Wide receiver is one of the deepest positions in fantasy football, but finding players capable of dramatically outperforming their draft position can give your roster a massive advantage. While many late-round receivers are simply depth pieces, every season there are a handful who emerge as weekly fantasy starters thanks to expanded roles, improved health, or better offensive situations. Identifying those breakout candidates before the rest of your league is often what separates good fantasy teams from championship contenders. These are three players I am targeting late in my drafts.
Xavier Worthy WR (KC) – ADP: 123
Xavier Worthy’s sophomore season is one that fantasy managers should be willing to throw out. A torn labrum suffered in Week 1 altered the trajectory of his entire season, and even Andy Reid admitted the Chiefs were forced to utilize him differently after the injury. For a player whose game is built around elite speed and explosiveness, it’s no surprise that the production never matched expectations. The encouraging part is that we’ve already seen exactly what Worthy is capable of when healthy. Over the final 10 games of his rookie season, he caught 58 passes on 76 targets for 674 receiving yards and seven touchdowns while averaging nearly 15 fantasy points per game. Stretch that production across a full season, and Worthy was on pace for 99 receptions, 1,146 receiving yards, and 12 touchdowns.
Everything points toward a bounce-back campaign in 2026. Kansas City enters the season with a new wide receivers coach who should continue Worthy’s development, while Patrick Mahomes remains attached to one of the league’s most pass-heavy offenses. Travis Kelce is entering the twilight of his career, and outside of Rashee Rice, there isn’t another established receiver demanding significant volume. Worthy’s current WR49 price feels much closer to his floor than his ceiling after an injury-shortened campaign. Fantasy managers often overreact to disappointing seasons without considering the context, and that’s exactly what’s happening here. If Worthy simply returns to the form he showed over the second half of his rookie season, he’ll have little trouble outperforming his ADP and could emerge as one of the better late-round values at wide receiver.
Josh Downs WR (IND) – ADP: 101
Josh Downs quietly enters one of the best breakout situations of any receiver being drafted outside the top 100 picks. Michael Pittman’s departure leaves behind 111 vacated targets, opening the door for Downs to take on a much larger role within Indianapolis’ passing game. Despite seeing inconsistent route participation over the first three seasons of his career, Downs has consistently produced whenever given opportunities. He averaged 13.1 fantasy points per game during the 2024 season while finishing among the league’s most efficient slot receivers. Last year, he ranked 20th among qualifying receivers in both separation score and PFF receiving grade while continuing to command a healthy target rate whenever he was on the field. Those metrics reinforce what has shown up throughout his career: Downs is one of Indianapolis’ most reliable route runners and consistently creates separation at every level of the field.
The opportunity is finally beginning to match the talent. With Pittman no longer on the roster, Downs has a realistic chance to lead the Colts in targets this season, particularly on underneath and intermediate routes where he’s consistently excelled. Indianapolis also draws one of the easier schedules for opposing secondaries, creating several favorable matchups throughout the season. While Tyler Warren and Alec Pierce will remain involved, Downs profiles as the receiver most likely to absorb the consistent volume that Pittman leaves behind. His current ADP assumes he’ll remain a complementary piece, but the combination of available targets, proven efficiency, and a growing role makes him one of the safest breakout candidates in the later rounds. If his route participation continues trending upward, Downs has every opportunity to finish well above his current draft cost.
Jalen McMillan WR (TB) – ADP: 144
Jalen McMillan is exactly the type of late-round swing fantasy managers should be taking. After flashing legitimate touchdown upside during his rookie season, his sophomore campaign was derailed almost immediately by a frightening neck injury that limited him to just four games. Because of that lost season, many fantasy managers have completely forgotten about a receiver who was one of the more efficient young wideouts in football before the injury. McMillan averaged an impressive 2.23 yards per route run while finishing sixth among qualifying receivers in fantasy points per target during his rookie year, two metrics that typically translate to future fantasy success. Even after returning late in the season, he immediately reminded everyone of his upside by catching seven passes for 114 yards in Week 17 when finally given an expanded opportunity.
The path to a breakout season is much clearer entering 2026. With Mike Evans no longer in Tampa Bay, a significant number of targets become available, and McMillan is expected to open the year as the team’s primary outside receiver opposite Emeka Egbuka while Chris Godwin continues operating from the slot. Tampa Bay also enters the season with one of the easiest schedules for opposing wide receivers, creating several favorable game environments throughout the year. Health remains the biggest question after he missed significant time during each of his first two NFL seasons, but that’s already baked into his ADP. At WR68, fantasy managers are drafting McMillan closer to his floor than his ceiling. If he stays healthy and earns a full-time role in one of the league’s better passing attacks, he has all the tools to become one of the biggest wide receiver steals in 2026 fantasy football drafts.
