The New England Patriots have a lot of work to do before their offense becomes competent. Drafting wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk in the second round is a good step toward accomplishing that.
While Polk will have every opportunity to climb a shallow depth chart, will that translate into a player worth drafting in fantasy football?
Ja’Lynn Polk’s 2024 Fantasy Forecast
Polk is an interesting prospect. He did a whole lot of nothing during his first two years in college. After a solid breakout as a junior, he exploded as a senior, hauling in 69 passes for 1,159 yards and nine touchdowns for Washington. Of course, he also played alongside Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan.
Polk comes with above-average speed and agility, as well as strong early second-round draft capital. There’s a lot to like with his profile.
As for the landing spot and what it means for his fantasy value this season, well, that’s a tricky question.
On the one hand, the opportunity is there. The Patriots’ depth chart consists of 2023 sixth-rounder DeMario Douglas, journeyman Kendrick Bourne, and fellow rookie Javon Baker. It’s not that difficult to paint a picture where Polk is this team’s leading receiver.
Fantasy managers certainly don’t have to pay much to find out. Polk carries a WR67 ADP. He isn’t even a lock to be taken in every fantasy draft. You can likely grab him as your last position player.
The problem with that is Polk is unlikely to produce much early in the season. If you’re drafting him, you have to be willing to hold him for a few weeks to see how he progresses.
The Patriots are very likely to open the season with Jacoby Brissett as the starter at quarterback. However, it’s a matter of when — not if — they turn to rookie Drake Maye.
Historically, rookie quarterbacks have not been great for wide receiver fantasy value. A rookie WR with a rookie QB in an offense that projects to be one of the lowest scoring in the league is not exactly the situation you want to target.
Of course, there’s always the chance that we’re wrong. What if Maye hits the ground running? After all, who saw C.J. Stroud propelling the Texans to the playoffs and producing two top-24 WRs last season?
I’m not saying Maye is likely to do that, but if he can turn Polk merely into a top-48 receiver, that would be a pretty significant return on investment.
Any risk that Polk is bad at football doesn’t really factor in. Once we get outside the top 48 wide receivers, all that matters is plausible upside. There’s a chance Polk is really good at football. The downside doesn’t matter because the downside of every player drafted that late is you drop him early in the season.
I have Polk ranked as my WR69. In general, I’m not trying to go that far down my rankings for any of my players. Ultimately, though, it comes down to personal preference.
If you want to take a shot at Polk breaking through, go for it. There is quite literally no risk involved.
Kyle Soppe’s Fantasy Insight on Ja’Lynn Polk
Polk put up 1,159 yards and nine scores at Washington last season, impressive numbers at face value and downright remarkable when you consider that he did so alongside Rome Odunze. I don’t have many questions about what Polk is capable of, but I have a ton of questions about the number of opportunities this offense will afford him.
Consider this: DeMario Douglas ranked 78th in the NFL in receiving yards last season, 142 yards clear of any other Patriots target.
There’s no such thing as a bad final pick in your draft, and if you want to bet on the talent, go for it. I do think Douglas has a better chance at working himself into the weekly Flex discussion, and he owns a similar ADP. The same goes for Ray Davis (Buffalo Bills) and even Roman Wilson (Pittsburgh Steelers).
Polk is a very interesting dynasty play, given his ability to develop alongside (hopefully) the team’s franchise quarterback. Generally speaking, I love doubling down on an offense that goes with a youth movement, especially when their short-term is underwhelming.
No one is expecting big things from the Patriots this season, but if the foundation they built in the 2024 NFL Draft sticks, the Drake Maye/Polk tandem could impact fantasy leagues down the road in a significant way.