Who Should I Start? Rashod Bateman or Tory Horton

Monday, June 15, 5:48 AM

Prior to suffering a shin injury that ultimately landed him on injured reserve and required offseason surgery, Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Tory Horton was on a double-digit touchdown pace, aided by two scores in the final contest of his rookie season. Unable to participate in organized team activities or minicamp practices, Horton is expected back early, if not at the start of training camp. While in his absence, the Seahawks traded for and then locked up a similar downfield threat in Rashid Shaheed, there is still enough to be excited about to keep Horton worthy of an end-of-bench stash in dynasty leagues. Cooper Kupp is now 33 years old and showing serious signs of decline, and with Shaheed averaging only 1.5 receptions across his 12 regular and postseason games with Seattle, the depth chart behind Offensive Player of the Year Jaxon Smith-Njigba is not insurmountable. Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak is gone, but there's an expectation that Brian Fleury will adopt many of the play-action principles that allowed Sam Darnold to succeed, providing fantasy-friendly opportunities for a player like Horton who can routinely get behind defenses. Only 23 years old, Horton is RotoBaller's dynasty WR81, but with a few things breaking his way, he has a perceivable path to fantasy viability as early as 2026.