Every veteran fantasy manager has been burned by at least one player at some point — perhaps more than once. Or maybe you’re convinced that a particular player has gone over a cliff and is no longer worth rostering. Some fantasy managers have sworn never to draft a particular player again.
Our featured analysts are here to tell you which players they’ll never draft again.
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League-Winning Wide Receivers to Target Early
1. Which WR From WR9 to WR25 in our consensus half-PPR ADP has the most league-winning upside?
Courtland Sutton (DEN)
“Sutton will be this year’s Cooper Kupp: a WR taken in the middle rounds who alters the tides of fantasy football leagues by leading the NFL in red-zone targets like Kupp did in 2021. The big-bodied fiend led the Broncos in red-zone targets in 2021 and led all WRs in target rate inside the 10-yard line in 2019. Wilson has an affinity for attacking receivers in the red zone; a Seattle WR has finished top-five in red-zone targets for three straight seasons. And no WR who has led the NFL in red-zone targets has finished worse than fantasy WR3 overall since 2017.”
– Andrew Erickson (FantasyPros)
“The easy answer for me is Courtland Sutton, who is currently WR22 in FantasyPros consensus half-PPR ADP. Now two years removed from his ACL injury, and with Russell Wilson in town, Sutton is primed for a huge season. Sutton already has a season of 72/1112/6 while playing with Joe Flacco, Brandon Allen and Drew Lock on his resume, so we know the talent and potential is there. Now with Wilson, who is a future Hall of Famer and is third all-time in passing TD percentage since the merger, a season of 80/1,200/10 or more is a realistic projection for Sutton.”
– Wyatt Bertolone (JWB Fantasy Football)
Mike Williams (LAC)
“Mike Williams was the WR1 in half-PPR scoring through Week 5 last season, just ahead of Cooper Kupp. But Williams tweaked his knee in Week 5, and his midseason production slowed down considerably — he was the WR50 from Week 6 through Week 11. When fully healthy, the 6-4, 218-pound Williams is a big-play machine. He’s averaged 16.1 yards for his career. He had a 10-TD season in 2018 and a nine-TD season in 2021. Williams plays with one of the best young quarterbacks in the game, Justin Herbert, and the Chargers ranked fifth in percentage of passing plays last year in Joe Lombardi’s first season as offensive coordinator. I have Williams ranked ahead of more highly regarded teammate Keenan Allen.”
– Pat Fitzmaurice (FantasyPros)
D.J. Moore (CAR)
“D.J. Moore is someone I’m prioritizing in all formats. Moore is the only wide receiver with at least 1,200 yards from scrimmage in each of the past three seasons — and he’s just 25 years old. He has the best quarterback of his career with Baker Mayfield, and Moore is clearly still in the ascension phase of his NFL trajectory. At some point, the secondary breakout — the jump from 1,200 yards to 1,500 yards — will happen.”
– Matthew Freedman (FantasyPros)
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League-Winning Wide Receivers to Target Late
2. Which WR outside the top 25 in our consensus half-PPR ADP has the most league-winning upside?
Gabriel Davis (BUF)
“The Bills eventually saw the error of their ways in playing a dusty Emmanuel Sanders and unleashed Gabriel Davis from Week 14 onward. The second-year wideout averaged 19.8 fantasy points per game (PPR) and 16.0 expected fantasy points per game in his last six games as a full-time player. As the entrenched No. 2 wide receiver, Davis has a legitimate shot to be a league-winner in a Josh Allen-led offense in 2022. Despite being a part-time player only the last two seasons, the former UCF Knight ranks top five in the NFL in total end-zone targets. Davis is also just one of two WRs to rank top five in yards per catch over the last two seasons. ”
– Andrew Erickson (FantasyPros)
“Gabriel Davis: Inject him straight into my veins. Quarterback Josh Allen is good enough to support two fantasy-relevant wide receivers, and Davis is dynamic enough to make a third-year leap. Wide receivers Cole Beasley and Emmanuel Sanders are both gone, and 184 targets have opened up in their absence. Slot receivers Isaiah McKenzie and Jamison Crowder will seize their share of those vacated targets, but Davis is locked in as a perimeter player, and he has produced for two years with the Bills with 9.9 yards per target, including the playoffs, when he went off against the Chiefs. With his 12.1% touchdown rate, he’s a legitimate end-zone weapon at 6-2 and a beefed-up 227 pounds, and he’s just 23 years old. Davis is a massive breakout candidate.”
– Matthew Freedman (FantasyPros)
Jalen Tolbert (DAL)
“Jalen Tolbert, who is currently the WR67 in FantasyPros’ consensus half-PPR ADP, has a great chance to contribute right away and carve out a serious role for himself in the Dallas Cowboys offense. A third-round pick in this spring’s NFL Draft, Tolbert is a polished wide receiver with good athleticism capable of making plays at every level and only fell to the third round because he attended a small school. With Michael Gallup and James Washington dealing with injuries, Tolbert is in line to start alongside CeeDee Lamb for the Cowboys. We know this is going to be a fast-paced and high-scoring offense, giving Tolbert plenty of opportunities to break out.”
– Wyatt Bertolone (JWB Fantasy Football)
Rashod Bateman (BAL)
“With so few proven commodities on the Ravens’ WR depth chart, it’s easy to project 2021 first-round draft pick Rashod Bateman for an ample target share. With reasonably good health, Bateman should easily finish with more than 100 targets, and something in the 140-150 range wouldn’t be too far-fetched. But the state of the Ravens’ WR depth chart isn’t the only reason to like Bateman. The former University of Minnesota star has few holes in his game. He’s a crisp route runner, he has sticky hands, he’s feisty on contested catches, he’s strong after the catch, his 4.48 speed shows up on the field, and he was used both outside and in the slot during his college career. There’s an excellent chance we get a second-year breakout from Bateman in 2022.”
– Pat Fitzmaurice (FantasyPros)
Thanks to the experts for sharing their advice! For more of their insight, be sure to follow each pundit on Twitter (click their names above) and visit their respective sites.
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If you want to dive deeper into fantasy football, check out our award-winning slate of Fantasy Football Tools as you navigate your season. From our Start/Sit Assistant – which provides your optimal lineup based on accurate consensus projections – to our Waiver Wire Assistant, which allows you to quickly see which available players will improve your team and how much – we’ve got you covered this fantasy football season.
