Who Should I Start? Tez Johnson or Efton Chism III

Monday, September 1, 11:54 PM

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Tez Johnson could carve out a role on offense as early as Week 1 this season. The rookie out of Oregon could see opportunities to contribute right away with Chris Godwin (ankle) and Jalen McMillan (neck) temporarily sidelined. We saw Tampa Bay support three fantasy-relevant receivers at times last year, so it's safe to assume that could happen again in 2025. Mike Evans and Emeka Egbuka are essentially locks to produce right away, leaving Johnson and Ryan Miller vying for the No. 3 role. The early advantage may go to Miller, who started three games (and played in 11 total) last year, so he is familiar with the system. Plus, he led the team in receiving yards during the 2025 preseason. However, Johnson has a promising outlook, too, as he totaled 2,080 receiving yards and 20 touchdowns through two seasons at Oregon. Meanwhile, he had the most targets and second-most receiving yards among all Buccaneers players this preseason. Tampa Bay is no stranger to getting its depth receivers involved, so don't be surprised if Johnson contributes right away. He should be stashed in all dynasty leagues, and he could even have some appeal in deeper redraft formats.

Sunday, September 7, 12:06 PM

New England Patriots rookie wide receiver Efton Chism III is a healthy inactive for the team's Week 1 regular-season opener on Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders. Chism had a very strong training camp and preseason for the Patriots despite going undrafted back in April. The 23-year-old is certainly worth stashing for the long term in dynasty/keeper formats, but he belongs on the waiver wire for now in all single-year formats. With Chism being a healthy scratch in the first game of the year for the Patriots, they will roll with Stefon Diggs, DeMario Douglas, Kayshon Boutte, Mack Hollins and Kyle Williams in their wideout corps in quarterback Drake Maye's first full season as the starter under center.