RADIO
The 2024 NFL season is still months away. Therefore, fantasy football players have plenty of time to prepare for their redraft leagues. However, fantasy football is a year-round game.
There are new dynasty startup drafts and best ball leagues underway every day. While casual fantasy football players don’t have to worry about their team until August, there are no days off for hardcore players.
One thing everyone should look at over the next few months is wide receiver battles. Several teams have a wide-open competition at the wide receiver position. Let’s look at seven of the top wide receiver position battles for the 2024 fantasy football season.
Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2024:- Quarterback fantasy football rankings
- Running back fantasy football rankings
- Wide receiver fantasy football rankings
- Tight end fantasy football rankings
- Kicker fantasy football rankings
- FLEX fantasy football rankings
- Defense (D/ST) fantasy football rankings
- Superflex fantasy football rankings
- IDP fantasy football rankings
- Dynasty fantasy football rankings
New England Patriots
The Patriots have arguably the worst wide receiver corps in the NFL. Their unit is made up of several average to below-average veterans, including Kendrick Bourne, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and K.J. Osborn. New England also has several young receivers -- Ja'Lynn Polk, Javon Baker, Demario Douglas, Tyquan Thornton, and Kayshon Boutte.
Fantasy players can forget about most of the team’s wide receiver corps. Smith-Schuster, Thornton, and Boutte could get cut in August, while Osborn and Bourne offer limited upside as veteran contributors. The receivers that fantasy players want to draft are the young guys. While Douglas had some solid moments last season, Baker is my favorite of the bunch. The former UCF star has promised to put on a show as a rookie if he can separate himself from everyone else during training camp.
Javon Baker is ready to put on a show 🍿 pic.twitter.com/Xl1i3qtUnB
— PFF (@PFF) April 27, 2024
Buffalo Bills
Buffalo underwent massive changes at the wide receiver position this offseason. Stefon Diggs got traded to the Houston Texans, while Gabe Davis signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars in free agency. Meanwhile, the team signed Curtis Samuel, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Mack Hollins, and Chase Claypool -- not exactly the most fearsome set of wide receivers.
However, the names fantasy players want to draft this year are Keon Coleman, Khalil Shakir, and Samuel. The veteran has been a top-24 wide receiver in the past but needed a significant role on the ground to finish that high. Meanwhile, Coleman is the only rookie pass-catcher the Bills drafted this year, while Shakir is coming off an impressive end to the 2023 season. Ideally, fantasy players should draft Dalton Kincaid and avoid the wide receiver corps in Buffalo.
Houston Texans
C.J. Stroud took the Texans’ passing attack and turned it into one of the top units in the NFL. Nico Collins had a breakout season, while Tank Dell was outstanding when healthy. Yet, that didn’t stop Houston from trading for Stefon Diggs earlier this offseason, giving the franchise three No. 1-caliber wide receivers. The Texans recently traded for Ben Skowronek, though he will mostly be a special teams contributor.
From our breaking news segment: The #Bills traded WR Stefon Diggs to the #Texans, who are going all in for 2024 without giving up any draft picks in 2024. pic.twitter.com/Uz78YI6JiR
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 3, 2024
Houston has a crowded wide receiver room behind its top-three guys. Noah Brown and Robert Woods had productive moments in 2023. Meanwhile, John Metchie III and Xavier Hutchinson are young players with limited playing experience. Fantasy players should view Collins as the WR1 in Houston, with Diggs and Dell capable of replacing him at any time. All three should be top-50 picks this year.
Cincinnati Bengals
The unquestioned No. 1 wide receiver in Cincinnati is Ja'Marr Chase. He should be a top-seven pick in every draft league this summer. Meanwhile, Tee Higgins will likely play for the Bengals in 2024 after getting slapped with the franchise tag in March. Tyler Boyd is now in Tennessee, creating an open competition. While everyone has high hopes for Jermaine Burton, don’t hand him the No. 3 wide receiver role yet.
Last year, Cincinnati spent a pair of Day 3 NFL Draft picks on Charlie Jones and Andrei Iosivas. While both players had limited impact as rookies, they could beat out Burton for the No. 3 role in 2024. Furthermore, Higgins could get traded after June 1, creating a massive hole opposite Chase. Fantasy players should prioritize Chase and Higgins at their ADP and avoid picking any other Bengals wide receiver until the final round or two of their draft.
Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City has won back-to-back Super Bowls since trading away Tyreek Hill despite a below-average wide receiver corps. However, that won’t be the case in 2024. Rashee Rice is coming off a promising rookie year. Meanwhile, the Chiefs signed Marquise Brown in free agency and traded up to select Xavier Worthy during the NFL Draft. Patrick Mahomes might have the best trio of wide receivers he’s ever played with on the current roster.
While the depth at wide receiver is primarily former high-end draft pick busts like Skyy Moore and Kadarius Toney, Kansas City has an outstanding receiving corps. However, which guy is the No. 1 wide receiver? Rice’s off-the-field issues put his status for the 2024 season in question, as he likely faces a heavy suspension. Brown is the most likely candidate to be Mahomes’ go-to target at wide receiver to start the year. Yet, don’t be surprised if Worthy is the best of the bunch by the end of the season.
Some Rashee Rice thoughts... Schefty said, "the personal conduct policy mandates certain discipline in place no matter what." Also said NFL is looking at multiple incidents.
Commissioner Exempt List (aka paid leave) is an option because he faces 8 felonies from the crash. pic.twitter.com/mqZ6eTHmpc
— Hayden Winks (@HaydenWinks) May 14, 2024
Los Angeles Chargers
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past five months, you know the Chargers hired Jim Harbaugh as their head coach and Greg Roman as their offensive coordinator. That means the team will have one of the more run-heavy offenses in 2024. Therefore, it’s no surprise that Los Angeles got rid of Keenan Allen and Mike Williams this offseason, replacing them with run-blocking tight ends.
However, Justin Herbert can lead a productive passing attack with limited weapons. The Chargers have Joshua Palmer and Quentin Johnston from last season’s squad. They also signed DJ Chark Jr. and drafted three wide receivers this year -- Ladd McConkey, Brenden Rice, and Cornelius Johnson. Fantasy players should draft McConkey, Palmer, and Johnston in that order, starting in the double-digit rounds. Yet, all three could be on the waiver wire by Week 4.
San Francisco 49ers
Brock Purdy has the top supporting cast in the NFL. While Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle are elite players at their positions, the strength of the 49ers’ passing attack is at wide receiver. Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk are co-No. 1s. Meanwhile, San Francisco used its first-round pick on Ricky Pearsall. The former Florida star has several fans in the league, including C.J. Stroud.
CJ Stroud's reaction. Said Ricky Pearsall is going to be so elite. Said its a big time get and he wanted to play with him on Houston. Gave A+ grade if you watch entire video on youtube. Wow. pic.twitter.com/WUx31y7kYP
— Lobs (@Lobs_All_Day) April 26, 2024
The rest of the wide receiver unit consists of non-fantasy-relevant players like Jauan Jennings, Ronnie Bell, and Jacob Cowing. Aiyuk and Samuel are both top-20 wide receivers and top-40 picks in redraft leagues this year, despite the arrival of Pearsall. However, one of the veterans could get traded after June 1, making the other a top-10 wide receiver and a second-round pick in redraft leagues.
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