2023 Fantasy Zombie

A Fantasy Zombie is a former fantasy star who has not had recent success but is back and ready to contribute to your team.

The 2022 Fantasy Zombie was JuJu Smith-Schuster WR of the Kansas City Chiefs. While Smith-Schuster did not replicate his 2018 season success, he did manage to have his highest receiving yards, receptions per game and yards per game since 2018. I call that a win! Let’s consider some potential Fantasy Zombies for 2023.

Deshaun Watson QB Cleveland Browns

Watson is a prime candidate to bounce back from his dismal 6 games with the Browns. After taking the 2021 season off on the advice of his masseuse, Watson looked like a shell of himself in Cleveland. With a career low completion percentage (58%) and nearly 120 fewer passing yards per game, he was unusable in fantasy. The hope is that he was able to clear his head this offseason and become more comfortable in the offensive scheme. With arguably the best running back in the NFL behind him and a talented receiving corp at his disposal, Watson is poised to put it all back together. Watson is currently being drafted as the 9th or 10th QB off the board and he is the only one in that area that has the ability to finish as QB1. If you need to draft a QB and the top 6 are off the board, then I suggest grabbing Watson. He has a much higher ceiling than the rest of that group and his season could become the defining season of a Fantasy Zombie.

Brandin Cooks WR Dallas Cowboys

Sometimes good players just need a change of scenery and that is exactly what Brandin Cooks got when he was traded to the Cowboys from the Texans this offseason. Last season was a down year for Cooks who had turned in 1000 yard receiving seasons in 7 of the last 8 years. He went from one of the worst offenses in the league to one of the strongest. With WR CeeDee Lamb as the clear WR1 and likely to draw double coverage, Cooks has a chance to run wild. He should put up over 1000 yards again this season and more than double his touchdowns from last year as long as he can stay healthy. He is in a great place to rebound and become this year’s Fantasy Zombie.