Zach Wilson, Corey Davis, Jamison Crowder's Fantasy Outlook After Jets Draft QB

At some point in the NFL draft process, it became understood that Trevor Lawrence would go No. 1 overall to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Zach Wilson would go No. 2 to the New York Jets. 

That came true Thursday, leaving fantasy players to wonder what type of impact Wilson might have as a rookie. 

Well, don't get your hopes up...at least not from a fantasy perspective in year one. 

Here's the list of rookie quarterbacks who finished top-10 in fantasy points at the position in the past five years: Dak Prescott (2016), Kyler Murray (2019) and Justin Herbert (2020). That's it. That's the list.

Now, maybe players like Deshaun Watson and Joe Burrow crack the list if they don't get injured. Maybe if Lamar Jackson is given the starting gig earlier in his rookie season he finishes top-10, too. Woulda coulda shoulda. The point here is that it's pretty darn rare. 

And whereas players like Lawrence and Justin Fields are accustomed to playing against top competition, Wilson played pretty soft opponents at BYU. Talent is talent, yes, but we haven't really seen him do it against many NFL-level players. 

So, yeah, draft Wilson like his upside is to be a QB2, unless you are in dynasty or keeper leagues. In that case, he holds more value. Regardless, don't expect major production in his first year. 

As for the Jets wideouts, it's a tough projection. Corey Davis had a strong 2020 season (65 receptions for 984 yards and five scores), but he's going from a veteran in Ryan Tannehill to an unproven rookie. He was in the flex-WR4 range last year, and it's hard to imagine he'll improve much upon that this year with Wilson. He's worth a look in the middle to late rounds. 

Jamison Crowder missed four games last year and caught 59 passes for 699 yards and six touchdowns. Going from Sam Darnold to Wilson should be an upgrade on Crowder, though considering him anything more than a WR4-5 is risky. He's not a sexy pick, but Crowder's steady play out of the slot makes him a nice option to have on your bench. 

Denzel Mims is worth keeping an eye on in the later rounds as a potential sleeper, but until he proves himself, he's not a player who needs to be started or perhaps even rostered early in the year.