One of the most pleasant surprises of the 2024 season was the success of undrafted rookie wide receiver Jalen Coker. Now firmly part of the rotation, could he end up as the Carolina Panthers’ WR2, making him a steal in fantasy football drafts?
Jalen Coker Fantasy Outlook
Easily one of the most surprising success stories from the 2024 season is Coker. He was a rookie UDFA from Holy Cross, making him a massive long shot to even make an NFL roster. Coker not only did that, but he became a near-every-down player by the season’s final month.
Coker didn’t even make his debut until Week 4, when he ran a mere four routes and didn’t catch a pass. His first impact game came the next week, catching all four of his targets for 68 yards.
Coker’s breakout performance came in Week 8, hauling in four passes for 78 yards and a touchdown. It was the first of what wound up being three games of 14+ fantasy points.
Beginning in Week 10, Coker’s weekly snap share was consistently around 80-90%. He had won a starting role. Although not quite a reliable weekly producer, Coker’s 8.4 fantasy points per game put him inside the top 60. That’s usable in fantasy.
Coker has a whole lot of room for growth after seeing just a 14.5% target share and being targeted on a mere 17.4% of his routes run. His 1.81 yards per route run is mighty impressive for a small school rookie UDFA. His 10.4 yards per target ranked seventh. I am ready to say Coker is good at football.
Jalen Coker pic.twitter.com/AAiwRkDOJE
— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) January 25, 2025
Of course, it’s difficult to shake that UDFA stigma. The Panthers now have two young first-round wide receivers on their roster, adding Tetairoa McMillan after having drafted Xavier Legette the year before. However, with Adam Thielen back in Minnesota, Coker is going to be the Panthers’ primary slot receiver.
There is no clear second option in the passing game behind the rookie. McMillan should confidently be viewed as the favorite to lead this team in targets. But the next guy could be a number of players. I am willing to place my bet on Coker.
The UDFA straight-up outproduced the first-rounder last season. Coker had 19 fewer yards than Legette despite playing five fewer games. He averaged 0.6 PPG more than his first-round counterpart. Legette’s yards per route run and yards per target significantly trailed Coker’s. The UDFA was and is the better player.
Now, if Legette shows marked improvement and is the clear favorite for the WR2 role, fantasy managers can’t draft Coker. But I believe Coker will win that job.
MORE: Free Fantasy Football Mock Draft Simulator
Can Bryce Young support multiple fantasy-relevant wide receivers? The version of him we saw down the stretch last season certainly can.
From Weeks 12 to 18, Young posted games of 16.5, 23.6, 13.5, 14.0, 27.1, 16.9, and 36.4 fantasy points. That’s 21 PPG: QB1 numbers. If he does that again, it’s easy to see how McMillan, Coker, and Thielen can all be worth rostering.
Coker’s ADP essentially doesn’t exist. He’s going as the WR95, which is well outside the range of players you can expect to get drafted. I have Coker ranked as my WR65, ahead of Thielen and well ahead of Legette, which is in direct contrast to ADP. For the free price, I am going to make Coker the last wide receiver on a bunch of my fantasy rosters, and you should, too. There is quite literally zero risk.
Mason LeBeau‘s Jalen Coker Fantasy Projection
I think there’s a little fire to this one — it’s a little crazy to me he’s fallen as far as WR92, so that makes him a waiver target at most in your standard leagues, but he’s worth keeping an eye on.Â
As a second-year UDFA, Coker managed to not only make the roster last season, but also crack the starting lineup for a Panthers’ team looking for a boost. While he didn’t make a notable difference early on, he managed a pair of a WR15-plus finishes throughout the season, including a 110-yard performance in Week 15.Â
It’s no longer a super crowded room with Adam Thielen back in Minnesota. I’d think that means the coaching staff has a ton of confidence in Coker. For deeper leagues, he is an easy stash. In redraft, monitor the situation here and see if you can nab a usable FLEX option if you believe that this Panthers’ offense can take a leap forward.
