Breakout Wide Receivers You Must Own in 2018

August 22, 2018

Martin Konstantinov identifies must-have wide receivers to target in the later rounds of 2018 fantasy football drafts. These WR could be breakout candidates.

Oftentimes, the beginning of your draft is where you consolidate your starting lineup with top-tier talent and pick who you believe will finish as one of the best players at their position. The top of the draft is where your team usually separates itself from the rest as a true powerhouse for your season.

However, arguably an even more important part of the draft is the late rounds. Finding a late round gem with your lottery ticket pick is one way to take your team over the top and make sure you are set for the reason with both the strength of your lineup and the depth of your entire roster.

An incredibly important position for any fantasy roster is wide receiver. Due to the fact that modern NFL offenses sustain the production of more than one fantasy relevant wide receiver, having as many breakout options will ensure that fantasy owners stay ahead of the rest of the league in a condensed position group. Here are some late round wide receivers who are poised to break out in the 2018 season, making them must-own options for your fantasy rosters.

Late-Round Wide Receivers to Target

Christian Kirk, Arizona Cardinals

Already drawing comparisons to Odell Beckham Jr. in the team's preseason, Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Christian Kirk has been a top name for NFL scouts since entering college at Texas A&M as a five-star recruit. Kirk had a very solid college career and was selected in the 2nd round of the 2018 NFL Draft by the Cardinals, who see him as the successor to future Hall-of-Famer Larry Fitzgerald. Playing under offensive coordinator Mike McCoy, the Cardinals are expected to utilize the passing game often as well as look to running back David Johnson to help steady the ship. Kirk figures to be the second receiver on the depth chart despite facing serious competition from the likes of Chad Williams and Brice Butler for the starting job. However, Kirk has the most draft capital invested in him and has turned the most heads this preseason, meaning that he will most likely line up opposite Fitzgerald when the regular season begins. His floor for fantasy owners is as a reliable weekly flex option; however, this may be the year that someone takes the mantle from Fitzgerald and becomes the team's new go-to receiver. It could be Christian Kirk, who has already developed a rapport with both quarterback Sam Bradford and rookie signal-caller Josh Rosen. Although he may only be a late-round lottery ticket pick, keep an eye on Kirk towards the end of drafts. Fantasy owners will definitely be pleasantly surprised by the rookie's production as he could have a Cooper Kupp season and break out early in his career.

Dede Westbrook, Jacksonville Jaguars

After turning heads in the 2017 preseason following a 4th round selection in the NFL Draft (despite winning the Biletnikoff Award, given to the NCAA's top wide receiver), Dede Westbrook looked ready to play a complementary role to wide receivers Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns entering the season. However, an injury forced him to miss the opening games, and by that time Robinson had been lost for the year and players like Keelan Cole had replaced him. Nevertheless, Westbrook managed to turn a few heads in his rookie year, ending with 339 yards and a touchdown on 27 grabs in the regular season and becoming the team's top contributor in the passing game in the playoffs. With the Jaguars expecting to have another solid year and Dede Westbrook emerging as one of the team's top targets, it may be time for a breakout from the young receiver. At his current late-round ADP, Westbrook is a great lottery ticket for fantasy owners who believe that Bortles, however poor of a quarterback he is, can still sling the deep ball and hope that Westbrook will make a play.

Josh Doctson, Washington Redskins

An absolute monster in college football for TCU, Doctson was a 1st round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft and was expected to take over as the team's top receiver early on in his career. However, two games into his rookie year, Doctson was injured and missed the entire season. After losing his starting spot to incoming free agent Terrelle Pryor, Doctson struggled for the first half of the 2017 season and was largely inefficient. However, once he became a starter, Doctson was able to record a respectable stat-line for himself, with 502 yards and six touchdowns on the year. It is clear that Doctson has the ability - now he just needs to stay healthy and become one of new quarterback Alex Smith's top targets. In the famed third year for wide receivers, Doctson projects to be one of the team's top options in the passing game and should be considered a steal in the late rounds of fantasy drafts due to his superior athletic ability and upside in what figures to be a pass-first offense in 2018.

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