Ray-Ray McCloud III got in on the Atlanta Falcons’ offensive explosion in Week 5, hauling in a career-high 66 receiving yards in his club’s win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Is McCloud worth picking up in fantasy football this week? Or should you leave the journeyman receiver on the waiver wire heading into Week 6?
Should You Add Falcons WR Ray-Ray McCloud III on the Week 6 Fantasy Waiver Wire?
McCloud, who turns 28 next week, has rarely seen this kind of usage at the NFL level.
The 2018 sixth-round pick has already received 31 targets through five games, putting him on pace for 105 targets this season. McCloud’s previous career high was just 66 targets, which he earned with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2021.
McCloud is probably a better real-life football player than a fantasy football asset. He led the NFL in punt return yards in 2021. Last season, McCloud finished as the third-best run-blocking WR in PFF’s grades while playing for the San Francisco 49ers.
In fantasy, however, it’s challenging to make a case to pick up McCloud this week.
Even in a game in which Falcons QB Kirk Cousins finished with 60 dropbacks (tied for the third-most by a QB in a single game since the start of last season), McCloud still only posted six catches for 66 yards. Even in full-PPR leagues, he’s just the WR32 in Week 5, pending Monday night’s game.
— DRClips (@DRFootballClips) October 7, 2024
The Falcons have too many offensive mouths to feed, and McCloud is behind fellow WRs Drake London, Darnell Mooney, TE Kyle Pitts, and RB Bijan Robinson in the club’s pecking order. Among the 35 wideouts with at least 30 targets in 2024, McCloud ranks 32nd in targets per route (17.9%).
Moreover, it’s been difficult for anyone outside of London to get targets from Cousins inside the red zone. When Atlanta has been inside its opponents’ 20-yard line, London has received 41.2% of Cousins’ targets, the third-best red-zone rate for a WR this season.
McCloud doesn’t earn enough volume or receive valuable enough targets to consider starting outside the deepest PPR leagues. That could change if London or Mooney went down with an injury. But if you’re holding onto wide receiver handcuffs, you can probably do better than McCloud.
On the plus side, you know McCloud will be on the field. The Falcons not only have one of the NFL’s most concentrated offenses, but first-year OC Zac Robinson has deployed 11 personnel on 88.9% of Atlanta’s offensive plays. That’s the second-highest rate in the league through five weeks, trailing only the Los Angeles Rams — Robinson’s former employer.
If you need an easy source of PPR points, McCloud could make sense as a bye-week fill-in, but he doesn’t have enough upside to stash him on your bench. Use your reserve spots for players with a week- or league-winning upside, not low-ceiling options like McCloud.