Who Should I Start? Deebo Samuel or Diontae Johnson

Thursday, July 25, 2:24 PM

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. looked slimmer during spring drills than he had last year, and he appears to have lost even more weight for the start of training camp. "I think he looks great," head coach Kyle Shanahan said after the offense took its first snaps in 11-on-11 drills. "I thought he looked great in OTAs and minicamp. And I think he looks better today." The 49ers are practicing without two wideouts, Brandon Aiyuk and first-round pick Ricky Pearsall (hamstring), so Samuel's fantasy draft stock remains in a state of flux until a clearer picture emerges of how this receiving corps might look for the start of the regular season. The 28-year-old Pro Bowl wideout totaled 12 touchdowns in 15 appearances in 2023, placing second at his position in PPR fantasy points per route run (0.67) and first in fantasy points per target (2.74) over 89 targets, and he's being treated as a WR1 bet at his second-round ADP this summer.

Wednesday, July 3, 6:35 PM

The Carolina Panthers made no move to extend wide receiver Diontae Johnson after trading for the former Pittsburgh Steelers wideout in March, as they prefer to see whether he emerges as the explosive, coverage-separating pass-catcher that quarterback Bryce Young and the offense lacked in 2023. If Johnson proves he's a difference-maker in his first year in Carolina and if he doesn't become a distraction when the ball doesn't come his way, he could be set to cash in next offseason in a receiver market that has exploded in recent years. The 27-year-old disappointed as Pittsburgh's top receiver last year, catching a career-low 51 passes for 717 yards and five touchdowns. Johnson will now be competing with veteran Adam Thielen for targets in what was the worst offense in the league last year. Most of Johnson's fantasy value will be tied to how much Young improves in Year 2. Consider Johnson a low-end WR3/high-WR4 target in fantasy drafts.