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Fantasy Football Draft Rankings & Tiers | Wide Receiver Must-Have Targets, Busts to Avoid & Sleepers (Ep. 2031)
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- [00:00]
A
This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human Max softness, Max energy, Max run. Go on a run that never runs out. In the new Brooks Glycerin Max 2 dual cell DNA tuned cushion is optimized for soft landings and powerful toe offs while a glide roll rocker helps provide a more fluid step through. To help you truly tune out and max your run, shop the Glycerin Max 2@brooksrunning.com all right, and welcome into the Fantasy Pros fantasy football podcast. The NFL offseason rolls on, as does our early ranking series. In this episode, it's all about the wide receivers, arguably the most important position on your roster these days. That's right. We're going to Preview the top 50 as we approach the unofficial start of summer. That is Memorial Day weekend. And back with me is a couple absolute astute rankers in the industry and including Mr. Big Pot Energy himself. He's a man who has been adding titles over the past year or so. Husband, homeowner, and now dog dad, Andrew Erickson. Great to be back with you. Any big plans for the now family of three for the long weekend?
- [01:08]
B
Try to get some sleep. That's usually in the cards here as well. But it is a special weekend for me as well because my birthday is on Sunday, so it's usually doesn't happen because Memorial Day changes, I think. Exactly. I think it's like the last Monday in May or whatever it is it's shaped up. So it's usually not the same weekend, but this year in particular, get the birthday, get Memorial Day the day after. So we'll, we'll plan in some IPAs. Well, that's, that's the story. That's some porch beers. It'll be fun.
- [01:38]
A
Well, I'm glad to hear that, man. Happy 21st birthday to you. A little bit early as we head into the weekend and we're also back tapping into one one of the biggest brains and the deepest collection of graphic tees that money can buy these days. He's the Athletics Jake Seeley. Jake, what's good down there on the shores of Virginia for the holiday weekend, pal?
- [01:56]
C
Oh, yeah, I wore the fun hat because I know you guys can't zoom out too far when Andrew's on so you don't get to really see the fun tea. There you go. Bad news, Andrew. Also, I was looking up your birthday for famous birthdays and you don't. I mean, the top three people are TikTok and YouTube stars. That's all you need to know, how bad it is. Queen Victoria, you Share it with Queen Victoria. That helps you. But sorry about that. You don't get the benefit of me. I have some, like Russell Wilson and who else is like Drake or somebody? I don't know. There's a bunch on the November that's not much better.
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A
That's not much better.
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C
November 29th has a lot. I just remember looking at it the other day, but just, you know, celebrating the fact that it won't be 90 degrees this weekend like it has been for the last three days. We're getting that. I'm sure it ran through you already. Seth, is that, that, that heat stroke that's coming through here? Chadwick Bosman is on my birthday too. So, like, that was nice.
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A
You got one there.
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C
Don Cheadle, Howie Mandel, Annie Ferris. I told you. Russell Wilson, Andrew McCarthy.
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A
Like, we got.
- [02:54]
C
We got a lot of.
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B
One person that does share my birthday is Bob Dylan. So that is. That is a good shot.
- [02:59]
C
Oh, really? How is that the first one that came up?
- [03:02]
A
Like, how's that.
- [03:04]
C
Anyway, well, congratulations on Bob Dylan then.
- [03:07]
A
And Jake. I'm hoping the heat kind of stays around. I'm going up north into New York State this weekend. Got the bachelor party. We're going to be doing some golfing on Saturday, so need that heat to stay around a little bit. And I'm sure there's going to be a lot of fantasy football discussion because whenever I get together with some of my friends, I haven't seen a while. It's always this time of year, hey, who are you starting to look at? Who are you trying to game? And you know, I've already lost a brother to a fantasy football draft earlier this year. He's disowned me from the family. So hoping my friends don't go the same direction after potentially hearing this episode where we're going to have some wide receiver takes for y'.
- [03:39]
C
All.
- [03:39]
A
And before we jump into that, a quick reminder and a shout out to everyone across the Internet for tuning in. We really appreciate that and I'm. Please do us a quick favor and give this video a thumbs up if you enjoyed this type of content. Make sure you subscribe right here to The Fantasy Pros YouTube channel and the audio feed. And also a quick reminder that this show is powered by our expert consensus rankings that can be found@fantasypros.com rankings and a part of those rankings is our tier one of wide receivers. Gentlemen, where Jamar Chase is going to come in at 1001 overall for us at this position. Puka Nakua after a pretty Interesting off season say the least here at 2 overall and then Jackson Smith, Najiba coming off just a sensational super bowl offensive player of the year season at 3 overall. So the top tier certainly seems to be consensus across really everyone's rankings. I'm seeing on the site right now Erickson, the question I have is I got Puka Nua at number one overall. I think he's out on the field. I think he's arguably the safest of these options. What argument can you make of the three pass catchers of who should be number one overall for you?
- [04:42]
B
So I also have Jamar Chase number one. So I agree with the consensus there. I just think that the combination of Jamar Chase and Joe Burrow, I think it's what we're going to see again like we saw in 2024 when they were the wide receiver one or Chase was a wide receiver one when Burrow was healthy. So both of them have quarterbacks that you have question marks about well can they play a full 17 game season. So kind of splitting hairs when it comes to banking on the health of the quarterback. But at least with Chase, feel a little bit more confident about his dependability and he's going to be out there a little bit more than Puka who I feel like leaves every game a little bit banged up. So again it's really, really close. I'm not going to knock anybody if you want Puka instead of Jamar Chase, but I think Chase is the best wide receiver in the NFL and the number one guy in fantasy.
- [05:30]
A
Jake, I do agree with Erickson. There are just question marks for me of not will he stay healthy, will Joe Burrow stay healthy behind the offensive line? And also like can you take some of these shrapnel hits that you're going to take with Jamar Chase? We know the Bengals typically slow starters. Chase got off to a rocky start a season ago as well. So are you willing to take that with the number one overall wide receiver or are you going a different position if you do have that luxury of the first pass catcher off the board?
- [05:55]
C
Yeah, I would love to have the fourth pick if I don't have the first, maybe even the second. I can see the argument for B John Gibbs going basically my my point being is I want the decision taken in my hands where I'm just left one of the three. Like I think any argument you make for any of the three I'm okay with. I would drop off a complete tier as this tier sets. I think there's you neither of you guys brought it up. I think there's a case for Smith and Jigba to be the number one because Smith and Jigba just had his breakout, had 17 fantasy points per game is more than Chase and I know that Chase played a lot without Joe Burrow last year but there's floors to all of them. There's the risk. I agree with Andrew. I have Naku in a lot of leagues because I had him in a lot of leagues where I high when he came out of rookie. Not I didn't expect this let me make that clear but I sat through the frustration of like this is freaking Julio Jones man. Just stay on the field. Like every game is like what the heck happened? And now he's coming back and now he's going out. He's coming back. So if you want to make that argument, maybe Stafford, you know, isn't healthy for his entire season. Chase, we just saw the floor of him but we know that he can be a 20 point game per guy but that was also one out of his five seasons. And then you can look at Smith and Jibbug and say you know what, he just had his breakout season, almost 18 fantasy points per game and and it wasn't a great year from Darnold. Like if you have any hope that Darnold could play better than he did last year, maybe Smith and Jigwood takes the next step up. So I present that all to say is I don't have a problem with any of the three. Mine actually go a little bit different. I'm with you. I go Nakua, Smith and Jig with Chase just because at this point I feel like Chase is kind of the floor of the three like the least concern as long as Joe Burrow stays healthy but any of the three I'm good with.
- [07:29]
A
Okay, not much discussion there. So let's go to tier two where we have a Monroe St Brown coming in at four overall. A guy I tried to fade a year ago will not do the same this season. CD Lamb 5 overall Justin Jefferson at 6 Drake London at 7 Nico Collins at 8 and then Rasheed Rice at 9 so gents first things first with this tier. How does Rashid Rice alleged 30 day jail sentence after undergoing knee surgery last week with a initial two month recovery timeline impact or rankings on him Cel are you moving him up, down, leaving the same until we know more what's your approach to this?
- [08:05]
C
That is leaving them until I know
- [08:07]
B
more moving them up the ranks.
- [08:12]
C
I don't like I hopefully I'm not drafting right now. And I think that if you are, I think the risk needs to push him down. I mean, we're talking, you could argue, I'm looking down at the tiers. Tier 3 might even still be too high. I think if you slide them back into the tier four, when we get to it, between Devontae Smith and Jameson Williams feels about right because we're assuming nice, nice timing, by the way, when the injury just happens to overlap when he's serving the suspension or the jail time. But I mean, if he's 100% and there is no more that comes of this, like, does the NFL, like, this is part of what they knew or they add on to it. There's people that have been online, lawyers that have said like, this probably won't result in more suspensions, but who knows? But if so, if he's 100% healthy and there is no more of it and he plays week one from there on out, I mean, Rice is a top 10 wide receiver. If there's more to it, and there is potentially, like the NFL says, this isn't cool, we are going to suspend you again, then obviously you have to play that risk. So that's where I would kind of put him as of today. But I'm not moving, like, I haven't moved them in my ranks yet because there's just so much uncertainty.
- [09:17]
A
Andrew. It really is, for lack of a better term, an uncertain situation. Right. This was allegedly happening after a failed drug test for marijuana that he spikes positive for. And then the judge who is on the verge of retirement, who known to, you know, throw out some things and known to kind of put people in their place a little bit, said, hey, Rashid Rice, you're gonna go serve this jail sentence now instead of it potentially being pushed down the line a couple years until everything is served. So. So your thoughts here on Rashi Rice and how this could maybe affect fantasy managers down the line?
- [09:51]
B
Yeah, I think that Drew Davenport on X did a really good job of kind of like summarizing what this Rice situation could kind of play out as. And I think the big point that he made was that this 30 day sentence isn't new with this marijuana test. Like, this is the same one that he was going to serve anyway. It's just a matter of, okay, well now that you did something bad again, like you got to serve your sentence now. Like, we're not waiting around, you have to serve it now. But to Jake's point, he's not going to be at OTAs or minicamp anyway. Because he had this knee scope injury. So he's going to be rehabbing that. Maybe he's rehabbing it in jail. I don't know how that works, but maybe the Chiefs know how that works. The thing that Jake also said that I agree with is he's on the field, he's the best Chiefs pass catcher and he's healthy or he should be healthy, at least from this cleanup surgery. So I'm not going to be moving him dramatically in my rankings. I think that you're going to see people probably panic on him and just assume, oh no, he's going to get suspended for three games or six games, which I still think is in the range of outcomes for him just based on the NFL might be sick and tired of Rashi Rice being in the news for another.
- [10:56]
C
Yeah.
- [10:56]
B
Running with the law. And that's okay. This is a repeat offender. We need to punish him. Maybe you see a three game suspension like we saw from Jordan Addison where he was in the headlines for the wrong reasons for things off the field. Maybe it's a six game suspension, but that was what happened last year with Rashi Rice. He got suspended to start the year and what happened when he came back, he was immediately a wide receiver, one that you got at a discount. So we'll see where he, his ADP kind of shakes up in some of these best ball drafts. I assume it's going to fall. So for now I just want to kind of keep watch. I'm not going to move him dramatically, but you know, we'll all know and I'll find out at the same time.
- [11:30]
A
Yeah, I know. Scott Fishbowl drafts are underway here in just I think a little over a month. So hopefully we get a little bit more clarity before some of those and some of these more competitive leagues do get underway. But really looking forward to seeing Rasheed Rice back on the field out of the headlines. I'm in wide receiver nine right now and like I'm kind of with you like Erickson.
- [11:49]
B
I'm definitely not moving a muscle. He's kind of like in his own. He's like in his tier of his own because it's. We just need more information similar to how I kind of view neighbors. Right? Just I want more information about when he's actually going to come back and start to play. So you could kind of put them in their own tier of need. More like tbd. Like neighbors tbd. Rossi Rice, tbd. But you know, when they're on the field they're going to be wide receiver ones.
- [12:10]
A
I think the only thing that can make this tricky is what happens if this sparks the Chiefs to go sign Stefan Diggs or Tyreek Hill, right? Then maybe we can actively push him down in our rankings a little bit. But until then, he stays a top 10 wide receiver for us and the consensus Celie, what other players in this tier do you think is ranked either too high or too low by our consensus rankers?
- [12:31]
C
So I'll let everybody know. Most of my picks today are too low. This is one of the very few too high. I don't get Nico Collins in this tier at 8. Like this is also before Rasheed Rice had the situation like this is. I'm sure Rasheed Rice is going to slide. Some people will already adjust but. But he was already in front of him. Like this is before that news even broke and he's in front of George Pickens and Chris Olave and I'm assuming AJ Brown is a Patriot, but maybe the Chiefs get back into that. Even McMillan like because there's a couple things going against Nico Collins and I love Nico Collins the player. It just comes down to the fact that even in his best pace, C.J. stroud's rookie season was his best touchdown pace at quarterback. 26 would have been that year if he played 17 games. The 17 games Nico Collins hasn't We talked about the jokes about the injury with Nakua. The dudes hasn't played more than 15 games. Like they like we go back 14, 10, 15, 12, 15. Like he doesn't stay on the field and I know the first two seasons aren't his. Like he really didn't break out in the NFL until his third year. But between the injuries, between the touchdown potential limit to this offense and I do think they'll be better this year they finally addressed the offensive line which will help CJ Stroud. And the big thing I was actually an apologist for Nico COLLINS because when C.J. stroud is under pressure, he actually targets Nico Collins at one of the highest rates of any quarterbacks targeting any of their players when under pressure. And Nico Collins plays well in those situations. It was one of the top yards per route runners. So there's all those numbers there. And yet we've still only seen 14, 14 and about 13 fantasy points per game. So I like Nico Collins. I just don't feel like his name deserves to be in a group with Lamb and St. Brown and Drake London and basically Jefferson because Rashid Rice is by himself. Like I don't. I don't think he deserves to be in this group is basically what I'm saying.
- [14:20]
A
Erickson, do you agree with that? Where do you have Nico in your rankings?
- [14:23]
B
I have him in this tier still, but towards the bottom. So I'm not taking them over any of those guys for some of the reasons that Jake outlined. But I also see Nico Collins in a situation where I remember betting him last year to lead the NFL in receiving yards because of how productive he was when he was healthy at one point in terms of just receiving yards per game, still think that he's the clear cut alpha in the Texans passing game. And if we can get CJ Stroud like a semblance of a run game, like anything with Dave Montgomery, I think that's going to help out a lot from a passing perspective from Stroud. So I do, I, I do disagree with him like being associated, but I don't disagree with him being at the bottom of the tier. So technically, if he's the start of the next tier, I necessarily wouldn't like push back like so similarly against that. Yeah.
- [15:11]
A
Okay. Erickson, who do you have beef with in this tier? Whether it's being ranked too high or too low? Where, where's the beef going?
- [15:17]
B
So I don't have too much beef in this particular tier. Most of my beef is on my grill that I like to have on the porch with my IPAs. Now, I would say the only player that I looked at here where I think I'm one spot lower. And it actually came down to CD Lamb versus Justin Jefferson. And I actually have Jefferson ahead of CD Lamb. And that's because Lamb last year I was really surprised at how the impact of George Pickens had on his ceiling. He had one top 5 weekly finish last year in half PPR CD1M. I know he missed some games, but George Pickens had five top five finishes and maybe that's just a matter of variance. And it just happened to be the games where George Pickens scored touchdowns and Lamb, when he had 100 yards, he didn't score. So maybe that's not really like capturing everything. But I was really shocked last year. I was not expecting Pickens to have this big of an impact on CD Land because his production was drastically different from what he did in 2023 and 2024 when he was an elite producer. Average over 20 points per game in full PPR with a healthy Dak Prescott. Like that was not the case last year when George Pickens was on the field. So it's not a matter of, okay, well, you can't draft Lamb he's too expensive. It's just a matter of, well, is he a clear cut, elite 20 points per game type of player? With George Pickens last year that was no. So that's my only thing I wanted to bring up with my quote unquote beef with CD Lamb versus Justin Jefferson, who I think is by far the clear cut alpha in his passing attack with Jordan Addison. Now you have question marks a little bit more about with the quarterback play, but last year with Carson Wentz, Justin Jefferson was still hitting like 95 receiving yards per game with Carson Wentz as his quarterback. So I think that I can get at least that with Kyler Murray, hopefully. So that was my only quote unquote beef that I had in this particular year. Just kind of highlighting the fact that Lamb's numbers fell off compared to without George Pickens in the lineup.
- [17:11]
A
So maybe not true beef, but like tofu kind of level of beef rolling there. So. And I'm with you, man, like CD Lamb, like there are one too many oopsies last year where he just like forgot he had hands that were kind of hard to look past. And Jake, is it possible that this Dallas defense actually improves with what they went out and added in the draft?
- [17:31]
C
I think overall this team should. And like, I don't have much of a problem with what Andrew said, especially as we're about to get into my next player. But as this was similar to what his argument pushing back on, well, not really, but pushing back with just like a counterpoint on Collins is. I'm actually kind of okay with Lamb here. If you want to argue for Jefferson, like he deserves to be in this tier because I like more of this. And I don't want to say I'm just throwing away last year, but I think the 20 point season two years ago, 20 points per game and last year are the two we can kind of toss out. Like CD Lamb's probably never getting, I would argue never getting back to 20 points per game. Sure. I would also argue only getting 11.7 is never going to happen again because as you said, like healthy was banged up a lot. Like even playing through the injuries. And the interesting thing was he was actually better when George Pickens was on the field. Like his numbers were better on a per target basis when George Pickens was out there with him than when he was only out there himself. Whether George Pickens was like a one wide receiver set or whatever it might be so. And a lot of that has to do with play calling too. But I just think a lot went wrong for CD Lamb last year. And part of it that I would say why he's never getting back to the 20 is because I think Pickens is going to take away that touchdown equity. Like that's still his game. Like I don't think ceeding Lamb's ever getting back to 10 plus touchdowns. So I have CD Lamb in this tier. I get the Justin Jefferson. I'd have a tough time deciding between Drake London and CD Lamb if they were both on the board. Maybe lean to Drake London for that target share that we know is going to be his. But that's obviously a big quarterback that question. But I don't have a problem with Lamb. I don't have a problem with Andrew's point saying like maybe a spot or two lower, like where did you have Lamb Andrew by the way? Just out of curiosity.
- [19:11]
B
So I had him six. So and I was actually like struggling in Jefferson and I guess for me it's just, I really want to draft Justin Jefferson. Like I'm just saying, I'm just like,
- [19:21]
C
I think everybody does.
- [19:23]
B
I'm just, I just want to get this guy in my team. And because Lamb is like one spot ahead of him and someone's fallen my rankings, I'm just, just draft Dustin Jefferson. Like that's who I want the most out of. You know, again talking about these tiers, I just, I think he's so slated for a bounce back. Like throw out everything with McCarthy last year. Like, I just want to like erase it from my mind and just get Justin Jefferson. And if that means taking him over a guy like Lamb, I think that I am willing to do it just based on the production dip that we saw with Pickens also in the lineup. Just from a points per game basis. Yeah.
- [19:56]
A
Okay. And before we keep it moving, a real quick reminder that our Dynasty draft simulator actually lets you crush a full mock draft in just minutes with absolutely no waiting in between your picks. You can customize every setting to match your league's exact format. And for our MVP and Hall of Fame subscribers, well, you can actually also test your trade scenarios by mocking with your actual traded draft picks. Not in this tier yet. Grab a 3 day free trial of a premium subscription right now@FantasyPros.com Dynasty26. Again, that's FancyProse.com Dynasty26. Prepare for your rookie drafts and Dynasty startup drafts all in one place. Go to fancyprose.com simulator and be the most prepared person on draft day. Gentlemen, I just finished up a startup draft. First one I think in maybe Two years that I've done and let me tell you, nothing like our tools in our rankings that got me prepared for that. So shout out to the Dynasty Draft Simulator and the Dynasty Draft Assistant as well. That was great to have there. Let's go ahead in to tier 3 where it's Malik neighbors coming in at 10 overall. Guy I had ranked a lot higher before this. More recent news came out where, hey, he needed another cleanup surgery as well. Trying to get back here for week one. They're hopeful. They haven't committed to anything right there in New Jersey yet. And then George Pickens at 11 overall. Chris Olave after a bounce back season is at 2012. A.J. brown at 13, currently with the Philadelphia Eagles. We'll see as June approaches where he does land if it is with New England as reported. And then Tedro McMillan comes in at 14 overall off of that offensive rookie of the year season. And then T. Higgins at 15 once again. Erickson, which receiver in this tier are you above or below consensus on, if any?
- [21:37]
B
So I'm a little bit above consensus on Tetaroa McMillan. I, I think that he is a player that showcased a lot of consistency being tasked with, okay, you're the number one wide receiver in our offense from day one, right? He had no kind of Runway to like, okay, you're a receiver, you're going to have a second half breakout. It was like, no, like you need to be our passing game because Jalen Coker is injured. We can't rely on Jatavian Sanders. You're the guy. And I think that what he did as a rookie, again winning offensive rookie of the year, where I know it was a down year for some of the rookies, especially the running backs overall, but still really impressive wide receiver 15 overall. Why we're serving 26 in points per game is really more of a. I think it's a better way to kind of describe his finish if you had him on your roster. Especially in the first half of the season. There wasn't a lot of weak winning performances from tmac. We talked about it a lot on the trade show. Myself and Worm that, okay, he's like not delivering like these big spike weeks. Part of that was because Bryce Young is your quarterback. Part of it was also we want to run the ball between Chuba Hubbard and Rico Dowdle. So it was kind of more of those circumstantial factors that I think held Tetron McMillan back. But in the games where he actually got fed double digit targets, 18 fantasy points per game and half PPR so when they decided, okay, we're going to let it rip a little bit here with tmac, I thought that he was a monster. I thought he was as advertised as the best wide receiver in the 2025 draft class. So this is just kind of a bet on a really talented rookie taking another step forward into year two. I think the only thing holding him back really is is the quarterback and the offensive play calling. If it's just a little bit more of okay, we're going to be bottom five and pass rate over expectation. We're not going to hashtag let Bryce Young cook, which I don't necessarily disagree with. I don't think that he is the most prolific passer. But to Bryce Young's credit and Dave Canales Young has improved every year of his NFL career. I think adding a receiver like TMAC helped him get a lot better. And another thing I looked at too, from the next gen stats, I noticed that and just kind of like looking at the stats every single week when I write some of my recap articles is some of the most consistent fantasy producers and high end fantasy producers at the wide receiver position. They put up a lot of their yardage on in breaking routes. Kind of just like how you're seeing a lot of receivers dominate today. McMillan, seventh in yards on in breaking routes behind guys like JSN, Puka Nukua, George Pickens, Amanra St. Brown, like all the guys we talked about at the top of the board in fantasy he is checking off some of those boxes. So I just think it's one of these things where looks like an Alpha, smells like an Alpha. He's probably just an Alpha wide receiver and I think that he can take the next step and at worst case scenario maybe he finishes right outside the wide receiver one territory. Again I'm okay with that where at least I can shoot on the upside that oh man, I could see him being a top five guy if he really takes that next step forward in his second season.
- [24:24]
A
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- [25:09]
C
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- [25:39]
B
Yeah.
- [25:39]
A
And he's someone whether it was time down there in Arizona or now here in the NFL where he hasn't missed a lot of time. Right. He's younger than some of these other receivers he's ranked around. It feels like he might be a little bit less of an injury risk, but he doesn't have the best quarterback. Right. And that's kind of what we have to sift through. Jake, based on what they did in the draft, adding Chris Brazel there on day two. Are you in out on Tedro McMillan at the current price tags that sound about right what Erickson's saying.
- [26:06]
C
Yeah, I'm good with the price where he's at. Like if you want to argue a little bit higher. Like okay maybe if you want to say as of today we don't know A.J. brown, maybe if you want to downgrade Chris Olave for Tyson coming in and maybe it siphon some off of him. Like, like I wouldn't because I'm good where he's at mostly because and this isn't to be like ha ha ha. I predicted his stat line but I was almost like 100% on a stat line from last year. And it's the production basis on the per targets that Andrew brought up. You still have to rely on Bryce Young. So I'm with this. If he gets to 140 plus targets that he could get higher that he could get to wide receiver one territory that it could even be a top 10 because 140 targets, it's pretty hard not to to be top 10 as long as your quarterback is capable. Justin Jefferson from before. But I think that's the biggest question. If he gets to 140. I'm not worried that much about Brazil taking away from him. I'm not really worried about whether anybody on this roster takes much away from it as long as he's seeing that volume, which kind of says more to a per game basis for the entire team versus more of his target share. Because his target share I don't think is going to change even with any addition that they make, including Brazel so far. But I think if he gets to 140, that that ratio of receptions, yards and touchdowns are pretty much going to stay the same and that uptick is just going to get inside the top 10. So that's what I want to say.
- [27:25]
B
Seth, could I add two things? I just wanted to.
- [27:27]
C
Yeah, I just answered for Seth like, no, you're not.
- [27:32]
B
That's fine. We're taking over the show. I think with Brazil too. I think his addition is going to help boost efficiency for T Mac because of the way that he can stretch the field, make it a little bit easier for T. Mac to operate underneath, because that was the big thing. Rookie year tmac wasn't this like, super hyper efficient wide receiver. Like, he was pretty good.
- [27:51]
A
A lot of double teams, catching a
- [27:52]
B
lot of double teams again from day one. It's like you're. You're the number one guy in our offense as a rookie, like, go. So you're going to run some growing pains there. But I thought that he improved in the second half of the season. So I think bringing in Brazil to kind of just like open things up a little bit, I think really helps. And the other thing I wanted to mention too is love Mike Clay's projections. And I have to mention this because you mentioned the exact number he has TMAC on. 140 targets. Exactly. So I just like. So like that you listed that off as the exact number. I just want to make sure I added that too because I think, yeah, I mean, last year he hit over 120, so I think that he can definitely flirt with 140 targets if he plays 17 games.
- [28:29]
A
Well, shout out Mike Clay. Fellow PA State scholar Kutztown University alumnus Mike Clay. And speaking of a guy who used to reside in Pennsylvania, Jake, who do you have in this year that you're either higher or lower on than consensus?
- [28:44]
C
So George Pickens. I think that his name needs to deserve, like, deserves to be with the tier we just talked about alongside T. Higgins. He just had 14 fantasy points per game over 14 fantasy points per game. I brought up the fact when we were talking about Lamb that he was more the touchdown maker. And I know a lot of people were talking about his two huge games early in the season without Lamb. He also had two huge games after Lamb came back and then they kind of went back and forth for the rest of the year. And I don't care about the back and forth because I don't care about the back and forth. T. Higgins just two years ago, by the way, if you take players that played at least 10 games because Rasheed Rice and Chris Godwin fall into this group, if not so number one, Jamar Chase and fantasy points per game, number two was T. Higgins. If you want to throw Rice and Godwin ahead of him, but whether, okay, he's number four. And then we've seen AJ Brown and Devontae Smith both finish as wide receiver ones just a few years ago averaging over 13 fantasy points per game. And that's what I'm going back to is he had 14 and I'm saying that lamb should get back to 14 to 15. Pickens can stay in the 14 to 15 without a drop off or anything siphoning off Lamb because they did it back and forth once. They were both healthy down the stretch. And that's where I'm looking at here. And to go to Andrew's point is that that's what works so well. Yeah, it hurt Lamb being able to get back to 17, 18, 19 fantasy points per game. But having that number two across from him helped Pickens get the best out of his game. And also like I said, Lamb was actually doing better with Pickens. It just didn't help us in fantasy because of the touchdowns. But I just think Pickens deserves to have his name into that previous group because those are where we're talking about 14 plus fantasy points per game, guys. And that's what he is. I don't think there's going to be a fall off even if lamb stays 100% healthy. And it's funny to tell Andrew why you said the 140 targets. Well, Pickens just had 137 for 93, 1409 touchdowns for 14.43 fantasy points per game, which put him at 6. So I think that's in play for McMillan if he gets to that 140 because it's a very similar projection line.
- [30:45]
A
Andrew, GP or McMillan for you this season?
- [30:48]
B
It's still going to be GP for me. So I have GP at 10. So I'm actually one spot ahead of consensus on George Pickett. So yeah, I mean I was wrong about him.
- [30:58]
C
I have a job. You hate him.
- [31:01]
B
An ultimate hater, I guess. Do you like. So you like both Lamb and Pickens at cost or do you prefer one? I mean, Pickens is obviously cheap.
- [31:09]
C
Well, no, no, yeah. Pickens at cost is cheaper. And also I can get like knowing that I'm probably gonna get him because I have him two or three spots ahead of what Air DP is. Lamb is right at so.
- [31:21]
B
Or actually counterpoint with Pickens. Would you lower him if he is like a holdout and it's like, I
- [31:27]
C
want the long term because like that's the thing.
- [31:30]
A
Like I'm trying to do the holdout.
- [31:31]
B
Well, that's the thing because. No, but this happens though. Like Terry McLaurin last year hold out. Like it was like immediate garbage. Like fade this guy into oblivion.
- [31:38]
C
I'm going to reference something for that for everybody out there a few years ago. And this isn't, this isn't haha. I talk to him, but like, okay, Mike Tomlin's from Hampton Roads area. I'm in the Hampton Roads area. He has a benefit foundation for kids here. And this is where I got to interview him. This goes all the way back to Le'Veon Bell. And this, this is relevant for what? You just asked Andrew. And I said, are you worried about Le'Veon Bell? It was the year that he actually had the suspension to start the season. And I said, are you worried about him when he comes back? And he said, I'll tell you this, that people don't realize. So when it comes to these players, I don't have any concerns that they're in shape. He's like, they're going, they know how to take care of their bodies. He said, but there's a difference in workout shape and game shape. It's two completely different things. And he goes, I want them out there being able to be game shape and be able to have those hits and be ready. So to your point about the holdout. Yeah. I know we're talking about practice, but practice does matter to a degree. And you just. Terry McLaurin is a good reference point.
- [32:30]
A
Yeah, absolutely. I always get worried when it comes to these holdouts. I got got by Brandon Ayuk a couple of seasons ago. I refused to do it last year.
- [32:39]
C
He's in a world of his own at this point.
- [32:41]
B
Yeah, we talked about. I remember Cho is on. We were like, what state is he in? Like mentally, like physically? Where is Brandon Aiyuk in the world? We don't know.
- [32:49]
C
Where in the world is Brandon Naik?
- [32:52]
A
I still don't think we know honestly where this guy is. He might be chilling up in Andrew's neighborhood. All we know at this point, but let's go ahead to Tier 4 here, gentlemen. DeVonta Smith in at 16 overall. 17. Garrett Wilson 18. Devonte Adams Lad McConkey at 19. Jake's best friend, Zay Flowers at 20. Luther Burton III at 21. Terry McLaurin There he is, 22 overall. Jalen Waddle with a new home out in Denver, 23. Ameca Abuka as potentially maybe the presumptive wide receiver one there in Tampa Bay at 24. Mike Evans onto greener pastures out there in San Francisco at 25. And then Jamo Jameson Williams at 26. The back half of wide receiver two finishers last year, largely disappointing, right? But I have to tell you guys, like, I'm really intrigued by some of these names. So Celie, is there one of them that maybe I should be a little leery of in this group?
- [33:44]
C
Not leery. I am actually back. This is funny. We did the quarterback show and I said, we've gone so far down this road that from day one I hated Daniel Jones and I was the Daniel Jones hater. And the hate's gone so far that now I become the Daniel Jones. Okay, well, same same boat. For years I talked about Zay Flowers in this offense and his touchdown capped ceiling and the way this team plays. And I was like, zay Flowers is a really good low end wide receiver too. It's cool. Let's just accept it. Like, we don't have to hope for more. And that's where like the hate came from when people want to draft. Well, he has the potential to be a wide receiver one. It's like, I get that. But the offense needs to change for that. Well, we are changing and we also just saw the changes. Mark Andrews basically fell off a cliff. One of the worst. I don't know if you saw the stat yesterday. I forget who tweeted it out, but it was one of the worst yards per route, run and yards after the catch for any tight end in like the past 10 years. And basically a touchdown guy. Now Isaiah likely is out the door and they still, they did address in the draft the wide receiver position.
- [34:45]
A
But like certainly did.
- [34:46]
C
But flyer. Kind of like we hope one of these. And I don't say flyer. I like the talent of both. But both of these guys being like, we hope they can step up and become a number. There is nobody on this team that is definitively the number two. It's kind of a collection of parts. And then you add in Declan Doyle, who I brought up on the other show with Lamar Jackson a lot of play action potentially here. And Lamar Jackson is one of the best and he just was the past two years best play action throwers in the league in touchdowns or first downs per attempt. And now you add that to the offense with Zay Flowers who just took that final step forward that we wanted to see. The touchdowns can be there even if he's only. That being Lamar Jackson's only throwing 28:30 instead of that 41. But all that being said is now I'm the Zay Flowers guy because I have him at 16 still in this tier. But we've gone full circle to the point where like apparently now I'm Zay Flowers supporter because I don't understand we've. This is so weird. Like maybe I have more power than I think I'm just joking when I say that. But it's like, it's like we don't need to put him as a wide receiver one just understand he's wide receiver 18 to 20, 18 to 2018 to 20. And then he has a top 10 finish. And I'm like, oh yeah, I like what Doyle can potentially do here. I'm Gonna put up 16 and then I look and he's 20 and I'm like, I thought I'd still be the low guy. Well, things change.
- [36:02]
A
I've kind of flipped on him, honestly, where last year I had a lot of Zay Flowers just because of the. I thought the price was fair. I'm kind of out just because like it wasn't a fun ride, to be honest. Like you had the spike game in week one. No one really knew if they should play him or not. And then besides that, like the lack of touchdowns is real here. The lack of deep passing for Lamar Jackson last season was real. I worry about the injury concerns there. And like Andrew, for me, I just think a lot of these other receivers in this tier, I mean, look at Jameson Williams. This guy's been a wide receiver one before. He's down there. Mike Evans, Buka. Like, I just think there's more upside down in this tier further, including Eric, a guy that comes in one spot above Zay Flowers in our consensus rankings that you'd like to talk about.
- [36:47]
B
So I don't have this guy above Zay Flowers. To be clear. I think that Zay Flowers, basically all these guys in this tier because I think that he is on a superstar path, a player that's improved every single year of his NFL career. Look, last year he was hyper. Efficient yards per route run top five in the NFL, and that was playing with an injured Lamar Jackson for half the season. So I think that he's the clear cut, number one target option on this team. I think Declan Doyle is going to run more fast paced than we've seen with Todd Monk in the last two seasons. Look at how fast paced that Ben Johnson offense was last year, where Declan Doyle last spent as a coach. So I think that this is going to be Zay Flowers like superstar season, where it's the top five season and he's a difference maker. I just think he's super talented. I think he's so good.
- [37:34]
A
I agree with that.
- [37:35]
B
And I, I think that in a new offense, he'll have the opportunity to be, to shine. So I, I really like him a lot this year.
- [37:42]
C
Well, I mean, real quick, if you just give him 12 more targets on the pace he was on last year, just 12 more, that puts him as wide receiver six. Just behind George Pickens. Just 12 more targets.
- [37:56]
B
Wow. And every year there's always one guy where the conversation going in is, well, he never scores touchdowns, he never scores touchdowns. And then what, what happens? Like, he just scores touchdowns and then he melts. Fantasy football. It happened with Jay McBride a couple years ago. Oh, the guy can never score. He's allergic to the end zone.
- [38:11]
A
James Cook a couple seasons ago.
- [38:12]
B
Exactly. So it's like, I know he's super talented. I know he's a great wide receiver. He just has to.
- [38:17]
C
CD Lamb doesn't really score touchdowns outside of that one season. Like, I mean, to the volume of what we're talking about.
- [38:23]
B
Right. And just, can you pinpoint the season where this is what happens for Zay Flowers as wide receiver? Wide receiver, 20. I still can't believe Devonte Adams is going ahead of Zay Flowers. I. I just, I just can't wrap my mind. But that's fine. Lad McConkey, also a player that I really like in this particular tier. I want to write off a lot of what happened last year because of all of the injuries that happened to the Chargers offensive line. The offense was a mess. You had guys in and out of the lineup. Justin Herbert's playing with a broken hand. So I don't want to hold what happened to him last year against him. With Keenan Allen leading the team in targets, like Greg Roman decided, okay, our best way to operate this offense is for Keenan Allen to be the number one target, not lad McConkey. So that's no longer gonna be the case. Keen Allen is gone and his team leading targets are also gone. From this offense. So I think that that opens up the opportunity for McConkey to recapture what he did his rookie year where he was a superstar again. We were drafting him as a back end fantasy wide receiver one after his rookie season because of how great that he was. So I think that top 10 and vacated targets after losing Keenan Allen, who was also hyper target on third downs for Justin Herbert last year, I think that's where Lyman Cock is going to fill into that role. And I want to shout out Ryan Heath from Fantasy Points as well. He did a great article talking about how wide receivers can benefit in heavy tight end personnel. That's what we're going to see in LA with David Njoku, with Gadsden, with Charlie Colwill, you're going to see a lot of tight end sets. So that means Lama Conkey is competing for targets with tight ends and just one other wide receiver, making it really easy for him to be really efficient and gobble up volume. So I think Lama Conkey is a prime bounce back candidate after a down sophomore year. We know what the ceiling is. He did it his rookie year. Mike McDaniel Justin Herbert an elite passer I'm all aboard the lad train.
- [40:08]
A
He was someone I had ranked very high last season and then pulled back the curtain a little bit right before the redraft season began when the Keenan Allen signing happened because I was worried that Keenan just soaks up a ton of targets. He did really, to an astronomical number there as Andrew pointed out. So good call out there. Also a good call out to our presenting sponsor of the program, Hard Rock Bet Florida Sportsbook Book and we talk a ton of football on this show, but the third round of the NBA playoffs is officially upon us, where the lights are brighter, the pressure is higher, and every possession can change a series on a dime. And on Hard Rock Bet, every night is your shot to score a major bucket. I'm talking winner go home energy on the hardwood and I love building some same game parlays for the occasion. You might like the hot hand to drop 30, you might like the big man to control the glass with the double double or the point guard to dish out five or more assists. However you draw it up, Hard Rock Bet gives you a ton of ways to stack your picks into an SGP built for the postseason. And if you're ever late to tip off, don't worry about it. Hard Rock has you covered all game long with live betting options from the first bucket to that final buzzer beater moment, try your first bet on Hard Rock Bet today and you can score 150 in bonus bets. If you win, just place a five dollar bet and if it hits you not only get your winnings but also an extra $150 in bonus bets bets but the welcome offer? It's just the tip folks. Hard Rock Bet gives you new promos every single day, so go ahead and fire up the app and see what they've got going on for you today. And sure, Hard Rock Bet. It's Florida's only legal sports book, but you don't have to be in the Great Sunshine State to join the party. Hard Rock Bet is also live in Arizona, Ohio, New Jersey, Indiana, Tennessee, Virginia, Illinois, Colorado and Michigan, with more states on the way soon. Download the Hard Rock app to today and let's get the party started. Payable and bonus bets Not a cash
- [41:57]
C
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- [42:09]
A
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- [42:10]
C
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- [42:12]
A
Call 1833 play wise in Indiana if you or someone you know has a gambling problem wants help, call 1809 with it gambling problem call 1-800- gambler in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia all right folks, we're on to Tier 5 starting with Christian Watson coming in at 27. D.J. moore with the Bills now 28 overall. Rome A. Dunes a 29 Carnell Tate in his rookie season for the Tennessee Titans at 30, Marvin Harrison Jr. At 31 DK Metcalf at 32 Alec Pierce off a huge extension for him. 33. Cortland Sutton now have have having company in Denver at 34 Jordan Tyson with the Saints after going as a top 10 pick at 35 overall and then Michael Wilson with a pretty sneaky 1000 yard season in at 36. We have rookies in this tier, we have players who were hoping will bounce back and others who had a really strong 25. So a lot of variants in this tier. That said Erickson, is there a player you're more willing or unwilling to take a swing on than others in this particular tier?
- [43:14]
B
I'm not willing to take the swing on Michael Wilson. I think that he is ranked too high.
- [43:19]
C
I thought we were going to have our first battle.
- [43:21]
B
No, no we are not going to have a battle here Jake, because we see eye to eye when it comes to these wide receivers. And with Michael Wilson I see a fugazi, I see a a Player that seems like a trap. Last year all of his numbers when he was basically putting up Puka Nukua like numbers in the six crazy numbers six, seven games basically that he played without Marvin Harrison Jr lineup just an absolute monster. After week 10 he was a wide receiver, foreign points per game, wide receiver three overall. So I'm saying all these great things about Michael Wilson. Why should I be low on him? Well, Marvin Harrison Jr. Is going to be back on the team. He's going to be playing and healthy in 2026. And the target rate per outrun is so glaring. The difference between when Harrison played and when he didn't play without Harrison a lineup. Michael Wilson's target rate per outrun was 29. When Harrison played it was 12%. He was a ghost. You couldn't play Michael Wilson in any format when Marvin Harrison Jr. Was in the lineup. And then he misses games. Michael Wilson turns into Jerry Rice 2.0. But I think that a lot of that was really more of the counting stats with Jacoby Brissette. No team was throwing more than the Arizona Cardinals last year. They were first in pass rate over expectation. They had a 70 pass rate overall. And when I see numbers like that it reminds me of the 2024 Cleveland Browns with Jameis Winston and who benefited from that in the biggest way had a thousand yard season, Jerry Judy and what happened to him the following season like the splits fell off because the team wasn't throwing nearly as much. So with Arizona investing in a running back with the top five pick, I think they're going to try to be more balanced on a run pass ratio. You're not going to see as many drop backs. I think from Jacoby Brissette you have a potential for Carson Beck to start games for this offense. And if Michael Wilson is the number three real life pass catcher from Carson Beck on the Arizona Cardinals that's going to be wide receiver 36. A player that I'm going to be considering starting or flexing in my lineup. I, I just don't see the app. I shouldn't say I don't see the appeal obviously if Marvin Harrison Jr. Misses games like you saw it last year, like there was a lot of upside with Michael Wilson, but I just think right now I he just wasn't a target earner when Marvin Harrison Jr. Was on the field. And that has more sticking power to me as we try to project what he's going to do in the future versus well he was so good when this guy missed games. Well, if he doesn't miss games, then Michael Wilson's going to be a total zero. And that concerns me, which is why I think he's ranked too high.
- [45:48]
A
Yeah, it's very fair. Wilson is someone coming out of Stanford that I loved a couple of seasons ago. Had him on a bunch of dynasty teams. I was kind of just waiting for him him to do something. He finally did it. But that's a great point, Erickson. Like these players were drafting in this tier. They are going to be starters for your team. You're gonna have to rely on them week in and week out, no matter the quarterback situation, no matter the team overall. And I think there's potential. This Arizona team, despite all the talent they have in offense, is one of the worst overall teams in the NFL. So it's hard to tie yourself there at 36 overall too. Guy that only did it for one season so far. Jake, who in this tier are you willing to tie your wagon to or unwilling to?
- [46:26]
C
Yeah, we're going to agree on this one. So I'm just going to back up Andrew. I thought we're going to argue because I had Marvin Harrison as being higher because of everything he just said. And like I watched those games like everybody did and you saw the fact that Jacoby Brissette treated him as the number one. I mean, we all go back to remembering that Marvin Harrison was doing jumping jacks, wanting Kyler Murray to look back his way while he's wide open. Jacoby Brissette have that problem. He saw Marvin, he saw Marvin, he saw Marvin. And I know some people might overall look at the stats, but those last two games, you pretty much throw them out for Marvin Harrison because he hurt his other foot and then he was playing through like those last two games were just. He was hurt again. But just specifically before we move on from this, to echo some of the stats for people that might want those. Like Andrew pointed out week 6, 7, 9, 10 and 13 when he left early in the second half. But those are essentially the five games where they played together with Jacoby Brissette 20 over 20% of the team target share to Michael Wilson at 14.8. And that's with 32 fewer snaps. That's team target percentage, not just the routes. Interesting. Andrew was saying 12.7 air yards to target to 9.4 for Michael Wilson, 1.76 yards per route run to 1.10 for Michael Wilson. And here's the biggest one. It's not that Jacoby Brissette just look to him eight end zone targets to two for Michael Wilson, he's also somebody he looks for when he needs to score the touchdown. And that's why in Those games alone, 10.6 fantasy points per game for Marvin Harrison, 6.0 for Michael Wilson. So we can agree and move on to the next group because we're on the same page.
- [47:54]
A
Okay, I love to hear that. Well, let's go to Tier 6 though, where it is Chris Godwin, 37, Brian Thomas Jr. Hoping to bounce back at 38, Makai Lemon landing with the Eagles at 39, Jacoby Myers coming off a great season after being traded mid season. Jacksonville at 40. Speaking of Jacksonville, we have Parker Washington at 41, Jordan Addison at 42, Ricky Piersol at 43, Michael Pittman Jr. Now with the Steelers at 44, Wandale Robinson now in the Music City at 45, Jaden Reed back after a contract extension with the Green Bay Packers, 46. Quentin Johnston, who was first half darling in many fantasy leagues, 47, Josh Downs, 48, Jane Higgins 49 and Khalil Shakir at 50. I have to say, guys like, I think my favorite value in this tier has quickly become Jordan Addison, which I've never been a huge Addison guy. But Jake, I'd love to hear who you might be targeting in this group of pass catchers right around that wide receiver four territory.
- [48:49]
C
So because and especially Andrew and I have overlapped a lot of these wide receiver shows, I already talked a ton about Makai Lemon. This is stupid. Also talked a lot about Parker Washington with the Jaguars. Depth chart should also be higher, but so I'm going to take a third because I talked about them on so many shows is Josh Downs. And because look at the Colts, who's the number two? Clearly Josh Downs. They brought in Nick Westbrook, Akina as the third and then they drafted a seventh rounder and Deion Burks who has some deep playability. I think there's something potentially there down the road, but probably still only as a third wide receiver. It is Josh Downs. And do I think more of Tyler Warren in the second season and maybe we got too hyped up last year. Sure. But even so, you're still talking about three guys that are essentially going to be the main options between Alec Pierce, Josh Downs and Tyler Warren. And if you got to the end of the season and you said, hey Jake, looking back because of what Al Pierce does, did you know Josh Downs actually led this team in targets? It wouldn't shock me. I'm not going to call it. I don't think that happens. Sure. But given his Style of play and where he succeeds and being that reliable intermediate play. I think as long as Daniel Jones is healthy, Josh Downs being down here is kind of crazy.
- [49:56]
A
Okay, Erickson, what about you? Who's someone who's sticking out in this tier, Whether that's for positive reasons or maybe not so positive.
- [50:03]
B
Yeah, I would have put Josh Downs if Jake had beat me to the show sheet and put Josh Downs himself.
- [50:07]
C
Well, you've already talked about him a lot, so that's why like there you go.
- [50:10]
B
It's the right answer though. Like that's the thing. Like we talk about these same guys because we want to be right at the end of the day, the more we diversify, the more we run into trouble. So that being said, gonna diversify a little bit here with another player that I do like a decent bit in this range. I like Ricky Pierce all. So the 49ers, they have a lot of change with their wide receivers. No more Brandon Ayuk, no more Juwan Jennings. He's not coming back. And Jennings surprisingly was like top five in the NFL and red zone targets last year among wide receivers. So there's a big vacated especially in the red zone. Now that's probably going to be where Mike Evans delivers a lot of his fantasy goodness. So again, not saying that Pierce all is going to be the number one guy, but Evans is a much older wide receiver, has dealt with injuries. We know that a lot of the players on the 49ers have dealt with injuries. So if Pearsall, the younger of a lot of these different guys can stay healthy, I mean, look, last year he flashed. He had four games with 85 or more receiving yards. He led the 49ers in receiving yards per game at 59. So he had more 60 yard games than Mike Evans did last year. Now Mike Evans missed basically half the season, so that has to do with it, but so did Ricky Pierce. He only played nine games and he had over 85 in four of those contests. So I think he's kind of like a free flyer. Former first round pick. I'm not sold on desean Stribling as this major target earner from day one. I think if Pearsall's healthy, he's going to be out there as a starter along with Mike Evans. And I'm not a believer in Christian Kirk at this point in his career as well. He has not been able to stay healthy the last three seasons. He's missed over half a year. So former first round pick Ricky Piersol. Look, you're injury Prone till you're not lot and right now it's not being baked in the upside. If he is the actual number one wide receiver on this team, Mike Evans draws a lot of defensive attention that's going to get a lot of favorable looks for Ricky Pearsall. So in an offense that thrives on efficiency, he's had chemistry with Brock Purdy in the past as a wide receiver. 4. Sign me up for Slick Rick.
- [52:05]
A
All right, I, I like the call there because Ricky was someone last season. He kind of began the off season in this tier of wide receiver fours and by the end of the of draft season really being taken more as a wide receiver three with upside and just never delivered. Specifically because he was hurt in the beginning of the year. Right. People might have dropped him. Then by the end of the season Maya traded him away and then really someone else benefited from those bigger games down the stretch once he was healthy, once Brock Purdy returned as well. So I, I think that's a good thing just to keep in mind there specifically when we're thinking about wide receivers who might have let us down at the beginning of the season but actually had some, some pretty good stretches down the run. Let's go on to honorable mentions. I want to talk about players that we have outside our top 50 who might be worth a late round dart throw on as a bench stash. I want to start with you, Erickson, who's someone that you're taking in your drafts and you're just gonna, hey, let's leave them on the the bench for a week or two, but maybe they can bloom it something.
- [53:02]
B
Casey Concepcion, rookie wide receiver for the Cleveland Browns. Just not sold on Jerry Judy after another down year of of him being talked up as the bell cow for the Cleveland Browns passing game. The quarterback situation is shoddy in Cleveland, as we all know. But if one guy can make it work, it's someone that can do all this damage after the catch. So all Cleveland has to do is get the ball in his hands. I think he can make a lot of plays. I know that Monkin has kind of talked about him as maybe his zay flowers in this offense. So I think that that can really fit well with him and him can outproduce like a top outside the top 50 in the ECR. He's a first round wide receiver, super talented, broke at an early age and he can win in a lot of ways. So I like Casey Concepcion as a bench stash.
- [53:44]
A
I'm totally in with you. When we have player props come out Casey Concepcion. Even though like I'm not as big of a guy on his prospect profile like Derek is, I definitely still like him specifically because I think he can do what Zay Flowers can do, where he can play inside, he can play outside. And look at what Zay Flowers did as a rookie in Todd Munson Monkin's first year in Baltimore. 108 targets, 77 receptions, 858 yards and five touchdowns. So like if there's a 700, 750 plus yardage marker prop for Casey Concepcion out there, I'm going to be clicking it. I think specifically because of what you said there with Monken. I just hope like. Do you hope it's your door, Andrew, or do you hope it's DeSean Watson this season?
- [54:24]
B
Anything but Deshaun Watson.
- [54:26]
A
Okay.
- [54:26]
B
Okay, that answers your question.
- [54:28]
A
Yeah, I had this debate the other day on a program and one of my co hosts was strongly advising desean Watson over Shador. But I definitely would like to. I mean Shador was 3 and 4 last season. Man, he didn't look terrible. So I think Casey Concepcion, there's a lot of upside. And to get a first round rookie wide receiver outside the top 50 of ECR right now feels pretty, pretty good. And speaking of rookie wide receivers, Jake, you might have your eyes on one as well.
- [54:54]
C
Yeah, just as long as they leave him alone. Antonio Williams, since like the Josh Downs argument, the number two on the commanders who does what needs to be done next to Terry McLaurin perfectly in this offense. But I'll even give you a bonus for a full team. Every single Raiders wide receiver is worth taking a flyer on at their cost right now, if not a little bit more. And they signed Jalen Naylor, maybe we get Jack Bash who got a lot of hype last year. I just even Thornton, they just take shots here because they're all super discounted because nobody wants any of them. And like if the quarterback play is even mid level and then Mendoza, whatever it might be, it's just. Why not? Because you're there. Look, they're essentially your last pick at this point. All of them. But the bigger point being Antonio Williams, because Antonio Williams, as long as they leave him alone again, there's still time. Stefan Diggs, I. You trade whatever it might be. But if Antonio Williams enters week one as the number two, you're talking about 100, 110 targets from the number two. That is just buried right now.
- [55:49]
A
Well, and this is a guy who every time Kate Club Nick targeted him, whether it was in 2025, a down season for the Tigers or 2024 where we really saw Antonio Williams, Williams break out. You know, club Nick had good things happen to him when he targeted him. So I think Jaden Daniels, a guy who wants to get the ball out of his hand maybe a little bit earlier this season, avoid some of those big hits. I think Williams could be a great target for him. And I completely sign off on part of the Raiders analysis there. Like my Highest player above ECR right now, Jack Besh. I have 54 overall at the wide receiver position, 47 spots above ECR. I think there's a chance, Erickson, that this guy is Clint Kubiak's version of jsn, right? This is a guy he can move all over the field and if he wanted to go get a new X wide receiver, he could have done that. He had the chance to go get Sarah, he had the chance to get Jacoby Lane. All these wide receivers that were falling into day three of the draft, he didn't care. He was sticking with his boy Jack Besh. So I, I think Besh, another guy who hard working kid, comes from a little bit of a tragedy happen in his life right before the Senior Bowl a year ago with his brother losing his life down there in New Orleans. I think him and Fernando Mendoza. That's the breakfast table. It's Mendoza, it's Besh and it's Brock Bowers, baby. So I'm all in on Jack Bash. He's the Cooper cup here of Las Vegas. What do you think?
- [57:07]
B
Can't believe you guys neglected to mention Trey Tucker who had a 30 point game last year for the Raiders.
- [57:11]
C
Okay, you can predict when that's going to happen again.
- [57:15]
A
All right folks, well that's going to do it for us on this episode of the Fantasy Pros Fantasy Football Podcast. Please don't forget smash that like button on your way out. If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to subscribe both here to the Fancy Pros YouTube channel and the audio feed. Also, please be sure to check out all the great written content and our tool suite over@fantasypros.com thank you so much for watching for Andrew Erickson and the all in kid, Jake Seeley. I'm Seth Wilcock. Take care, y'.
- [57:38]
B
All.
- [57:38]
A
Thanks for listening to the Fantasy Pros Fantasy Football Podcast. If you love the show, the best free way to support us is by leaving a positive review on apple podcasts@fantasypros.com review or on Spotify. Follow us on X Instagram and TikTok at Fantasy Pros and subscribe to our YouTube channel at YouTube.com fantasypros. Max Softness Max Energy Max Run Go on a run that never runs out in the New Brooks Glycerin Max 2 dual cell DNA Tuned cushion is optimized for soft landings and powerful toe offs, while a glide roll rocker helps helps provide a more fluid step through. To help you truly tune out and max your run, shop the Glycerin Max 2@brooksrunning.com Everybody knows Shaq, but off camera,
- [58:47]
C
he's just a regular guy.
- [58:48]
B
People never believe me when I say I'm just like them.
- [58:51]
A
I take out the trash, do dishes,
- [58:53]
C
and I struggle with moderate obstructive sleep apnea or osa. And a lot of adults with obesity
- [58:58]
A
also struggle with moderate to severe osa. You know those scary breathing interruptions during sleep, the loud snoring, choking and daytime fatigue?
- [59:06]
B
I knew I had to talk to my doctor.
- [59:08]
C
Don't sleep on the symptoms.
- [59:10]
B
Learn more at don'tsleeponosa.com this information is
- [59:13]
C
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