Fantasy Football 2024: Sleeper Wide Receivers to Target in Late Rounds

The late rounds of a fantasy football always have the potential to be a gold mine for underrated players.

The set of potential sleeper picks at wide receiver in 2024 may not have as massive of an impact as Puka Nacua did in 2023, but they can still provide plenty of backend value to your fantasy rosters.

Most of the late-round picks will be first-year players whose roles could exponentially increase throughout the regular season.

A majority of those players will still need a full preseason to solidify their respective roles, but there is a lot of potential across the board that should excite every fantasy player.

Adonai Mitchell has the potential for a ton of upward movement on the Indianapolis Colts depth chart.

The Colts need a clear No. 2 to emerge behind Michael Pittman Jr. in what they hope is an explosive offensive year with Anthony Richardson at the helm.

Josh Downs will be a popular mid-round pick in fantasy drafts because of his 771-yard season, but that was mainly earned with Gardner Minshew at quarterback.

Richardson’s chemistry with the wide receivers could be different and Mitchell’s presence can diminish Downs’ role.

Mitchell was a touchdown machine at Texas last season. He found the end zone on 11 occasions to go along with his 845 receiving yards.

The lack of a star tight end on the Colts roster will also help Mitchell’s fantasy football profile. Kylen Granson only had 30 catches for 368 yards and one touchdown in 2023.

At minimum, Mitchell is the No. 3 pass catcher right now on the Colts roster and he could move one spot higher if he outperforms Downs.

The departures of Joe Mixon and Tyler Boyd from the Cincinnati Bengals offense opened up depth roles behind Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.

Chase and Higgins will be Joe Burrow’s top two targets, but after that, it is a guessing game as to which wide receiver or running back picks up the production.

Andrei Iosivas could emerge as a key target out of the slot because of his familiarity with the Bengals offense.

Iosivas only recorded 116 receiving yards on 15 receptions last season, so it is hard to justify him being selected above the final few rounds in any fantasy football draft.

There is a chance Jermaine Burton or Trenton Irwin eclipse Iosivas on the depth chart, but he could be a valuable piece out of the slot.

Cincinnati will likely embrace the pass more, especially in games where Zack Moss and Chase Brown can’t get going on the ground, and that could lead to larger stat lines across the board for the Princeton product.

The New York Giants offense should be difficult for any fantasy football player to trust going into the 2024 season.

Daniel Jones is back from injury, but that is not the most exciting prospect given how up-and-down his career has been.

The Giants added first-round help in the form of Malik Nabers, but they need more than one player to catch passes from Jones.

Jalin Hyatt has the potential to break out as a speedy deep threat over Darius Slayton and Wan’Dale Robinson.

Hyatt had 373 receiving yards and averaged 16.2 yards per catch in his rookie season. He flashed potential in a 100-yard game against the New England Patriots.

Hyatt will not be anywhere close to Nabers in terms of production, but if he can emerge as the No. 2, or at least No. 3, target, he can add value to the back end of fantasy rosters.

Marvin Mims might have the most room to grow among any young wide receiver in the NFL.

Mims is currently the No. 3 wide out on the Denver Broncos depth chart, but he has the potential to overtake Josh Reynolds.

Reynolds has only had two seasons with more than 500 receiving yards in his career and he benefited greatly from his personal connection with Jared Goff to play a massive role with the Detroit Lions in 2023.

Reynolds and Mims should have a strong competition behind Courtland Sutton for the No. 2 role.

Mims is the younger player and has the potential to emerge as Bo Nix’s favorite deep threat.

Mims thrived in that role when he had a chance in 2023. He averaged 17.1 yards per catch in his rookie season.

Reynolds could potentially emerge as a major threat inside the Denver offense, but his history suggests he has a ceiling, whereas Mims may not have scratched the surface of his potential yet.