Fantasy football: Like, love, loathe three QBs from the 2016 NFL Draft

Unfortunately, this article will not include Connor Cook, as the chances of him starting in Oakland are dependent upon the health of Derek Carr. However, as a positive, this article will not include Jake Rudock, who cannot collect fantasy points whilst a member of the Lions' practice squad.

Now that I've effectively gotten half of you to close this tab and the other half wondering why you're still reading an article about fantasy football before August, let's look at some quarterbacks from the 2016 NFL Draft that have a chance at actually starting some NFL games this season!

Like

QB - Carson Wentz, Eagles

Will Carson Wentz be the starter from day one in the city of brotherly love? Probably not, but it doesn't mean you shouldn't at least take a flyer on him late in your keeper league drafts, or even keep a close eye on the situation in Philadelphia in case he gets the job and he's still available on the waiver wire. New head coach Doug Pederson was put in a tough position as soon as the Eagles made the move to ascend the draft boards in search for a franchise quarterback. Now that the former Eagles' quarterback finds himself in a similar predicament, albeit from the outside looking in -- Pederson started ahead of Donovan McNabb for the first nine games of the 1999 NFL season -- just how long will it take Wentz to earn that starting position from formerly disgruntled Sam Bradford?

Of the quarterbacks that were a part of this draft class, Wentz is the one I'm most intrigued to see on the field. He passes with flying colors when it comes to all of the measurables an NFL team looks for in their starting quarterback: he's a big, proportional size -- 6'5" and nearly 240 pounds -- and especially athletic -- ran a 4.77 forty at the combine. Should he get the chance to start for the Eagles, Wentz will have plenty of talent at the skill positions around him: Jordan Matthews, Zach Ertz, a now healthy Nelson Agholor and free agent addition Rueben Randle should allow the Eagles to get vertical and make use of Wentz' good arm strength. I'm a little concerned about the Eagles' offensive line, but seeing as Wentz is in a position in which he'll be brought along slowly behind Bradford, Wentz has the potential to become a fantasy keeper or even a bye-week savior for you this year.

Redraft round projection: UDFA

Keeper round projection: late-seventh, early-eighth round.

Love

QB - Paxton Lynch, Broncos

Okay, I'm in love with quarterbacks who have size and athleticism; for better or worse, Tyrod Taylor was a starter for my team almost every week after Week 1, my team name last year was "I Like Bortles" because, well, I really, REALLY like Blake Bortles, each year I wait one round too long on Ben Roethlisberger because I talk myself into a dumb running back like Lamar Miller and JaMarcus Russell is still a touchy subject for me. But I'll be damned if Paxton Lynch and the situation in which he finds himself in Denver doesn't get me more aroused than Alex Reno at a chicken finger convention. Standing at 6-foot-7-inches, Lynch possesses an impressive amount of athleticism that allows him to maneuver in the pocket while still keeping the option to throw the ball downfield ala Big Ben. People should remember Lynch's breakout performance against Ole Miss in 2015 where he led his Memphis Tigers to victory while going 39-for-53, throwing for 386 yards and three touchdowns. Here's an example from that game of his ability to keep those options downfield open while evading the pass rush.

Of any of the quarterbacks taken in the first round, Lynch is probably the rawest of the bunch, but that isn't deterring V.P. of football operations John Elway from saying that Lynch is "... going to be ready quicker than people think." I don't know who these people are that think Lynch is a year or two away from starting for the Broncos -- Mark Sanchez is the only player ahead of him on the depth chart. I mentioned earlier that Carson Wentz will have a lot of weapons at his disposal once he gets the chance to play for Philadelphia, but no quarterback this year has more talent around him at skill positions as Lynch in Denver. Demaryius Thomas is an elite wideout, Emmanuel Sanders is a better second option than most teams in the NFL can tout and a two-headed running and receiving attack emerged out of the backfield towards the end of the 2015 season in Ronnie Hillman and C.J. Anderson. Both Hillman and Anderson, along with Denver's top-ranked defense, did a lot to not only take the pressure off of Brock Osweiler in the second-half of 2015, but that defense also put Denver's offense into favorable field-positions by forcing 27 turnovers in 2015, good for eighth in the NFL.

There are reasons to be sour on Lynch and his chances as a rookie in the NFL -- he doesn't make the most accurate of throws, struggles with progressions, lacks the ability to put much touch on his throws -- but no quarterback in the 2016 Draft has as favorable a situation as he does in 2016.

Redraft round projection: UDFA

Keeper round projection: mid-third, late-fourth.

Loathe

QB - Christian Hackenberg, Jets

This is a case in which I couldn't care less about a prospect's measurables, and maybe because I've watched a lot more Hackenberg than I have any of the other quarterbacks from this class, but I just can't see the Penn State quarterback being productive. Like, ever. I don't see the case for why he should start this season over Geno Smith or Ryan Fitzpatrick, should the Jets re-sign him. Drafting Hackenberg apparently spells the end for Bryce Petty, so that was a neat experiment while it lasted for a year where he never saw the field in the regular season. If you can't tell, I think the Jets drafting Christian Hackenberg was beyond a head-scratcher. He's wildly inaccurate, entirely inconsistent and has no clue as to when he should get the ball out; he was sacked 82 times over the past two seasons at Penn State.

Redraft round projection: UDFA

Keeper round projection: UDFA