Who Should I Start? Matthew Golden or Jayden Higgins

Tuesday, February 17, 9:14 AM

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Matthew Golden had a disappointing first year in the NFL in 2025 after he was taken with the 23rd overall pick out of Texas. The 22-year-old caught 29 passes for 361 yards and no touchdowns in 14 regular-season games on just 44 targets. It was surprising that he had so few targets, especially with tight end Tucker Kraft tearing his ACL in Week 9. The Athletic's Matt Schneidman expects Golden "to be a much bigger part of the game plan next season" in his sophomore season. It would be premature to expect Golden to be above Christian Watson or Jayden Reed in the pecking order, but Schneidman "wouldn't hesitate to use him over Dontayvion Wicks." Romeo Doubs is expected to depart in free agency, opening up a big role in the passing attack for Golden. Fantasy managers in dynasty/keeper leagues shouldn't sell low on him, and he could end up being a nice value pick in redraft fantasy leagues this fall.

Wednesday, February 4, 4:17 PM

The Houston Texans selected wide receiver Jayden Higgins in the second round in 2025 out of Iowa State, and he finished his rookie season in the NFL with 41 receptions on 68 targets for 525 yards and six touchdowns in 17 regular-season contests. Higgins was the Texans' third leading receiver behind Nico Collins and tight end Dalton Schultz. In the team's two playoff games, the 23-year-old caught nine of his 14 targets for 98 yards. Higgins' success going forward will be tied to whether quarterback C.J. Stroud can bounce back following a couple of disappointing campaigns after his outstanding rookie year, but either way, he should be Houston's No. 2 behind Collins with Christian Kirk hitting free agency this March. Higgins has the size (6-foot-4, 215 pounds) and speed to take a big step forward with more targets in his sophomore season.