Colts WRs Fantasy Outlooks: Josh Downs, Michael Pittman Jr., Alec Pierce

The Indianapolis Colts’ receiving corps presents a fascinating mix of opportunity and uncertainty heading into the 2025 fantasy football season. With veteran quarterback Daniel Jones taking the reins and a talented group of receivers competing for targets, the depth chart offers both intriguing sleepers and potential value plays.

Josh Downs Fantasy Outlook

Advanced analytics, Twitter LOVES Josh Downs. As a fan of his as a draft prospect, I can absolutely get on board with the hype. When the tape meets the underlying stats, that’s usually an excellent place for a player to be, especially if you can nab him in the back half of drafts. WR48 in the ~12th round should make him an easy bet to wait and see on your bench.

However, things aren’t super sunny in Indy. QB Daniel Jones has won the starting job for this offense, and he can probably get Downs a fair amount of targets, but the quality of them without the upside of a high-scoring offense leaves him in an uncomfortable place.

WHAT A CATCH BY JOSH DOWNS.

📺: #INDvsHOU on CBS/Paramount+
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/1WMCZDj8G3

— NFL (@NFL) October 27, 2024

Rookie TE Tyler Warren may soak up a lot of the easy targets underneath. Michael Pittman Jr. is still a good player, and this regime invested a high pick in Adonai Mitchell last season. There’s a lot of youth and talent in this offense, and not the quarterback play to feed them all.

Lastly, Downs is nursing a hamstring injury to start the season. That could eventually clear up, but it could also linger all season. I’d love to take a chance on Downs, but if this offense struggles and he doesn’t play much early on, I think he may be a better bet to wait on and scoop off waivers. 

– Mason LeBeau, Fantasy Football Analyst 

Michael Pittman Jr. Fantasy Outlook

Michael Pittman Jr. has fallen into the 10th round of PPR drafts this year, as the 47th receiver off the board. That should pique the interest of fantasy managers, as the Colts’ star was a perennial WR2 before his injury-riddled 2024 campaign, and is entering a contract year.

Josh Downs enjoyed a small breakout last season, and rookie TE Tyler Warren looks ready to dominate from Day 1, making another WR2 finish a long shot for Pittman. Still, the receiver should get better quarterback play from a veteran Daniel Jones than he got from Anthony Richardson, and is believed to be over the back injury that plagued him in 2024.

Last year, over the six games in which Pittman and Joe Flacco both played at least 50% of snaps, the receiver averaged 14.3 fantasy points per game. That average would have ranked 24th among receivers last year, suggesting his WR47 ADP could be misplaced. 

A high-end WR3 finish shouldn’t be out of reach for Pittman this season, regardless of Warren’s involvement. The Colts’ defense should keep them competitive throughout the year as they chase the playoffs, so there should be little worry of Pittman being phased out later in the year.

A talented receiver with plenty to prove, any concerns surrounding Pittman are more than baked in, while his upside makes him a potential steal in the 10th round.  

 – Cameron Sheath, Fantasy Football Analyst

Alec Pierce Fantasy Outlook

If there’s a fun, young, and exciting starter you should consider drafting, Alex Pierce is NOT that person. He fills a very specific role for the Colts as a deep threat, and a very effective one at that. 

Last season, he came to relevance with a ridiculous 824 yards on just 37 receptions. A 22.3 yards per reception is insane efficiency. While he had no more targets than usual and his average amount of receptions, it was the breakout in downfield success that improved. It showed up in the scoring column as well, ballooning his total touchdowns up to seven. 

This style of play leads to a very boom-or-bust style, finishing as a WR10-plus four times last season, but finishing as a WR50-plus eight times. This unpredictable play makes him bench fodder at best. He’ll receive a boost in deeper and 0PPR leagues, but he’s no more than waiver depth for your standard redraft leagues.

– Mason LeBeau, Fantasy Football Analyst