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2024 Fantasy Rankings: Top 10 WRs

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By Chip Bayless (click Howie for more Chip)

 

 

 

1) Tyreek Hill

I’m not sure how you can rank Tyreek Hill any lower than the top-2 considering his performance last season, the offense he plays in, and the fact that he is probably the fastest and most complete receiver in the NFL.

He can burn defenses, make contested catches in traffic and take devastating hits, and he can make sideline catches like he’s prime Antonio Brown.

Last year, among receivers (and despite missing a week and getting hurt in a few more), Tyreek Hill ranked:

  • 2nd in fantasy PPG and total points
  • Tied for 1st in receiving touchdowns
  • 1st in receiving yards
  • Tied for 1st in catches for 20+ yards
  • 1st in catches resulting in 1st downs (per ESPN)
  • Tied for 2nd in receptions
  • 3rd in targets
  • 4th in YAC

Tyreek’s high target share in maybe the most pass-heavy offense in the NFL outside of the Bills, combined with his ability to know when to get down or out of bounds to avoid big hits, makes him one of the safest draft investments of 2024.

Hill accounted for nearly half, or a whopping 43% (per Next Gen Stats), of all the Dolphins’ air yards in 2023. That number doesn’t look like it will dip much – if at all – in 2024.

His top-end speed looks as elite as ever too as he cracked Next Gen Stats’ fastest ball-carrier list four times, the most of any player in the NFL.


Hill isn’t just being force-fed targets either as his efficiency stats were still clear high-end WR1 status even in this later juncture of his career. He finished with the 3rd-most scrimmage yards of any player, trailing only CMC and CeeDee Lamb, he had the eighth-most yards per target, and he led all players regardless of position in yards per touch in 2023 (per Pro Football Reference). He also broke the fourth-most tackles on receptions.

Hill also scored double-digit fantasy points in every single game he appeared in, which can’t be said for any of the other projected top-3 fantasy football WRs of 2024.

 

 

2) CeeDee Lamb

If Justin Jefferson hadn’t missed a ton of time last year and if he wasn’t catching passes from a rookie, he may have ranked inside the top two. Instead, CeeDee Lamb cracks this spot and is pretty much universally ranked as one of the top two fantasy receivers by all sites and platforms coming into this season after leading WRs in both fantasy PPG and PRK.

Lamb’s suddenness in and out of his breaks is among the best in the league, and he absolutely explodes off the line of scrimmage and has the agility, strength, and technique to beat press coverage with ease.

He also is creative and shifty with the ball in his hands, so his force-fed targets often result in YAC and additional production. He also has the best leaping ability on the entire Cowboys roster and Dak constantly and confidently gives him 50/50 ball opportunities which he usually rewards with a spectacular catch.

Here’s how Lamb’s stats compared to the rest of 2023’s WRs:

  • 1st in fantasy PPG and total points
  • 1st in targets and receptions with 135 (no other WR even broke 120)
  • 1st in YAC
  • Tied for 1st in receptions for 20+ yards
  • 2nd in yards and receiving TDs to only Tyreek Hill
  • 2nd in receptions resulting in 1st downs (per ESPN)
  • 2nd among all players in scrimmage yards, trailing only CMC (per Pro Football Reference)
  • 3rd in yards per touch (per Pro Football Reference)
  • 4th in receiving success rate (per Pro Football Reference)
  • 6th in catch % (per Next Gen Stats)

Through screen passes, deep shots, and even handoffs, its clear the Cowboys are committed to finding creative ways to constantly get the ball in their playmaker’s hands. Lamb was third among receivers in carries, fourth in rushing yards, and tied for 2nd in rushing TDs. He also accounted for over a third (36.5%) of all of Dallas’ air yards last season (per Next Gen Stats).

Lamb’s dominance and consistency regardless of his opponent was incredibly impressive last season as well. He scored at least 8.9 points in every single game, and that week he scored 8.9 was the one and only week he scored less than 10 fantasy points in a game all season.

Want one final stat for your CeeDee Lamb confirmation bias? In addition to leading all WRs in receptions and ranking 2nd to only Tyreek in yards, Lamb also broke the sixth-most tackles on receptions and had the fourth-highest passer rating when targeted last season (per Pro Football Reference).

It doesn’t hurt either that he plays in one of the most elite offenses in the league that throws a ton as Dallas led the NFL in completions  and passing touchdowns last year while ranking 3rd in passing yards, 4th in scoring, and threw the ball on 1st down the 4th-most of any team – throwing on 37% of their 1st downs (per NFL.com).

 

 

3) Justin Jefferson

If Justin Jefferson was still catching passes from Kirk Cousins and hadn’t missed significant time just last season, he might be a slot or two higher on this year’s list. Despite the Vikings’ QB situation, the fact remains the Jefferson is likely the most overall talented receiver in the league.

His hands and catch radius are astounding sometimes with his one-handed, leaping grabs and catches in traffic. His body control and awareness on sideline grabs is equally impressive:

Jefferson’s ability to slither around defenders and explode out of his breaks allows him to get open on any defender in the league, and those skills will make him a target hog again in 2024 regardless of who is under center in Minnesota.

Without Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison, the Vikings will look to throw as much as they ever have this season, and they already threw at a high clip in 2023. Even with Kirk Cousins missing over half the season, the Vikings led the league in passing yards and ranked 2nd in passes for 20+ yards, 4th in passing attempts, 4th in passing TDs, and they threw the ball on 1st down the 10th-most (per NFL.com).

Furthermore, Kevin O’Connell’s offense creatively devises ways to get the ball into Jefferson’s hands in a similar manner to how the Cowboys use CeeDee Lamb.

Among 2023 WRs, despite missing seven games and arguably wasting two others getting injured, Jefferson achieved these ranks:

While Jefferson missed basically half the season last year, when he did play he was still clearly a top-3 WR. He scored at least 10.9 fantasy points in 80% of his games, and the only weeks he didn’t score double-digit fantasy points were Week 5 (when he was injured mid-game) and Week 14 (his first game back from injury after missing seven weeks).

He also put up an astounding 24+ points in 60% of his 2023 games, and he accrued double-digit targets in 70% of his games. As we’ve seen from other similar target hogs, that type of volume is nearly impossible to pass up. Maybe most impressively, Jefferson had at least 140 receiving yards in half of his games last season.

Jefferson’s route-running might be his best trait, and it is his elite ability to cut on a time and use a defender’s momentum against them that makes him a QB favorite since he’s virtually always open. Look at this insane route where he leaves his defender in the dust and off the screen:

 

 

4) Amon-Ra St. Brown

Amon-Ra St. Brown is one of the most complete receivers the NFL has to offer. His dynamic playmaking ability forces the Lions to constantly scheme up ways to get him the football, whether it be end-arounds, screens, or deep shots.

St. Brown’s agility and phenomenal acceleration makes him a mismatch against virtually any defender, and he has elite vision and awareness for a receiver as he racks up yards after the catch with ease by knifing through defenses.



Here’s how his stats last year compared to other WRs last season:

  • 4th in fantasy PPG and 3rd in PRK
  • Tied for 2nd in receptions
  • 2nd in YAC to only CeeDee Lamb
  • 3rd in receiving yards
  • 3rd in receptions resulting in 1st downs (per ESPN)
  • Tied for 4th in receiving TDs
  • 5th in targets
  • 8th in catches for 20+ yards

 

It doesn’t hurt Amon-Ra’s case that over the last few seasons Detroit has transformed itself from a dumpster fire to one of the most productive offenses in the NFL.

In 2023, Detroit finished third in total scoring, third in passes for 20+ yards, fourth in passing yards, fifth in passing touchdowns, sixth in yards per passing attempt, ninth in passing attempts, and threw the ball on 1st down at the third-highest rate (per NFL.com).

For his part, St. Brown was efficient and productive with his massive workload. While accounting for 30% of all of the Lions air yards last year (per Next Gen Stats), he ranked fourth in yards per touch (per Pro Football Reference), seventh in broken tackles on receptions and receiving success rate (per Pro Football Reference), and eighth in catch % (per Next Gen Stats).

He also accounted for 35% of all the Lions’ targets in the red zone, which was the seventh-highest red zone target share in the NFL.

Finally, its worth noting that St. Brown had over 100 yards in half of his games, and scored at least 12.9 fantasy points in all but one of his 2023 games.

 

 

5) Ja’Marr Chase

Like questioning why someone would choose to live in Cincinnati, one might question why Chase ranks all the way “down” here, but he actually finished outside the top-10 WRs last season in both fantasy PPG and PRK. Although, his top-10 talent at the position is as locked-in as Devin Booker choking in the playoffs every year and Chase has less competition for targets with Tyler Boyd now in Tennessee and Tee Higgins clearly disgruntled to say the least.

Chase has every skill a receiver would want. He runs crisp routes, has dependable hands, can make spectacular catches on 50/50 balls at will, and is always one touch away from crossing the goal line with his blazing speed.

Chase can also make sideline grabs like he’s Ochocinco, as his body control and awareness near the boundary is as impressive as any current NFL receiver. See an example on this crisp route that ended in a sideline TD grab:

Chase also benefits from catching passes from one of the most elite passers in the NFL in Joe Burrow, and they should both benefit from a full year and offseason of work removed from Burrow’s nagging calf injury that hindered the production of the entire Cincinnati offense last season.

Despite his starting quarterback missing basically half the season, Chase still finished (among 2023 WRs):

  • 11th in total fantasy points and 12th in fantasy PPG
  • 7th in YAC
  • 7th in catches resulting in first downs (per ESPN)
  • 7th in catches per game (per Pro Football Reference)
  • 11th in receptions and targets
  • 12th in receiving yards

The explosive youngster also accounted for a third of all Cincinnati air yards last season (per Next Gen Stats) and a quarter of all red zone targets (per Pro Football Reference). It’s easy to see why, as he frequently pulls these plays out of his hat where he simply sprints by the entire defense:

Those figures are likely to see an uptick and Chase should maintain a more productive workload with a healthy Burrow and his clear status as the undisputed top playmaker on the entire team with the departures of Joe Mixon, Boyd, and likely Higgins at some point.

In the face of Burrow missing so much time, Higgins playing like shit, and Chase missing a game and playing through his own injuries through much of the season, the Bengals still ranked 4th in completions and 7th in passing attempts, so the passing volume should raise Chase’s stock too considering he faces less competition for targets and his starting quarterback will be much healthier than he was last season.

 

 

6) A.J. Brown

A.J. Brown might be the most physically imposing receiver in the NFL today. He plays like Calvin Johnson reincarnated, as he makes at least one spectacular (sometimes one-handed) catch seemingly every game.

He’s also proved that coverage schemes don’t matter and he’s truly a matchup-proof player by constantly beating all types of coverage whether it be press, zone, off-man, or double.

The value he creates for Philadelphia and fantasy managers can’t be understated. He’s athletic and quick enough to burn even the most experienced DB, and his hulking frame, strong hands, and monumental catch radius enable him to easily box out defenders and turn passes that should be incompletions into big plays down the field.

Once Brown has the ball in his hands, he strikes fear in the defensive backs like science and logic strikes fear in MAGAs, as his stiff arms are deadly and his ability to rip defenders off his body is second to none at the position.

All those skills resulted in these marks among his peers at the position last season:

  • 8th in fantasy PPG and 5th in PRK
  • 4th in receptions resulting in 1st downs (per ESPN)
  • 5th in receiving yards
  • 5th in air yard share (per next Next Gen Stats)
  • 7th in receptions
  • 8th in targets
  • Tied for 10th in receptions for 20+ yards
  • 11th in YAC (per ESPN)

Brown’s ball-carrier vision and strength as a natural runner are a perfect fit for the Eagles offense, and they are skills that give him a solid fantasy floor as all of his targets have more value than the average receiver.

Some evidence for Brown’s elite tackle-breaking ability can be found in the fact that Brown broke the fourth-most tackles on receptions last season (per Pro Football Reference) among all players (third among WRs), and finished 11th among all players (per Pro Football Reference) in total scrimmage yards (fifth among WRs).

It’s obvious near the red zone that the Eagles know what a dangerous target A.J. Brown can be, as he accounted for a staggering 30% of all of Philly’s red zone targets in 2023, a mark that was 10th-best in the league (per Pro Football Reference).

Need one final take-home A.J. Brown stat to defend over drafting him? A key factor in any fantasy player’s success is obviously being on the field in the first place, and Brown logged the 5th-most snaps of any WR in 2023 (per FantasyPros).

Even without his elite size/speed combination, the very virtue that Brown is the top target in one of the most high-octane offenses in the NFL alone might make him a top-10 fantasy WR as in 2023 the Eagles finished 5th in scoring percentage, 7th in total plays, and 8th in yards per game, and they’ve seemingly improved from last season with the draft and the addition of Saquon Barkley.

 

 

7) Puka Nacua

As a player who cracked the top-6 fantasy WRs in both fantasy PPG and PRK in just his first NFL season, it’s nearly impossible to make a case for leaving Nacua off this year’s top-10.

There’s certainly a case to be made that he should be ranked higher as well, considering Amon-Ra St. Brown’s Lions are clearly a run first team and run the ball far more than the Rams, Joe Burrow’s wrist injury is reportedly a tricky comeback (especially for a QB), and A.J. Brown’s Eagles are more of a run-balanced team and DeVonta Smith is younger and sprier than the current version of Cooper Kupp.

Nacua also benefits from McVay’s creative play designs and one of the best veteran QBs in the league who knows exactly how to read defenses.

Those arguments aside, the facts are that Puka Nacua was a top-10 WR by virtually all fantasy metrics las season, he’s still catching passes from a former undisputed #1 overall pick in Matthew Stafford, and the Rams haven’t added any especially significant offensive pieces that would eat into Nacua’s 2024 workload.

Nacua also has the immensely talented Cooper Kupp starting opposite him to take the defensive focus away, and you’ll likely see a few alternating boom/bust games between those two players as defenses flip their focus on who the Rams’ top target is.

Puka is a YAC maven as he bullies his way through tackles and has a fearless running style, and he plays like a WR with a far larger frame. Look at this fucking absurd catch from last season where he manages to leap up, snap the football, take a huge hit, and somehow get both his toes down in bounds for the completion:

He also runs routes with the crispness of Wes Welker, and he breaks tackles with the smoothness of Deebo Samuel.

That skillset resulting in Puka finishing (among last year’s WRs):

  • 6th in fantasy PPG and 4th in PRK
  • 4th in receiving yards
  • Tied for 4th in receptions for 20+ yards (per ESPN)
  • 5th in YAC (per ESPN)
  • 5th in receptions resulting in 1st downs (per ESPN)
  • 6th in targets
  • 8th in receptions
  • 8th in total snaps (per FantasyPros)

After accounting for 30% of all the Rams’ air yards in 2023 (per Next Gen Stats), Puka looks to raise that figure even higher with another offseason of chemistry developed with Stafford and a solidified role as the top target in Los Angeles and one of fantasy football’s top-10 WRs.

His toughness and tenacity as a runner showed up on the stat sheet too, as Nacua had the 8th-most YAC per catch among receivers last year while ranking 9th in YAC above expectation (per Next Gen Stats). He also finished with the 12th-most broken tackles on receptions among WRs (per Pro Football Reference), and 5th among all players in total scrimmage yards (per Pro Football Reference).

Like you’re Aaron Rodgers picking a random reason to fall in love with Putin and you would like one random elite statistic to fall in love with Nacua, know that he also finished 2nd to just Tyreek Hill among all players in yards per touch (per Pro Football Reference).

While Stafford, Kupp, and Kyren Williams’ injuries presented some offensive inconsistencies for the Rams at time last season, it’s noteworthy that Nacua at least plays in an offense that in 2023 was 8th in total scoring, 8th in passing yards per attempt, 8th in first down pass %, and plays with an offensive line that gives his quarterback ample time to process his reads and find Nacua as the Rams also gave up the 4th-fewest sacks last season.

 

 

8) Nico Collins

Collins burst into the elite fantasy football player conversation seemingly out of no where last season, thanks to the Texans drafting the best quarterback in the 2023 class and a franchise player who proved in his rookie season he will be the face of their team for at least a decade.

While the Texans added Stefon Diggs who is a target hog and will inevitably cut into Collins workload, and the Texans added Joe Mixon to attempt to balance out their offense and approve their running game, Collins is the most valuable player on this offense outside of C.J. Stroud.

The fact that Collins will still likely be the top target for Stroud as he has more chemistry with Stroud, is younger and more explosive than Diggs, and might genuinely be a better football player than Diggs is at this late stage in his career.

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whose got CJ or Nico in fantasy rn? 👀 #cjstroud #nicocollins #houstontexans #nfl

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The Texans showed towards the end of last season that now that they have one of the top-5 QBs in the NFL, their offensive potential is limitless and you can now mention the Texans offense and C.J. Stroud in the same conversation as the Chiefs and Mahomes as well as the Bills and Josh Allen in addition to the Ravens and Lamar Jackson.

We’ve seen on all three of those teams with the likes of Travis Kelce, Rashee Rice, Diggs, Mark Andrews, and going back even further even with the likes of Hollywood Brown and Tyreek Hill, you will absolutely want the top target of one of the most elite offenses in the NFL on your team.

Here’s just how elite Houston’s offense was in 2023 when it comes to their season rankings:

 

Collins investors should also note the Texans threw the ball on 1st down the sixth-most of any team last season (per NFL.com), and had the fewest percentage of drives ending in an offensive turnover (per Pro Football Reference).

Nico Collins for his part is young, huge, and lightening-quick. He can leap up and snag jump balls at their highest point, burn defenses with pure straight-line speed, and create yards after the catch with savvy awareness and using defender’s intended pursuit angles against them.

Here’s how Collins stats stacked up in comparison to his counterparts at the position in 2023 despite missing two weeks:

  • 7th in fantasy PPG and 12th in PRK
  • 3rd in passer rating when targeted (per Pro Football Reference)
  • Tied for 4th in catches for 20+ yards (per ESPN)
  • 6th in YAC (per ESPN)
  • Tied for 7th in receiving TDs (per ESPN)
  • 7th in yards per catch (per ESPN)
  • 7th in catch percentage (per Next Gen Stats)
  • 8th in receiving yards (per ESPN)

Collins was efficient with his workload as he accrued those top-10 stats above despite finishing outside the top-10 WRs in receptions and managed to crack the top-10 in a bunch of key categories despite missing out on two more games of statistics versus many of his healthy counterparts on this list.

Just how efficient was he with his reps? Last season, Nico Collins had the eighth-most yards per target, the seventh-most receiving yards per game, and the eighth-highest receiving success rate (per Pro Football Reference).

The Texans also show they trust their young receiver as much as any player on the team and will give him a workload commensurate with his talent level. In 2023 he accounted for 22% of all of Houston’s red zone targets (per Pro Football Reference) and 24% of all of the Texans’ air yards (per Next Gen Stats).


There’s a reason the Texans trust Collins so much and scheme ways to get him the rock. His strength, speed, and tenacity after the catch might actually be the best the receiving position has to offer as Collins constantly creates additional value on all his receptions with impressive moves that leave hapless defenders in his wake. In 2023, Collins led the NFL in broken tackles on receptions (per Next Gen Stats).

 

 

9) Garrett Wilson

Let’s get one thing straight: this ranking is as dependent on Aaron Rodgers being healthy as Taylor Swift is dependent on jet fuel. Despite being ranked inside the top-10 almost universally by fantasy sites this season, Wilson does not have many top-10 WR stats to speak of from last season thanks to the fact that he was catching passes from his white younger brother.

Although, Wilson did finish (among 2023 WRs):

While Garrett Wilson’s overall 2023 numbers don’t hold a candle to most of the WRs on this list, that was mostly the fault of the other Wilson and Woody Johnson’s genius team building skills.

Garrett Wilson explodes off the line of scrimmage and shows phenomenal burst in and out of his cuts, and he turns up field quickly for easy YAC yardage thanks to his elite top-end speed and athleticism. He also has some of the best hands on this list and frequently makes contested and sideline catches with ease, making it look like his hands are covered in the aftermath of a Harrison Butker fan club meetup.

His quick releases and his release technique in general is impressive, especially for someone with only two years of NFL experience.

We also saw in preseason and on Hard Knocks that Aaron Rodgers trusts Wilson as much as any player on the team and has no problem tossing him jump balls and back-shoulder throws. That confidence in Wilson doesn’t end with Rodgers as the Jets clearly are committed to scheming ways to get him the football, as evidenced by the fact that he cracked the top-5 in targets in 2023 and led the NFL in his share of his team’s air yards, accounting for an insane 44% of all of the Jets’ air yard last season (per Next Gen Stats).

As long as Rodgers stays healthy and the Jets don’t handle this season like Woody Johnson’s company handles knowing asbestos is in their baby powder (J&J knew since the 1970s and didn’t do anything about it until the late 2010s, and even then still tried to fight it), they should have much better season than last year’s to say the least.

The Jets also improved their offensive line in the offseason via free agency and the draft, including acquiring one of the Ravens’ top offensive lineman. As long as those improvements translate into on-field success for this Jets offensive line unit, Rodgers and Wilson should be hooking up for back-shoulder and 50/50 balls all season long like Wilson is Davante Adams.

 

 

10) Davante Adams

The most critical element involved in this ranking is that Davante Adams showed under his new head coach that he’s still a valuable, and most-importantly, the most heavily-targeted player in this offense by a mile. When it comes to fantasy WRs, a target share as massive as Davante’s itself warrants WR1 consideration, but when you throw in Davante’s elite game and veteran savviness its almost impossible to rank him outside of this year’s top-15 WRs.

Davante is maybe the best route-runner in the league, and his hands are as trustworthy as anyone’s in the NFL. He also has a knack for finding the soft spots in zone coverage, and he still has the burners to take the top off a defense. He also beats press coverage with ease using both perfect technique and unique explosiveness off the line of scrimmage.

Adams also makes contested catches with ease thanks to both his elite vertical leap and his ability to know exactly how to use his body position and strong hands. In short, Adams is still a complete receiver who can hurt defenses anywhere on the field despite his age, and he should receive a minimum of 140 targets in 2024 considering he was second to only CeeDee Lamb in targets last season with a monumental 175.

And like Charlie Kelly reading a full sentence, Davante somehow achieved these WR ranks in the face of the turmoil of the Raiders 2023 season in terms of their head coach and QB situation:

  • 16th in fantasy PPG and 10th in PRK
  • 2nd to only Garrett Wilson in his share of his teams’ air yards (per Next Gen Stats)
  • Tied for 7th in receiving TDs (per ESPN)
  • 9th in receptions (per ESPN)
  • 9th in receptions resulting in first downs (per ESPN)
  • 15th in receiving yards (per ESPN)

Much like the argument for swiping right as fast as you possibly can on Tinder for a few minutes, volume is half the battle here. And last season Adams accounted for a phenomenal 44% of all of the Raiders air yards, a mark that was 2nd in the NFL to just Garrett Wilson according to Next Gen Stats.

That type of volume just a season ago virtually locks any player in as a WR1, let alone a WR with the quick feet and spectacular catch skills that Davante Adams has.

Adams also had the 2nd-highest red zone target share in 2023, trailing only Calvin Ridley and accounting for almost half (40%) of all of the Raiders red zone looks (per Pro Football Reference), and recorded the 3rd-highest snap share according to FantasyPros.

 

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