Rookie Rankings

Apart from top-five-drafted quarterbacks, it's hard to think of a player that's entered the NFL in recent years surrounded by such massive expectations (and pressure). Playing the same position as your Hall of Fame father can do that, especially when you're 6-foot-4, a highly regarded recruit, choose Ohio State and then go on to produce back-to-back 1,200-yard seasons. Those are all good things in terms of the future projection, of course, and even the few negatives in Harrison's profile are easily enough explained away. He didn't play much as a 19-year-old freshman at OSU, but the three guys ahead of him -- Chris Olave, Garrett Wilson, Jaxon Smith-Njigba -- all ended up being first-round picks. And while Harrison opted out of pre-draft workouts, his ability to make that decision points to just how dominant his tape was (it helps that there's now tracking data to erase any concerns about speed). The fourth overall pick should instantly become Arizona's No. 1 wide receiver, teaming up with TE Trey McBride and RB James Conner to give Kyler Murray a solid group of weapons despite the lack of WR talent behind Harrison. It's about the fantasy situation you can hope for as a top-five pick with minimal chance of going to a team that has an elite QB.

Nabers was the second WR taken in the 2024 Draft, going sixth overall to a Giants team that was widely rumored to be interested in quarterbacks. He'd be a consensus WR1 in many other draft classes, but Marvin Harrison was the popular favorite for a loaded 2024 class. Nabers has looked the part since his initial year at LSU in 2021, when he started six of 11 games and had 417 receiving yards as an 18-year-old true freshman (after missing his senior season of high school due to a declined transfer waiver, no less). Nabers then progressed to 1,017 receiving yards as a sophomore and 1,569 as a junior, comfortably outproducing teammate Brian Thomas (also a first-round pick) in every key category besides touchdowns. Nabers scored 14 of those in 2023 to help QB Jayden Daniels win the Heisman Award, with highlights including a 13-239-2 receiving line against Miss. St. and a 10-171-1 showing at Alabama. Listed at 6-0, 200, Nabers is about 3-4 inches and 10-15 pounds shy of Harrison and fellow rokie Rome Odunze, but the LSU product is probably the fastest of the three and also the best YAC threat. While he didn't test at the combine, Nabers reportedly posted a 4.44-second 40-yard dash and 38-inch vertical... back in 2020 when he was still in high school. He should immediately become the Giants' No. 1 receiver ahead of Wan'Dale Robinson, Darius Slayton and Jalin Hyatt, albeit in an offense that has Daniel Jones (ACL) and Drew Lock at quarterback.

It's hard to find a weakness in Odunze's prospect profile, especially after he confirmed his athleticism at the combine with a 4.45 40-yard dash at 6-3, 212. He was one of the few wideouts to go through nearly every test, and each of his scores landed above the 60th percentile among WRs the past two decades, including a 4.03-second short shuttle (93rd percentile). Amari Cooper, Chris Godwin and Ja'Marr Chase are the only 200-plus-pound WRs that have posted better times than Odunze in both the 40-yard dash and short shuttle. The Washington product also checks boxes for age (22 in June) and production (1,145 receiving yards as a junior and an FCS-leading 1,640 as a senior). The only real ding against him is that Odunze had only 483 receiving yards in 13 games his first two seasons before coach Kalen DeBoer and QB Michael Penix lifted the Huskies to national prominence. And even that feels like nitpicking, considering Odunze caught six passes in four games as an 18-year-old freshman during a pandemic-shortened season. The bust risk is low long term, but he does have some short-term concerns in Chicago in the form of target/snap competition from veteran WRs DJ Moore and Keenan Allen. The Bears also have a pair of capable pass catchers at tight end (Cole Kmet, Gerald Everett), making it hard for any one player to see a dominant share of targets -- especially a rookie.

At 5-11, 165 pounds, Worthy becomes one of the thinnest wide receivers in the NFL, with a lower BMI than even DeVonta Smith or new teammate Marquise Brown. Everything else screams upside, including Worthy's prolific college career, combine-record 40 time (4.21) and first-rate team context as part of the Reid/Mahomes show. The speed demon put up 68-981-12 as an 18-year-old true freshman at Texas, and while he had a modest sophomore slump (60-760-9), he bounced back with 75-1,015-5 last season as the target leader for a team that just had three other pass catchers taken in the 2024 NFL Draft. Those target numbers were perhaps inflated by a large number of designed touches on screen passes, but Worthy's comfort level there could end up being a good thing under a screen-happy coordinator like Reid. 2023 second-round pick Rashee Rice nearly broke 1,000 yards last year with a screen-heavy diet and 4.7 aDOT, and it now appears he could miss a portion of 2024 due to legal troubles. If not, the target competition in Kansas City admittedly looks stellar, featuring Rice, Worthy and Brown at wide receiver and Travis Kelce at tight end. Worthy's college production hints at quick learning curve, whereas his size and age (turned 21 in April) suggest that might not be the case.

Bowers is easily the best tight end prospect entering the NFL Draft since Kyle Pitts in 2021, and the two-time national champion at Georgia is arguably a more complete prospect than Pitts was. Bowers looked NFL-ready as a freshman with 882 receiving yards and 13 receiving touchdown catches. He finished his Georgia career with 26 receiving touchdowns and ran in five more, as Bowers was moved around the formation similarly to how the 49ers use Deebo Samuel. The 6-foot-4, 230-pound tight end is also an excellent blocker, which is why the Raiders didn't hesitate to draft him 13th overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, even after Bowers sat out Georgia's Pro Day due to a hamstring injury. Bowers’ excellent hands, route running and ability to rack up yardage after the catch should allow him to flourish out of the gate, even in a Vegas offense with an underwhelming quarterback room led by Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell. Bowers is likely to take on a three-down role right away, working ahead of 2023 second-round pick Michael Mayer. Rookie tight ends often need a year or two to marinate, but the likes of Pitts (1,026 yards in 2021) and Sam LaPorta (10 TDs in 2023) have managed to buck that trend, and Bowers has the skill set to thrive immediately like those players did.