Photo: Brad Mills, USA Today Sports

There is a growing movement in the Dynasty community toward “devy” players.  The term “devy” refers to developmental players carried on the dynasty league rosters.  These devy players are usually college players but can even be high school athletes.  During each week of the season, we will look at a different set of devy rankings. 

We began the season looking at the potential 2017 NFL Draft class, beginning with the quarterbacks. For the last three weeks, we will look at overall devy rankings without any regard for draft class.  We value the players entering the 2017 NFL Draft higher than future classes just due to the added risk associated with projecting into the future. 

As we survey devy prospects, we will be looking at traits, abilities, and skill sets that will translate to the NFL.  After looking at players 30-21 last week, we will look at players 20-11 this week.

20. D'Onta Foreman (Texas) –  The Junior put the nation on notice with his powerful performance against Notre Dame in primetime Week 1 of the 2016 season.  Foreman had 131 yards and a touchdown in that game.  He is a big back (6’1”, 249 pounds) who has topped the 100-yard rushing mark every game this season and has carried the Longhorns offense.  Texas has had several backs make it in the NFL and Foreman definitely looks the part.  After the victory over Kansas State, NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zierlein said that it's "impossible to ignore" Foreman's "talent and NFL potential."  Zierlein went on to say, "Foreman is a big back who runs behind his pads and is able to create yardage with power, but don't sleep on his wiggle … Foreman has shown he can operate as a downhill back and an off-set back. He has the speed to get the edge and the burst to live between the tackles. He continues to impress scouts."  Foreman had a few monster outings this year, including three games with at least 250 rushing yards.  On the season, the Junior totaled 2,028 yards and 15 touchdowns on 323 carries.  The high usage led to Foreman going professional.  He is very good in pass protection and should contribute on Sundays. 

19. Jake Butt (Michigan) – We have the Senior tight end ranked higher than most.  He has NFL size (6’5”, 250 pounds) and is both a very good blocker and receiver.  Daniel Jeremiah compared Butt to Jason Witten, "I really like the comparison to Jason Witten … Both guys are physical, instinctive and catch everything."   We agree with the former scout.  The other thing Butt has in common with Witten is his competitiveness.  Mel Kiper had this to say about the Michigan star, "I thought Butt could have pushed his way into second-round consideration had he entered the 2016 draft, and his return gives the Michigan offense a pretty big weapon … When he makes catches in space, he can turn it up and will run through tackles. While he's not a very good blocker, the effort is there. He's a weapon who is certain to be catching NFL passes next fall."  We disagree with Kiper and think Butt has improved significantly as a blocker this season.  What makes Butt unique, like Witten above, is his ability to run great routes and make catches in traffic.  Coach Harbaugh has his tight end ready for the NFL. 

18. John Ross (Washington) –  The redshirt Junior had only 24 receptions coming into the 2016 season.  He was a relative unknown before the season but is now thought to be in contention for a first-day selection in the NFL Draft.  The 5’11”, 190-pound receiver missed the 2015 season due to a knee injury.  He entered college as one of the fastest players in the country (clocked at 4.25 in the 40-yard dash) and still has the same burst after the knee injuries.  Quarterback Jake Browning has built a great rapport with Ross.  His position coach, Butch Hamdan, recently was quoted as saying, "the game’s slowing down a little bit [for Ross], for sure, from a route-running standpoint … Just understanding when to use his speed, when he’s got to kind of trust his technique and slow down a little bit … I think he’s become a stronger player, better against press coverage. Just overall a more complete player."  Bucky Brooks, of NFL.com, wrote last month about Ross, “He has always intrigued scouts with his combination of speed and quickness, but I've been impressed with his route-running ability and ball skills … Ross is a natural pass-catcher with outstanding explosiveness, as evidenced by his three-touchdown effort against Oregon … Ross' ballerina-like toe tap on his 15-yard touchdown on a post route will definitely intrigue scouts looking for a dominant WR1 on the perimeter."  The huge game against Cal late in the season was very impressive.  In the first half, alone, he caught three passes for over 100 yards and all three catches went for scores.  He ended the contest with 6 catches for 208 yards and the trio of first-half touchdowns.  While the numbers were huge, no doubt, the Cal defense is a sieve.  On the year, Ross caught 76 passes for 1,122 yards and 17 touchdowns.  He was consistent.  These are great numbers for a receiver who only topped the 100-yard mark three times.