We are at the time of the year when your fantasy football drafts are starting up, and positional rankings are near the top of your draft preparation. From looking through positional tiers and handcuffs to understanding target share and snap workload, this time of the year is what helps you build out your championship roster.
Coming up second in our season preview is our fantasy football wide receiver rankings. While the duo of CeeDee Lamb and Tyreek Hill top our 2024 list, there might be a few surprises mixed in for our top 15 this year. As always, utilize our rankings for your league format, adapting them to the style of roster you want to build. There is no one right way to build a trophy winner.
For more insight, listen to our 2024 fantasy football primer:
All data regarding the 2023 fantasy finish of players and past stats was pulled from Sleeper, all rankings factor in a point-per-reception (PPR) league format, and the following two-round mock draft follows a 12-team format.
1. CeeDee Lamb
2023 Finish: WR1
The headliner for our fantasy football wide receiver rankings is CeeDee Lamb, who is looking to repeat his overall WR1 performance from last season. But as a member of the three star wideouts holding out for new contracts this offseason, can Lamb be counted on for your team?
When on the field, Lamb is one of the best receivers currently in the league. The 25-year-old put up career numbers all across the board, racking up 135 receptions, 1,749 receiving yards, and 12 touchdowns.
There is always a cause for concern when superstars don’t get in any on-field work before the season begins, as the threat of injury increases. While all signs still are pointing to Lamb and the Dallas Cowboys coming to an agreement on a new deal, the continued dialog between both sides should give you the confidence to draft Lamb, as early as the first pick off the board.
2. Tyreek Hill
2023 Finish: WR2
Tyreek Hill checks in second on our rankings, having been the key beneficiary in Tua Tagovailoa leading the NFL in passing yards a season ago. While age 30 can be a cliff for some players, Hill is showing no signs of slowing down.
Six of the eight seasons for Hill have resulted in top-eight fantasy finishes, showing just how consistent he is. The high-flying Dolphins offense feels perfectly suited for Hill and his skill set, and the Cheetah will look to build upon his 1,799 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns from 2023.
Miami’s offense is built to support multiple fantasy football-relevant options, helping players like Jaylen Waddle, Devon Achane, and others hold key roles on your team(s). But Hill clears them all, and very easily, and he too can be in consideration for the top pick in your fantasy football drafts.
3. Ja’Marr Chase
2023 Finish: WR11
Rounding out the top three options in our fantasy football wide receiver rankings is Ja’Marr Chase, who is hoping for a healthy, bounceback season from Joe Burrow. While Chase has been looking for a new deal as well, he has been more hands-on with the team, traveling, and being active at practice.
His “hold-in” should be seen as a positive sign for the former LSU Tiger, who is looking to cash in on the ballooning wide receiver market. Chase is set up to be an elite option for fantasy football this season, a key part of a top-12 offense that has been very inconsistent and rocked with injuries the past few seasons.
Chase seems to be coming off the board starting around pick four in the first round, and that is a perfect spot to grab the superstar. Three seasons of 1,000-plus receiving yards and seven-plus touchdowns, including last year catching passes from Jake Browning, speaks to just how consistent and borderline-QB proof Chase really is.
4. A.J. Brown
2023 Finish: WR5
The Philadelphia Eagles will be undergoing an offensive transformation this year, having taken on former Dallas offensive coordinator Kellen Moore to lead their offensive unit. The receivers, namely A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith, are in line for big roles in 2024, making Brown’s spot at fourth on this list solid.
Three receiver sets and “11” personnel (one running back, one tight end, three wide receivers) dominate Moore’s play call history, and that speaks volumes for what he has in store for Brown. The alpha wideout, who has already excelled catching passes from Jalen Hurts, looks to be in line for a career year.
For Brown to have a career-best season, he would need to eclipse his 2023 reception total (106) and his 2022 receiving yards (1,496) and touchdowns (11) marks, which are all realistically in play. If there is any sort of holdout for Chase or Lamb that lasts into the regular season, Brown could easily play himself into the running for the overall WR1 spot this season.
5. Justin Jefferson
2023 Finish: WR33
The curious case of Justin Jefferson takes another interesting turn this season, as he will now be catching passes from journeyman Sam Darnold. With the season-ending injury suffered by rookie J.J. McCarthy, Jefferson will now need to entertain being the top target for Darnold, which gives him all sorts of questions surrounding his fantasy football production.
But Jefferson, similar to Chase, has shown that he is successful even amid QB uncertainty, having gone through the Joshua Dobbs/Nick Mullens debacle of 2023 last year. Injuries may have cost him seven games last season, but in the 10 games he did suit up for, he still averaged over 20 fantasy points per game.
The Minnesota offense will certainly experience some bumps along the way this season, but playing from behind will offer up a high ceiling for Jefferson in 2024. Expecting an 1,800-yard season akin to his WR1 year in 2022 isn’t likely, but Jefferson is a fantastic value later on in the first round.
6. Amon-Ra St. Brown
2023 Finish: WR3
Checking in at sixth on our fantasy football wide receiver rankings is Amon-Ra St. Brown, the catalyst of a strong Detroit offense. Playing half your games every season in a dome certainly helps the Lions offense, but the relationship that he has with quarterback Jared Goff is remarkable too.
Things have seemed very easy for St. Brown in the Detroit offense, racking up over 2,600 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns over the past two seasons. St. Brown’s 2023 season was his best to date, putting up a 119/1,515/10 on his way to finishing as the overall WR3.
While the development of Sam LaPorta gives Goff a trusted second target, no additions were made to the wide receiver room to even sniff at taking work away from St. Brown. As one of the safest bets in the entire first round, drafting St. Brown will give you a core piece to build around moving forward in your fantasy football drafts.
7. Garrett Wilson
2023 Finish: WR26
Is 2024 finally the year of Garrett Wilson? Having a good quarterback has been the biggest roadblock for the former Ohio State receiver, but if Aaron Rodgers is able to have a healthy season this year, the sky is the limit for Wilson.
Even as the top target earner on a bad offense, Wilson has clawed his way to back-to-back 1,000-yard campaigns for New York. Things haven’t been easy for Wilson, but some of Wilson’s advanced stats, which include ranking first overall in routes run (666) and seventh in target share (30.1 percent), point to Wilson being a fantastic candidate to make a jump.
While Breece Hall is even safer than Wilson in the Jets offense, Wilson has a very high ceiling of his own. If your first-round selection is at or near the turn, grabbing Wilson with either pick is a solid way to start your championship-winning fantasy football draft.
8. Puka Nacua
2023 Finish: WR4
Last year’s fantasy football darling, Puka Nacua, checks in at eighth in our fantasy football wide receiver rankings. With the Rams offense reliant on veterans Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp, Nacua has quite easily carved out the WR1 role in that offense, for years to come.
A training camp knee (bursa sac) injury suffered in early August could give you a bit of concern drafting Nacua as early as the end of the first round, but head coach Sean McVay has repeatedly spoken to the lack of worry the team has regarding Nacua’s injury.
In a year that could see Kupp get closer to being his old self, Nacua is still in the driver’s seat to be Stafford’s top target. Nacua’s rookie year stats (105/1,4846/6) should be near what to expect from him this season again, which would give you a really solid start to your fantasy football draft.
9. Davante Adams
2023 Finish: WR10
Ol’ reliable Davante Adams is having to deal with yet another change at quarterback, as this time he will be catching passes from journeyman Gardner Minshew. With Minshew winning the training camp battle over Aidan O’Connell, Adams will now be tasked with leading a receiving core that doesn’t have a ton going for it.
Two consecutive top-10 seasons with the Raiders for the former Packers star wideout, as he has been a target vacuum, earning 175-plus targets both seasons. While expecting a 1,500-yard season like in his first year with the Raiders isn’t likely, Minshew could force-feed Adams 160-plus targets to help him reach 1,200 yards.
Adams is a bit scary, based solely on the offense around him – with the Raiders potentially being the worst team in the AFC West, a lot of playing from behind and throwing the ball will help keep Adams relevant, if you are looking for more upside for your fantasy football roster, Adams might not be your choice in the second round.
But if you want to best player available (BPA) or are good with consistency, then Adams is the perfect fit for your roster near the middle of the second round.
10. Marvin Harrison Jr.
2023 Finish: Rookie
The rookie bump is a real thing in fantasy football, as they are the cream of the next crop of players looking to turn into superstars – but they typically don’t come as highly regarded as Marvin Harrison Jr. does.
Having been drafted as the first non-QB in the 2024 NFL Draft, Harrison is primed and ready to assume the WR1 spot for Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals. Desperately missing that go-to weapon, adding Harrison not only increases the rookie’s likelihood of being fantasy-relevant but also helps raise the ceiling for Murray, as he looks to rekindle some of his dual-threat magic from a few years back.
Trusting a rookie with a high second-round pick is a risk, but it should be a calculated risk for your roster. Targeting ceilings and potential is exactly the advantage that helps you stand out from your league-mates, and Harrison is the perfect option to do so in a crowded receiver group with a second-round average draft position (ADP).
11. Drake London
2023 Finish: WR37
Similar to the 2024 fantasy football case for Wilson, Drake London finally has the best quarterback of his young career, and his stats should reflect that. With Kirk Cousins in the fold down in Atlanta, will London fully establish himself as a top-tier WR1 for the Falcons?
London’s talent has never been the problem, but how the offense was built out is. The 2022 eighth-overall selection has been catching passes from Taylor Heinicke and Desmond Ridder, among others, and now gets a chance to be the top target for an aging but strong QB.
Cousins is no world-beater at 36 years old, but he still can lead an offense and help make players like London fantasy football relevant. 2024 should be the first 1,000-yard season for London, and it isn’t out of the question to hit 150+ targets, 85+ receptions, and six-plus touchdowns either.
12. Nico Collins
2023 Finish: WR12
2023 was the year of the breakout for Nico Collins, who ascended in his third NFL season into C.J. Stroud’s favorite target. The 25-year-old Wolverine fell three yards short of a 1,300-yard season, a remarkable feat considering his previous two seasons barely eclipsed 900 yards – combined.
The wide receiver room in Houston is one of the better ones in the league, with Collins, second-year pro Tank Dell, and offseason acquisition Stefon Diggs leading the three-deep depth chart. While you may worry about Collins’ target share with that many mouths to feed, consider this one simple fact – talent supersedes agendas.
Collins is in line for another big year, and while his ranking of 12th overall in our fantasy football wide receiver rankings might be a bit earlier than other lists, it speaks to his consistency and what his 2023 showed. The Texans offense is a unit you want a piece of, and if you can, Collins should be your target of the three receivers.
13. Chris Olave
2023 Finish: WR16
Chris Olave is still mired in a bit of fantasy football purgatory, stuck catching passes from Derek Carr. But with no more threat of Michael Thomas and only Rashid Shaheed as fantasy-relevant depth, Olave is in line again for a big-time role.
Last season’s WR16 finish was the best of his two-year career, racking up 1,123 receiving yards and five scores on 87 receptions. His 138 targets were 12th-most in the league and was 19 more than his rookie season, which shows that his role in the offense continues to grow.
But with Carr still the QB and no real relief in sight, there are concerns to be had about Olave and whether he can become more consistent and less boom-bust. With 12 double-digit scoring games last season, Olave can be the WR2 your fantasy football roster needs – but having him as your top receiver could be a detriment in the long run, so just be aware.
14. Deebo Samuel
2023 Finish: WR15
The type of role that Deebo Samuel has in the San Francisco 49ers offense is a very unique one, but Kyle Shanahan has utilized Samuel in a way that has been great for fantasy football. Plus, with all the uncertainty surrounding Brandon Aiyuk and where he is playing this year, 2024 could be a good year for Samuel.
Even if Aiyuk signs a new deal and remains with the team, Samuel still should produce WR1-adjacent stats this season. 97 total touches (60 receptions) for Samuel resulted in over 1,200 total yards and 12 total TDs, and that kind of efficiency is exactly what the second (or even third round) should bring you.
It shouldn’t be a surprise to hear that the 49ers offense is a unit that you should try to have a piece from, and with all the offseason uncertainty surrounding Aiyuk’s contract and McCaffrey’s training camp injury, Samuel could end up being the best player from this offense for fantasy football in ‘24, based on ADP.
15. Mike Evans
2023 Finish: WR7
The final piece on our fantasy football wide receiver rankings is Mike Evans, who continues to delay Father Time. Having produced his eighth-consecutive top-20 overall WR finish last season, Evans has shown no signs of slowing down.
The funny part about ranking Evans each and every season is that, on the one hand, you know that he will exceed most expectations and rankings for the year. On the other hand, at some point, he will likely hit the cliff and not be as efficient as he continues to be.
When that fall-off will get here, no one knows. But what we do know is that Evans offers up really good value yet again this year. With an ADP of 29, you can realistically draft Evans near the mid-way point of the third round in 12-team leagues, and almost a full round later in 10-team formats.
Just missing out on our top 15 fantasy football wide receivers list – Jaylen Waddle, DeVonta Smith, Amari Cooper, and DK Metcalf. Which wide receiver are you putting your money on this year to lead this position?
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