver front office “fell in love” with Nix in the pre-draft evaluation process, Graziano said, and Nix’s ample college experience and processing abilities make him the odds-on favorite to start Week 1 for the Broncos. The No. 12 overall pick in the draft could be useful for fantasy purposes since he has some rushing ability and has proven to be a highly efficient passer. Look for Nix to throw plenty of screens and short-area passes in Payton’s offense, the same as he did at Oregon.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport were first on the report, stating that the Cowboys and Elliott have agreed to terms on a deal pending a physical. The two sides parted ways last offseason as part of a cap-saving move that cleared $11 million for the Cowboys last offseason. Zeke would eventually land in New England, where he served as a lightly-used backup before turning into a PPR merchant Week 14 after Rhamondre Stevenson was sidelined with a high-ankle injury. Over the final five weeks of the season, Zeke rushed for 72-213-1, while adding another 27-159-2 through the air. He averaged a mere 3.5 YPC on the season, and at almost 29 years old, continues to look like a player who has hit the proverbial wall. Opportunities will be easy to come by in a Dallas backfield that currently features Rico Dowdle, Deuce Vaughn, and Royce Freeman, but Zeke shouldn’t be viewed as a permanent solution to this backfield’s problems. With that said, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Jerry Jones and Mike McCarthy stubbornly deploy him in a lead role early on.

The son of NFL Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, Brenden Rice (6’2/208) brings elite bloodlines to whatever team drafts him. After spending two years at Colorado, Rice transferred to USC ahead of the 2022 season and immediately set career highs in receptions (39), yards (611), and touchdowns (4). He would expand on that production in 2023 (45-791-12) but has been relatively average as far as efficiency is concerned. Rice brought a 60 percent contested catch rate into his final season but caught only three of his 12 contested targets in 2023. He’s a physical receiver who possesses good size, but Rice doesn’t profile as anything more than an adequate backup at this time.

Considered by many to be a riser in the pre-draft process after turning out a strong performance at the Combine, Washington (5’8/191) still fell to round six. A five-year prospect who went for 111/1,384/9 in his first and only season at Virginia, Washington is a career slot man who totaled 40 or more receptions in each of his final three years. Washington’s final season was chock full of production. He went for 100 or more yards in 10 of the 12 games he played in, and forced a missed tackle on 31.5 percent of his receptions. His ability to force defenders to miss, or outright break their tackles will be a valuable trait for whatever team drafts him, and despite his height, Washington’s build is that of a player who can take a hit at the NFL level. Washington also returned 14 kicks in his final season and could have some utility on special teams. The Dolphins are going to find ways to put him in position to make big plays.

A strong 2023 campaign ended in tragedy for Travis (6’1/200), who suffered a fractured leg in November and was unable to workout at the NFL combine. Another six-year prospect in this year’s class, Travis didn’t get a chance to shine until 2021, when he started the Seminoles’ final seven games of the season. He went on to be a full-time starter in 2022 and 2023, throwing for 5970-44-7 over that span while adding another 593 yards and 14 scores on the ground. He’s shown significant growth throughout his career, and has done a good job of limiting turnovers and sacks – especially in his final two years. It was reported in March that Travis should be fully cleared to participate in football activities come April. He will sit behind Aaron Rodgers in the Jets’ quarterback room to begin his career.

After getting some late hype in the draft process, Rattler — with maturity questions dogging him — slides all the way to the 150th pick, and will now compete for backup duties behind Derek Carr. Rattler (6’0/211) is a four-year starter who closed out his career with two seasons at South Carolina. A strong 2020 campaign as a sophomore had many viewing Rattler as a potential first-round pick in 2022, but instead, he lost his starting role to Caleb Williams midway through the 2021 season and is now hoping for a chance to carve out an NFL career. In his best season, Rattler threw for 3031-28-7 while averaging 9.6 YPA. He never replicated that production again, totaling 6212-37-20 in two years with the Gamecocks. He totaled a career-high 39 sacks in his final season and also had a career-low ADOT of 7.5. Lacking ideal size, arm strength, or speed, Rattler would be best suited in an offense that’s built on quick range and short/intermediate passes.

Estime (5’11/221) saw his first notable action as a sophomore in 2022. He led Notre Dame with 920 rushing yards despite seeing nine fewer carries than Logan Diggs. Estime also leveraged his massive frame to punch in 10 touchdowns. He took over the backfield in his final season and racked up 1,341 yards and 18 touchdowns on 210 attempts. Estime punctuated a strong production profile with a punishing, 25/238/4 rushing line against Stanford before opting out of Notre Dame’s bowl game. Estime severely hurt his draft stock after the season with a 4.71 40-yard dash at the combine, despite putting up great numbers in the vertical and broad jump. He did, however, save face at his Pro Day with a 4.58-second time. Estime is a physical runner who is hard to bring down on first contact and navigates traffic well for a player of his size. Without the top-end speed to beat corners and safeties in the NFL, he may be pigeonholed into a grinder role as a pro. With the Broncos, Estime will begin as a backup for Javonte Williams.

Cowing (5’8/168) earned starting reps out of the gate during his days at UTEP. He started nine of the 12 games he appeared in as a freshman and went for 31-550-3 (17.7 YPR) while playing 98.9 percent of his snaps from the slot. He would break out for 69-1361-7 in 2021, his final season with the Miners, only to transfer to Arizona, where he spent his final two years of college. Cowing boasts 4.38 speed and averaged 14.3 YPR for his career while playing almost exclusively as a slot receiver – an impressive feat for a player at that position. With that said, his efficiency took a noticeable dip once he transferred to a Power Five program, and his underwhelming size could make life difficult for him as a pro. Limited work on special teams could help him carve out a role in the NFL even if he’s not a frequent contributor on offense.

Guerendo (6’/221) spent the bulk of his collegiate career as a backup at Wisconsin, playing behind Jonathan Taylor as a freshman before backing up fellow 2024 draftee Braelon Allen for a few years as well. He transferred to Louisville for a final season, only to play the role of understudy once again, this time to Jawhar Jordan, another 2024 prospect. Guerendo made the most of his limited reps in 2023, totaling 810 yards and 11 scores on 132 attempts. He added 234 receiving on 22 grabs. Guerendo wasn’t a popular name in draft circles until crushing the combine. At his size, a 4.33-second 40-yard dash is among the best performances in the drill’s history. He also excelled in both the agility and explosion drills en route to a 9.9 RAS. Guerendo was efficient in his final season as both a receiver and a runner, but most of what evaluators will see in him is projection toward a ceiling, which he could hit with backfield whisperer Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers.

Walker (6’1/176) committed to North Carolina Central, an FCS school, after high school but never played a snap for the Eagles as the 2020 season was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He then transferred to Kent State and saw his first meaningful action in 2022, breaking out with 58 catches for 921 yards and 11 scores. Walker’s transfer saga continued after he went back home to play for North Carolina. The NCAA declared ineligible for the 2023 season but eventually reversed course after four missed games for Walker. Despite joining the team a month into the season, Walker proved to be an elite play-maker yet again, going for 699 yards and seven scores on 41 grabs. He punctuated his draft profile with a 4.36 40-yard dash and elite burst measurements. Both traits showed up on tape as he consistently beat defenders deep with his speed and by winning contested grabs. Walker’s route tree is limited to downfield duties, but that’s a valuable role in Baltimore’s offense. If Walker can earn playing time early, he will undoubtedly come up with a few splash plays in his first season.