Bjorn Yang-Vaernet examines the profiles of the top wide receiver free agents and gives each an ideal landing spot for fantasy production.
This class of free agent wide receivers might be one of the most injury-plagued classes that I can remember. It turned what seemed to be a really good cohort one year ago into one filled with a lot of uncertainty. Look at the notable names that had a season ending injury:
- Chris Godwin – ACL
- Will Fuller – Finger
- Odell Beckham Jr. – ACL
- D.J. Chark – Ankle
- Michael Gallup – ACL
I don’t know how the market will receive these guys knowing that their rehab could go right up to the start of the season. However, it’s still fun to look back at what we know about these players and speculate on what might be the best landing spot these and other top unrestricted free agent WRs.
Davante Adams
Davante Adams is the premier unrestricted free agent of this class. While I could come up with plenty of advanced statistics to illustrate how dominant he has been over the last few years, the best statistic is simply just fantasy points per game. He has averaged more than 20 points per game in three of the last four seasons and has ranked as a top 10 WR in six straight. He is consistent and dominant.
Ideal Landing Spot: Whichever team Aaron Rodgers plays for in 2022
This is a little bit of a cop-out answer, but the Rodgers to Adams connection is unbelievably strong. Take a look at Adams weighted opportunity rating (WOPR) rank over the last five years, no. 13, no. 4, no. 4, no. 1, no. 2. Not only does Adams receive elite opportunity, but he capitalizes on it as well. During the last five years, Adams had positive fantasy points over expected in 73% of games played. I don’t think any other QB could complement Adams the way Rodgers does, which is why I hope they stay in or move on from Green Bay together.
Update: It appears Adams will be back with Rodgers as the team took steps to re-sign their QB and franchise tag their receiver today.
Allen Robinson
Allen Robinson is an interesting free agent because of his steep, sharp decline in production this past season. To juxtapose his 2019 and 2020 seasons versus 2021, look at his advanced stats summary from the Player Stat Explorer.
