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Dynasty Leagues

September 30, 2023

Dynasty receivers

Lions getting Jameson Williams back two games early

Jameson Williams is back, with his suspension shortened by two games. Are the Lions getting a top-level playmaker? Or is he more likely to be an erratic deep threat?

The work so far has been uneven. They threw him 9 passes as a rookie, with twice as many drops (2) as catches (1). They went 0-6 trying to get him the ball on short passes. It was more of the same in his one preseason appearance. He caught only 2 of the 7 passes thrown his way, with another drop.

But while it looks like there will be some frustrating miscues, Williams has also shown the ability to make some big plays. He caught a 41-yard touchdown against a busted coverage as a rookie, while also picking up 40 yards on an end-around. You can be sure he’ll be getting the ball on his hands on jet sweeps in most games.

Williams also caught a 65-yard touchdown at Green Bay last year on a play that was nullified by a penalty. And in his only preseason game, he got open for a 41-yard touchdown, only to have the ball bounced off his hands (that play is the one you see in the picture).

With the Lions pounding on defenses with David Montgomery, there will be some opportunities to launch long-range passes, and Williams should be their primary guy on those plays. Amon-Ra St. Brown and Sam LaPorta probably will both catch more passes, but Williams will be their big-play option.

In a PPR dynasty draft, I think it would be reasonable to start thinking about Williams about 30 receivers into a draft. I spent an hour poking around with my dynasty list of receivers, and I’ve got him going in about the same area as four other young receivers: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Jahan Dotson, Rashee Rice and Romeo Doubs.

I turn my attention to dynasty leagues each Saturday during the regular season, rotating between the four notable positions. I’m assuming PPR scoring (which works against Williams), and operating under the assumption that franchises would hold the rights to players indefinitely. That’s why you see no 30-year-olds in the top dozen and 31-year-old Keenan Allen all the way down at 29th, even though he’ll probably be one of the top half-dozen receivers this year.

In our other rankings, they involve carefully projecting stats for every player. These ones are different. They’re done by gut feel. (I’m just go through the list, comparing each guy to the next, thinking about where he ranks now, where he might rank next year, and how long he might continue to play.) Rookies are tagged with black dots.

To see rankings for the other positions, use the “Past Issues” navigation box.

Last week: Running backs.

Next week: Tight ends.

DYNASTY WIDE RECEIVERS
RkTmPlayerAge
1.MINJustin Jefferson24.3
2.CINJaMarr Chase23.6
3.NYJGarrett Wilson23.2
4.DALCeeDee Lamb24.5
5.PHIDeVonta Smith24.9
6.MIATyreek Hill29.6
7.NOChris Olave23.3
8.DETAmon-Ra St. Brown23.9
9.PHIA.J. Brown26.3
10.PITGeorge Pickens22.6
11.MIAJaylen Waddle24.8
12.BUFStefon Diggs29.8
13.LVDavante Adams30.8
14.SFBrandon Aiyuk25.5
15.SEADK Metcalf25.8
16.JACCalvin Ridley28.8
17.GBChristian Watson24.4
18.SFDeebo Samuel27.7
19.CINTee Higgins24.7
20.ATLDrake London22.2
21.CHIDJ Moore26.5
22.INDMichael Pittman26.0
23.BAL• Zay Flowers23.0
24.CLEAmari Cooper29.3
25.LARCooper Kupp30.3
26.PITDiontae Johnson27.2
27.WASTerry McLaurin28.0
28.JACChristian Kirk26.9
29.LACKeenan Allen31.4
30.SEA• Jaxon Smith-Njigba21.6
31.DETJameson Williams22.5
32.WASJahan Dotson23.5
33.KC• Rashee Rice23.4
34.GBRomeo Doubs23.5
35.TBMike Evans30.1
36.ARIMarquise Brown26.3
37.MIN• Jordan Addison21.7
38.CLEElijah Moore23.5
39.HOUNico Collins24.5
40.LAR• Puka Nacua22.3
41.HOU• Tank Dell23.9
42.BUFGabe Davis24.6
43.LAC• Quentin Johnston22.1
44.DENCourtland Sutton28.0
45.GB• Jayden Reed23.4
46.TBChris Godwin27.6
47.LVJakobi Meyers26.9
48.TENDeAndre Hopkins31.3
49.CARAdam Thielen33.1
50.SEATyler Lockett31.0
51.NYG• Jalin Hyatt22.0
52.DENJerry Jeudy24.4
53.IND• Josh Downs22.1
54.LACJosh Palmer24.0
55.KCKadarius Toney24.7
56.TENTreylon Burks23.5
57.NORashid Shaheed25.1
58.DEN• Marvin Mims21.5
59.KCSkyy Moore23.1
60.NEKendrick Bourne28.2
61.DALBrandin Cooks30.0
62.NOMichael Thomas30.6
63.BALOdell Beckham30.9
64.DALMichael Gallup27.6
65.CARDJ Chark27.0
66.MINK.J. Osborn26.3
67.WASCurtis Samuel27.1
68.JACZay Jones28.5
69.LARTutu Atwell24.0
70.NYGWan'Dale Robinson22.7
71.TB• Trey Palmer22.5
72.NYGParris Campbell26.2
73.LACMike Williams29.0
74.ARI• Michael Wilson23.6
75.CHIDarnell Mooney25.9
76.BALRashod Bateman23.8
77.CAR• Jonathan Mingo22.4
78.NEJuJu Smith-Schuster26.9
79.INDAlec Pierce23.4
80.CHIChase Claypool25.2

—Ian Allan

Jameson Williams Dynasty rankings
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