Underclassmen have until January 15 to file the necessary paperwork with the NFL to be eligible for the 2018 draft. The official list of underclassmen who have forfeited their college eligibility and declared for the draft will be released by the NFL to franchises on Jan. 19. The draft will be held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX, from April 26-28.
It’s important for daily fantasy players to know about NFL rookies before they’ve played a down of professional football because they are among the most misvalued assets in all of DFS. People who know NFL rookies have a significant DFS edge.
Here are the notable underclassmen who have declared early for the 2018 draft as well as some players who have stated their intentions to return to school. The list is organized positionally and alphabetically.
Updated as of Jan. 17.
Declaring for Draft
- Offense: Quarterbacks | Running Backs | Wide Receivers | Tight Ends | Offensive Tackles | Offensive Guards | Centers
- Defense: Edge Defenders | Defensive Tackles | Off-Ball Linebackers | Cornerbacks | Safeties
- Special Teams: Kickers | Punters
Returning to School
- Offense: Quarterbacks | Running Backs | Wide Receivers | Tight Ends | Offensive Tackles | Offensive Guards
- Defense: Edge Defenders | Defensive Tackles | Off-Ball Linebackers | Cornerbacks | Safeties
- Special Teams: Kickers
Declaring for Draft
Quarterbacks
- Josh Allen, Wyoming: Profile
- Kyle Allen, Houston
- Sam Darnold, Southern California: Profile
- Lamar Jackson, Louisville: Profile
- Tanner Lee, Nebraska: Profile
- Chase Litton, Marshall
- Josh Rosen, California-Los Angeles: Profile
Running Backs
- Josh Adams, Notre Dame
- Saquon Barkley, Penn State: Profile
- Derrius Guice, Louisiana State: Profile
- Karan Higdon, Michigan
- Nyheim Hines, North Carolina State
- Kerryon Johnson, Auburn
- Ronald Jones II, Southern California
- John Kelly, Tennessee
- Ryan Nall, Oregon State
- Kamryn Pettway, Auburn
- Bo Scarbrough, Alabama
- Mark Walton, Miami (FL)
Wide Receivers
- Deontay Burnett, Southern California
- Deon Cain, Clemson
- Antonio Callaway, Florida
- Simmie Cobbs, Indiana
- Keke Coutee, Texas Tech
- Quadree Henderson, Pittsburgh
- Richie James, Middle Tennessee State
- Christian Kirk, Texas A&M
- Jordan Lasley, California-Los Angeles
- Tavares Martin, Washington State
- Ray-Ray McCloud, Clemson
- D.J. Moore, Maryland
- Byron Pringle, Kansas State
- Trey Quinn, Southern Methodist
- Calvin Ridley, Alabama: Profile
- Korey Robertson, Southern Mississippi
- Tre’Quan Smith, Central Florida
- Equanimeous St. Brown, Notre Dame
- Courtland Sutton, Southern Methodist: Profile
- Auden Tate, Florida State
Tight Ends
- Jordan Akins, Central Florida
- Mark Andrews, Oklahoma: Profile
- Hayden Hurst, South Carolina
- Ryan Izzo, Florida State
- Austin Roberts, California-Los Angeles
- Dalton Schultz, Stanford
Offensive Tackles
- Orlando Brown, Oklahoma
- Geron Christian, Louisville
- Nick Gates, Nebraska
- Kolton Miller, California-Los Angeles
- Brian O’Neill, Pittsburgh
- Will Richardson, North Carolina State
- Toby Weathersby, Louisiana State
- Connor Williams, Texas
Offensive Guards
- Taylor Hearn, Clemson
- Sam Jones, Arizona State
- Quenton Nelson, Notre Dame
- Maea Teuhema, Southeastern Louisiana
Centers
Edge Defenders
- Olasunkanmi Adeniyi, Toledo
- Dorance Armstrong Jr., Kansas
- Rasheem Green, Southern California
- Jeff Holland, Auburn
- Sam Hubbard, Ohio State
- Arden Key, Louisiana State
- Josh Sweat, Florida State
- JoJo Wicker, Arizona State
- Jalen Wilkerson, Florida State
Defensive Tackles
- Taven Bryan, Florida
- Du’Vonta Lampkin, Oklahoma
- Hercules Mata’afa, Washington State
- R.J. McIntosh, Miami (FL)
- Kahlil McKenzie, Tennessee
- Kendrick Norton, Miami (FL)
- Da’Ron Payne, Alabama
- Harrison Phillips, Stanford
- Tim Settle, Virginia Tech
- Breeland Speaks, Mississippi
- Trenton Thompson, Georgia
- Vita Vea, Washington
- Eddy Wilson, Purdue
Off-Ball Linebackers
- Jerome Baker, Ohio State
- Tremaine Edwards, Virginia Tech
- Frank Ginda, San Jose State
- Joel Iyiegbuniwe, Western Kentucky
- Malik Jefferson, Texas
- Christian Sam, Arizona State
- Andre Smith, North Carolina
- Roquan Smith, Georgia
- Leighton Vander Esch, Boise State
Cornerbacks
- Jaire Alexander, Louisville
- J.J. Dallas, Louisiana-Monroe
- Carlton Davis, Auburn
- Minkah Fitzpatrick, Alabama
- Rashaan Gaulden, Tennessee
- Holton Hill, Texas
- Mike Hughes, Central Florida
- Donte Jackson, Louisiana State
- J.C. Jackson, Maryland
- Josh Jackson, Iowa
- Tavarus McFadden, Florida State
- Quenton Meeks, Stanford
- Nick Nelson, Wisconsin
- Isaiah Oliver, Colorado
- D.J. Reed, Kansas State
- Kevin Toliver II, Louisiana State
- Denzel Ward, Ohio State
Safeties
- Jessie Bates, Wake Forest
- Terrell Edmunds, Virginia Tech
- DeShon Elliott, Texas
- Ronnie Harrison, Alabama
- Derwin James, Florida State
- Justin Reid, Stanford
- Van Smith, Clemson
- Jordan Whitehead, Pittsburgh
Kickers
- Eddy Pineiro, Florida
Punters
- Michael Dickson, Texas
Returning to School
Quarterbacks
- David Blough, Purdue
- Jake Browning, Washington
- Ryan Finley, North Carolina State
- Will Grier, West Virginia
- Drew Lock, Missouri
- Jarrett Stidham, Auburn
- Clayton Thorson, Northwestern
Running Backs
- Rodney Anderson, Oklahoma
- Myles Gaskin, Washington
- Damien Harris, Alabama
- Bryce Love, Stanford
- Jacques Patrick, Florida State
- L.J. Scott, Michigan State
- Mike Weber, Ohio State
Wide Receivers
- Parris Campbell, Ohio State
- Johnnie Dixon, Ohio State
- Terry Godwin, Georgia
- Stanley Morgan, Nebraska
- David Sills, West Virginia
- Jaylen Smith, Louisville
- Cody Thompson, Toledo
Tight Ends
- C.J. Conrad, Kentucky
Offensive Tackles
- Yodny Cajuste, West Virginia
- Michael Deiter, Wisconsin
- David Edwards, Wisconsin
- Derwin Gray, Maryland
- Mitch Hyatt, Clemson
- Toa Lobendahn, Southern California
- Kaleb McGary, Washington
- Damian Prince, Maryland
Offensive Guards
- Beau Benzschawel, Wisconsin
Edge Defenders
- Zach Allen, Boston College
- Ben Banogu, Texas Christian
- Austin Bryant, Clemson
- Isaiah Buggs, Alabama
- Clelin Ferrell, Clemson
- Porter Gustin, Southern California
- CeCe Jefferson, Florida
- Jalen Jelks, Oregon
- Charles Omenihu, Texas
- Darian Roseboro, North Carolina State
- Montez Sweat, Mississippi State
- Chase Winovich, Michigan
Defensive Tackles
- Jonathan Bonner, Notre Dame
- DeMarcus Christmas, Florida State
- Greg Gaines, Washington
- Dre’Mont Jones, Ohio State
- Kingsley Keke, Texas A&M
- Dontavius Russell, Auburn
- Jerry Tillery, Notre Dame
- Ricky Walker, Virginia Tech
- Christian Wilkins, Clemson
- Daniel Wise, Kansas
Off-Ball Linebackers
- Azeez Al-Shaair, Florida Atlantic
- Dakota Allen, Texas Tech
- Josh Allen, Kentucky
- Te’Von Coney, Notre Dame
- T.J. Edwards, Wisconsin
- Willie Harvey, Iowa State
- Kendall Joseph, Clemson
- Cameron Smith, Southern California
Cornerbacks
- Deandre Baker, Georgia
- Kris Boyd, Texas
- Mark Fields, Clemson
- Michael Jackson, Miami (FL)
- Iman Marshall, South California
- Brian Peavy, Iowa State
- Adarius Pickett, California-Los Angeles
Safeties
- Mike Edwards, Kentucky
- Jaquan Johnson, Miami (FL)
- JoJo McIntosh, Washington
- J.R. Reed, Georgia
- Juan Thornhill, Virginia
- Andrew Wingard, Wyoming
Kickers
- Matt Gay, Utah
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Matthew Freedman is the Editor-in-Chief of FantasyLabs. He has a dog and sometimes a British accent. In Cedar Rapids, Iowa, he’s known only as The Labyrinthian.
Photo Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports
