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Fantasy Football Draft Debate: Favorite rookie WR after the Big 3?

dalton del don · kate magdziuk
·3 min read
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The 2024 NFL Draft class was absolutely loaded at wide receiver, which is good news for NFL teams, though it does make navigating the fantasy football landscape all the more challenging. Which rookie WR outside of those drafted in the top 10 (Marvin Harrison Jr., Malik Nabers, Rome Odunze) will make the biggest fantasy impact in Year 1? Analysts Dalton Del Don and Kate Magdziuk make the cases for Xavier Worthy and Brian Thomas Jr., respectively.

The fastest player in NFL history gets to join Patrick Mahomes in an Andy Reid offense.

Worthy ran a 4.21 40 and earned a 32% target share as a true freshman at a Power 5 school. Worthy may be small (5-foot-11, 165 pounds), but he was more effective as an “X” receiver against press coverage than Marvin Harrison Jr., Ja’Marr Chase, CeeDee Lamb and many other star wideouts throughout college. His college stats would’ve looked better if he didn’t suffer from incredibly inaccurate quarterback play; Worthy had by far the highest career off-target rate among this year’s WR prospects, but he’ll now be catching passes from Mahomes.

Reid apparently has a type of wide receiver he prefers, and Worthy fits perfectly; Mahomes lost by far the most air yards on drops last year. The KC coach has likened Worthy to DeSean Jackson, who was an immediate starter and led his team in targets as a rookie with Reid. Worthy is already showing the type of impact he can make, recording an 89% route participation and a 25% target share over two preseason games with Mahomes.

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Rashee Rice looks increasingly less likely to be suspended, but Travis Kelce will turn 35 years old this season, and the oft-injured Marquise Brown recently suffered a potentially serious shoulder injury that puts his status in doubt for Week 1. Isiah Pacheco had never eclipsed 170 carries dating back to college before setting a career-high with 205 rush attempts last season, so opportunities for the rookie should be there. The Chiefs led the NFL in pass rate over expectation by a wide margin last year, and Worthy will benefit from KC’s use of motion. He’s going to smash as a rookie.

I rank Worthy as a top-35 fantasy WR. — Dalton Del Don

In all honesty, it's difficult to make a case against the aforementioned Xavier Worthy — a deserving first-round prospect with legitimate 4.2 speed with the best quarterback in the league throwing him the ball. However, Thomas' upside and speed are also pretty legitimate; he posted a stunning 4.33 40-yard dash at this year's combine at just under 6-foot-3 and 209 pounds.

Coming out of LSU, Thomas Jr.'s calling card was his elite top-end speed that made him an excellent No. 2 alongside Malik Nabers. Thomas Jr. totaled 1,177 receiving yards on 68 catches while leading the NCAA with 17 receiving touchdowns. He's got a monstrous catch radius, and though he still has some improvements to make as a route runner, his speed and frame make up for it in a big way.

I mean, if his first NFL (preseason) catch is any indication, opposing DBs are going to have their hands full:

Thomas Jr. enters the league as the heir-apparent to veteran Calvin Ridley — who departed the team in free agency this offseason — opposite Gabe Davis on the outside and Christian Kirk in the slot. Ridley led the team last season by a decent margin in both red zone (40) and end-zone targets (22) from fourth-year QB Trevor Lawrence, who's seeking a bounce-back season after a 2023 campaign riddled with injuries.

Thomas Jr. has just as much upside as Worthy in Year 1 and has an absolutely ridiculous ADP of 129.8, going on average a full two rounds after Worthy. — Kate Magdziuk