Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London was the eighth overall pick in 2022 and has shown signs of growth in all three NFL seasons. He looked the part of a future WR1 as a rookie by posting a 72-866-4 stat line, and then displayed the ability to leverage his 6’4” frame in new ways in Year 2, where his yards per catch jumped up by 9.2%.
Last season, in an uneven offense, he was the stabilizing force, a step in development that often takes more time to showcase. He caught 100 balls in 2024 and scored nine times on his 158 targets, a massive improvement from his six on 227 looks through two years.
Is this the year he jumps to true superstardom and leads the Falcons and, more importantly, your fantasy team, to new levels?
Drake London’s Fantasy Outlook
It’s a tiny sample, but the optimism around this offense is built around Atlanta averaging 32 points per game in Michael Penix’s three starts to end last season, the sixth most over that run (more than the eventual Super Bowl champion Eagles). If the Falcons are truly going to move in the direction of a top-10 scoring offense, their standout receiver is going to be a significant factor, and that has whispers of elite upside swirling.
Drake London could finish as the WR1 in 2025
In the last 3 games of the 2024 season with Michael Penix under center…
Targets: 8, 13, 18
Avg. Target share: 39%It’s a small sample size, but the Falcons haven’t added real target competition for London
He’s a target vacuum pic.twitter.com/vgqqp3xMFx
— The FF Dynasty (@TheFFdynasty) May 30, 2025
London’s upside is obvious. The draft capital told us what the NFL as a whole thought of him coming out of USC, and the highlights are the professional level rank up there with any young receiver in the sport.
What impressed me last season, more than the ceiling, was the floor. With the offense around him unsettled at the very least, he finished seven weeks as a top-16 WR and, again, improved his production relative to expectations.
He was WR13 on a per-game basis a season ago, something that is on the low range of expectations entering 2025. His fantasy profile took a major step forward in his third season, as he saw his red-zone usage spike from seeing a target on 29.1% of his routes run inside the opponent’s 20-yard line to 40%.
How impressive is that number?
Well, it led the league among 77 qualifiers at the position, so there’s that, but that doesn’t even do that rate justice. How about the fact that future Hall of Fame Davante Adams (34.8%) and the great Amon-Ra St. Brown (33%) were the only other two to touch 32%?
Through three seasons, London has two more catches than DeAndre Hopkins had (despite running 374 fewer routes) and is essentially walking in line with Calvin Ridley’s first three years for this franchise in terms of yardage (3,042 for London and 3,061 for Ridley). That’s some pretty good company to hold, and if Penix is the type of quick study that this franchise believes him to be, this could be the cheapest you’ll get London over the next few seasons.
With Penix at the helm, Atlanta’s WR1 turned 95 routes in 39 targets, 22 catches, 352 yards, and a pair of scores.
London From Penix
- 12.7 aDOT with 61.5% of his receptions coming more than 10 yards downfield
London From Kirk Cousins
- 10.3 aDOT with 39.5% of his targets coming more than 10 yards downfield
That Penix profile looks like Mike Evans’ past two seasons (12.9 aDOT with 52% of his looks coming downfield) while the Cousins line mirrors what DeVonta Smith has done across those two years (10.7 aDOT and 36.3%).
That’s the sort of difference we are discussing and why London is worthy of the optimism that early drafters express. Personally, I prefer Ladd McConkey in this general range at the position, but that’s not an anti-London stance as much as it is my confidence level in Justin Herbert.
MORE: Free Fantasy Football Mock Draft Simulator
Also living in this ADP range are receivers like Tyreek Hill and Garrett Wilson, two talented options I’d have no issue passing on in favor of London. There’s an encouraging ceiling to chase in this Falcon without having to compromise your season with the type of floor that I believe both Hill and Wilson have.
He’s being treated as a fringe WR1, and that’s exactly. Pairing a solid RB1 with him puts you in a great position to compete through two rounds, and that’s all you can ask for.
Cameron Sheath‘s Drake London Fantasy Projection
Drake London finally put it all together in 2024 to finish as the WR5 overall. The Falcon has long been tipped to join the league’s elite fantasy receivers, and all the signs appear to be pointing in the right direction. Like Justin Jefferson, London will be starting with a second-year QB, having mostly caught passes from a veteran last year. Unlike Jefferson, though, the fantasy community has deemed Michael Penix a significant upgrade over Kirk Cousins, while remaining wary of Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy.
That doesn’t play out in ADP, though, as London is being taken as the WR9 in drafts, while Jefferson remains the second receiver being taken overall. Either fantasy managers aren’t trusting London’s third-year breakout, or excitement around Penix is being overstated.
However, it’s no coincidence that London finally stepped up in fantasy after the team invested in the quarterback. London was catching passes from Desmond Ridder and Marcus Mariota in Years 1 and 2, and both quarterbacks will likely be backups for the rest of their NFL careers.
With Penix starting the final three games of the season, London led all receivers in targets and receiving yards. Unsurprisingly, he was tied with Brian Thomas Jr. and Tee Higgins for the most fantasy points per game (23.1) among receivers in that stretch. There have been no major changes to the offense this offseason, and if Penix and London pick up where they left off in January, London could be the WR1 overall.
