Fantasy titles get won in a three-week window, and the roster that peaks in mid-December usually beats the one that looked best in September. That is why the final picks of a draft matter more than they feel like they should. One late-round receiver who runs hot in Weeks 15 through 17 can carry a bracket.
Quentin Johnston is that kind of dart, and the schedule is the reason to make the bet. Draft him late, stash him, and point him at your playoff run. Just know the target volume that makes it work is not locked in, because Tre Harris is chasing the same role.
Quentin Johnston’s Playoff Schedule Sets Up Spike Weeks
PFN’s Kyle Soppe tagged Johnston as a fantasy playoff target, writing that “the schedule presents a prime opportunity for him” to string together games when it counts. After a launchpad at Tampa Bay and Las Vegas in Weeks 13 and 14, Johnston draws the 49ers, a trip to Miami, and the Chiefs across Weeks 15 through 17. Soppe reads both San Francisco and Miami as bottom-five defenses against the deep ball, and the Chiefs game brings shootout equity.
The profile fits the plan. Johnston is a downfield and red-zone weapon who has scored 8 touchdowns in each of the past two seasons on throws traveling 20-plus yards, with a 13.0-yard average depth of target. Soppe notes that a Chargers receiver cleared 110 air yards five times last season, and it was Johnston every time. That skill set is exactly what pays off in a single-elimination week, when one deep score can flip a matchup.
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The price is the other half of the case. Johnston finished as the WR34 last season, closer to WR22 on a per-game basis, yet he is going around WR40 in July drafts. His cost has climbed on the buzz around new coordinator Mike McDaniel, whose scheme leans on yards after the catch and inherits an offense that lost Keenan Allen and his 122 targets. Justin Herbert throwing to a big target who averaged 14.4 yards a catch, at a WR40 price, is a fine late-round swing.
The Tre Harris Problem: Johnston’s Target Share Isn’t Safe
Here is the catch. Soppe himself is not high on Johnston’s full-season outlook, and Tre Harris is the biggest reason that caution is warranted. The playoff case assumes Johnston runs the boundary and owns the deep looks, and that is no longer a given. Harris is built to take exactly those snaps.
Harris, a 2025 second-round pick, had a quiet rookie year at 30-324-1, but the offseason noise around him is loud. Coach Jim Harbaugh has grouped Harris with Ladd McConkey and Johnston among the team’s top three receivers, and Harris averaged 5.5 targets in the two games Johnston missed late in 2025. His downfield speed profile, built on 17-plus yards per catch at Ole Miss, fits McDaniel’s scheme at least as well as Johnston’s does.
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That matters because Johnston has never nailed down consistent volume. His hot start in 2025 faded once tight end Oronde Gadsden carved out a role, and drops remain part of the package. Allen’s vacated targets are there for the taking, but three receivers are reaching for them, not one.
So Johnston stays a dart, not a weekly lock. Draft him in the last few rounds, track the camp reps at boundary receiver, and know exactly which weeks you drafted him for. If he is still running the perimeter when December arrives, that 49ers, Dolphins, and Chiefs stretch is where a late flier turns into a title.
