Who Should I Start? Mike Evans or Ladd McConkey

Saturday, July 12, 2:22 PM

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans is entering the final year of his two-year, $41 million deal in 2025, and The Athletic's Dan Pompei writes that the team could have a difficult time retaining the future Hall of Famer beyond this season, especially at a similar price to what they just re-signed Chris Godwin at. Despite being close to turning 32 years old, Evans hasn't shown signs of slowing down, posting 1,000 yards receiving in 2024 for the 11th straight season while also scoring 11 touchdowns. Tampa certainly doesn't want to lose one of the greatest players in franchise history who is also highly respected in the locker room, but it remains to be seen how this will play out following the 2025 season after they took wideout Emeka Egbuka in the first round this year. For fantasy purposes, Evans is a high-end WR2.

Monday, June 23, 6:52 PM

The additions to the Los Angeles Chargers' offense this year should make second-year wide receiver Ladd McConkey even more dangerous, according to The Athletic's Daniel Popper. The different is that last year the offense was stunted because they lacked vertical threats. This year, the Chargers have options that can attack defenses vertically from various alignments, which will open up short and intermediate areas for McConkey. Rookie wideout Tre' Harris and rookie tight end Oronde Gadsden both have the ability to make plays down the field for the Bolts and take attention away from McConkey. McConkey was a fantasy stud in his first year in the NFL with 82 catches on 112 targets for 1,149 yards and seven touchdowns in 16 regular-season games (14 starts). The Chargers will remain a run-first offense, but McConkey should still be in play as a low-end WR1/high-end WR2 in fantasy.