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As fantasy managers, we're inclined to seek out and target the presumed No. 1 pass catcher of an offense in our drafts. Opportunity and volume should be the first boxes checked off when assessing and analyzing a player's worth for our teams. Sure, we all want the top guy on any given team to give us the best chance to outscore our opponent on any given week. Sometimes, though, in our search for the unquestioned No. 1 -- the secondary option falls by the wayside.
In PPR leagues since 2013, there have been 12 instances in which two WRs from the same team finished the season together in the top-12 fantasy scorers. It's almost hard to believe, but there were three seasons in that span where 33% of the top-12 WRs came from two teams. It's easy to forget the No. 2 guy -- all I'm saying is that we shouldn't.
History tells us we see a similar outcome in 2024 -- with a solid chance of at least one team garnering two top-12 options at the position. While the raw numbers might say different, league-wide passing rates were up in 2023, and we can expect that trajectory to continue this season. Below are a few of the more exciting No. 2 options you'll find in this year's draft. While these players might not end the year in the top 12 -- they're more than likely to be a boon for your fantasy team.
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
Jaylen Waddle, Miami Dolphins
2023 was a strange season for Jaylen Waddle. After Waddle suffered an oblique strain early in the preseason, I wondered if he'd ever be operating at 100% throughout the grind of the NFL season. Health was undoubtedly an obstacle last year, and while Waddle missed just three games, he was the victim of a concussion, back strain, knee injury, rib injury, and a high-ankle sprain on Christmas Eve.
Waddle was stellar in his first two campaigns, but after battling through many injuries, his third year saw him post career lows across the board. Despite the downtick in production, he still posted the sixth-highest yards per route run (YPRR) in the league. For reference, anything even close to 3.0 YPRR is superb for a WR and telling of his talent. Waddle clocked in at 2.97 -- his teammate Tyreek Hill finished the year with an other-worldly 4.15.
Jaylen Waddle Year 4 loading ⏳ @D1__JW
(via @justinallen_13) pic.twitter.com/Ad8iFN0Ips
— NFL (@NFL) May 10, 2024
Jaylen Waddle is presently the WR21 off the board in NFFC ADP -- 38th overall -- and there's little to no reason not to project this as his floor if he remains healthy for the season. The Dolphins added two rookie wideouts in the draft (sixth- and seventh-round picks) and signed Odell Beckham Jr. in free agency to bolster their WR corps. Beckham is different from the player he once was, and the rookies stand no chance of dethroning Waddle as the locked-in, clear No. 2 option. A bounce-back season is well within reach for Waddle with Tua Tagovailoa still manning the helm.
DeVonta Smith, Philadelphia Eagles
In what was another strange 2023 for a stud third-year wide receiver, DeVonta Smith also disappointed fantasy managers last season. When I spoke earlier of WRs on the same team that finished in the top 12 at their position, one of those instances was Smith.
In fact, Smith and Waddle joined their teammates (Tyreek Hill and A.J. Brown) atop the fantasy scorers list in 2022. However, unlike his 2021 draft mate, we cannot point to injury to explain his "down" season. Smith's season totals may have been a product of the new offense the Eagles ran last season, as he moved away from the high-volume PPR asset he was in the back half of 2022.
Work of Art 🖼️ 👨🏼🍳🤌@JalenHurts ▶️ @DeVontaSmith_6 #MINvsPHI on Prime Video#NFLPlus https://t.co/Dme7kPftFV pic.twitter.com/xvHm2LEEyi
— Alabama Football (@AlabamaFTBL) September 15, 2023
As the Eagles figured out their offense last season, Smith garnered eight or more targets on just seven occasions, a feat he accomplished 12 times in 2022. On top of this, how fatigued Jalen Hurts looked at the end of last season made it easier to accept Smith's lackluster performance. It's fair to assume Hurts will run a bit less this year -- a sentiment echoed by the signing of Saquon Barkley, who stands to give the Eagles a more balanced attack. After all, he's a far superior running back than D'Andre Swift.
With Kellen Moore in as the new offensive coordinator, I'm inclined to believe he'll find the optimal ways to deploy his star-studded offense. Smith is still one of the premier route runners in the NFL, and he is one of my favorite targets in drafts this season. His WR23 price is more than palatable.
Christian Watson, Green Bay Packers
It's unclear whether or not Christian Watson is actually the WR2 in Green Bay, but right now, that's how he's being drafted. Watson is coming off the board as the WR43 in NFFC drafts, but Jayden Reed is the WR32, and there's a difference of 40 picks between them.
I like Jayden Reed as much as the next guy, but the same questions I had about Watson after his rookie year are present for Reed as he enters his second season. Reed finished last season as the WR25, but that was on the back of 10 touchdowns. TDs are nice, but they're not a sticky stat, and I'd much prefer to rely on volume.
This could be one of the most important things that happened to the Packers this offseason.
The story on what Christian Watson discovered about his hamstring issues. https://t.co/fcqdo6AhDY
— Rob Demovsky (@RobDemovsky) May 24, 2024
Watson was again the victim of hamstring injuries last season -- missing eight games due to the soft tissue issue. When Watson was out there, though, he was clearly Jordan Love's favorite target. Despite appearing in just nine games last season, Watson was third on his team in red-zone targets (13), just four behind Romeo Doubs and Jayden Reed (17). There will be plenty of targets to go around on the Packers offense, and if Love truly has figured it out, you could be getting a league-winner in Watson after pick 100 in your drafts.
Josh Downs, Indianapolis Colts
You can find Josh Downs even further down draft boards than Christian Watson, but he should still provide a ton of value for our teams. It is challenging to project exactly what the target share in Indy will look like now that Adonai Mitchell has entered the fold.
Still, I'm willing to take a chance on Downs and his talent, as he presents as an excellent quick-game option underneath for Anthony Richardson to get into rhythm with. The biggest draw for Downs is actually his route-running prowess. He was superb in his first taste of NFL defenses, and there's no reason to believe he'll slow down in 2024.
While he's likely to be pigeonholed in the slot due to the other players around him, it'd be wrong to assume that Downs' route tree is solely layup routes. As per Reception Perception, he ran posts and corners at an above-average rate and excelled against both man and zone coverage on all three field levels.
If Richardson improves upon his rookie season, the Colts offense could surprise us all this year, and Downs' separation skills put him in a position to succeed immediately. At his lowly WR53 price in NFFC drafts, I'll likely have a lot of Downs on my rosters this coming season.
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