Fantasy Football Sleepers: Late-Round Wide Receivers for Best Ball Drafts
The NFL is a passing league these days, and wide receiver is easily the deepest position in fantasy football. While conventional wisdom has always suggested that taking a running back in the first round is the way to go, the times are changing. Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson was almost the consensus No. 1 overall player heading into last year’s Best Ball drafts. Jefferson’s 2023 campaign left plenty to be desired, of course, but the logic was sound.
Stacking is a very popular Best Ball draft strategy. It makes sense to stack your early-round wide receiver with his QB, of course, and you’ll want to round out the stack with as many pass-catchers as you can get your hands on. Fully stacking an entire offense is hardly necessary though, and the right one-off can help you get over the hump.
Who are a few late-round receivers worth considering in Best Ball drafts heading into the 2024 campaign?
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Fantasy Football Sleepers— Wide Receivers
Curtis Samuel, Buffalo Bills
Curtis Samuel has hardly been a star at his previous stops, but he’s developed into a solid receiver over the years. The 27-year-old has quietly topped 3,300 receiving yards over the course of his first 7 NFL seasons, and he inked a 3-year deal with the Bills earlier this offseason.
You’re likely well aware that the Bills’ receiving room will look a little different this season. Stefon Diggs is in Houston, while Gabe Davis is in Jacksonville. Khalil Shakir and Dalton Kincaid should step into bigger roles after promising 2023 campaigns, but there’s an obvious lack of experience in Buffalo’s receiving corps. Samuel is one of the elder statesmen, while the team has rounded out the roster with the likes of Chase Claypool, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and 2024 2nd-rounder Keon Coleman.
Claypool and MVS leave plenty to be desired, while Shakir and Coleman are hardly proven commodities. It’s not insane to think that Samuel may emerge as one of Josh Allen’s favorite targets out of the slot. He could play a role similar to the one Cole Beasley played for the Bills for several years when he was a quietly solid fantasy commodity.
It’s also worth noting that Samuel will be reunited in Buffalo with one of his former offensive coordinators, Joe Brady. The two were together in Carolina back in 2020 when Samuel authored the most productive season of his career. Samuel hauled in 77 of 97 targets for 851 yards and 3 TDs that year, averaging 11.1 yards per catch in the process. Samuel was also useful in the running game, rushing for a career-best 200 yards on 41 carries.
Samuel’s versatility combined with the uncertainty in the Bills’ passing game makes him an intriguing flier to consider in later rounds. As of this writing, Samuel’s ADP is coming in around 111, and he’s just 49th among receivers.
Diontae Johnson, Carolina Panthers
You’d be hard-pressed to find a team whose season was more disastrous than that of the Panthers. Just about everything that could’ve gone wrong did for Bryce Young as a rookie. However, Carolina hired first-time head coach Dave Canales this offseason in an attempt to breathe some life into what was previously a lifeless offense.
The Panthers have also made a point of attempting to upgrade the weaponry around Young. This is still a very inexperienced offense, for the most part, but veteran Diontae Johnson came over from Pittsburgh via trade. It’s easy to forget that Johnson is still only 27 years old considering it feels like he’s been around forever. His production has fallen off over the past couple of seasons, thanks in no small part to the Steelers’ woeful offensive coaching and sketchy QB play.
Back in 2021, however, Johnson was among the most prolific possession receivers in football. That year, he grabbed 107 of his whopping 169 targets for 1,161 yards and 8 touchdowns. Without much established competition in the receiving ranks in Carolina, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see Johnson attract around 100 targets again this season.
Johnson almost certainly has a lower floor than a few of the other receivers with a similar ADP (WR41). We saw last season how horrific the Panthers’ offense was, and there’s a certain amount of hope involved in expecting rapid improvement in 2024. Still, I like the Panthers as a Best Ball stack that can be built without using any premium early-round selections.
Quentin Johnston, Los Angeles Chargers
Quentin Johnston became something of a meme last season as a rookie. The Chargers invested heavily in the TCU product by nabbing him with the 21st overall pick, but he was a massive disappointment. In 17 games, Johnston caught just 38 passes (67 targets) for 431 yards and a couple of touchdowns. Johnston came into the league boasting an impressive combination of speed and size, but catching the ball proved rather difficult.
However, Johnston should step into a potentially bigger role in year two. Keenan Allen and Mike Williams are gone, and the Chargers haven’t exactly surrounded Justin Herbert with a ton of weapons this offseason. Johnston will be competing with Joshua Palmer, DJ Chark, and rookie Ladd McConkey for targets in Jim Harbaugh’s offense. The Bolts could take a more run-focused approach under Harbaugh, but it’s also hard to imagine they’ll completely abandon the passing game with Herbert still in the fold.
Expectations are low for Johnston considering he was such an epic bust a season ago. He’s still only 22 years old, and the wide receiver position has historically had a healthy learning curve at the NFL level. It’s far too early to completely bail on Johnston’s potential, especially given the likelihood he’ll be featured more prominently with Allen and Williams out of town.
Johnston’s current ADP is coming in around 150 overall, while he’s just 66th among receivers.
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