Who Should I Start? DeVonta Smith or Rashod Bateman

Monday, February 9, 6:37 PM

Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith had another solid campaign during the 2025 season, catching 77 passes for 1,008 yards and four touchdowns. This was the lowest touchdown total of his career, but it was encouraging to see him eclipse the 1,000-yard mark for the third time in the last four years. It's also worth noting that he had more yards and just one fewer catch than teammate A.J. Brown, indicating the gap between the two may not be as large as it seems. Of course, it's unclear if this duo will be together for long. There were rumors of drama between Brown and the Eagles throughout the year, and we wouldn't be surprised to see trade talks ramp up during the offseason. Trading Brown is far from a guarantee, but even the threat of a depth chart shakeup makes Smith a very intriguing "buy" in dynasty fantasy football leagues. If Smith were to become the top receiver in Philly, he'd have top-12 appeal among wide receivers in 2026 fantasy football drafts.

Wednesday, February 18, 6:45 AM

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Rashod Bateman had a very underwhelming 2025 season, catching just 19 of his 38 targets for a career-low 224 yards and two touchdowns. Missing four games impacted his stats slightly, but it's concerning that he had fewer yards over 13 games in 2025 than yards over just six games in 2022. His 1.5 catches and 4.3 fantasy points (PPR) per game are both new career lows. Interestingly enough, Bateman remains under contract with the Ravens through 2029, so he'll have plenty of opportunities to bounce back next season and beyond. It does work in his favor that DeAndre Hopkins and Isaiah Likely are both free agents, but Bateman will still have to compete for targets behind Zay Flowers, Mark Andrews, and any other pass-catchers the Ravens bring in. He can be avoided in all redraft leagues next year, and dynasty managers should be willing to drop him when the 2026 roster crunch comes around.