Dynasty Player Profile: Ja’Lynn Polk

Ja’Lynn Polk | Washington 6’1” 203 lbs. 4/11/02 (Age 22)

Ja’Lynn Polk was drafted by the New England Patriots becoming the 10th wide receiver and 37th overall player in the 2024 NFL Draft.

COLLEGE PRODUCTION

Ja’Lynn Polk started his career in 2020 at Texas Tech University and transferred to Washington University in 2021 where he played three seasons. Playing only three games in his first year at Washington, Polk suffered a dislocated clavicle in 2021 causing him to miss the remainder of the season. In 2022, Polk was efficient but was overshadowed by his other wide receivers, Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan, who both eclipsed 1,000 receiving yards. It wasn’t until his third season at Washinton that Ja’Lynn broke out in a big way. He had career-high receptions with 69 and caught 9 touchdowns averaging 16.8 yards per catch resulting in 1159 receiving yards. Polk was an integral part of the success of the Washinton Huskies reaching the National Championship in 2024. In the Sugar Bowl against Texas, Polk caught 5 passes for 122 yards and a touchdown averaging 24.4 yards per catch. Despite the late breakout, the Patriots still felt compelled about his talent to use an early 2nd round draft pick on him.

FILM

Polk largely succeeded from the deep ball at Washinton. Posting in the 93rd percentile in receiving grade versus single coverage per PFF, he caught 14 deep passes in 2023 which was tied for 6th in the FBS resulting in 567 of his 1159 yards. Polk has good hands and caught 13 contested catches in 2023. He is aggressive in attacking the ball and the film shows that he can succeed against press coverage possessing the strength to fight off defenders at the point of contact. While the deep ball is his specialty, Polk isn’t up to par against zone coverage showing in the 29th percentile. He doesn’t have a diverse route tree and can get beat if he’s not running in a straight line. Polk doesn’t plant well when he cuts in his routes and rounds off the break, however, he makes up for this occasionally with his ability to accelerate which is why he can still get open. If Polk can refine his route tree and polish his footwork, he can be more successful in the NFL than just a deep ball threat.

ATHLETIC TESTING

Ja’Lynn Polk ran a 4.52 40-yard dash, which lands at around the 40th percentile for the wide receiver position. Polk isn’t the fastest player on the field and it shows on his film, but he has the ability to accelerate. Unfortunately, this wasn’t showcased in his athletic testing as he didn’t participate in the 20-yard shuffle and the 3-cone drill. However, he posted 37.5” on the vertical jump and 10’9” on the broad jump which are both over the 75th percentile. This is where his contested catch stats come from. While some of his Combine stats weren’t exactly impressive, Polk still scored an 8.85 Relative Athletic Score, largely due to his jumping ability.

DRAFT ANALYSIS 

Rapid Reaction to Draft Capital: Excellent

Rapid Reaction to Landing Spot: Above-Average

Ja’Lynn Polk was selected with the 37th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots. Polk will have the opportunity to be fellow rookie quarterback Drake Maye’s number-one target.

FANTASY INSIGHTS

I have Ja’Lynn Polk ranked as the 14th wide receiver in this class in my Dynasty rankings. The Patriots aren’t exactly making any fantasy manager excited about their offense, but the opportunity is plentiful. Polk received high draft capital and this could force New England to keep him on the field to see what they have. The current roster has Kendrick Bourne, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Tyquan Thornton with whom Polk will have to compete for snaps, but he should have no problem beating these guys out. The Patriots also selected Javon Baker with the 110th pick in the 4th round which may be a bigger threat to Polk’s volume than any of the veteran wide receivers. While I am not thrilled about the Patriots’ offense as a whole, they revamped the coaching staff this offseason, drafted their franchise QB in Drake Maye, and we could be in for a turnaround in 2024. Polk should go off the board in rookie drafts by the end of the 2nd round in 12-team Superflex formats.

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