Who Should I Start? Adam Thielen or Zay Flowers

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.

Tuesday, June 3, 2:47 PM

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers is coming off his first Pro Bowl campaign in just his second season in the NFL. The 2023 first-round pick out of Boston College snagged 74 of his 116 targets for 1,059 yards and four touchdowns in 17 games. Unfortunately, Flowers was banged up in the season finale against the Cleveland Browns and did not appear in either of Baltimore's postseason contests. Heading into Year 3, the Ravens are hoping to get Flowers more involved. "We just got to get him the ball more," offensive coordinator Todd Monken said after Tuesday's practice. "He's not only an outside receiver who has elite route-running skills, but he's unbelievable with the ball in his hands." Flowers ranked 19th in receiving yards last season despite finishing 28th in receptions and 23rd in targets. An uptick in target volume could give him fringe WR1 upside, and his target competition at wideout remains underwhelming.