Ladd McConkey vs Zay Flowers

“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.”

“With Allen no longer on the team, this opens up the opportunity for McConkey to emerge as Justin Herbert's clear top receiver and demand an elite target share. There's a clear path to him earning 150+ targets and hauling in 100+ receptions.”

“There's no denying Ladd McConkey was a massive fantasy disappointment last season. He saw a drop from 15.1 PPR points per game as a rookie down to 11.3.”

“Ladd at ADP 34 is a steep price for a role that could be more complicated than the market is admitting. The Chargers added David Njoku, Charlie Kolar, and Alec Ingold, which points to more 12 & 21 personnel, and that matters for a player who ran 64.0% of his routes from the slot.”

“McConkey's CTCH% dropped from 73% to 62% year-over-year, and that drop, combined with a lower YPC, made a substantial difference in his performance. Much of this can be attributed to the offensive line injuries and subsequent pocket pressure that QB Justin Herbert faced much of the season. Herbert was pressured on 45% of McConkey's targets, and his catchable targets dropped by 10 percentage points. Bringing back a fully healthy offensive line and drafting four additional linemen (including the #1 ranked Center in the class) should make a big difference for this offensive unit.”

“Despite a gaffe-riddled rookie year, QJ showed marginal development in his second season, and Ladd McConkey looked like one of the steals of the draft in 2024. Then Allen, who departed for a one-year sabbatical in Chicago in 2024, returned to Los Angeles for his swan song and mucked the whole thing up! Or did he? The narrative in the fantasy football community has been that Keenan Allen NERFed Ladd McConkey's 2025 numbers, but further analysis shows there were several other factors at play.”

“Ladd McConkey is being drafted just ahead of Josh Allen, who has a late-third-round ADP.”

“Jake Ciely's favorite wide receiver target closes the list. Although Ladd McConkey disappointed many fantasy managers last season, Ciely believes the market has overcorrected. With Mike McDaniel now running the Chargers offense, he expects McConkey to become the clear focal point of the passing game. McDaniel's offenses have consistently funneled targets to their top receiver, and Ciely believes McConkey is perfectly suited for that role thanks to his ability to create separation and generate yards after the catch. If the offense performs as expected, McConkey has a realistic path back into WR1 territory.”

“The biggest boost for McConkey is the arrival of Mike McDaniel as the Chargers' offensive coordinator. Last season, McConkey ran 90% of his routes with three receivers on the field, while just 10% came in 1-WR or 2-WR sets. Compare that to Jaylen Waddle last season under McDaniel, a similar player stylistically, who ran 54% of his routes in 3-WR sets and 46% in 1-WR or 2-WR sets.”

“With the departure of Allen and the addition of Mike McDaniel, there is reason to once again be excited about this offense. McConkey is by far the most talented and should rarely leave the field.”

“Despite the addition of Jim Harbaugh, McConkey's numbers were not dissimilar to those of his rookie season. However, he fell from 1,149 yards to 789 yards on only six fewer targets.”

“The Ballers really like Zay Flowers , who will serve as the primary pre-snap chess piece operating from the Z-receiver spot. This alignment keeps him off the line of scrimmage to dodge press coverage while creating misdirection.”

“The Declan Doyle addition makes me more bullish on Flowers, who was the entire Ravens’ passing game last season.”

“Yet, Zay Flowers’ role as the clear-cut No. 1 option in the passing game remains unchallenged.”

“Zay Flowers (WR – BAL) My rank – WR19, 45th overall ADP – WR22, 60th overall The Zay Flowers propaganda is making its way around the Redraft streets, but it doesn’t appear the dynasty community is quite as bullish. Well, I’m buying the hype on Flowers.”

“Flowers is just as electric as she was billed coming out of college. He's been Lamar Jackson's No. 1 receiver since the day he was drafted, and at times he's been Jackson's only noteworthy receiver.”

“With DeAndre Hopkins and Isaiah Likely gone, the passing volume may be further consolidated in Flowers' favor. Valued as the WR18 in ECR, Flowers should be in line to smash his ADP if he can simply post a league-average touchdown rate.”

“Flowers finished as the WR4 overall in route participation in 2025, rocking an impressive 29% target share. In terms of efficiency, Flowers finished 12th or better at the position in yards per route run (YPRR), yards per target and yards per team pass attempt last year.”

“Yet, Flowers' role as the clear-cut No. 1 option in the passing game remains unchallenged. Last year, the former Boston College star averaged 14.3 PPR fantasy points per game, a career high. However, he was even better when Lamar Jackson played, averaging 15 fantasy points per game on only 6.9 targets per contest.”

“If you rostered Zay Flowers last season, you know that his WR7 finish in 2025 deserves an asterisk. Hopefully, no one was playing fantasy football in Week 18 (if so, put a rule change up to vote), but that's when Flowers padded his stats with 2 TDs and 138 yards receiving. Half of the time he was "MEH" (between 8 and 12.5 fpts). Zay Flowers finished as a Top-24 WR in just 35% of his games in 2025.”

“Zay Flowers has been a poor man's version of Amon-Ra St. Brown, turning in consistently strong reception and yardage totals. He hasn't scored many touchdowns, but it's possible Flowers gets more red-zone looks under the new Ravens offensive coordinator, Declan Doyle.”

“Last season, Zay Flowers posted a 29.1% target share (WR11) and had a 99.1% route participation rate (WR4). Baltimore picked up Flowers' fifth-year option and is reportedly working toward a long-term extension, which means Flowers has every incentive to put together a monster season. Flowers is Lamar Jackson's unquestioned No. 1 WR, and as long as Jackson stays healthy, Flowers should get peppered with targets.”

“If Andrew Erickson has one true flag-plant player this season, it's Zay Flowers. Flowers has improved every year since entering the league, and Erickson believes another leap is coming. He highlighted Flowers' efficiency metrics, consistent target share, and growing role within Baltimore's passing game as reasons to expect another breakout. The biggest missing piece has been touchdowns. If Baltimore's offense improves in the red zone, Erickson believes Flowers has the talent to capitalize.”