There is no shortage of talented and fantasy-friendly wide receivers and an influx of talented incoming rookies. Interestingly, many are correctly priced and have a reasonable average draft position (ADP). However, a 2023 breakout and a player coming off an intriguing rookie season are undervalued. They’re excellent targets and selected at vastly different points in Underdog Fantasy best ball drafts, with one picked in the second round and the other chosen after the 10th round.
- 2024 Dynasty Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- 2024 NFL Draft Guide
- 2024 Best Ball Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- Free Fantasy Football Mock Draft Simulator
Early Undervalued Wide Receivers
Nico Collins (HOU -WR): 15.8 Underdog Fantasy ADP/WR9
Nico Collins erupted in his third season. He put his tools to their full use, thriving with C.J. Stroud at quarterback. Including the postseason, Collins was tied for Pro Football Focus’s (PFF’s) fourth-highest receiving grade, third in yards after the catch per reception (7.1 YAC/REC) and second in yards per route run (3.11 Y/RR) among wide receivers targeted at least 50 times. The big-bodied wideout had 91 receptions (5.4 per game), 1,461 receiving yards (85.9 per game) and nine touchdown receptions in 17 games.
Collins did it all. Per PFF, he caught 15 of (65.2%) of his 23 deep targets (20+ air yards). Yet, Collins was also a monster after the catch. Despite missing two games, he had the most broken tackles (16) among wideouts in the regular season. Tyreek Hill and Deebo Samuel were tied for second, tallying 12 broken tackles.
Fortunately, Collins’ production wasn’t drastically inflated when Tank Dell was out. The duo each had at least 61% snap shares in seven games (Week 2-4, 8, 9, 11 and 12) together. The following table has their side-by-side statistics in many notable categories.
Collins has a mid-second-round ADP but I'd select him ahead of Garrett Wilson (12.2 ADP). Furthermore, I'd pick him before Jahmyr Gibbs (10.7 ADP), Kyren Williams (12.7) or Jonathan Taylor (15.1), if selecting only one team. I would mix him into my portfolio slightly more often than the trio of running backs if entering multiple teams into Underdog Fantasy best ball tournaments.
Dontayvion Wicks (GB - WR): 132.1/WR58
Green Bay had a young pass-catching corps last season. Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs were in their second seasons in the NFL, while rookies Jayden Reed, Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft were picked in the second, second and third rounds, respectively. They all had encouraging moments or even rock-solid seasons.
Still, Dontayvion Wicks, a fifth-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, also forced his way into the mix. Moreover, he shined in many statistical measures compared to his fellow young wide receivers.
Wicks was more efficient and earned targets at a higher rate than Doubs and Watson last season. He was also well-regarded by the tape grinders. First, Wicks had PFF's highest receiving grade among Green Bay's wideouts targeted at least 30 times. Second, he had PFF's fourth-highest receiving grade among rookie receivers, trailing only Puka Nacua, Rashee Rice and Dell. Third, Matt Harmon from Reception Perception and Yahoo! Fantasy was a fan of Wicks' work when reviewing a handful of his games during the season.
NEW Dontayvion Wicks has been added to the #ReceptionPerception In-season Rookie Report.
Some highlights:
- 68.4% success rate vs. man coverage
- 77.6% success rate vs. zone coverage
- 71.4% success rate vs. pressAll solid marks. I think this guy can play. The Packers continue… pic.twitter.com/uhgOEiVy0K
— Matt Harmon (@MattHarmon_BYB) November 29, 2023
In managed leagues, Green Bay's receivers might be frustrating to have on rosters. Nevertheless, Jordan Love was outstanding in the second half of his first season as an NFL starter and each wide receiver can have fantasy-friendly weeks. Wicks shouldn't be dismissed from siphoning work from Doubs or Watson, either. Reed is a cut above Watson, Doubs and Wicks since he earned targets at the highest rate in the group, was the most efficient and also gashed teams on designed runs. The vast ADP gap between Watson (80.1), Doubs (94.3) and Wicks (132.1) is inexcusable.
Watson had a hyper-efficient rookie season and demonstrated monstrous spike-week potential. So, his ADP is acceptable, albeit maybe a touch rich. Doubs is overpriced and Wicks is underpriced. The latter should be picked 10-to-15 selections earlier than his ADP. Finally, Wicks is a more appealing option than most of the running backs slightly ahead of him, as well as Dalton Schultz (127.1 ADP) and wideouts Jerry Jeudy (128.6) and Rashid Shaheed (124.0).
More Early 2024 Fantasy Football Draft Prep
- Erickson's Early Fantasy Football Rankings, Tiers & Notes: QB | WR
- Early Must-Have Running Backs: Feb
- Early Must-Have Wide Receivers: Feb
- Early Must-Have QBs & TEs: Feb
- Early Undervalued Players
- Early Overvalued Players: RB | WR
- QB2s With Top-5 Upside: Feb
- RB3s With RB1 Upside: Feb
- TE2s With Top-5 Upside: Feb
- Players to Avoid: QB | RB
- 3 Early Breakout Candidates
- 6 Early Fantasy Football Draft Sleepers
- 7 Fantasy Football Draft Targets: Underrated Handcuffs
- Draft Values, Breakouts & Busts: RB | WR | TE
- RB Dead Zone Running Backs: Draft or Fade?
- Most Polarizing Running Backs to Draft
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Josh Shepardson is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Josh, check out his archive and follow him @BChad50.
