Fantasy Football Busts: Malik Nabers, Zay Flowers, Terry McLaurin (2025)

As you prepare for your fantasy football drafts, avoiding early-round mistakes is just as important as hitting on league-winning picks. That’s why we’ve gathered insights from our collection of Featured Pros experts to help you sidestep potential landmines at one of the most critical positions — wide receiver.

In this article, our experts identify their top early fantasy football busts at wide receiver, players who may be overvalued based on current average draft position (ADP) and could fail to deliver the return you’re expecting. Before you lock in your first few picks, make sure you’re not drafting someone who could sink your season.

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Fantasy Football Busts to Avoid

What WR in our consensus top 24 should fantasy football managers fear the most as a potential bust?

Malik Nabers (WR – NYG)

“Malik Nabers enters his second season with undeniable talent, but the situation in New York remains highly unstable. The Giants’ quarterback room (featuring a declining Russell Wilson, turnover-prone Jameis Winston and untested rookie Jaxson Dart) offers no clear path to consistent, high-level passing production. Nabers will also contend with the NFL’s toughest projected strength of schedule and one of the league’s worst offensive lines, ranked 27th in pass-block win rate in 2024. That combination limits both his target quality and downfield opportunities. Despite his upside, Nabers is more likely to be limited by his environment than to make a major leap in Year 2.”
– Avery Thrasher (The Branded Sports)

Zay Flowers (WR – BAL)

“Even after two respectable seasons (WR29, WR24), drafting Zay Flowers at WR22 means you’re expecting him to hit his absolute ceiling. Any wide receiver you draft in the top 24 should have some path to a top-three finish at the position, but that simply doesn’t exist with Flowers. The Ravens’ passing volume is anemic, ranking 31st in pass attempts in back-to-back years, and even with a 25% target share, that only translated to four touchdowns last season. Given his diminutive 5-foot-9 frame and Derrick Henry still in the backfield, those precious red-zone opportunities are only going to shrink, making him more dependent on efficiency without a touchdown safety net. He’s a risky mid-tier WR2, banking heavily on a touchdown surge that just doesn’t seem likely given his size and the Ravens’ pass volume in 2025.”
– James Emrick-Wilson (Armchair Scouting)

Terry McLaurin (WR – WAS)

“The Washington Commanders added Deebo Samuel and strengthened their offensive line this offseason after averaging the sixth-most points per game last season. Terry McLaurin saw 117 targets in 2024, turning them into 82 receptions, 13 touchdowns and 1,096 receiving yards. He averaged 15.5 fantasy points per game last season, which ranked 15th. McLaurin is another player I was in on last year that I’m not as comfortable with selecting this season because of his low target and high touchdown numbers. I think he can still be a solid fantasy asset, but he will be volatile week-to-week, and he probably won’t score as many touchdowns.”
– Nick Penticoff (Fantasy Football Astronauts)

Garrett Wilson (WR – NYJ)

“New Jets quarterback Justin Fields led DJ Moore to the best season of his career in Chicago, but has been anything but consistent throwing the football. Garrett Wilson doesn’t have a ton of talent in the receiver room in New York to draw the attention of defenses away from him, and just how much are the Jets going to throw? Wilson has broken 1,000 receiving yards in each of his three seasons, but hasn’t been known as a big-play threat. I don’t see Wilson making up for the lack of expected production in my projections with a double-digit receiving touchdown season, so I’m staying away from him as a top-24 wideout.”
– Lee Wehry (FantasyPros)