Looking for the perfect dynasty wide receiver sleeper? The long-term payoff? The win-now asset? I’ve got three wide receivers that can help your fantasy team in 2024 and beyond. Here are my top three dynasty wide receiver sleepers to draft or trade for this year.
In 2021, we saw the rise of Mooney with a WR23 finish in PPR opposite Allen Robinson. Mooney had 140 targets, 1,055 receiving yards and four touchdowns — an impressive stat line for a sophomore receiver with an unstable quarterback situation. The Bears were flipping between Andy Dalton and Justin Fields with the fourth-fewest passing touchdowns (16) and third-fewest passing yards (3,207). Much of Mooney’s success that season was in games with Andy Dalton. After the Bears transitioned full-time to Justin Fields, Mooney saw just 61 targets in 2022 and 2023 with three total touchdowns.
Looking for the perfect dynasty wide receiver sleeper? The long-term payoff? The win-now asset? I’ve got three wide receivers that can help your fantasy team in 2024 and beyond. Here are my top three dynasty wide receiver sleepers to draft or trade for this year.
In 2021, we saw the rise of Mooney with a WR23 finish in PPR opposite Allen Robinson. Mooney had 140 targets, 1,055 receiving yards and four touchdowns — an impressive stat line for a sophomore receiver with an unstable quarterback situation. The Bears were flipping between Andy Dalton and Justin Fields with the fourth-fewest passing touchdowns (16) and third-fewest passing yards (3,207). Much of Mooney’s success that season was in games with Andy Dalton. After the Bears transitioned full-time to Justin Fields, Mooney saw just 61 targets in 2022 and 2023 with three total touchdowns.
Mooney heads into 2024 with potential and opportunity. Kirk Cousins is one of the league’s best volume quarterbacks and Mooney could thrive as a deep threat opposite Drake London. Mooney’s skill set meshes well with Cousins and Atlanta’s 2024 offensive scheme under the new coaching staff — from Sean McVay’s coaching tree — is capable of supporting a fantasy-relevant WR2. Mooney’s value rose after signing with the Falcons but he’s still a strong value-buy in dynasty leagues and has excellent start-up value, ranking WR82 in FantasyPros’ dynasty expert consensus rankings (ECR). Breaking out as a fifth-year veteran is highly unusual, but Mooney had understandable hindrances in Chicago and is in line was a big upgrade in Atlanta.
While I’m interested in Rashid Shaheed in 2024 redraft, my true interest lies in investing in Shaheed’s long-term dynasty value. Shaheed is heading into his third season and coming off a year of 719 receiving and five touchdowns, a stat line full of peaks and valleys. We know exactly what we get at this point with Shaheed — a boom/bust Flex play that will get you either five fantasy points or 20 fantasy points with target inconsistency and touchdown dependency. However, much of that inconsistency lies within the Saints’ quarterback situation that has plagued all Saints receivers. This means his 2024 could look very similar to 2023 but with a potential uptick in targets in a new offensive system and without Michael Thomas.
Look at the situation beyond 2024. Shaheed is a restricted-free agent in 2025 and could seek a new home and upgraded situation. It’s also possible the Saints move on from Derek Carr. Carr’s contract situation makes it difficult but we’ve seen NFL teams more willing to part ways with quarterbacks recently, even if there’s a significant cap hit or extreme investment loss in draft capital. The situation is full of risk but for the potential Shaheed would have in friendlier conditions, I’m more than willing to invest. Shaheed’s current ranking in FantasyPros’ ECR is WR70, behind players like Gabe Davis, Marvin Mims and Jerry Jeudy. His value is appropriate and worthy of a buy.
By the time we hit Week 3 of the 2024 season, Demarcus Robinson will be 30 years old. Investing in a soon-expiring asset might feel a bit icky but Robinson has real value for contending dynasty teams. Robinson was one of my favorite waiver wire grabs in redraft and shallow dynasty leagues last season. He’ll continue to offer weekly Flex value in 2024 as the Rams re-signed Robinson and made no significant investments at receiver in the draft or free agency. They’ll also likely be without Tyler Higbee for a portion of the season.
What can fantasy managers expect from Robinson in 2024?
In 2023, Robinson made an aggressive leap from zero to 60 in fantasy production from Week 13 on and there was a logical explanation for the sudden role change. The Rams moved on from Van Jefferson midseason after Robinson returned from a multi-week absence due to injury. Robinson’s role slowly increased until he saw anywhere from 60-90% of the snaps. Robinson had four straight games with a touchdown and five straight games with double-digit fantasy points.
For contending teams, a short-term start-worthy depth option like Robinson has strong value. Typically, targeting a team’s WR3 who has zero chance of surpassing the receivers in front ahead of him is an unwise move, but the Rams are the exception. The Rams run 11 personnel at one of the highest rates in the NFL. This means you see three receivers on the field so frequently that the WR3 can be a reliable fantasy asset. At WR138 in FantasyPros’ ECR rankings, Robinson is a cheap investment that can yield big results.
