Second-Year Players: Puka Nacua, Zay Flowers, Jaxon Smith-Njigba (Fantasy Football)

When preparing for your fantasy football drafts, knowing which players to target and others to avoid is important. The amount of information available can be overwhelming, so a great way to condense the data and determine players to draft and others to leave for your leaguemates is to use our expert consensus fantasy football rankings compared to fantasy football average draft position (ADP). In this way, you can identify players the experts are willing to reach for at ADP and others they are not drafting until much later than average. Here we break down all second-year fantasy football players to consider in your upcoming drafts. Let’s dive into a few notable second-year fantasy football players below.

Fantasy Football Second-Year Players: Draft Advice

Puka Nacua (LAR)

Everyone HURRY! Get it. Grab it. Got it? Good. Pop the tops on those Puka Juice 40s; it’s time to CHUG! Nacua had a rookie season for the ages, finishing as the WR6 in fantasy points per game. He set rookie records for receptions and receiving yards. Even after Cooper Kupp returned, he led the duo in target share (25.4%), air-yard share (32.7%), YPRR (2.61, and fantasy points per game (WR12). Nacua could access another level in his sophomore campaign if Matthew Stafford stays healthy and Kupp’s powers diminish just a tiny bit more. Nacua could finish as a top-three option at the position this season if everything breaks his way.
– Derek Brown

Jaxon Smith-Njigba (SEA)

In his rookie season, Jaxon Smith-Njigba managed 63 receptions from 93 targets, totaling 628 yards and 4 touchdowns. Despite a slow start due to a wrist injury, he began to find his rhythm from Week 6 onwards, averaging 8.2 points per game. With more opportunities ahead in 2024, the 22-year-old wideout is poised as a breakout candidate for the Seahawks in what should be a pass-happier offense under new OC Ryan Grubb.
– Andrew Erickson

Zay Flowers (BAL)

Rookie Zay Flowers quickly established himself as Lamar Jackson‘s go-to receiver in Baltimore, securing a 24% target share. He led the Ravens in air yards/target share, accumulating over 1,000 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns in 18 games. However, his final rankings as WR29 overall and WR31 in points/game hint that he may have underperformed relative to his opportunities. When Mark Andrews was active in the lineup (Weeks 2-10) Flowers averaged 8.2 points/game with a 22% target share. When the TE missed, Flowers posted a 24% target share and 13.2 points/game (WR14).
– Andrew Erickson