Ranking the 5 best WR options for 2024

The 2024 fantasy football season is heating up and players are cramming ahead of their drafts to make sure they are ready for a long road to the playoffs.

Wide receivers are a top priority in fantasy football, and the position is now likely to be the focus of the first two rounds of the draft. A team that doesn’t have several good wideouts will likely struggle to win games. Everyone is hoping for a draft position that will allow them to sign elite players like CeeDee Lamb, Tyreek Hill, and Justin Jefferson.

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While the early rounds will determine your team’s success or failure, the middle and late rounds are where you separate your powerhouse teams from your fantasy champions. That means you need to find value while your opponents reach for a bigger name. Signing another reliable receiver will allow you to use your free agent budget to sign this year’s breakout player. Signing a player with WR2 potential in round eight or nine might not generate much excitement, but it could also be the move that sets you apart in your league’s championship game.

Here are five wide receivers who could prove to be dark horses in 2024.

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Average draft position (ADP) and position ranking come from FantasyPros data.

Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams (ADP35, WR17)

Statistics 2023 (12 games): 737 yards gained, 59 pass catches, 5 touchdowns | 105.4 fantasy points

The reports of Kupp’s demise seem premature. The 31-year-old played through multiple injuries in 2023, and with Puka Nacua’s surprise emergence as a true WR1, Kupp’s target share dropped. That led to some decent numbers for a WR3, but fantasy players who expected Kupp to be an elite scorer were certainly disappointed.

Two things are important here: First, Kupp’s injuries were a hamstring strain and an ankle sprain, both of which should be fully healed by now but certainly hampered the veteran’s pass-catching abilities. Second, despite those issues, Kupp was still one of the NFL’s best players at creating space in 2023. His understanding of the Rams’ offense and ability to shake off defenders are important, especially at an age when receivers need to be smarter to make up for lost speed.

Kupp is considered a low-end WR2 and a late third-round pick, but fantasy players with a penchant for a little risk could get WR1-level production out of him.

Terry McLaurin, Washington Commanders (ADP62, WR30)

Statistics 2023 (17 games): 1,002 yards, 79 receptions, four touchdowns | 124.2 fantasy points

“Commanders Starter” has not had much meaning in fantasy football for some time, and McLaurin (although he The Washington player to have on your roster) is the result of a low- to mid-WR3 selection. A coaching change and a rookie quarterback only increase the uncertainty.

However, early reviews on Jayden Daniels have been positive, and McLaurin has almost no competition for targets. Yes, the Commanders will likely be predictable, but the player who gets the targets is also a strong threat from deep (McLaurin has caught at least one 20-yard pass in 11 games in 2023). That’s a recipe for at least one player who will put up points on this team, and that player is McLaurin. He seems poised to put up higher WR2 numbers at an opportunity cost that’s much lower than his peers on that front.

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Xavier Worthy, Kansas City Chiefs (ADP82, WR37)

Rookie (first-round pick in the 2024 draft)

The Chiefs’ first-round pick will be used as a WR4 in 10- and 12-team leagues, and given rumors that he should be considered a starter on a KC team that is an offensive powerhouse, this is a huge opportunity for attentive fantasy managers.

Worthy’s low ADP is based on the assumption that the Chiefs simply have too many weapons, but that could change. Hollywood Brown suffered a dislocated sternoclavicular joint in early August, which could affect his ability to play in the first few weeks of the regular season. Rashee Rice, who exploded down the stretch last season and averaged 6.9 catches per game after Week 11, could face a lengthy suspension due to a March traffic accident that resulted in criminal charges.

Worthy may need a few weeks to adjust to Andy Reid’s offense. Still, KC has every reason to get Worthy on the team quickly, and even if the ball is distributed early, a slightly smaller share of this team’s point share is better than a large share on almost every other NFL team.

Brandin Cooks, Dallas Cowboys (ADP148, WR58)

Statistics 2023 (16 games): 657 yards, 54 catches, eight touchdowns | 119.2 fantasy points

Cooks may be in his 30s, but his current status as a player who might not even get drafted in minor leagues is bizarre. Just the fact that he’s the WR2 on a good offense that doesn’t have a superstar tight end is worth a look on the surface, and that’s exactly what Cooks is.

Furthermore, his 2023 stats are misleading. Dallas came out of its week-off in week seven with some changes on offense, and one of them was Cooks becoming a target in the red zone. The 10-year pro regularly appeared above the WR3 line, especially because he scored seven of his eight touchdowns in the Cowboys’ final 11 games this season. With CeeDee Lamb opening up the field on the other side and Cooks facing a lone defensive back, teams will take their chances on defense, and that means points.

Will Cooks’ selection get your draft chatroom buzzing? Probably not, but as a late-round flier, he offers promise as a reliable flex option for your team.

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Wan’Dale Robinson, New York Giants (ADP223, WR78)

Statistics 2023 (?? games): 525 receiving yards, 60 receptions, 87 rushing yards, two touchdowns (one receiving/one rushing) | 73.2 Fantasy Points

Robinson tore his ACL in 2022 and didn’t return to full fitness until Week 3 of last season. Despite the accumulated rust and the two missed games, he led the Giants with 60 catches in 2023. Within that data point, the signs are encouraging: Robinson collected 38 targets in the final six games of the season, rebounding from a midseason low. Robinson played just three full games with starting quarterback Daniel Jones and hauled in a solid 17 targets in those games

Honestly, you shouldn’t bet too much on the Giants’ offense, but we’re talking about a bargain in the final rounds here. The opportunity cost is low, and Robinson (especially in PPR leagues) seems to provide a really solid base. If freshman Malik Nabers doesn’t get released as easily as he did at LSU, Jones will often target Robinson. Expect him to improve on his usage rate from last year and perform better than most of the other final-round darts your competition selects instead.