Here are three things to consider when mapping out a fantasy football draft strategy for the WR position:
- League settings must be taken into account.
- Wide receiver isn’t as deep as is commonly believed.
- Wide receiver is usually a more predictable position than running back.
Smart fantasy football managers tailor their draft strategy to their league settings.
Fantasy Football Draft Strategy: Wide Receiver
The most important setting is the number of wide receivers you have to start each week.
If you’re only required to start two wide receivers, it’s OK to be somewhat laissez-faire in your approach to drafting wide receivers. It’s acceptable to merely keep pace with your competitors at the WR position, provided you’re building positional advantages elsewhere.
But if you’re required to start three receivers, you should invest heavily in the WR position.
Wide receiver is a crucial position in 3WR leagues simply because receivers make up such a large percentage of your starting lineup. If your league requires you to start 1 QB, 2 RBs, 3 WRs, 1 TE and 1 FLEX, at least 37.5% of your non-defense, non-kicker starters will be WRs. That percentage jumps to 50% if you put a WR in the flex spot.
Your goal in 3WR leagues should be to overwhelm your competitors with superior WR firepower. Ideally, your WR4 will be better than everyone else’s WR3 and perhaps even better than some people’s WR2.
In my 3WR leagues, at least three of my first five draft picks are wide receivers, and in many drafts, four of my first six picks are receivers.
The scoring system is another important league setting.
Full-point PPR leagues tend to drive up the overall value of wide receivers — particularly the high-volume receivers. Standard (or, if you prefer, “non-PPR”) leagues reduce the overall value of receivers and close the gap between high-volume receivers such as Garrett Wilson and lower-volume, big-play receivers such as Jameson Williams.
Wide Receiver Depth Is a Myth
There seems to be a perception among many fantasy gamers that wide receiver is a deep position.
It’s deep in that there are a lot of wide receivers who get significant playing time. There are 32 NFL teams, each team starts at least two wide receivers, and NFL offenses use three-receiver sets on more than 60% of plays.
But we want receivers who are doing more than running routes and getting in their cardio work. We want receivers who are actually catching a lot of passes, piling up a lot of yardage and scoring touchdowns. We want receivers who score a significant number of fantasy points.
The number of receivers who reliably deliver significant point totals is smaller than some fantasy managers think.
For example …
- Only 33 wide receivers played at least 10 games and averaged double-digit points in half-point point per reception (PPR) scoring last season.
- Only 34 wide receivers drew at least 100 targets.
- Only 27 wide receivers had more than six TD catches.
- Only 21 wide receivers had 1,000 or more receiving yards.
In a league where you’re required to start three receivers every week, your roster will ideally have three receivers who reach all of the thresholds listed above. To get your fair share, you need to attack the WR position early in the draft.
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Wide Receivers Are (Usually) More Predictable Than Running Backs
If you want to ensure high-quality production from your wide receivers, you need to pay up because what you pay for at the WR position is usually what you get.
I say “usually” because last year was an atypical season in this regard.
As I mentioned in my 2025 Running Back Primer, the RB and WR positions had an atypical injury dispersion in 2024. Normally, the RB position has higher injury rates than the WR position.
But last season, Christian McCaffrey and Isiah Pacheco were the only quality running backs to miss significant chunks of the season due to injury. At the WR position, high-level performers Brandon Aiyuk, A.J. Brown, Nico Collins Stefon Diggs, Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Tee Higgins, Puka Nacua and Rashee Rice all missed at least three games.
In most years, we’ll see running backs taken in the mid to late rounds of fantasy drafts emerge as impactful performers. It’s often because lead running backs get hurt and backups are thrust into important, fantasy-relevant roles.
Rarely do we see the same sort of thing at wide receiver. The only hugely pleasant surprise at wide receiver last season was rookie Brian Thomas, whose ADP in half-point PPR leagues was WR46, 109 overall. And perhaps we shouldn’t have been so surprised by Thomas, who was a first-round draft pick after all.
Fantasy Football Targets & Avoids
Here are some of the wide receivers I’m targeting and avoiding at various price points.
Early Rounds
Target: Brian Thomas Jr. (JAC)
As of mid-June, Thomas had an ADP of WR8. I have him ranked WR6. Playing the first month of the season at age 21, Thomas thrived from the jump and finished his rookie year with 87 catches for 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns — despite Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence missing seven games, and despite Thomas having to gut out several midseason games with a chest/rib injury.
Target: Drake London (ATL)
London blossomed in 2024, finished third in the NFL in targets (158), ninth in receptions (100) and fourth in receiving yards (1,271) while scoring a career-high nine touchdowns. When rookie QB Michael Penix Jr. made three starts for the Falcons at the end of the regular season. London caught 22-of-39 targets for 352 yards and two touchdowns in those three contests. Penix has extraordinary arm talent, and now that he’s the full-time starter, he should help keep London’s fantasy value high.
Target: Garrett Wilson (NYJ)
Wilson has started his NFL career with three straight 1,000-yard seasons, overcoming terrible quarterbacking in his first two seasons, and being forced to share targets with Aaron Rodgers‘ bestie Davante Adams last year. Now, Wilson is being reunited with former Ohio State teammate Justin Fields. Not that Fields is an elite passer, but it’s worth noting that in 2023, Fields’ best season as a passer, he helped Bears WR D.J. Moore finish WR6 in half-point PPR fantasy scoring.
Avoid: Amon-Ra St. Brown (DET)
St. Brown went from 20.7 PPR fantasy points per game in 2023 to 18.6 last year. He was still a top-three PPR receiver in 2024, but his fantasy success was driven by a freaky, career-best 81.6% catch rate and a career-high 12 TDs. After averaging 10.3 targets per game in 2023, St. Brown averaged 8.3 targets per game in 2024. The emergence of Lions WR Jameson Williams no doubt contributed to the target fall-off. And now, the Lions’ offense has to adapt to losing Ben Johnson as the offensive coordinator. He’s a terrific player, but I believe St. Brown should be drafted behind Brian Thomas, Puka Nacua and Malik Nabers.
Middle Rounds
Target: Calvin Ridley (TEN)
Ridley has topped 1,000 yards in each of the last two seasons. He averaged 15.9 yards per catch and 1.86 yards per route run in 2024 ,even though the Titans had one of the worst QB situations in the league. No. 1 draft pick Cam Ward is an aggressive downfield thrower who should help boost Ridley’s fantasy value, and Ridley has little target competition in Tennessee.
Target: Jerry Jeudy (DEN)
Jeudy hit career highs last season in targets (145), receptions (90) and receiving yards (1,229). Jeudy should remain the top target earner in Cleveland despite the Browns’ offseason addition of mercurial WR Dionte Johnson. The Browns’ QB situation is messy, but veteran Joe Flacco is one of the quarterbacks in the mix, and he’s been a rainmaker for pass catchers late in his career. Over the last three years, Flacco has averaged 283.9 passing yards and 1.9 TD passes a game over 15 starts.
Avoid: Travis Hunter (WR, CB – JAC)
Hunter was a two-way star in college, shining as both a WR and CB. The Jaguars have said they plan to use Hunter primarily as a WR but will also give him snaps at CB. I’m worried Hunter might play less WR and more CB than people are expecting in 2025. If Hunter gets significant playing time on defense, he isn’t going to have a snap share of 90% or higher the way most top receivers do. His snap share could be closer to 70%. And Jacksonville does not have a good group of cornerbacks. It might be very tempting for the Jags to ramp up Hunter’s defensive usage if opposing WRs are lighting up the Jacksonville D. And it’s hard to see Hunter drawing enough targets to be a fantasy difference-maker as long as Brian Thomas Jr. is healthy.
Avoid: Josh Downs (WR – IND)
The Colts are likely to have mediocre quarterbacking this season, with Anthony Richardson and Daniel Jones competing to be the starter. Even if the Colts get better QB play than expected, rookie TE Tyler Warren could quickly become a focal point of the Indy passing game and steal a lot of the short-range targets that Downs thrives on. In 31 career games, Downs has scored only seven touchdowns.
Late Rounds
Target: Marvin Mims (DEN)
Mims scored six touchdowns over the Broncos’ last seven regular-season games and averaged 62 yards a game over that stretch despite playing fewer than half of Denver’s offensive snaps in all of those games. He averaged 0.72 PPR fantasy points per snap in those seven contests. To put that into perspective, last year’s WR1 in fantasy scoring, Ja’Marr Chase, averaged 0.38 PPR fantasy points per snap. There’s no guarantee Broncos head coach Sean Payton will expand Mims’ role, but the 23-year-old receiver is a worthwhile late-round dart throw.
Avoid: Jalen McMillan (TB)
McMillan scored eight TDs as a rookie, but seven of them came in the Buccaneers’ last five games, after Godwin’s season-ending injury. McMillan averaged 1.22 yards per route run in 2024 — not an impressive number. It seems unlikely that McMillan will be fantasy-relevant this year with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin both healthy and with first-round draft pick Emeka Egbuka joining the Buccaneers’ WR corps. Don’t waste a draft pick.
Wide Receiver Rankings & Tiers
Here are the top 50 wide receivers in my redraft rankings, sorted into tiers, with thoughts on some of the players from each tier.
Tier 1
Ja’Marr Chase won the pass catchers’ Triple Crown last year, leading the NFL in catches (127), receiving yards (1,708) and TD catches (17). He’s at the height of his powers and plays with one of the best pure passers in the game (and his former college teammate at LSU), Joe Burrow. Chase is a worthy candidate for the No. 1 overall pick in fantasy drafts.
CeeDee Lamb “only” had 101-1,194-6 last year, but he missed two games and had to play half the season without starting QB Dak Prescott. Lamb should be a top-six fantasy draft pick.
A lot of fantasy managers fretted that QB Sam Darnold might thwart Justin Jefferson’s fantasy value last season. Jefferson finished WR2 in fantasy scoring. Don’t let yourself believe that the inexperience of Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy will restrain Jefferson’s fantasy value this year.
Tier 2
Malik Nabers was terrific when healthy in his rookie season, finishing with 109-1,204-7 in 15 games. The Giants’ murky QB situation is an obstacle Nabers will have to overcome, but he’s likely to keep churning out big numbers no matter who’s playing quarterback.
Puka Nacua has averaged 9.5 targets, 6.6 catches and 88.4 receiving yards per game in his two NFL seasons. The question is whether the Rams’ addition of veteran WR Davante Adams puts a dent in Puka’s numbers.
A.J. Brown finished WR18 in half-point PPR fantasy scoring, but that was largely because he missed four games. He tied for WR12 in fantasy points per game despite playing in the league’s run-heaviest offense. He’s still at the height of his powers entering his age-28 season.
Tier 3
Jaxon Smith-Njigba had an impressive Year 2 breakout, finishing with 100-1,130-6. But JSN will have to establish chemistry with new Seahawks QB Sam Darnold, and Smith-Njigba might not take as many snaps from the slot now that Seattle has added slot WR Cooper Kupp.
After scoring 18 touchdowns over his previous four seasons, Terry McLaurin scored a career-high 13 TDs in 2024 while extending his streak of 1,000-yard seasons to five. Perhaps young QB Jayden Daniels can help keep McLaurin’s touchdown total high.
Tier 4
Marvin Harrison Jr. is coming off a disappointing rookie season in which he had 62 catches for 885 yards and 8 touchdowns. Those normally wouldn’t be considered bad numbers for a rookie, but Harrison is a prodigy whom the Cardinals drafted No. 4 overall. Harrison’s average depth of target was an unusually high 13.4 yards, and Cardinals QB Kyler Murray hasn’t been very effective throwing over the middle in his career. It’s fair to wonder if Harrison’s skills are a poor fit for the Arizona offense.
Tetairoa McMillan seems poised to immediately become the Panthers’ No. 1 receiver after Carolina took him with the eighth overall pick in the draft. McMillan has a planetary catch radius, he moves smoothly for a big receiver, he’s an advanced router-runner, and he has good, strong hands. It’s possible he’s an impactful fantasy asset from the jump.
Rashee Rice was terrific in 2023 and early 2024 before tearing his LCL and PCL. His post-injury fitness is one concern; another is whether Xavier Worthy, who came on strong for the Chiefs down the stretch last season, will curtail Rice’s production.
Tier 5
Chris Olave had 87 catches for 1,123 yards in 2023 but played only eight games in 2024 due to a pair of concussions. Olave is a talented young receiver who’s averaged an impressive 2.21 yards per route run for his career, but the concussion issues are worrisome, as is the Saints’ transitional QB situation following the retirement of Derek Carr.
A May trade sent George Pickens from Pittsburgh to Dallas. Playing with CeeDee Lamb could limit Pickens’ target ceiling, but he’s not really cut out to be a high-volume receiver anyway. Pickens is a big-play specialist with exceptional ball skills, and playing with QB Dak Prescott should be good for him.
Tier 6
Deebo Samuel moved from San Francisco to Washington in the offseason. Questions about his role and his conditioning could keep him affordable in 2025 fantasy drafts, but Deebo could be a good fit for Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury’s system, which has room for a short-area receiver with the ability to consistently make yardage after the catch.
It’s hard to tell what to make of Jayden Reed. He averaged 4.3 catches and 80.1 receiving yards in the first seven games he played with Packers QB Jordan Love last season. In the last eight regular-season games he played with Love, Reed averaged 2.4 catches and 29.6 receiving yards.
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