Fantasy Football: Sneaky Wide Receiver Picks Who Won't Pan Out Like You Hope

Stefon Diggs, Houston Texans

The excitement of Diggs being traded to Houston to play with a young star quarterback in C.J. Stroud has seemed to wash away a lot of the negativity that was surrounding him heading into 2024 when fantasy owners expected him to be in a Bills uniform this season. Currently, he's being drafted as the WR17 early in the third round.

You can blame a change in scheme in Buffalo for Diggs' collapse last year all you want, but there is a lot more to it than that. The targets and opportunities were still more than enough to make him an outstanding fantasy option. This was also the second straight season his production fell off a cliff in the second half of the season, with 2023 being a historic drop-off.

In the last four games of the fantasy season, he turned 31 targets into 17 receptions for 127 scoreless yards. While that can be partially blamed on an inaccurate quarterback and offensive coordinator change, the bigger problem was Diggs himself. This year he will turn 31 and is showing massive signs of a potential oncoming decline and now heads to a team with a lot more weapons where it's not unthinkable that by mid-season he's viewed as the third-best wideout in the Texans' offense.     

Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams

Kupp's days as both a high-end fantasy receiver and the WR1 on his team are now behind him. However, he's still being drafted inside the top 20 wide receivers living off of his reputation. He only had one elite season and has been bit by the injury bug often throughout his career.

Only once has he caught 100 passes and only twice has he topped 1,000 yards. Over the past two seasons, he's missed 13 games. In 2023, rookie Puka Nacua separated himself as the WR1 on the Rams. Both his numbers and film reflect his superiority.

That gap is only going to widen moving forward. While this offense is good enough to support two strong fantasy WRs, Kupp is not worthy of his current draft slot. 

Christian Watson, Green Bay Packers

Watson finds himself in a crowded wide receiver room where he was already never proven to be consistent. Many view him as the WR1 in Green Bay, while many others believe Jayden Reed is the top wideout. We are in the Reed camp. We know Watson will have his big games and has a ton of talent, however, the injury concerns are too glaring to overlook.

The word injury-prone is thrown around way too much in the fantasy community and is often misused. This is a case where it is necessary and accurate. We have seen Watson injure his hamstrings time and time again going back before he was even in the NFL. This is an issue that has and will continue to plague him throughout his career. Don't be stuck relying on him or caught with him in your lineup when he exits in the first quarter and sinks your week.    

Mike Williams, New York Jets

If you still believe in Mike Williams, then you probably also believe in the tooth fairy. This guy at his best was an erratic option who you couldn't rely on to give you consistent production or even consistently be on the field. This is a bestball wideout if I've ever seen one.

However, I promise you're going to hear hype about him coming out of Jets' camp this summer and his price will continue to rise above his current WR4 price tag. How do we know? Because it always does. People just can't quit this guy.

With the media circus surrounding Aaron Rodgers, we are sure to get plenty of news about how healthy and fast Williams looks. The bottom line is he is a mediocre receiver coming off a major injury and about to turn 30 years old.

To make matters worse, he now goes to a team with a worse quarterback who everyone ignores the red flags about in an offense with a terrible offensive line and is still a distant WR2. When the hype comes, don't believe it. You're welcome in advance.   

Keon Coleman, Buffalo Bills

Just because a team with viable weapons on the outside drafts a wideout in the second round doesn't mean it has to work out. This is Skyy Moore all over again. Coleman isn't a special player, isn't NFL-ready, and probably won't end up being the Bills leading fantasy receiver this season. So don't assume he will be.

This is a trap fantasy owners fall into far too often. Don't get caught thinking he's going to be a breakout rookie in 2024.