Wide Receivers on New Teams (2023 Fantasy Football)

The 2023 NFL Free Agency is in full swing, with a lot of top players already in new landing sports ahead of the new season. Based on all the moves, our analysts have updated their player notes (which you can find under our 2023 fantasy football rankings). So let’s examine the fantasy football outlook for some top players on new teams entering the 2023 campaign.

Fantasy Football Outlook: Players on New Teams (2023)

Check out our consensus 2023 fantasy football draft rankings here

DJ Moore (WR – CHI)

The 2022 season was another sad year of D.J. Moore suffering through the “Allen Robinson” experience as one of the league’s most talented receivers whose being held back by mediocre quarterback play. Moore was the WR33 in fantasy as he dealt with a target quality rating and catchable target rate outside of 90th among receivers. Moore still managed to rank 27th in PFF receiving grade and 32nd in yards per route run (minimum 50 targets per PFF).

We witnessed his floor last season as Moore was 12th in target share (27.7%), 17th in target per route run rate (26.8%), and fourth in deep targets. Justin Fields will be the best passer that Moore has worked with to this point. While the target volume concerns are justified for Moore in Chicago’s offense, he has already displayed the ability to earn targets at a high rate. If the Bears’ passing volume surprises with the receiving upgrades this offseason, Moore will happily pay off his ADP. He is a low-end WR2/high-end WR3 in 2023 who could easily finish as a top-15 receiver.

Jakobi Meyers (WR – LV)

Josh McDaniels took another step in making the Raiders “Patriots west” as they inked Jakobi Meyers to a three-year deal. This is a welcome addition to a Raiders’ wide receiver room that was looking thin outside of Davante Adams and Hunter Renfrow. The dominoes might not be done falling, though, as this could also signal a Renfrow departure. Renfrow can be cut, and the Raiders can save 1.5 million against the cap.

The likeliest outcome is that Renfrow remains in Vegas this year and is cut bait next year when the team can save 8.2 million against the cap by kicking him to the curb. The Raiders are surrounding their new starting quarterback with underneath weapons. Meyers will rotate slot work with Renfrow. Meyers played 69.5% from the slot last year (Renfrow 86.0%), drawing a 22.0% target share (29th), a 25.8% target per route run rate (22nd) and a 27.4% air yard share as the Patriots’ number one option.

He was 29th in PFF receiving grade and 23rd in yards per route run (minimum 50 targets per PFF). Meyers has been the WR29 and WR35 in fantasy points per game over the last two seasons. Meyers’ signing could signal the Raiders’ plan to deploy more 11 personnel this season after ranking 18th in the use of three-plus wide receiver sets last year. Meyers will compete with Hunter Renfrow for second in line at the target water fountain. Meyers is a low-ceiling WR3/4 who gets a small boost in PPR formats.

Calvin Ridley (WR – JAC)

The last time we saw Calvin Ridley, he was still among the best receivers in the league. In 2021, Ridley was seventh in target share (27.4%), fourth in air yard share (40.0%), and fifth in route win rate. Ridley and Ryan couldn’t find their old chemistry as Ryan’s skills were profoundly diminishing. Ridley was subjected to backup quarterback-level target quality that ranked 63rd. His catchable target rate was only 71.2% (73rd). While it’s worth pondering what version of Ridley we’ll see returning from hiatus, don’t for a second think he was playing poorly in 2021 despite the fantasy results not being there. With Trevor Lawrence taking a huge step forward in 2022, Ridley will be a WR2 next season.