Who Should I Start? Adam Thielen or Terry McLaurin

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, July 28, 4:10 PM

The difference between what the Washington Commanders are willing to offer and what wide receiver Terry McLaurin (ankle) is asking for in contract negotiations is "vast," according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. McLaurin ended his holdout and reported to Commanders' training camp on Sunday, but he was immediately placed on the active/physically unable to perform list, so this could be a hold-in situation. McLaurin will turn 30 in September and has been remarkably durable throughout his career, playing in 17 games in each of the last five seasons. He caught 82 passes for 1,096 yards and a career-high 13 touchdowns in 2024, his first season playing with Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels. McLaurin profiles as a high-end WR2 in fantasy as long as he's ready to go for the regular season, but it appears as though his return to the practice field is not particularly close.