Top Five NFL Wide Receivers Heading Into the 2024-25 Season
This new era of the NFL will forever be known as the QB/WR era. Teams aren’t prioritizing running the ball or playing defense nearly as much as they did in years prior. With this huge spike in scoring, the WR market has blown up exponentially and now every team is desperately yearning for their very own superstar receiver. The 2024-25 season is just around the corner so I thought it would be fun to rank the top five wide receivers heading into the season. Before I begin, I would like to list some honorable mentions. Keenan Allen, Stefon Diggs, and A.J. Brown were all players I considered, but I couldn't justify putting them on the list over the other five names.
At number five, I have CeeDee Lamb. Lamb is coming off his best statistical season seeing a career-high in receptions and yards. His 135 receptions were the most in the NFL and his 1,749 yards were the second-most in the NFL. With Lamb finishing top three in the majority of WR categories, you may be wondering why I don’t have him higher on the list. My reasoning is that he hasn’t done it long enough. This past season was Lambs' first time over 1,400 yards and that's with the Cowboys always having a top-10 offensive line, a top-12 quarterback, and not much competition surrounding him. This year, the Cowboys have taken a drastic hit to their offensive line and offensive personnel. If Lamb can repeat what he did last year, he will move up the list.
My number four receiver is Ja’Marr Chase. Chase had a “down year” this year but that was to be expected with Joe Burrow suffering injuries in training camp and the regular season. During Week 11 against the Baltimore Ravens, Burrow suffered a season-ending wrist injury, forcing Chase to finish the regular season with backup quarterback Jake Browning. The last time both Burrow and Chase were healthy, Chase finished the year with 1,455 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns. I am expecting a huge bounce-back year this year for the young superstar receiver.
At number three it’s no other than Davante Adams. Don’t let his numbers from this year fool you, Adams is still among the top wide receivers in the NFL. The Las Vegas Raiders are a team that did nothing to help Davante Adams this past season. They started the year off with Jimmy Garoppolo at quarterback, and when that didn’t work they made the transition into rookie quarterback Aidan O’Connell. The Raiders were a bottom-six offense this past season, and their offensive line group ranked bottom ten in the NFL according to PFF. With all these things working against him, Adams still managed to get 1,144 yards and 103 receptions. I don’t expect Adams to have a huge year statistically but I do expect him to continue to impress on film. Until I see a decline in his route running and speed, Adams will continue to be a top-five wide receiver.
The number two receiver in the NFL is no other than Tyreek Hill. Hill helped the Miami Dolphins finish the year as the number-one offense in the NFL this past season. His 1,799 yards and 13 touchdowns were the most in each category by any receiver this season. Hill has gone back-to-back seasons with 1,700 yards and there is no reason why he couldn’t do it again. As long as Hill and Tua Tagovailoa are healthy, this duo will continue to put up massive numbers.
Last, but not least, I have Justin Jefferson. Since his rookie season, Jefferson has been a walking 1,000+-yard receiver and so far he is on pace to beat multiple wide receiver records. In only 10 games played this season, Jefferson was still able to get 1,074 yards with the majority of them coming from a backup quarterback throwing him the ball. The Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell is one of the best playcallers in the league constantly getting Jefferson quality looks. Jefferson will see a decline in the Vikings’ quarterback play this season considering they lost Kirk Cousins and replaced him with rookie J.J. McCarthy and veteran Sam Darnold but that shouldn’t tank his production. When you are a generational talent like Jefferson, the only thing that can hinder you is injuries. I expect Jefferson to get back to his high production and remind the league that he is still the best receiver.
