Second-Year Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Risers and Draft Targets

This means that just 7.8% of last year's rookie WRs (among those who had a catch) managed to have a 600-yard season, which is a sharp decline from the 2024 and 2023 seasons, when that figure stood at 17.1% and 22.2%, respectively. Of course, all hope is not lost for the 2025 WR class. Perhaps the 2024 and 2023 seasons have skewed our perception of what is expected from a rookie wideout. A wide receiver usually takes a couple of years to develop, and an immediate impact is not guaranteed. After tough rookie seasons, these three WRs can break out in 2026.

Without further ado, let's look at three sophomore wide receivers who you should target in 2026 fantasy football drafts.

Matthew Golden, Green Bay Packers

After not receiving WR1 opportunities at the University of Houston, Matthew Golden transferred to the Texas Longhorns and immediately raised his draft stock with a 987-yard, nine-touchdown season on a 13-win team. The speedster had a standout combine performance, running a 4.29 40-yard dash, which placed big expectations on him for his rookie season.

Enjoy the zen, we'll be right back pic.twitter.com/OSh9vDvBvm

— Green Bay Packers (@packers) May 28, 2026

Unfortunately, Golden was a victim of the Packers' young and overcrowded WR room. He only caught two passes in his first two games, but things improved once Jayden Reed went down with an injury. In four games without Reed or Christian Watson in the lineup, Golden caught 16 of his 19 targets for 233 yards.

However, Watson's return in Week 8 (and eventually, Reed's return in Week 14) prevented Golden from receiving more targets. Having to compete with those two isn't that bad on its own, but once you take Romeo Doubs, Dontayvion Wicks, and fellow rookie Savion Williams into account, it becomes understandable why Golden had a quiet rookie season.

Injuries didn't help either, as he missed three games due to shoulder and wrist injuries. Golden finally broke out in the team's playoff loss to the Bears, scoring his first career touchdown and racking up 84 yards.

The team clearly liked what they saw from Golden, which made them comfortable letting Doubs and Wicks go. They will now enter the 2026 season with three starting WRs: Watson, Reed, and Golden. Golden's stats from his rookie year show he can produce when given the chance.

Among the 86 WRs with 45+ targets last in the regular and postseason, Golden ranked 15th in catch percentage (71.7), eighth in contested catch percentage (66.7), and had one of the lowest drop percentages in the league (2.9), which is similar to superstars such as Jaxon Smith-Njigba (2.9) and Puka Nacua (3.2).

Again, it cannot be overstated just how crowded and competitive the 2025 Packers' WR room was. Reed opted against undergoing surgery in the 2025 offseason simply because he didn't want to fall behind other players on the depth chart, a decision that backfired and cost him more than half the season.

Packers coaches are all very excited about Golden's development. "He's starting to become a lot more confident," said passing game coordinator Jason Vrable in a media meeting on May 6.

"Just doing the reps over and over again and competing the way he does, we're all fired up about him." In a May 27 press conference, HC Matt LaFleur also said Golden will have a great opportunity this year and praised his playoff performance.

"That touchdown he had in Chicago was pretty spectacular. I think you got a glimpse of what he's capable of becoming on a consistent basis."

Jack Bech, Las Vegas Raiders

Much like Golden, Jack Bech was a highly-touted rookie who failed to find the endzone in the 2025 regular season. Bech suffered from Pete Carroll and Chip Kelly's dated schemes, and their shockingly low usage of him, but his production immediately improved once Kelly was fired.

#Raiders GM John Spytek gave his thoughts on WR Jack Bech & if HC Klint Kubiak can unlock his full potential:

"I trust Jack Bech the football player, where he aligns. We're going to move people all over the place. You guys saw how Klint (Kubiak) used JSN... We're not going to be… pic.twitter.com/EZMnGO0klS

— Luis Mayorga (@LuisNMayorga) February 24, 2026

In his first 11 games with Kelly as OC, Bech put up just 92 yards and was initially outshone by fellow rookie Dont'e Thornton Jr. However, in the next four games following Kelly's dismissal, Bech racked up 132 yards and was the team's leading WR. His QBs, Geno Smith and Kenny Pickett, also posted a 106.6 passer rating (per PFF) when targeting Bech during that span.

An interesting thing to note about Bech's rookie season is how most of his few targets on the season (12 out of 34) were contested targets.

Despite the difficulty, he made seven contested catches, leading the team both in contested catches and contested catch percentage (58.3), where he ranked third in the AFC West among players with at least 30 targets.

That ability to make tough catches was also there in college. In the 2024 season with TCU, Bech made 14 contested catches and ranked third in contested catch percentage (66.7) among WRs with 95+ targets.

Having a guy who can consistently make difficult catches should be a blessing for new HC Klint Kubiak and 2026's top pick, Fernando Mendoza. The Raiders should be more competitive in 2026 and will rely on Bech to make big plays in a pretty bare WR room.

Also, Bech's fantasy value is dirt cheap for such a young and talented receiver facing weak competition. His redraft ADP is around the WR100 range, which makes him a very low-risk, high-reward pick in 2026.

Emeka Egbuka, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Football fans around the world were stunned when Egbuka outplayed arguably the best player in the world (Jaxon Smith-Njigba) in a Week 5 shootout win over the eventual Super Bowl champion Seahawks.

We know y'all have been waiting for this one... THE Emeka catch 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/DLs0ax2O8l

— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) May 28, 2026

Through the first five weeks of the year, Egbuka racked up 445 yards, scored five touchdowns, and was the PPR WR3 during that span. It looked like the Rookie of the Year award had already been decided in early October, and Egbuka would be the NFL's next big superstar.

However, Egbuka would add just 493 more receiving yards and one more touchdown to his season tally, frustrating many fantasy managers and falling to fifth in the Rookie of the Year race behind divisional rivals McMillan and Tyler Shough.

Now, those same fantasy managers who were burned by Egbuka last year are swearing that they'll never draft him again, but they fail to realize that the 2025 Buccaneers were absolutely *decimated* by injuries.

The offensive line battled injuries all year. Mike Evans, Chris Godwin Jr., Jalen McMillan, and Bucky Irving all missed significant time, and Egbuka and his quarterback, Baker Mayfield, played through injuries that heavily affected their performance.

Egbuka suffered a hamstring injury one week after that legendary performance, but kept on playing, and he didn't look the same for the rest of the year. But now the team is healthier, they have a new offensive coordinator (Zac Robinson), and Egbuka has been handed the keys to the offense following Evans' departure.

Egbuka's detractors claim he is "destined to be a WR2" similar to Godwin, but a rookie who put up back-to-back 100-yard outings against two of the best defenses in the league (Eagles and Seahawks) has all the talent in the world. All he (and the team) needs is a clean bill of health, and if he can get that, the sky will be the limit.

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