Fantasy Football Wide Receivers to Buy Now Before Their Value Rises: Rashee Rice, Brian Thomas Jr., Courtland Sutton and More
Identifying fantasy wide receivers to target before training camp opens.
NFL Training Camp is almost upon us, and once it kicks off many player's fantasy values will start to shift drastically. This could be due to a standout or poor performance, unexpected opportunities, or just buzz from the media and coaches. These players are guys whose value is only going to skyrocket from here. So no matter what format you are playing, find a way to get these on your rosters now because their price will never be lower. Here we will focus on the wide receivers.
Rashee Rice, Kansas City Chiefs
This pick does not come without risk as his off-field concerns have piled up this offseason, including his very serious street racing accident. However, I do believe that this becomes an Alvin Kamara situation where the suspension is pushed back to 2025 due to pending legal proceedings. If that is the case, his value will skyrocket well past where it is now.
As of now, he's currently being drafted as a WR4 because people are scared about potential league discipline. If that becomes a non-concern you could steal Patrick Mahomes' top and best receiver. Rice is a special talent and a better talent than Marquise Brown or Xavier Worthy.
He will have a monster year assuming he doesn't face a lengthy suspension. At his current price, even if he misses six-to-eight games, he's probably worth stashing on your bench until comes back for a playoff run.
Ladd McConkey, Los Angeles Chargers
No matter what happens at Chargers' camp, the fantasy community will decide that McConkey has won the WR1 job in LA. People hear what they want to hear and that is clearly what the people want.
Whether he ends up the top guy remains to be seen, but once owners decide he's locked in as Justin Herbert's top target, he won't be ranked as the WR47 anymore by the consensus.
There is a real chance he jumps all the way up closer to the WR30 and is drafted as a WR3 or expected starting Flex option. This is one of the easiest ascensions to predict in the entire NFL.
Brian Thomas Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars
Thomas is another rookie wideout who is going to skyrocket in the coming weeks when the fantasy community decides he's the wideout to own in Jacksonville. While he does have more quarterback competition than McConkey and many people believe a lesser quarterback, he is simply a better player as well.
We still believe Christian Kirk is the wideout to own for the Jaguars, but these two are very different players with very different roles. Both can co-exist and be fantasy-relevant.
Currently, Thomas is being viewed as the WR50. There's no way he doesn't make a significant jump once people start seeing him in camp and hearing positive reports.
Demario Douglas, New England Patriots
This is a bit of an iffy one and we could be wrong here. Fantasy owners may be so down on the Patriots' passing attack that they just won't buy in on anyone. However, Douglas will emerge as the clear-cut most talented wideout on the team and separate himself as the WR1 in this new-look Pats' offense.
It's hard to believe an ascending young WR1 with positive reports out of camp will be drafted as the WR69 no matter what team he's on.
Courtland Sutton, Denver Broncos
Sutton is another guy who will be locked in as the WR1 on his team. With Jerry Jeudy shipped off to Cleveland, he has even less proven target competition heading into this season. This is a guy who caught double-digit TDs last season.
If we start hearing that he is Bo Nix's guy and the chemistry is there, look for him to jump up from being the WR43 and flirt with being a WR3. There are also a lot of Sutton truthers out there who have been expecting him to be great for a long time. Expect them to come back out of the woodwork as well this summer.
George Pickens, Pittsburgh Steelers
Pickens is by far the highest valued player here coming it as the WR27 in the consensus rankings. That still feels too low for him and we expect him to climb into the WR2 bracket over guys like Tee Higgins and Stefon Diggs.
His talent is undeniable and he went for 1,140 yards and five TDs last season with a nightmarish quarterback situation. The QB room in Pittsburgh still isn't ideal, but it's much improved nonetheless. Diontae Johnson is also gone, leaving him as the clear target hog in that offense.
As the quarterback situation becomes written in concrete, Pickens will start jumping up rankings and draft boards. He has WR1 upside this season.
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