It was quite the surprise when the Detroit Lions selected Isaac TeSlaa early in the third round of last year’s NFL Draft. Despite positive training camp reports, a meaningful role in the offense never materialized. However, when on the field, TeSlaa was effective. Will this year be different for the sophomore wide receiver?
Should You Draft Isaac TeSlaa in Fantasy Football?
It’s easy to see why the Lions fell in love with TeSlaa during last year’s draft cycle. He’s one of the best athletes in the NFL.
At 6’4″, 214 pounds, TeSlaa ran a 4.43 40-time, putting his speed score in the 97th percentile. He has elite burst and agility, as well as a wide catch radius. On the flip side, TeSlaa’s production profile was…I don’t want to say lacking, but certainly strange.
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TeSlaa had a massive 1,325-yard season as a sophomore in 2022 at Hillsdale College, a DII school. That earned him a transfer to Arkansas as a junior, where, unsurprisingly, he wasn’t all that involved. As a senior, TeSlaa was second on the team in receiving yards with 545 despite not competing for targets with any future NFL players.
Even so, TeSlaa did enough to get himself drafted in the third round, in large part due to an impressive combine showing.
The problem is that the Lions have a very consolidated offense. It’s Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Sam LaPorta, and Jahmyr Gibbs dominating touches and targets. There isn’t room for a fifth guy or a third wide receiver, which wasn’t even TeSlaa. That job went to Kalif Raymond.
TeSlaa played just 40% of the snaps as a rookie and saw a 4.9% target share, earning a target on just under 10% of his routes run. The only reason anyone is even talking about him is because, amazingly, out of his paltry 16 receptions last season, six of them went for touchdowns. For those keeping score at home, that is 37.5% touchdown rate. You don’t need me to tell you that’s unsustainable.
TeSlaa’s Redraft Fantasy Football Value
The Lions’ offense should look mostly like it did last season. The key players are all returning, with the only notable departures being Kalif Raymond and David Montgomery. Obviously, Montgomery leaving has no impact on TeSlaa. But Raymond, following Ben Johnson to Chicago, opens the door for TeSlaa to assume full control of the WR3 role.
That job is not going to have much standalone value. But if TeSlaa can at least assume all of Raymond’s targets, that could get him in the 50-60 range. Of course, that’s still not enough to make him viable in fantasy leagues.
The real appeal of TeSlaa would be as a potential handcuff wide receiver. If either St. Brown or Williams were to miss time, TeSlaa would presumably step into the WR2 role and perhaps be in consideration for a Flex spot.
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With a WR64 ADP, TeSlaa is right on the border of being selected in standard sized 12 team leagues. We can expect to see someone take him roughly 50% of the time. In all likelihood, he’ll be one of the first players fantasy managers drop for the hot early season waiver wire options.
I have TeSlaa ranked as my WR84. But anyone outside the top 70ish is pretty much the same. You can throw your dart wherever you please. TeSlaa is no more or less likely to hit than a number of other late-round wide receivers.
Preseason Fantasy WR Rankings
- Ja’Marr Chase | CIN
- Puka Nacua | LAR
- Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA
- Amon-Ra St. Brown | DET
- Drake London | ATL
- Justin Jefferson | MIN
- CeeDee Lamb | DAL
- Nico Collins | HOU
- A.J. Brown | NE
- Malik Nabers | NYG
- George Pickens | DAL
- Chris Olave | NO
- Rashee Rice | KC
- Zay Flowers | BAL
- Jaylen Waddle | DEN
- Tee Higgins | CIN
- DeVonta Smith | PHI
- Ladd McConkey | LAC
- Terry McLaurin | WAS
- Emeka Egbuka | TB
- Tetairoa McMillan | CAR
- Garrett Wilson | NYJ
- Jameson Williams | DET
- Christian Watson | GB
- Luther Burden III | CHI
- Rome Odunze | CHI
- Parker Washington | JAX
- Carnell Tate | TEN
- DJ Moore | BUF
- Marvin Harrison Jr. | ARI
- Davante Adams | LAR
- Brian Thomas Jr. | JAX
- Quentin Johnston | LAC
- Mike Evans | SF
- Stefon Diggs | WAS
- Michael Wilson | ARI
- DK Metcalf | PIT
- Jakobi Meyers | JAX
- Josh Downs | IND
- Michael Pittman Jr. | PIT
- Jayden Reed | GB
- Courtland Sutton | DEN
- Wan’Dale Robinson | TEN
- Chris Godwin Jr. | TB
- Alec Pierce | IND
- Makai Lemon | PHI
- Jordan Addison | MIN
- De’Zhaun Stribling | SF
- Khalil Shakir | BUF
- Romeo Doubs | NE
