Drake Maye vs Ladd McConkey

“The Patriots should once again have a solid offense, with young star QB Drake Maye at quarterback and new arrival AJ Brown upgrading New England’s WR corps.”

“Drake Maye is a first-round pick in Superflex formats”

“For example, last season, New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye had an ADP of QB16, and he finished as QB2.”

“Brown should have no trouble seeing a consistently high target share as Drake Maye’s go-to receiver.”

“Alec Pierce, Nico Collins – 3.7 How to support a QB on a rookie deal ( Drake Maye ):”

“Only four quarterbacks last season bested their overall scoring ranking compared to ADP by more than five spots: Matthew Stafford (QB23 in ADP and QB3 in overall scoring output), Trevor Lawrence (QB20 in ADP), Drake Maye (QB16), and Caleb Williams (QB15).”

“While many will worry about Drake Maye spreading the ball around in 2026, I’m not because last year that was related to New England not having an alpha-level receiver like Brown on the depth chart.”

“In just his second year, Drake Maye absolutely tore it up, finishing as the overall QB2 in fantasy and dropping a massive 21.1 PPG.”

“Drake Maye over Josh Allen. Maye immediately looked like one of the best pure passers in the league last season and carries a significant age advantage.”

“There do not seem to be many questions about Drake Maye, with him flying off the board as the consensus QB3, exactly where he finished in 2025. When you find yourself with the fourth-highest pass success rate of any QB through their first two years in the NFL, just behind Patrick Mahomes, Brock Purdy, and Dan Marino, you are doing something right.”

“I recently had a league as such, and I took Drake Maye with the 1.02 pick. Sure, drafting Ja'Marr Chase and letting quarterback value come to me instead may have been a better idea, but knowing I have Maye on my team for, theoretically, the next 10 years is something to feel confident about.”

“Maye's second-year breakout led to a second-place MVP finish and a Super Bowl appearance. He was the QB2 behind Josh Allen in fantasy points for the season (producing 96.3% of Allen's season total), and the QB2 in points per game (20.7).”

“The Chargers have a wide array of weapons for Herbert to throw the ball to – Omarion Hampton , Ladd McConkey , Quentin Johnston , Tre Harris, Oronde Gadsden , and David Njoku – along with speed depth to burn between Keaton Mitchell , KeAndre Lambert-Smith , Brenen Thompson, and Derius Davis .”

“He’s the No. 1 receiver for Justin Herbert , and now Mike McDaniel is the offensive coordinator for the team. Last season, when Keenan Allen wasn’t on the field, Ladd McConkey led the Chargers in target share at 20%.”

“Ladd McConkey continued his dominance last season, finishing second behind Keenan Allen , who is no longer in Los Angeles.”

“Ladd McConkey and Quentin Johnston , for example, scored 20 points between the two of them every week last season until the Chargers offense hit the wall.”

“But with Roman replaced by Mike McDaniel, we should expect McConkey to finish closer to his rookie season, when he averaged 2.6 YPRR.”

“A top‑12 finish is well within reach, giving him legitimate league‑winning upside in year two.” – Lawrence Iacona ( The Architect’s War Room ) “We could take the more obvious route and say Emeka Egbuka or Ladd McConkey .”

“Full disclosure: I like Ladd McConkey . I also think Justin Herbert is prime for an MVP-caliber season.”

“The second-year WR is being grouped into the “elite” Chargers WR conversation alongside Ladd McConkey and Quentin Johnston by HC John Harbaugh.”

“20 come from two buckets: Hyper-specified role players (Stefon Diggs, Rashee Rice) Guys with other top 24 or strong ancillary target competition (Both Rams WRs, Jameson Williams, CeeDee Lamb, Tee Higgins, Quentin Johnston with Ladd McConkey/Keenan Allen) You may notice there’s one guy on this list who fits in neither, and it’s Thundering Herd legend Christian Watson (shout out to NDSU).”

“That leaves a sizable hole in the offense, and McConkey should be the biggest beneficiary of those vacated targets.”

“Ladd McConkey is my bet for Herbert’s pass-catcher who will benefit the most from better health along the offensive line.”

“After working through it, the analyst landed on preferring McConkey over Tate, citing more confidence in McConkey’s current quarterback situation and offensive environment, along with an already-strong rookie season once his playoff performance is factored in.”