Deep Dive Rookie Wide Receivers Worth Adding
WR Quintez Cepheus (DET)
The fantasy outlook for Cepheus is more about opportunity than talent. At 6-foot-1 202lbs he isn’t going to wow you with his physical stature, and with a 4.73 40, he won’t wow you with his metrics either. However, when we look at the Lions depth chart, it is not hard to see a path to a starting spot for Cepheus. After Kenny Golladay you have Marvin Jones Jr., who last played a full season in 2017, and is going into his age 30 season. Oft-injured Danny Amendola turns 35 this season and free agent signee Geronimo Allison’s best season as a pro was last year where he had a mere 34 receptions and two TDs.
After those four, it’s a bunch of guys no one has ever heard of; Victor Bolden Jr., Travis Fulgham, Marvin Hall, Chris Lacy, Tom Kennedy and Geremy Davis. If Cepheus can shine during camp or preseason — assuming we have one — he could move up as high as fourth on the depth chart and be one injury away from meaningful snaps. Even if Jones Jr. and Amendola make it through the season relatively healthy, both players are free agents at the end of 2020, paving the way for Cepheus to step into a larger role.
To be fair to Cepheus, he is a talented player despite my opening comments that he wont wow you. He is a good route-runner and we have seen in the past where route-running ability sometimes makes up for the lack of athleticism. Unless you have a very deep rookie draft, he is likely going undrafted and he is worth a shot, especially if you have a taxi squad.
WR Darnell Mooney (CHI)
Mooney is another player that has a short trip to a meaningful role, and while his small stature (5-foot-10 176lbs) limits his upside as a volume wide receiver, his 4.38 40 time could lead to some big plays for the Bears. He averaged 16.7 yards per catch in college and can add some explosiveness to a Bears offense that lacked any big-play threats outside of Tarik Cohen last season.
The Bears will have plenty of wide receivers to compete for the WR3 and WR4 spots in this offense with guys like Ted Ginn Jr., Javon Wims, last year’s fourth round pick Riley Ridley and gadget player Cordarrelle Patterson, but Mooney has just a good a chance to claim one of those spots as any. Only Allen Robinson and Anthony Miller have a secured spot in this offense, and with Nick Foles expected to be in the mix for the starting role, the downfield passing attack could be much improved over last year and Mooneys 4.38 speed could help with that.
WR John Hightower (PHI)
The Eagles had all kinds of problems at the wide receiver position last year. They addressed that for 2020 by adding a ton of talent to see what sticks. First they draft Jalen Reagor in the first round, then they trade for former 49ers burner Marquise Goodwin, then draft John Hightower in the fifth round and Quez Watkins in the sixth. Watkins is interesting in his own right with his 4.35 speed, but he is too one-dimensional as strictly a deep threat at this point in his career.
Hightower, on the other hand, is a bit more well rounded at 6-foot-2 189lbs and 4.43 speed, he has a chance to carve out a role this offseason for 2020, but that role could expand in 2021. Alshon Jeffery will count $18m against the cap in 2021, and despite his $10m in dead cap, I don’t see a scenario in which Jeffery is playing for the Eagles in 2021.
Desean Jackson is locked up through 2021, but he can’t stay healthy and doesn’t play the same role that Hightower would in this offense. Playerprofiler.com has Hightower’s comp as Darius Slayton, and I think that is the perfect comp to make. I can see a scenario where the starting wide receivers for the Eagles in 2021 are Jalen Reagor, John Hightower and Quez Watkins filling the Jackson role.
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