3 Dynasty Wide Receivers Experts Avoid (Fantasy Football)

We’ll have you covered as you prepare for your 2025 dynasty drafts. In order to dominate your dynasty draft, check out our expert consensus dynasty draft rankings. And sync your dynasty league to practice with fast and free dynasty mock drafts. Below, we dive into dynasty draft picks our analysts are lower on compared to our expert consensus rankings.

Dynasty Draft Advice: Wide Receivers to Avoid

Marvin Harrison Jr. (WR – ARI)

Marvin Harrison Jr. didn’t come close to living up to the hype in his rookie season. Harrison Jr. finished as the WR39 in fantasy points per game and the WR27 in expected fantasy points per game. After such a disappointing first year, we’re left wondering, entering year two, “Can Harrison live up to last year’s hype and breakout in 2025?” I’ll start by saying I’m doubtful, and I’ll likely remain below consensus on him entering the year, but there’s a pathway for it to happen. Ok, let’s get back to 2024. In Weeks 1-9, Arizona deployed Harrison Jr. primarily as a downfield receiver, with only 29.9% of his routes being horizontal breaking routes and 49.6% of them being vertical breaking routes. In that sample, he drew a 21.4% target share (32nd) with 49.4 receiving yards per game (43rd), a 28.2% first-read share (29th), 0.093 first downs per route run (36th), and 1.97 yards per route run (38th, per Fantasy Points Data). This was a horrible game plan by Arizona’s coaching staff. Last year, Harrison Jr. ranked 84th and 51st in vertical route-breaking separation and route win rate as opposed to 16th and 19th in those categories when it came to horizontal-breaking routes. The good thing for Harrison Jr. is in Weeks 10-18, his horizontal route % climbed to 41.4%, while vertical breaking routes made up 38.5% of his usage. The problem is that in Weeks 10-18, his numbers didn’t improve; instead, they actually worsened with the usage change. He had a 20.6% target share (33rd), 55 receiving yards per game (37th), a 27.1% first-read share, 0.078 first downs per route run, and 1.56 yards per route run. His late-season usage and per-route numbers with horizontal routes offer hope, but his declining efficiency with the usage change muddies the 2025 waters. Harrison is a tough player to get excited about, given his usage and efficiency are in question, and there are no concrete answers to suggest we should expect better results moving forward.
– Derek Brown

Jaxon Smith-Njigba (WR – SEA)

Jaxon Smith-Njigba broke out in a big way in his sophomore season. He was the WR17 in fantasy points per game and really exploded down the stretch. In Weeks 9-18, he was the WR8 in fantasy points per game, ranking 11th in target share (25.4%), tenth in receiving yards per game (82.4), and ninth in yards per route run and first downs per route run (per Fantasy Points Data). I was very bullish about Smith-Njigba last year, but I find myself worried about his 2025 outlook. The Seattle Seahawks are going to lean on their ground game more this season after ranking sixth in pass rate over expectation and fourth in neutral passing rate in 2024. Even if Smith-Njigba proves that he can pick up right where he left off, his raw target volume could dip this season. I’m also worried about him playing more on the perimeter this season. Last year, during that insane stretch, he ran out of the slot on 81.3% of his snaps. Last year, his separation (0.035 vs. 0.068) and route win rate (9.4% vs. 10.4%) were notably worse as a perimeter wide receiver, while also noting that his overall numbers in these metrics were surprisingly poor. Overall, among 112 qualifying receivers, he ranked 62nd in separation score and 88th in route win rate. Smith-Njigba could return low-end WR2 value this season, but he’s a tough player to click as a high-end WR2/ borderline WR1.
– Derek Brown

Travis Hunter (WR/CB – JAC)

Will WR-CB Travis Hunter be the Shohei Ohtani of the NFL, providing rare two-way value? Hunter is a ridiculously fluid athlete with extraordinary ball skills. His route running needs refinement, but it’s scary to think about how good he could become once he develops that part of his game. The big question is Hunter’s role. He played both wide receiver and cornerback in college, and some people believe he’s better as a cornerback. The Jaguars, who traded up to select Hunter second overall in this year’s draft, say they intend to use Hunter primarily as a wide receiver in his rookie year, though Hunter has made it clear he wants to play both ways. Does double duty end up limiting Hunter’s offensive snaps? Abbreviated offensive usage could crush Hunter’s fantasy value. It makes Hunter a fascinating case study, and he’ll pose a major dilemma for fantasy managers in this year’s drafts.
– Pat Fitzmaurice

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