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Iowa State wide receiver Jayden Higgins is an elite wide receiver prospect. John breaks down why he's a top dynasty fantasy football pick and should win leagues in 2025.
Every season, there are underrated rookie players that are drafted after the top eight rounds in dynasty fantasy football leagues and largely ignored in redraft leagues, being grouped with a big pack of rookies that get selected after the seventh round in those leagues. One example of this is Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. in 2024.
Sometimes, those players aren't even selected inside the first round of rookie drafts, like Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Ladd McConkey. Yet in a redraft, they'd easily be selected in the first round of rookie drafts and within the first few rounds of redraft leagues. It's not always easy to identify sleepers among rookies, but I've focused the majority of my analysis efforts on identifying just this type of player.
Iowa State wide receiver Jayden Higgins is one such player. I imagine he's underrated because he had to play on the same team as another elite talent, wide receiver Jaylin Noel (who I've written about and will write a full-length piece on in the future), he went to a Big 12 school, and his quarterback missed him a lot. By the way, I'll revise this after the 2025 NFL Draft with an updated outlook, because landing spot will definitely matter. Let's dive in.
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Higgins Has Elite Size And Elite Movement Skills
Higgins moves well for a receiver of any size, and combine that with his 6-foot-4, 217-pound frame, excellent speed (4.47-second 40-yard dash), and great acceleration, and he immediately is a mismatch for cornerbacks at the next level. Most defensive backs sacrifice size and strength for the explosion and speed to catch up to receivers that gain a step on them, but it will be hard to do so with Higgins.
Competing with his strength will also be an issue.
With the 57th pick in the NFL draft, the Carolina Panthers select:
Jayden Higgins
- Age: 23 (born December 15, 2001)
- Height: 6’3 3/4”
- Weight: 214 lbs
- Arm Length: 33 1/8 inches
- Hand Size: 9 1/8 inches
- 40-Yard Dash: 4.47 seconds
- Receptions (2024): 87
- Receiving Yards… pic.twitter.com/ccptLHq8tz— Alsander Wolf (@AlsanderWolf) March 20, 2025
Jayden Higgins scored a 9.87 out of 10.00 on his RAS Score.
He ranked 46 out of 3,408 WR’s from 1987 to 2025 (Per: @MathBomb).
Notable Information:
➖94th Percentile Height (6’4)
➖96th Percentile Arm Length (33”)
➖94th Percentile Speed Score (111.6)A true X Wide Receiver pic.twitter.com/VW6eVDrV7o
— Austin Abbott (@AustinAbbottFF) March 2, 2025
He has silky-smooth and sudden route-running skills. He'll be extremely tough to guard in man coverage at the next level. He makes very sharp and lightning-quick cuts, and his releases are ridiculously quick. Combining that with his strength and height, slot cornerbacks will have serious issues in the NFL.
Jayden Higgins.
For someone at 6’4/215lbs, this is an absolutely vicious release. pic.twitter.com/mKd4KWd6HY
— SCOUTD (@scoutdnfl) February 8, 2025
Higgins is silky smooth with his releases, showing almost zero wasted movement, and is able to commit all his energy to putting big gaps between himself and the defender. He'll be perfect for timing routes and quick passes, and in the slot, he can be a lethal weapon, spamming his elite slant routes, which he already runs at a high level.
He was a first-down and touchdown machine on just this route in 2024.
Speed matters for receivers sometimes because on routes that have less sharp angles to their breaks, there needs to be more velocity to maintain or increase separation after the break. Curvilinear acceleration comes into play sometimes too. Higgins speed is huge here. pic.twitter.com/S3vaMzke0p
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 19, 2025
He doesn't just run the same slant over and over, though. Higgins is able to vary the pacing into his route breaks, allowing him to push defensive backs deeper away from the quarterback, then has the speed after his break to build his separation and burst away from the cut-off lane the DB has to try to catch up.
After revising my rookie wide receiver rankings, Jayden Higgins is my WR2, after Travis Hunter. I'll break down Higgins' elite traits in a thread. For starters, this route pacing is fantastic, and crazy for a 6'4 receiver. So explosive off the stutter. pic.twitter.com/MHos0iV5e5
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 23, 2025
Higgins' ability to run the same routes in a variety of ways will keep opposing defensive backs on their toes. WRs who can effectively pace their routes with stutter steps or other techniques win a lot more on their reps. Higgins can beautifully combine this with his excellent acceleration to force the DB to respect deep routes. He then uses his bend to push the route horizontally and quickly get open.
Higgins Is A Fantastic Separator
The points in the previous section bleed somewhat into this one. But the most important thing a wide receiver can do, other than catch the ball (obviously), is to separate. No NFL wide receiver makes a living primarily by making contested catches. There are WRs who are excellent in this area, but there are too many variables that come into play with that.
For starters, the easiest way to make a catch is if defenders aren't close enough to hit the pass-catcher or swat at the ball when it arrives, and QBs understand this. Additionally, quarterbacks are more reluctant to throw the ball to their WRs who are less open. In fact, many of the league's wideouts who are regarded as great contested-catch artists are also, in fact, excellent separators, like Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans.
It's wild that there are many who are convinced that separation isn't all that important and "different WRs win in different ways" when the entire point of running a route is to try to get away from a defender. From a QB's perspective, if the throw is even slightly off target, it can easily be batted up in the air for a pick or picked off right away if it's slightly more in the defender's direction.
Jayden Higgins is impossible to guard at the LOS.
One of the best release packages in the class and is nuanced and strong at the top of the route.
Top 40 player in this draft and one of “my guys” ♨️ pic.twitter.com/wagU1d9Sfe
— NFL Draft Files (@NFL_DF) February 27, 2025
So with that in mind, the fact that Higgins' primary way of winning is by getting away from his defender as fast as possible, and he's excellent at it, is a massive boost to his value. He's a better separator on a higher variety of routes and with a much better release package than Arizona wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan on tape.
Jayden Higgins has a NASTY release package.
Arguably the best in the class. pic.twitter.com/YxHDiEStdi
— NFL Draft Files (@NFL_DF) February 20, 2025
Filthy releases like the one above can make a receiver a quarterback's best friend. A QB's top desire is a receiver he can trust to separate, so he can drop back and let the ball rip to a specific spot on the field, knowing that his receiver will be there and the defender won't.
He Has Elite Body Control And Adjustment Skills
A big part of Higgins' game is his fantastic body control and ability to adjust on the fly to off-target passes, whether they're behind him or thrown too high or too low. This also opens up another dimension of a passing offense, where a quarterback can intentionally throw a pass "off-target" to get it away from a defender in a non-ideal spot for the receiver to make the catch, and rely on Higgins to adjust to a pass that wouldn't otherwise typically be completed.
Best in-class size-adjusted body control. A big-bodied, highly athletic WR that can bail your QB out on bad passes will get a lot of work in the passing game. pic.twitter.com/xs6SC8mn1A
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 23, 2025
The same as with his disgusting releases, there is a mountain of film of Higgins' suite of adjustment skills. "Higgins down there somewhere" is unironically an attitude NFL offenses will love to rely on. This is another area in which his size and catch radius come into play, because when you factor it in, you get a receiver who can be steadily depended on when the QB is inaccurate. At 6-foot-4, this also includes overthrows.
Just throw it up and Higgins will come down with it, no problem if you're off target as long as you're in his massive catch radius. Beautiful pirouette pic.twitter.com/GNJi4TPxo7
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 23, 2025
He's Fantastic After The Catch
Another area in which Higgins excels (I mean, he excels in all of them, but still) is after the catch. He's remarkably shifty, able to cover large stretches of ground with single cuts, and can challenge DBs one-on-one and make them miss, slipping tackles in the process. This is impressive for a wideout of any size, much less a giant.
Jayden Higgins is so damn good. So underrated.
-Backwards, off balance, juke move to shake DB 1
-Resets feet quickly for next move
-Shimmy shake is so quick and efficient
-Strong enough to fight through the contact for lots of extra yards
Probably wins leagues in 2025. pic.twitter.com/Fm7kMksc2S— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 19, 2025
His acceleration and speed also allow him to rush past defenders who don't have good tackle angles, whether he set them up for failure or they made a mistake. He has the power to carry them for extra yards down the field as well. It's a rare skill set, but there aren't many flaws to his game when he has the ball in his hands.
Jayden Higgins has a complete skillset to be an "X" receiver in part because he's elite after the catch.
-Zero wasted movement getting upfield
-Extends arm to block DB
-Hand on ground to stay up
-Gains extra yards off balance
-Always fights for more
He's fucking awesome pic.twitter.com/0yxaMSPRRO— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 23, 2025
Sometimes he puts so many positives on film on just one play in just one aspect of his game that it's hard to believe.
If you're picking Luther Burden for his after the catch abilities I suggest you instead take Jayden Higgins, who's elite both before and after the catch pic.twitter.com/d2PkIztK8r
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 23, 2025
Tetairoa McMillan, but much better before the catch, and Luther Burden, but also better after the catch, are my best comps for Higgins in this class.
Higgins is a remarkably difficult coverage assignment. Play press and he'll burn you with his releases. Play off coverage and he can run a hitch/comeback, make you miss, then carry you for extra yards. Chain-moving machine. pic.twitter.com/Mz3px4hSTf
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 23, 2025
He Consistently Wins On Vertically-Breaking Routes
In addition to everything listed above, Higgins' combination of size, acceleration, speed, and physicality is good enough to make him a prototypical "X" receiver from the moment he steps in the league. He consistently wins in various ways on deep routes or those that break vertically up the field. Even on plays with little separation and without plenty of time to see the ball coming his way, he can beat outside coverage on go routes.
Jayden Higgins can win consistently on vertical breaking routes. Tetairoa McMillan cannot. That's why we see him running so many comeback routes. 4.55-4.6 with poor route pacing won't cut it in the league, but 4.47 will. The best X WRs in the NFL have to be able to win deep. pic.twitter.com/G7jBWBFPS7
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 23, 2025
There are a lot of receivers who run much faster than Higgins, yet still don't win consistently on deep routes in the NFL. This is where his release package and YAC ability come into play. He can fake out the DB and get him to bite on a horizontal route, as the defender should reasonably fear allowing a catch, run, and a slipped tackle for a TD.
Giving Higgins this much space to work is a dangerous thing. He can beat you in so many ways. pic.twitter.com/knBH2wzmxA
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 23, 2025
He Wins On Plays With Little Separation
Contested catches are nice, and Higgins can make them, but in sticky situations, it's more sustainable to effectively box out receivers and nullify the contact the defender makes as much as possible. Higgins is very good at this, though this is just a separation thing again when the defensive back plays the route better.
Not every play is ideal, and a WR can't always get a lot of space between him and the defensive back.
No space, no problem pic.twitter.com/iWtBoeY9bT
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 23, 2025
Not all contested catches are created equal, but sometimes, being able to create a path of least resistance is more important. Higgins combines his speed, body control, awareness, great hands, and adjustment abilities to make tough catches with defensive backs in close proximity while keeping them just enough out of position that it's difficult for them to make plays on the ball.
Jayden Higgins is going to be lethal against single-high coverage matched up 1-on-1 in the NFL. Better bring some safety help. pic.twitter.com/UtwMC7lhAU
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 23, 2025
Conclusion
Higgins has all the tools to be a prototypical "X" receiver at the next level. He combines elite movement skills, great route-running, elusiveness, and strength to slip/break tackles after the catch, great intelligence and awareness, and physicality with a beastly release package.
He can play outside, in the slot, and run a full route tree. He's fast and quick, especially for his 6-foot-4 frame, and has a massive catch radius.
If he didn't have to play on the same team as Jaylin Noel or had a better/more experienced quarterback than Rocco Becht, he could have easily eclipsed 1,500 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns and be regarded as a top-2 receiver in the class. He's my WR2.
Draft him in 100 percent of your redraft and dynasty leagues -- he'll probably go to a team that's desperate for WR help, and should quickly become an every-week starter. You won't regret it.
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