Training camp is not the best time to evaluate wide receivers, but the NFL preseason gives many a first glimpse at the position before the regular season. For some wide receivers, it’s about making a strong first impression and making the team’s 53-man roster or get picked up by someone else.
For fantasy football managers, though, it provides the chance to monitor team situations and figure out who could be relevant in 2024 or the future. Here are the top wide receivers to keep an eye on this preseason.
Who Are the Top Fantasy Wide Receivers To Watch This Preseason?
Arizona Cardinals: Michael Wilson
We know Marvin Harrison Jr. is locked in as the Cardinals’ WR1. There also aren’t any questions about Kyler Murray, Trey McBride, or James Conner leading their positions. The main guy fantasy managers should focus on is Arizona’s WR2.
Michael Wilson is competing with free agent acquisition Zay Jones, which is important for two reasons. First, whoever wins this job will be worth a late-round dart throw in fantasy drafts. Second, this is an inflection point for Wilson as an NFL player. If he can’t beat out the journeyman, it would be a pretty harsh indictment of Wilson’s ability.
Baltimore Ravens: Rashod Bateman
The Ravens typically don’t play starters at all in the preseason. Even if they do, we know who Lamar Jackson, Mark Andrews, Zay Flowers, and Derrick Henry are. The only real fantasy-relevant question mark on this offense is Rashod Bateman.
Now entering his fourth season, Bateman hasn’t even come close to fantasy relevance yet. However, we’ve heard a lot of offseason coach talk about Bateman being in store for a big year. If he does play in the preseason, let’s see if he looks the part.
Buffalo Bills: Keon Coleman
The Bills typically have their starters play a little bit in the preseason, so we should get a chance to see Keon Coleman work with Josh Allen. Even if we don’t, whether the rookie can get open and make plays is something fantasy managers want to pay attention to.
Buffalo has no clear WR1 at the moment. Coleman will compete with Curtis Samuel and Khalil Shakir for targets at the wide receiver position.
Coleman is already a solid late-round dart throw due to the ambiguity. If that ambiguity gets cleared up at all in the preseason, it could make him even more of a value … or too expensive to draft.
Cincinnati Bengals: Jermaine Burton
The Bengals don’t typically play starters at all in the preseason. Perhaps that will change, given that Joe Burrow is coming off wrist surgery, and Cincinnati has a competition at running back.
One guy who will definitely see preseason action is rookie WR Jermaine Burton. With Tyler Boyd gone, the Bengals have an opening at WR3. Andrei Iosivas is currently the favorite for that role, but the third-round rookie Jermaine Burton is not without talent. He fell down draft boards largely due to off-the-field concerns.
Focus on Burton’s performance, as well as when he’s in the game. If he shows signs of pushing Iosivas for the WR3 role, Burton may very well be worthy of a late-round dart throw in fantasy drafts.
Detroit Lions: Jameson Williams
There’s not much uncertainty regarding the Lions’ top fantasy weapons. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jahmyr Gibbs, and Sam LaPorta are elite options at their respective positions. David Montgomery is a solid RB2, and Jared Goff is a solid QB2/streamer.
The only other player on Detroit’s offense that might be fantasy-relevant is third-year WR Jameson Williams.
The Lions typically hold all of their key players out of preseason games. We’re not likely to see any of the aforementioned players … except Williams.
The former first-round pick has gotten a lot of buzz during training camp. What he does in the preseason can certainly help fantasy managers determine whether they want to take a chance on the breakout this season.
Indianapolis Colts: Adonai Mitchell
It’s safe to say everyone is excited to see what QB Anthony Richardson can do throughout a full season, but we’re not going to really learn anything watching him play exhibition games.
The most intriguing player on the Colts right now is rookie WR Adonai Mitchell. The only thing that is certain on this team is that Michael Pittman Jr. is the WR1. Mitchell could be as high as the WR2 or as low as the WR4, behind both Josh Downs and Alec Pierce.
Pay attention to when Mitchell plays in preseason games, as well as how he performs. It could clue us into what his role might look like when the games actually count.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Brian Thomas Jr.
It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that so many of the players we’re interested in are rookies. With this in mind, Brian Thomas Jr. is a prospect with a very high ceiling but also a very low floor.
As a rookie, Thomas has the chance to start in two-receiver sets but could also find himself behind Gabe Davis. If Thomas performs well in preseason games, that could cement his status opposite Christian Kirk as Trevor Lawrence’s WR2. If Thomas performs poorly, we may end up with a guy fantasy managers drop early in the season due to a lack of playing time.
New England Patriots: Ja’Lynn Polk
There is a bevy of players fantasy managers should be interested in seeing in the preseason. Outside of Rhamondre Stevenson, there is no clear fantasy-relevant player on the Patriots. The first thing worth paying attention to is who plays and when.
DeMario Douglas and Kendrick Bourne project to be New England’s top two receivers. But what if rookie Ja’Lynn Polk impresses? This is not a difficult depth chart to climb.
We want to see evidence of Polk’s talent and then have confidence that he’ll be able to ascend to the WR1 role as the season goes on.
New York Jets: Malachi Corley
We already know Aaron Rodgers is not playing a snap in the preseason. It’s also hard to imagine the rest of the starters seeing much action, if at all.
One guy who will definitely play, though, is rookie WR Malachi Corley, who has been getting positive reviews out of training camp.
Primarily a screen specialist in college, it will be interesting to see if Corley can run a full route tree. How the Jets utilize him in the preseason may give us a clue as to what his upside is as a fantasy asset during the season.
San Francisco 49ers: Ricky Pearsall
The 2024 49ers are going to look very much like the 2023 team. Christian McCaffrey, Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel Sr., and George Kittle will see just about all of the touches in this offense.
With one of Aiyuk or Samuel almost certainly gone after this season, the 49ers drafted their WR2 of the future, Ricky Pearsall. While Pearsall is unlikely to make much of an impact this season, there’s a very high chance Aiyuk and Samuel won’t both play every game this year.
Pay attention to how Pearsall does in preseason action, as he would be the primary beneficiary if one of San Francisco’s top two wide receivers had to miss time.
Seattle Seahawks: Jaxon Smith-Njigba
It’s unclear if Seattle’s new coaching staff will play veterans in the preseason. If they do, we definitely want to note how sophomore WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba is being used.
Last year, JSN underwhelmed despite his first-round draft capital due to being trapped behind DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. Will new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb allow Smith-Njigba to run more downfield routes rather than be limited to underneath stuff like last year? If so, JSN might be a tremendous value in fantasy this year.