Don’t Eat The Cheese: 2023 Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Busts
We have hit the quarterbacks, tight ends, and running backs already. We finish off the Don’t Eat The Cheese list with the 2023 fantasy football wide receiver busts. Who are the receivers you don’t want to draft this year? I have you covered.
Treylon Burks (Tennessee Titans)
DeAndre Hopkins sucks the oxygen out of the room. It’s just what happens in every single wide receiver room he’s ever been in. Hopkins signing with Tennessee is disastrous for Burks’ fantasy stock. Maybe Hopkins has shown that he’s no longer a lock to play a healthy season anymore. However, I’m not sure that’s something you can bank on.
When Hopkins is healthy, you’re basically locking in 150 balls that are going to him. If not more. In a run first offense, I’m not sure there is a pathway for Burks to be fantasy relevant. Plus he’s not that good. Something I tried to tell you during the predraft process.
Burks may have fantasy value down the road but that puppy is shot for this year. I don’t buy that he’s in the breakout range that other guys with better pathways have.
Tyler Lockett (Seattle Seahawks)
I’m out on Tyler Lockett this year for a number of different reasons. Usually, Lockett is a sneaky underrated fantasy play. I have a feeling that could fall off a cliff this year. As we talked about in the quarterback post, there are only two real scenarios here for Seattle.
A: The Seahawks improve and run the ball more. It’s why they took Zach Charbonnet in round two after taking Kenneth Walker a year ago.
B: Geno Smith was a fluke.
Both outcomes are bad for Lockett’s fantasy value. Furthermore, we’re talking about an offense that just added Jaxon Smith-Njigba. That’s a slot guy that’s going to eat up a lot of easy targets. You’re essentially banking on Lockett to come away with those home run balls and will never know when to actually start him.
Lockett had a very good year in 2022 including nine touchdowns and 1,033 receiving yards. Even in a good year, Lockett posted five weeks of 45 yards of fewer. You’re going to have to accept the fact that he’s going to kill you in a handful of weeks. He’s now starting to age and the circumstances are pilling up. I’ll pass based on the high ranking.
Drake London (Atlanta Falcons)
Drake London sucks and it’s going to be a joke when you redraft that 2022 class years from now. I can promise you London won’t be the 8th best player when it’s all over. I don’t care what he did last year as a rookie. He’s not good and it’s a joke that he’s being ranked this high.
He can’t separate at all. He’s JJ Arcega-Whiteside 2.0 with slightly more talent. Garrett posted this clip yesterday and I couldn’t stop laughing.
Rookie Clark Phillips III locks up Drake London. One of my favorite corners in the 2023 Draft cycle pic.twitter.com/bJlYKeWVOI
— ✌ Garrett Burroughs✌ (@notorious_gmb) July 28, 2023
London also plays for the Falcons. Good luck putting up big numbers in a run first offense with Desmond Ridder. I don’t get how this guy helps you in fantasy unless there is insane touchdown luck. Don’t count on it.
Keenan Allen (Los Angeles Chargers)
Does anyone else feel like Keenan Allen has lost a step? Does drafting Quentin Johnston quite those concerns? I think the biggest thing that bothers me about Allen is the fact that he doesn’t really score touchdowns. For all the hype this guy gets, we’re talking about a player that averages 5.2 touchdowns per season. Just not cutting it based on the way he’s ranked every year.
Injuries are starting to pile up. Allen is entering age 31 and now has more competition for targets. Allen may come through and provide consistent points but there is very little upside here. That’s while playing for a team that has a lame duck head coach.
DJ Moore (Chicago Bears)
How long are people going to keep eating the DJ Moore cheese before they realize that the guy really doesn’t help you in fantasy unless he’s your WR4? We’re talking about another guy that doesn’t score touchdowns. This guy gets so much hype and averages 4.2 touchdowns per season. Davante Adams sleepwalks his way to that by Week 5. What’s the point?
This Bears thing is a joke. Dead last in passing attempts last year and that number likely won’t change. Even if the Bears take a step forward, Fields is going to do a lot of that damage on the ground, not the air. His highest fantasy finish ever is WR17 and now goes to the run heaviest offense in the league with a quarterback that we don’t know if he can throw. Good luck. I’ll pass.
Cooper Kupp (Los Angeles Rams)
I hate that Cooper Kupp is on this list but it feels really impossible to trust the Rams right now. The vibes around Matthew Stafford couldn’t be worse. I like Cooper Kupp but this Rams team just feels like another disaster waiting to happen.
Kupp could very well have another big season but I just don’t see how LA is putting up mega points. The offensive line stinks. The defense is horrible. Stafford has serious health question marks around him. Even if Stafford has something left, will he by the time the fantasy playoffs arrive? What if the Rams aren’t in the mix by the time that happens and Kupp gets shut down? You have to hit with a pick this high and I just can’t trust the Rams right now enough to do it.
