Mid-To-Late Round Receivers Fantasy Football Managers Should Know - Part II

March 8, 2024

Three-part series looking at 10 rookie receivers who are likely to be drafted later whom fantasy football managers should be familiar with. In the right situation, these players could be fantasy-relevant receivers as rookies.

First- and second-round receivers are all the rage right now, and understandably so. However, there seems to be one to two receivers drafted in the third round or later that become fantasy-relevant every year. Last year, it was Tank Dell and Puka Nacua, but there always seems to be someone. Last year, six receivers were drafted in the third round alone, and 25 total receivers were drafted in the third round or later. In this series, we'll be identifying 10 receivers who are likely to be drafted in the third round or later and who have the best chances of becoming fantasy-relevant as rookies. These are the mid-to-late-round receivers every fantasy manager should know.

In our first edition, which you can find here, we focused on Jacob Cowing out of Arizona, Jermaine Burton out of Alabama, and Jalen McMillan out of Washington. As mentioned in the first article, these receivers are not presented in any specific order. In recent seasons, the wide receiver position has taken on a bigger significance in NFL offenses. That has translated to more receivers being taken in the NFL Draft, and more specifically, more receivers being taken earlier in the draft. The contracts for receivers continue to grow faster than other positions, signifying the growing importance of the position.

Our series will continue here with four new receivers that fantasy managers should know about despite the fact they are unlikely to gain first- or second-round draft pick capital. We will finish with the final three receivers in our third and final edition. When you're talking about mid-to-late round prospects making a Year 1 impact, a lot of the time it comes down to landing spot. You can find all 32 NFL teams graded on which landing spot is the best for a rookie receiver here. If you want to take advantage of our great premium tools, please use promo code "BOOM" to receive a 10% discount.  

Ricky Pearsall, Florida

Pearsall is a five-year player, but due to Covid and NIL, prospects with five years of collegiate status have become more normal than they had been previously. From a prospect profile standpoint, it’s still not ideal. We’d like to see players declare for the draft earlier. However, despite subpar quarterback play, Pearsall did some good things at Florida.

He played his first three seasons at Arizona State. In his first two years, he had just 20 targets, 13 receptions, 214 yards, and one touchdown. He became more involved in his junior season, finishing with 67 targets, 48 receptions, 580 yards, and four touchdowns. He recorded a 1.70 yards per route run average during that season before transferring to Florida for his fourth and fifth seasons.

WR Ricky Pearsall, Florida

While his yearly stats aren't overly impressive, Pearsall dealt with inconsistent QB play and a bad system.

During the Senior Bowl week, he impressed me a lot. He was consistently generating separation while being able to adjust and catch some… pic.twitter.com/bnEzhBFOIC

— Jordan Vanek (@JordanVanekDFS) February 26, 2024

In his first season with the Gators, he ran over 71% of his routes from the slot position and was generally used as a downfield threat, finishing with an average depth of target of 17.0 yards. Due to this role, Pearsall did not garner many targets. He ended the season with 59 receptions, 34 receptions, 669 yards, and five touchdowns. However, he posted an impressive 79.6 PFF receiving grade and finished with a 2.41 yards per route run average.

In his final season, Florida altered how they used him a bit. He still ran most of his routes from the slot, but his slot rate dropped by roughly 15%, down to 56%. His average depth of target also decreased from 17.0 to 11.1. With that change, Pearsall got more involved in the offense and finished with 88 receptions, 65 yards, 963 yards, and four touchdowns. He posted a 77.8 PFF receiving grade and a 2.23 yards per route run average.

Ricky Pearsall is a WR prospect in the 2024 draft class. He scored an unofficial 9.78 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 70 out of 3090 WR from 1987 to 2024.

Splits projectedhttps://t.co/wx75bRlzRq pic.twitter.com/AIE0FmEwwO

— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) March 3, 2024

Pearsall could win outside and from the slot in his two years at Florida. He also displayed two different skill sets, winning down the field and in the short-to-intermediate part of the field. The quarterback play in 2022 and 2023 left much to be desired at Florida, negatively affecting his production. He’s a crafty route runner who has shown the ability to get open. Pearsall had an exceptional NFL Combine performance. He showcased explosive speed, agility, and lower-body power.

Malik Washington, Virginia

Washington is also entering the NFL Draft after five years in college. He spent the first four years at Northwestern. His first two seasons resulted in very little production, finishing with just 11 catches for 87 yards. He increased his production as a junior to 61 targets, 43 receptions, 575 yards, and two touchdowns. He also averaged 6.0 yards after the catch per reception and had a 1.98 yards per route run average.

Washington became Northwestern’s leading receiver as a senior with 101 targets, 65 receptions, 701 yards, and one touchdown. He posted a 24.3% target share and an average of 1.80 yards per route run. While his junior and senior production is somewhat pedestrian, Northwestern went 4-20, struggling significantly with terrible quarterback play.

He transferred to Virginia for his fifth and final season and exploded. He finished with 138 targets (fourth in the country), 111 receptions (first in the country), 1,384 yards (fifth in the country), and nine touchdowns.

His 92.4 PFF receiving grade was second only to Malik Nabers. He posted a 3.15 yards per route run average, the 11th highest. Washington also posted an absurd 34.8% target share, 46% of the team's passing yards, and 47% of the team's passing touchdowns.

2023 Leaders while lined up in Slot (among #NFLCombine WR invites)

- PFF Grade: Malik Washington, 98.9
- Targets: Washington, 120
- Rec: Washington, 95
- Rec Yds: Washington, 1,150
- TDs: Malik Nabers, 12
- YAC: Wzshington, 537
- Yards After Contact: Washington, 296

— Michael F. Florio (@MichaelFFlorio) February 26, 2024

Despite being just 5-foot-8 and 194 pounds, Washington finished with a collegiate drop rate of just 2.5%. He had just six drops on 321 targets. He also finished with a very impressive contested catch rate of 56.7%, corralling 34 of his 60 contested catch opportunities.

He ran 84% of his routes from the slot in college, and due to his size, that’ll be his home at the next level. Over his final three years in college, his most successful seasons, Washington did not post a single season with an average depth of target of over 10 yards.

Malik Washington is a WR prospect in the 2024 draft class. He scored an unofficial 7.69 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 708 out of 3063 WR from 1987 to 2024.

Splits projectedhttps://t.co/cpGKePVk3W pic.twitter.com/r8g2PAE5bx

— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) March 2, 2024

He wasn’t asked to run the full route tree based on how Virginia and Northwestern utilized him so close to the line of scrimmage, but he has running back skills with the balls in his hands. He’ll need a landing spot that allows him an opportunity for volume since he’s not a downfield option, but he’s an exciting player in space and can make people miss.

Ja'Lynn Polk, Washington

Polk is one player whose name could be heard at the end of the second round. As a true freshman, he started his collegiate career at Texas Tech and had 38 targets, 28 receptions, 263 yards, and two touchdowns. As a sophomore, he transferred to Washington after that season and was hardly involved in the offense due to injury. He was injured on his first reception as a Husky and missed the next nine contests in 2021. His role began to increase as a junior, but he was still the third option between Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan, featured in this series first edition.

As a junior and the clear third wheel behind Odunze and McMillan, Polk finished with 68 targets, 41 receptions, 694 yards, and six touchdowns. He was used out wide (62%) and in the slot (37%) and finished with a 1.84 yards per route run average. Polk was used as a downfield option, posting a 15.7 yards average target depth and a 16.9 yards per reception average.

McMillan got injured in his fourth and final season, and Polk took advantage. He became the team's No. 2 target but still worked behind Odunze. However, he posted his best collegiate season, finishing with 108 targets, 69 receptions, 1,159 yards, and nine touchdowns. He also posted his best PFF receiving grade of 76.0 and a 2.29 yards per route run average. Among 126 receivers with at least 75 targets last season, Polk finished 23rd in yards per reception. He also ranked 15th nationally in total receiving yards. Polk had a contested catch rate of 53.8% in his final two seasons.

I have been eagerly looking forward to watching Ja’Lynn Polk for months. We shall see if the in-depth study holds up to the anticipation.

Nice catch radius here.#NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/73H9Th0ZMN

— Matt Waldman (@MattWaldman) February 20, 2024

Before the NFL Combine, there were questions about Polk's speed and athleticism to play and win at the next level. However, based on his performance this past weekend, Polk should have silenced some of those doubts. He measured in at 6-foot-1 and 205 pounds. He posted good but not great numbers, and they'll be plenty good enough to perform in the NFL.

Ja'Lynn Polk is a WR prospect in the 2024 draft class. He scored an unofficial 9.11 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 273 out of 3063 WR from 1987 to 2024.

Splits projectedhttps://t.co/CXuJd61rWg pic.twitter.com/v7J52aIs7g

— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) March 2, 2024

Polk displayed the ability to win downfield, and if he lands in the right offense that can feature and make the most out of his skill set, he could end up being a strong boom-or-bust WR4 in 2024. Since he's a downfield option, his landing spot will be important, but he's done everything he can to exhibit that he can play.

Xavier Legette, South Carolina

Legette's prospect profile certainly comes with its fair share of red flags. For instance, from 2019-2022, Legette played in 41 games and recorded just 42 receptions, 423 yards, and five touchdowns across four seasons. There wasn't any true NFL talent ahead of him. In fact, from 2020-2022, South Carolina had just one receiver get drafted (Shi Smith) in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. However, as a fifth-year senior, Legette finally broke out.

He finished with 97 targets, 71 receptions, 1,255 yards, and seven touchdowns. He posted a 23.6% target share and a 37.6% market share of the team's receiving yards. Despite having a 13.8 yards average depth of target, the 26th highest among 126 receivers with at least 75 targets, Legette finished 20th in catch rate, hauling in 73.2% of his targets.

He finished eighth overall in receiving yards in the country and had the 15th-highest PFF receiving grade at 86.9. He ran almost 65% of his routes out wide and 35% in the slot, displaying the ability to win from different positions on the field. His 3.15 yards per route run average ranked 10th across the country.

What makes @GamecockFB WR Xavier Legette different from vast majority of receivers in this class is his combo of size+suddenness.

Checkout the shake here. There's wideouts being mocked in late first round right now and nobody knows if they can get off press-man or not.… pic.twitter.com/ESB0MqBwxd

— Jim Nagy (@JimNagy_SB) February 27, 2024

He was invited to the Senior Bowl, where Legette excelled. He measured in at 6-foot-1 and 223 pounds. This past year, he hauled in 10 of his 21 contested catch opportunities and finished with just two drops out of 97 targets. He's another player who could hear his name called during the second round of the NFL Draft.

His production this past season is hard to ignore. He's a big player who might fit best in an offense where he's used as a big-bully type of slot receiver. If he were to be drafted by the New York Jets, who are desperate for a receiver opposite Garrett Wilson and have shown an interest in that big-bodied slot receiver, he could surprise this season. The Jets had signed Allen Lazard as that guy, but that signing failed.

Xavier Legette is a WR prospect in the 2024 draft class. He scored an unofficial 9.92 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 24 out of 3063 WR from 1987 to 2024.

Splits Projectedhttps://t.co/mhRpjR2bdC pic.twitter.com/0kP12WFfpF

— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) March 2, 2024

His fifth-year breakout, Senior Bowl performance, and size will be enough to attract plenty of NFL teams. His NFL Combine performance put an exclamation point on his prospect status. He may have moved into Round 2 at this time, but fantasy managers might still be skeptical due to his fifth-year collegiate status. They shouldn't be. He might still be a bit raw but has the physical attributes to excel at the next level. He shouldn't be forgotten about in rookie drafts. That goes for redraft leagues as well. If you're still out on Legette due to his four years of lack of production, read the thread below to get more context.

I've been doing a lot more work on Xavier Legette this week to figure out the "late breakout" question mark. Unfortunately, this young man has had to go through a lot in his life to get where he is today and I think it's a testament to his character that he IS here.

🧵... pic.twitter.com/rGgu5SsWsm

— Brett Kollmann (@BrettKollmann) March 6, 2024

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