Who Should I Start? Adam Thielen or Jameson Williams

Friday, May 2, 12:02 PM

Carolina Panthers veteran wide receiver Adam Thielen said that he talked with his family, and they wanted him to play in 2025. He plans to go through a similar process after this season, which is the final year of his contract. Depending on how the 34-year-old feels and what his family thinks after the 2025 campaign, Thielen could hang up his cleats and retire. He's returning for a third season in Carolina after playing in a career-low 10 games in 2024 due to a hamstring injury. In those 10 games, he caught 48 of his 62 targets for 615 yards and five touchdowns. He should continue to be a trusted weapon for young quarterback Bryce Young out of the slot this year, but the addition of first-round rookie wideout Tetairoa McMillan will surely make Thielen harder to trust as a WR3/flex in fantasy based on volume alone like he was in 2023, when he recorded the third 1,000-yard season of his career on 103 targets.

Monday, August 4, 2:52 PM

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler writes that Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams is expected to see "an uptick in targets" this year, as quarterback Jared Goff said the fourth-year receiver is embracing a more diverse route tree. "To see the growth in Jamo this offseason has been a lot of fun," Goff said. Williams averaged around six targets per game last year, and Fowler expects that number to grow in 2025 under new offensive coordinator John Morton. The 24-year-old former 12th overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft out of Ohio State dealt with injuries and a suspension his first two years in the league before breaking out with 1,001 receiving yards and seven touchdowns on 58 catches over 15 regular-season games (11 starts) in 2024. There are a lot of mouths to feed in Detroit's offense, but Morton seems to want to involve Williams alot, which makes him a low-end WR2 heading into his fourth season.