5 Fantasy Football Busts to Avoid: Wide Receivers (2026)

The NFL Draft is next week, and once the most exciting rookies are paired with their new teams, there will be a whole new crop of wide receivers we are excited to draft. In addition to the emerging and breakout receivers from last season, once draft season kicks off in May, there will be no shortage of wide receivers we are eager to select in fantasy football drafts.

But what about the wide receivers we shouldn’t draft? By that I mean, receivers we shouldn’t draft near what their average draft position (ADP) is heading into early summer. Who is looking to be heading in the wrong direction as the 2026 NFL season gets closer? With new players, new teams and new coaching schemes, what pass-catchers should we avoid in drafts? This piece will look at five fantasy football wide receivers who should likely not be drafted where they are going in early Underdog best ball drafts.

Fantasy Football Wide Receivers to Avoid

Garrett Wilson (WR – NYJ) | Underdog ADP: 35.9

Currently priced as the WR16, Garrett Wilson is being drafted based on his immense talent rather than his results over the past two seasons. Is that his fault or the fault of the awful quarterbacks he has had since entering the NFL? Justin Fields and Tyrod Taylor were horrific last season, and Wilson had to record a 33% target share to come close to getting any fantasy return on your investment in him.

Wilson is coming off an injury-plagued season and faces continued quarterback uncertainty with the Jets relying on a veteran upgrade like Geno Smith (a bust with the Raiders last season) or potentially a rookie. He has yet to finish as a true WR1 in points per game, making his late third-round cost too steep.

Jaylen Waddle (WR – DEN) | Underdog ADP: 48.7

Remember two or three years ago when we thought Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle would make up one of the most dominant wide receiver rooms for years to come? Life comes at you fast, I guess. Waddle was traded to Denver after spending five seasons in Miami. He was almost always productive during his Dolphins seasons. He recorded four finishes inside the top 30 among receivers in fantasy points per game. But he is never going to be a red-zone threat at his size, and the Broncos don’t like to go to wide receivers in that area anyway.

Waddle will compete with Courtland Sutton for targets in Denver for a team that was ninth in passing play rate last season, and fourth overall in passing plays per game. There is an opportunity here for Waddle to excel, but once again, he finds himself behind a more productive, established wide receiver. At this point, you have to draft him at the end of the fourth round to secure his services. I would much rather take him in the sixth if he falls.

Christian Watson (WR – GB) | Underdog ADP: 58.9

I had to do a double-take when I saw Christian Watson being drafted inside the fifth round in Underdog drafts. I understand that Romeo Doubs is gone. But Watson is perpetually hurt, he still has to deal with Jayden Reed and Matthew Golden (who finally emerged at the end of the season) and the Packers will get Tucker Kraft back full healthy at some point early in 2026.

Watson is definitely a field-stretcher and can make big plays down the sideline. But this is a player who has never had more than 620 yards in a season and had a 19.9% target share when he played last season. Could everything break right for a coming-out party for Watson in 2026? Of course, but I’ll take Rome Odunze or Alec Pierce in similar draft spots over Watson right now.

Michael Pittman Jr. (WR – PIT) | Underdog ADP: 100.1

Last season, Michael Pittman Jr. finished with 9.6 half-PPR points per game, which only earned him the rank of WR34 on the season. And even for that level of production (barely a WR3 in fantasy football), things had to go perfectly with Daniel Jones when he was healthy for him to get there. Pittman was often outplayed by Alec Pierce and Tyler Warren. He’s now in Pittsburgh. There’s no question that it’s a worse situation than in 2025.

In Pittsburgh, Pittman is likely to find a less efficient passing attack, and he immediately walks in as the No. 2 behind DK Metcalf. What’s the best-case scenario for Pittman? Is Aaron Rodgers the quarterback again? Maybe? Do we really know who the Pittsburgh quarterback will be? Pittman could seriously struggle to score 10 points per game in a low-scoring, run-heavy offense. That’s not worth a top-100 pick unless Metcalf suffers some kind of injury or they make a serious upgrade at quarterback.

Tyreek Hill (WR – FA) | Underdog ADP: 179.1

Tyreek Hill is a free agent after suffering a horrible knee injury and being released by Miami this offseason. Is there a chance his career is over? I certainly think so, at least the fantasy career we all used to know and love. He will be 32 this season, and has dropped from fantasy’s top receiver as recently as 2023 to WR18 in 2024, and then was unable to finish the season last year. Will he ever have the explosiveness in his big plays again? Will he land with a top-tier quarterback? Will he get consistent playing time?

Right now, we can’t answer any of these questions reliably. Even when he was playing, His yards per route run have dipped closer to the mid-2.00s (used to be over 3.00 yards), and his targets per route run have declined, signaling less dominance on a per-route basis. Even at a low ADP, I’m not taking a shot here.