Who Should I Start? Zay Flowers or Brian Thomas Jr.

Tuesday, June 3, 2:47 PM

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers is coming off his first Pro Bowl campaign in just his second season in the NFL. The 2023 first-round pick out of Boston College snagged 74 of his 116 targets for 1,059 yards and four touchdowns in 17 games. Unfortunately, Flowers was banged up in the season finale against the Cleveland Browns and did not appear in either of Baltimore's postseason contests. Heading into Year 3, the Ravens are hoping to get Flowers more involved. "We just got to get him the ball more," offensive coordinator Todd Monken said after Tuesday's practice. "He's not only an outside receiver who has elite route-running skills, but he's unbelievable with the ball in his hands." Flowers ranked 19th in receiving yards last season despite finishing 28th in receptions and 23rd in targets. An uptick in target volume could give him fringe WR1 upside, and his target competition at wideout remains underwhelming.

Tuesday, July 15, 6:05 PM

Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. burst onto the NFL scene last year after being taken with the No. 23 overall pick out of LSU. Even on a bad team with spotty quarterback play, Thomas managed to catch 87 passes for 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns in 17 games (16 starts). The Athletic's Jeff Howe thinks that if the Trevor Lawrence-Liam Coen pairing works out the way it's envisioned, Thomas could be even better. Rookie first-round wideout Travis Hunter will be on the other side of the field drawing attention away from Thomas, too. It's not a stretch to think that Thomas could become a household name in his sophomore season in 2025, which is why RotoBaller has him ranked as a top-10 fantasy pass-catcher. The 22-year-old had si straight games with at least 10 targets and 76 yards a year ago.