The Tennessee Titans’ Calvin Ridley is a wide receiver who demands Round 1 draft capital. He is entering his age-30 season and has limited target competition in an offense that just spent the top overall pick on a quarterback who is expected to be the future of the franchise.
He is coming off a season in which he cleared 1,000 receiving yards and averaged a career high in terms of yards per catch despite being a part of an offense that was 28th in PFSN’s rankings, 29th in passer rating, and 32nd in interception rate. So why isn’t he getting more respect in fantasy football draft rooms this summer?
Should You Draft Calvin Ridley in Fantasy?
The resume isn’t bulletproof, but it’s pretty solid. Ridley has spent his last three fully healthy seasons with three different teams, and he’s reached 1,000 receiving yards with each of them. The yardage totals have been palatable, and we know the touchdown equity is in this profile, even if the offensive upside is limited.
That’s a list of the top touchdown makers since 2000 during their first three NFL seasons (minimum 40 games played) and puts Ridley on a pretty impressive list in addition to being a nice trip down memory lane.
Last season, it took 12.75 PPR points per game to be a top-30 receiver for the season, and over the past five years, we are seeing, on average, four WRs in their age 30+ season reach that number. Why can’t Ridley do that with Cam Ward, theoretically improving rapidly as the season progresses?
2024 WR Leaders by Total Air Yards
[+ Catchable Air Yard % in Parentheses]
1. CALVIN RIDLEY, 1838 (56%)
2. Courtland Sutton, 1822 (63%)
3. Drake London, 1715 (69%)
4. Justin Jefferson, 1709 (70%)
5. Marvin Harrison, 1613 (63%)
6. Malik Nabers, 1610 (59%)
7. Jerry Jeudy, 1610… pic.twitter.com/VpLbhb7FmO— Fantasy Points Data (@FantasyPtsData) June 29, 2025
Ridley is coming off the board around Travis Hunter, Jaylen Waddle, and Rome Odunze, all of whom are long shots to lead their specific teams in targets, catches, and overall receiving production. He hasn’t missed a game in consecutive seasons, making the skill of availability one in his bag, and he’s averaged 3.0 PPR points per catch in 2023, 2024, and for his career as a whole (83 games played).
So what’s the catch?
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The counting numbers aren’t the issue, but we are projecting forward, not looking back. Due to their lack of viable secondary options, Ridley was wedged into the slot for a career-high 23.7% of his routes, a rate that isn’t overwhelming. Still, it speaks to a worrisome level of desperation with a rookie signal-caller taking over. Over the past five seasons:
- Rookie QB passer rating is 10% lower than all other QBs when throwing to the slot
- Rookie QB passer rating is 7.5% lower than all other QBs when throwing outside of the slot
I’m not against these lay-up targets, but they’ve proven less valuable with a first-year quarterback in the past. With the depth at the WR position across the league, every little nit to pick matters.
The downside of this offense, paired with the potential for some physical decline, is more panic-inducing given the opportunity cost (Chris Godwin and Jordan Addison specifically are being passed on in favor of Ridley, who has a stronger ceiling case).
A stat like that is as much situational as talent-based, but does it matter if the chicken or the egg comes first? We are trying to project 2025 production, and all of that is factored in. We all like Ward, but there is a level of risk coming with the unknown under center and an offensive coordinator (Nick Holz) who doesn’t exactly have a sterling track record.
- 2012-14 Raiders Offensive Assistant: 30th in points per game
- 2023 Jaguars Passing Game Coordinator: 23rd in passing touchdown rate
- 2024 Titans Offensive Coordinator: 27th in scoring and 30th in passer rating
At this moment, I have Ridley at a tier below average draft position (ADP), but that’s more of a result of my draft strategy. I’m not overly confident in Tennessee’s overall offensive upside this year, concerns that I don’t really have in Baltimore (Zay Flowers), San Francisco (Jauan Jennings), or Buffalo (Kahlil Shakir).
I’m not crossing him off my draft board and will embrace a discount if it presents itself, but I’m not going out of my way to target the top Titan.
Mason LeBeau’s Calvin Ridley Fantasy Projection
I’m loving the post-post-hype play on Calvin Ridley. I was spurned by him two years ago, as well when he got to Jacksonville, where I expected huge things from him with a young Trevor Lawrence. He was solid, but not so much that I was eager to draft him again in Tennessee with Will Levis. Granted, he nearly matched his production on slightly better efficiency, just with half the touchdowns.
Once again, he’ll be paired with a young quarterback, this time first-overall pick Cam Ward. Will anything change? Not overly so, but I still like the value. In the same Brian Callahan offense, Ridley was often targeted downfield in a connection that was not there with Levis, who was so bad that it’s impressive Ridley produced much at all.Â
It’d be a far projection to assume Ward will be great early on, but a reasonable upgrade seems well within reason. The hope is that they find a way to get Ridley the ball in more creative ways, and considering how the depth chart looks, it would be beneficial for Ward and the offense to do so.Â
I’m not sure Ridley quite has the ceiling of a true fantasy WR1, but I do believe he’s one of the safer picks that could fall in drafts. The stink of last year’s Titans, the lack of hype around Ward, and Ridley’s middling production should all contribute towards a slide. If that happens, then take the value. I’d still buy at ADP, but I am surprised it’s still in this range over targets like Jaylen Waddle, Chris Godwin, and Chris Olave. Ridley is still my preference here.
