Undervalued Players: 3 Safeties to Target

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A fantasy draft is all about obtaining the most value with each selection. Value is available throughout a draft; grabbing it is one of the most important keys to a successful fantasy team. To point out this value, we asked our staff to identify players available in the top half of your draft who should outperform their draft position. Thanks to the folks at TheIDPShow.com for the ADP.

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Here are the players who received the most votes:

• Camryn Bynum, Minnesota
• Ifeatu Melifonwu, Detroit
• Josh Metellus, Minnesota

And here are the reasons why.

Undervalued Players Receiving 2 Votes

Ifeatu Melifonwu, Detroit

Kyle Bellefeuil: Melifonwu was a waiver wire darling to finish last season. Over his final five regular season games (all starts), Melifonwu held a 91.2% snap share, producing 26 tackles (19 solos), three tackles for loss, three sacks, and two interceptions. During that five-game stretch, Melifonuw saw 166 of his 295 defensive snaps up in the box and slot areas, per Pro Football Focus. A full season with an IDP-conducive role for the Detroit defense has Melifonwu looking like a potential value at safety in upcoming drafts. 

Tripp Brebner: Finding an undervalued safety in a fantasy draft's early to middle rounds is a low-odds gamble because the position is so flat. The margins between a top-five safety and the 25th player at the position is typically 2-3 points per game. A player's finish can swing widely on a couple of turnovers returned for touchdowns at a relatively low-output position. Ifeatu Melifonwu, for instance, scored 13.75 points per game after Week 13 upon earning starter's reps. Extrapolated across the season, that average would have ranked second among fantasy safeties after Antoine Winfield's historic season. Melifonwu is set to reprise his role as the Lions' starting strong safety. The team let C.J. Gardner-Johnson walk in free agency and focused their investments on cornerbacks this offseason. Their defense should be more aggressive in 2024, supporting Melifonwu's opportunities to make plays.

Camryn Bynum, Minnesota

Joseph Haggan: While many managers have fallen in love with Josh Mettelus, I'm sticking with Bynum. Bynum had a mini breakout in 2022 with 80 tackles and two interceptions after posting just 28 tackles as a rookie in 2021. He followed that up by leading the Vikings in tackles in 2023 with 137 tackles. To boot, he added three forced fumbles, two interceptions, and 9 passes defended. This landed him a top 5 defensive back finish across almost any scoring setup. With the weak linebacker group ahead of him, I wouldn't be surprised if Bynum led the Vikings in tackles yet again. 

Matt Montgomery: Similar to my other pick (see the bottom of the article), Bynum is liable to be the best defender any given week, and he showed us this often last season. I don't believe it was a fluke; I believe we saw the ascension of a young and talented player who we will now see thrive as a defensive focal point on a team lacking some defensive star power. At 25 years old, I believe he has entered his prime, and if last season can be improved upon, there's no reason he isn't top 5 in the league.