Fantasy Breakouts 2019, Wide Receivers

What wide receivers are most likely to have a break-out fantasy season in 2019?

Also See: Fantasy Breakouts 2019, Running Backs

TYLER LOCKETT: (Seattle Seahawks)

The former 3rd round pick in the 2015 Draft took his time getting into the fantasy football spotlight. He spent his first few years in Seattle as a return specialist, and he caught the eye of plenty of owners and viewers alike with his tremendous speed. 

Last year, Lockett showed that he could catch the ball just as well as he could run with it; scoring 10 touchdowns and leading the Seahawks receiving core in targets in the absence of Doug Baldwin. Now, with Baldwin retired and top draft pick D.K. Metcalf banged up with a knee injury, Lockett will be called upon to lead the pack once again. 

Lockett’s speed and tendency to break plays over the middle work in perfect harmony with Russell Wilson’s trademark ability to extend plays and find the open man downfield. That combination, mixed with Seattle’s heavy reliance on the run, should open up plenty of long, play-action connections between these two this season. The needle is trending upwards on Lockett in most fantasy circles; he can currently be drafted in the early 5th round in most formats.

D.J. MOORE: (Carolina Panthers)

When the Panthers selected D.J. Moore with the 24th overall pick of last year’s NFL Draft, they saw a dynamic play-maker with a combination of size and speed.

It took well into the 2018 campaign for fantasy owners to see that combination on display, but once Moore started getting consistent attention in the passing game he shined. The rookie showed off his versatility, rushing the ball and catching balls from Cam Newton in 2018, a combination that yielded over 1,000 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns (including return yards). 

While the TD total doesn’t jump off the page, the connection between Newton and Moore can’t be denied. Newton looks to be near 100 percent healthy going into 2019 and that return to form should produce a strong sophomore effort for Moore.

With defenses scheming to take away the run game (Newton/McCaffrey) in most instances, Moore and fellow breakout candidate Curtis Samuel will have plenty of opportunities to take on single coverage looks. Moore has the potential to easily triple his touchdown total (at least) from 2018, and he can be had in the early 6th round in most formats.

CHRISTIAN KIRK: (Arizona Cardinals)

There’s a new day dawning in Arizona. With Mike McCoy mercifully removed from power and a new dynamic combination of Kliff Kingsbury and 1st overall pick Kyler Murray at the helm, the Cardinals look like a much more fertile plot for fantasy growth going into 2019. 

With the exception of David Johnson, there may not be an offensive player due for more progress than 2nd year wide-out Christian Kirk. The former Texas A&M standout has a combination of speed and route running that feels similar to the skillset Lockett brings to the table in Seattle. That translated to a promising rookie campaign that saw Kirk score 3 TD’s and go for just under 800 total yards. 

With the oppressive McCoy regime out of the picture, those numbers can only go up from last year’s effort. Kirk is the WR1 on a team that also features a sure-fire Hall of Famer in Larry Fitzgerald. He’ll fly under the radar against plenty of defenses and he’ll be able to punish those that overlook him with deep touchdown receptions.

Kirk is currently a high upside grab in the late 7th round of most drafts. He also doubles in value if you play in a league that awards extra points for return yards/return TD’s as he’ll likely return to the role of primary kick returner in 2019.

JAMES WASHINGTON: (Pittsburgh Steelers)

There are certain things that different NFL franchises just do way better than anyone else. For the Pittsburgh Steelers, that thing has historically been finding top-tier receiving talent — Hines Ward, Plaxico Burress, Lynn Swann, Antonio Brown…take your pick.

We’ve seen the rapid ascent of JuJu Smith-Schuster from late-round rookie to legitimate Top 5 positional talent in under three years. The next man up on the totem pole for Pittsburgh could very well be James Washington.

With the loss Brown this offseason, the Steelers are in a position where they’ll need to fill target space in their high flying offense. The lions share of those targets will undoubtedly be split between James Conner and Smith-Schuster, but there will still be a need for a strong third option for Big Ben. 

Washington’s muscular frame and relative size (5’11”, 213 lbs) give him the ability to play above the rim and go after the 50-50 balls that Roethlisberger likes to toss up to his receivers. His stat line from last year (217 Yds/1 TD) can almost be tossed completely out the window because of how buried he was on the depth chart with Brown on the team. 

In Washington, fantasy owners can find a late-round value that could potentially turn into one of the fastest rising talents at the position in the coming season. He has the tools to produce, and he’s in an offense that needs to make use of those tools in order to continue their usual offensive dominance. Washington can be yours in the late 10th round of most fantasy drafts in all formats.

MARQUEZ VALDES-SCANTLING: (Green Bay Packers)

While we’re on the subject of previously unknown talents in great offenses, let’s talk about what’s going on in Green Bay. With the end of the McCarthy era over this past off-season, the Packers have staked their future on the talent of Aaron Rodgers.

Rodgers is recognized as one of the best quarterbacks in the league (arguably of all time) because of his ability to extend plays and create magic with his revolving door of receiving talent. We’ve seen him support multiple Top 20 WR’s In fantasy in the past (Cobb/Nelson), and he has a chance to replicate that success in 2019 with Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Davante Adams. 

MVS will have the boost of playing across the field from a consensus top-3 wideout (Adams), and his size (6’4”, 206 Lbs) will give him the ability to outwork one on one match-ups. The Green Bay media has been fawning over his physical gifts this offseason, and MVS himself has stated that he’s committed to becoming a dominant, all-around receiver in the league. 

With the keys to the car firmly placed in Rodgers’s hands, and the No. 2 WR spot locked down, Valdes-Scantling is as close to a breakout lock as you can get for someone that’s still under the radar in many fantasy circles. He can currently be drafted as a total steal in the back end of the 8th round in most fantasy formats.

MICHAEL GALLUP: (Dallas Cowboys)

The Dallas Cowboys offseason has been a circus so far. With their three most important offensive players (Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott, and Amari Cooper) currently in contract stand-offs with the team, it would be easy to forget that there’s talent elsewhere on their offense.

Michael Gallup was drafted in the 3rd round of last year’s NFL Draft to prepare for the loss of long-time slot guy Cole Beasley. With Beasley on the field in 2018, Gallup produced 2 TDs and over 500 yards of offense running routes deep down the field and short over the middle.

With Beasley now gone and Cooper’s status with the team up in the air (for now), Gallup has shined in his opportunity to be the Cowboys top receiving option this preseason. In two games (roughly 20 first-team snaps) Gallup’s caught 3 passes for over 40 yards and showed off his ability to create space with his route running and elusiveness in the open field. 

Dating back to last year Prescott routinely talked about his fondness for Gallup, and their growing chemistry is one of the more critical lynch-pins that will decide how successful this Cowboys team is through the air in 2019. 

This is a second-year talent that has all of the tools to put together a strong sophomore effort, and he has the public support of his quarterback to promise that he’ll make good on that potential. Gallup is currently being drafted in the back of the 13th round on average, making him one of the biggest potential steals in fantasy football going into 2019 regardless of format.