Everyone knows to draft Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson in the early rounds of fantasy football drafts. Leagues are won by finding those under-the-radar guys who significantly outperform their ADP. We still have a long way to go in preparing for 2025 fantasy drafts, but here are some early fantasy wide receiver sleepers that managers should target.
Jauan Jennings, San Francisco 49ers
Sometimes, weird things happen in football and, consequently, fantasy football. Jauan Jennings never should’ve been anything. He was a 2020 seventh-round pick who didn’t play at all as a rookie, then amassed a total of 78 receptions across three seasons from 2021-2023. That’s an average of about 1.7 per game.
Then, last year, the 49ers suffered some injuries and Jennings was forced into an increased role. Yes, his 14.0 PPG average was heavily bolstered by his 46.5-point explosion in Week 3. But throughout the season, he also posted games of 16.3, 25.1, 28.0, and 13.7.
Now, the 49ers head into 2025 with Deebo Samuel on another team, Brandon Aiyuk set to miss a chunk of the season as he recovers from a torn ACL, and Christian McCaffrey believed to be fully healthy, but always an injury risk. Jennings is poised to open the season as the WR1 and possibly second or third option in the passing game behind George Kittle and McCaffrey.
Given the depth of the wide receiver position, it’s hard to rank a guy like Jennings that high. So, take advantage of his suppressed ADP and scoop him up as a solid WR4 with WR2 upside.
Rashid Shaheed, New Orleans Saints
There are a lot of reasons to fade Rashid Shaheed. He’s coming off a serious season-ending injury. He’s a former UDFA. The Saints are poised to start a 26-year-old rookie quarterback. All of that will be baked into his depressed ADP, though.
Prior to getting hurt last season, Shaheed was averaging 13.6 PPG — 4.0 PPG more than Chris Olave. Once a huge fan of Olave, I’m no longer certain he is that much of better of a fantasy asset. I will have Olave ranked ahead of Shaheed, just like everyone else, but the gap is probably not as large as rankings and ADP have it.
Shaheed opened the 2024 season with four games of at least 16.3 fantasy points. He’s volatile. He’s reliant on splash plays. But he’s also inexpensive. Shaheed is the perfect guy to throw in your Flex, as he has the upside to swing a matchup.
Joshua Palmer, Buffalo Bills
The Bills were widely expected to address the wide receiver position in the NFL Draft. They did no such thing, waiting until the very last round to select Kaden Prather, a person I definitely knew existed before April 26.
This wide receiver corps has no clear alpha. Khalil Shakir will lead the team in targets, but he’s not an outside receiver. I’m sure the Bills want Keon Coleman to be that guy. Unfortunately, he’s just not that good.
Joshua Palmer has made a living on being better than expected. Although he’s never averaged more than 10.7 PPG in a season, Palmer has had stretches of WR3 value. He’s a reliable receiver who earns the trust of his quarterbacks.
I fully expect Palmer to be the main outside receiver and out-target Coleman. Behind him and Coleman are Elijah Moore and Curtis Samuel. I don’t see either as a threat to Palmer.
ADP can and will shift over the coming months. Right now, though, Palmer is a potential WR3 that is, quite literally, free.