Five Underrated Rookie WRs to Trade For this Offseason

Did your 2023 fantasy season go differently than planned? Is your dynasty roster in need of a little shakeup? You may need a young receiver with a bright future. While it will take a lot to trade for players like Puka Nacua, Jordan Addison, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Tank Dell, Zay Flowers, Rashee Rice, Jayden Reed, or even Josh Downs, several of this year’s rookie wideouts still have very bright futures in this league. Below are five you should target in trades this offseason. 

Michael Wilson – Arizona Cardinals

Michael Wilson put together a productive collegiate career, so the talent was there in college. The issue was that the injury bug wouldn’t leave him alone. Although he faced several injuries during his rookie campaign, he often showed glimpses of excellence for the Cardinals this season. The rookie wideout surpassed 50 receiving yards in 6 of his 13 games played. His 565 receiving yards were the 10th-most amongst rookies, and his 17-game pace calculated out to about 739 yards. Wilson put together three 15+ full PPR performances and finished as a top-24 wide receiver three times as well. Imagine what he could’ve done in 17 games. 

Now, let’s get away from all the statistics. Both Josh Dobbs and Kyler Murray continuously relied on Wilson throughout the 2023 season. Wilson has a chance to do something that not a lot of rookie receivers have a chance of doing next year—be the WR1 for their team. Marquise Brown is slated to hit free agency this offseason, so trading for Wilson in your fantasy leagues is going to be a lot harder if Brown ends up leaving and the Cardinals miss out on drafting one of the more prolific young receivers entering the 2024 NFL Draft. Even if Wilson continues to serve as the team’s WR2 next season, expect more production and more involvement in the offense now that he’s entering his second year with a healthy, dynamic quarterback in 2024. 

Quentin Johnston – Los Angeles Chargers

Yes, Quentin Johnston failed to live up to the hype despite all the opportunities in the world to shine during his rookie season. Mike Williams missed 14 games. Jalen Guyton missed nine games. Josh Palmer missed seven games. Even Keenan Allen missed four games. Johnston himself played in every contest but only managed to haul in 38 receptions for 431 yards and two touchdowns. Everyone expected more from the former 21st-overall pick. Even though he dropped many passes this year and only managed to find the endzone twice, Johnston has a lot of potential in this league. The time to trade for him is now. 

Los Angeles is surely going to make an upgrade at the head coaching spot, and Justin Herbert should be healthier next season. What’s even more intriguing is that Allen, Williams, and Palmer are all entering their final season under contract. On top of that, Gerald Everett is set to be a free agent this offseason, and both Donald Parham and Stone Smartt are entering their final season under contract as well. As of now, only Johnston and Derius Davis are under contract after the 2024 season. Even if Johnston doesn’t take a huge step in his second year, he will still be difficult to trade for after 2024 because of all the players set to hit free agency. He has all the tools to turn into a dynamic receiver in this league for years to come, it may just take a little more time than we initially thought. 

Demario Douglas – New England Patriots

Did this rookie receiver come out of nowhere or what? He was drafted in the sixth round and he watched 27 other receivers get drafted before he heard his name called. The former Liberty star quickly turned into New England’s top receiver this season. He finished first on the team in receiving yards (561) and second in receptions (49). After Week 6, he hauled in four or more receptions in six of his last nine games and finished with 49 or more receiving yards in five of them. You have to keep in mind that he did all this while hauling in passes from Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe. This makes it even more impressive given the fact that New England finished third-to-last in the league in total passing yards on the season (ahead of only the Giants and Jets). 

The Patriots are surely going to make an upgrade at the quarterback position before next season. Whoever it is will more than likely do a better job than both Jones and Zappe did in 2023. Expect more production from Demario Douglas in 2024. As of now, he’ll battle DeVante Parker and JuJu Smith-Schuster for the WR1 spot on this team, but those two shouldn’t scare you when negotiating a trade for Douglas. He outplayed them this season, and he’ll likely outperform them again in 2024. The great thing about trading for Douglas is that he doesn’t have a ton of value right now. A small trade for him this offseason will look genius if he breaks out in a big way next year. On paper, that doesn’t look unlikely at this point. 

Marvin Mims – Denver Broncos

Marvin Mims had such a frustrating rookie season. It wasn’t that he played badly—it was the fact that he didn’t see the field much. Mims only posted two games this season in which he played 50% or more of the offensive snaps. He was also targeted 3+ times in just 2 of his 15 games played. Still, he managed to surpass 45 receiving yards four times. He even finished with a 113-yard performance in a game where he played just 24% of snaps. It seemed like the writing on the wall was that his snap percentage would go up as the season progressed. But that was not the case at all. In his final six games played this season, he never managed to top 50% of the snaps. So, why should you trade for him? 

It’s the eyeball test. No rookie statistic will persuade you to believe Mims will turn into a valuable asset to your dynasty roster. You just have to watch his tape on this one. You also have to keep in mind that Sean Payton used his first draft pick as the Broncos’ head coach on Mims. Courtland Sutton has had time to turn into the Broncos WR1. The same goes for Jerry Jeudy. Yet, it seems like every year we hear both are rumored to be on the trade block. I’m not saying Mims will magically become this team’s WR1, but it isn’t out of the question. All he needs to do is find the field more next season. His value right now is as low as it probably will ever be. 

Dontayvion Wicks – Green Bay Packers

I don’t think there is another rookie receiver who progressed more as the season went on than Dontayvion Wicks did. In his first seven games played as a pro, Wicks managed to haul in 10 of his 19 targets for 140 yards and one touchdown. In his final eight games of the season, he hauled in 29 of his 39 targets for 441 yards and three touchdowns. He came a long way after being drafted in the fifth round and starting the season behind Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, and Jayden Reed on the team’s depth chart. 

Wicks is surrounded by young talent in the Packers’ wide receiver room, but he showed that he can serve as a reliable fantasy receiver, especially in his final three games played of the season. In these games, Wicks torched his competition, hauling in a combined 14 receptions for 187 yards and three touchdowns. He even managed to finish as the WR5 in Week 18. With the receivers surrounding him on his team, Wicks may still be overlooked by a lot in the fantasy community. He shouldn’t be too difficult to trade for right now, so why not try and make a deal for someone who shined at the end of the season? 

Honorable Mentions:

Jonathan Mingo (CAR), Jalin Hyatt (NYG), and Trey Palmer (TB)

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