5 Players to Draft Using Zero WR Strategy (Fantasy Football)

We hear quite a bit about the Zero RB strategy during fantasy football draft season. It is a popular strategy in which one punts the running back position for the first several rounds while loading up at wide receiver and paying up for a premium quarterback and tight end. But what about the opposite approach? The much less popular Zero WR strategy.

Instead of ignoring running backs, you attack the position early and often for a Robust RB build. This might be a decent year to try it, given how aggressively running backs have been steamed up draft boards. Using FantasyPros’ Real-Time ADP (average draft position), I highlighted players going outside of the top five rounds who fantasy managers should target if they’re going to wait on drafting wide receivers.

Zero WR Fantasy Football Targets

Christian Watson (WR – GB)

Wild but true: Christian Watson has never topped 700 receiving yards in an NFL season.

It’s not from a lack of talent. Watson has that in bunches. He’s eclipsed 600 yards thrice, but injuries have repeatedly prevented him from going above that.

Last season, Watson returned from a torn ACL in Week 8 and looked awesome. He finished with 35 receptions for 611 yards and scored six touchdowns. His 13.2 fantasy points per game ranked 15th among wideouts, and he crushed it from an efficiency standpoint:

2nd in fantasy points per target (2.41)
4th in yards per target (11.1)
4th in yards per route run (2.65)
5th in fantasy points per route run (0.57)
5th in quarterback rating per target (122.6)
10th in first downs per route run (0.121)

Dontayvion Wicks and Romeo Doubs are no longer with Green Bay. Watson also just got a fat payday — a four-year, $92-million extension back in June. The runway is cleared for Watson to step into a full-time role and deliver a career-best season.

At WR30 with an ADP of 63, Watson is an automatic click for me in round six. I’d even be willing to go a bit above consensus and take him in the fifth round, so I don’t miss out.

Parker Washington (WR – JAX)

There are a ton of sharp fantasy sites and analysts in on Parker Washington this season. Count me among them.

The former sixth-round pick was a revelation last season, particularly down the stretch. In his final four games, Washington averaged 10.3 targets, 6.5 receptions, 113.5 receiving yards and 22.3 fantasy points per game while finding pay dirt three times.

Washington didn’t just eat out of the slot, either. He saw 23 deep targets, eighth-most among receivers, and his average depth of target (aDOT) was 12.5, which ranked 27th. He also produced chunk plays at a high clip. Washington recorded 18 explosive plays over the course of the season, good for eighth at the position, per PlayerProfiler.

There’s a ton of target competition in Jacksonville, but when it mattered most, Trevor Lawrence leaned heavily on Washington. Don’t expect the Jaguars to just bottle that back up.

Washington’s current fantasy football ADP is 83, meaning he’s going around the round seven/round eight turn. That’s far too low if he comes out guns blazing and picks up where he left off at the end of 2025. We saw the upside, and it’s immense. That makes him a great target for drafters chasing ceiling plays after they skipped the position early.

Chris Godwin (WR – TB)

Chris Godwin suddenly finds himself a Robin without a Batman. Mike Evans left Tampa Bay after 12 seasons, making Godwin the elder statesman in the Buccaneers’ receiver room.

Last season was rough for Godwin as he attempted to come back from a brutal ankle injury suffered in 2024. Now another year removed, there’s a chance he looks more like his old self in Zac Robinson’s offense, which will feature some concepts Liam Coen used successfully in Tampa Bay two years ago.

That season, Godwin ascended to a higher level and was playing lights out before an injury in Week 7. Up to that point, he was averaging 19.7 fantasy points per game, second only to Ja’Marr Chase.

With Evans gone, Godwin is a lock to be first or second in targets from Baker Mayfield this season. A large portion of those should be low-aDOT quick-hitters designed to get the ball in Godwin’s hands so he can rack up yards after the catch.

Last season, Kyle Pitts had a 7.4-yard aDOT in Robinson’s offense and posted a career-high 88 receptions. Godwin’s aDOT the past two seasons was 7.1 in 2025 and 5.7 in 2024. He’s better and more experienced than Cade Otton or Emeka Egbuka at catching the ball in traffic and making magic happen. Not crazy to think he’ll be the recipient of those passes and manufactured looks near the line of scrimmage.

Expecting Godwin to completely return to his pre-injury form is probably a fool’s errand at this point. But he’s a starter in a pass-happy offense and should see roughly seven targets a game. That’s exactly the type of player I want to take shots on in round eight, especially if I’m playing catch-up at the position.

Michael Pittman Jr. (WR – PIT)

A year after having DK Metcalf as the only threat on the outside, Pittsburgh felt the need to upgrade the receiver room. On top of drafting Germie Bernard in the second round, the team also traded for Michael Pittman Jr. and signed him to an extension.

From 2021-2023, Pittman was a beast, earning massive target volume and putting up WR2 numbers in fantasy. His production tumbled the past two years because of injuries to both himself and his quarterbacks, but he still saw 111 targets in both 2024 and 2025.

Pittman is a great addition to this offense and will likely thrive with Aaron Rodgers, who was 29th in yards per attempt (6.7) and 37th in air yards per attempt (6.1) in 2025. At his age, Rodgers doesn’t want to hold the ball and invite defenders to plant him on the turf; he wants to unload it quickly and into the hands of his receivers as fast as possible.

That gels with Pittman, who posted an 8.2 aDOT last season and was often the go-to option on run-pass option (RPO) plays in Shane Steichen’s offense. He can work the short and intermediate areas while Metcalf tries to take the top off the defense.

Pittman is currently coming off the board as the WR42, typically in the eighth round. In full PPR leagues, Pittman could outscore Metcalf, and he seems to be the better pick at cost between the two Pittsburgh wideouts.

Josh Downs (WR – IND)

Rise up, short king.

Forget finally getting more work in 2-WR sets — with Alec Pierce starting training camp on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, Josh Downs might have to play both starting wide receiver roles. I’m kidding, obviously, but my point remains: Downs has a massive opportunity in front of him and could be staring at a huge target share.

I mentioned the Colts’ heavy RPO usage above when discussing Michael Pittman. Steichen uses RPOs more than most in the league. Who are those targets going to go to? Not Pierce, who’s a premier field-stretcher and vertical threat. Tight end Tyler Warren will get some, but I suspect most will go to Downs, who ranked 17th in yards after the catch during his breakout 2024 season.

That season, Downs averaged 13.1 fantasy points per game, good for WR28. The under-the-hood metrics were better, though, as he ranked 13th in first downs per route run (0.113) and 21st in yards per route run (2.22).

Downs’ snap share and production dipped in 2025, but I’m not worried. He should see a career high in targets this season and has a chance to put together his best season yet. He should also be financially motivated, as 2026 is the final year of his rookie contract. A big season could propel him toward a lucrative deal in March.

I suspect Downs’ ADP will rise as we get deeper into August, but right now he sits at WR46 in Real-Time ADP. You can get him in round nine, but you’ll likely need to grab him a round early if you really want him.