Cody Carpentier’s Top 25: 2024 NFL Draft Wide Receiver Rankings
Officially 11 weeks out from the NFL Draft in Detroit, Michigan, Alex and I will be joining the PlayerProfiler Team once again, as Co-Hosts on their set covering the Draft for all three days. In the meantime, we will of course be in attendance for RosterWatch Nation at the NFL Combine and have RosterWatch Pro Day Tour coverage as always. Stay tuned for more information, but until then we have a great class of wide receivers to get acclimated to. Today, I am rolling out my first iteration of NFL Draft Rookie Rankings for the Wide Receiver position only. Please note, these are not fantasy-focused, they are NFL Draft-focused rankings.
1. Marvin Harrison, WR Ohio State
Looked at as the best prospect of the last decade, going back to Amari Cooper and Julio Jones coming out of Alabama. Harrison, the son of Marvin Harrison Sr. has dominated opportunities at Ohio State since his freshman season against Utah, where he caught 3 touchdowns on 6 receptions. Harrison is an alien, likely to run in the low 4.5s at the NFL Combine, doesn’t have breakaway speed but lines up everywhere on the field with the best ball skills and in-route intuition you will find in the 2024 NFL draft class.
2. Malik Nabers, WR LSU
There is no best comparable for Malik Nabers, he brings a lot to the table that is unanswerable – his frame suggests he weighs 190 lbs, but his play style suggests he is 210 lbs. His quickness, and burst after the catch is that of a Ja’Marr Chase, while his projection of defenders and route savviness is that of a Stefon Diggs. With the ball skills of Justin Jefferson, it’s tough not to see what all the buzz is about with one Malik Nabers out of LSU – a player with few miss-steps along the way, Nabers can occasionally “shut it off” when the ball is thrown inaccurate or out of range, but he rarely underachieves when his quarterback is under stress in the pocket, Nabers is always feeling for the green in the defense and working to assist his quarterback
3. Rome Odunze, WR Washington
In a loaded draft class, it’s easy to look at this number 4 overall ranking and become upset. But, like Malik Nabers, Odunze is as dependable as the other side of the pillow with 167 receptions over the last two seasons with Michael Penix Jr. at Washington. He has a similar play style to Ja’Marr Chase at LSU but lacks the play speed that Chase exhibited. Odunze is projected to run sub-4.4s with many thinking he cracks into the 4.3s, and he dominates in contested catch situations, leading College Football with 21 in 2023, catching 75% of contested targets.
4. Troy Franklin, WR Oregon
Despite the rare build at 6’3 and 187 lbs, he uses his filled-out frame and strength to keep defenders at arm’s length early in routes and off of the line of scrimmage, something slender-framed receivers often struggle with. Only Marquess Wilson possessed this build in the last twenty NFL drafts, and he was drafted in the 7th round by the Chicago Bears in 2013. In conclusion, Franklin has shown the ability to win in almost all quadrants of the field, with slight struggles in contested situations, progressing as a hands catcher and framing the football will expedite his ability to become a superstar at the next level.
5. Xavier Worthy, WR Texas
At one time, Worthy was the receiver next receiver in line after Marvin Harrison Jr. in this class, that was two years ago. Worthy burst onto the scene as a true freshman at Texas with 981 receiving yards. He is a dynamic game-changer in the punt return game with the ability to not only take the top off of the defense but also work in the short areas and make defenders miss with a single step. Worthy has what every NFL team is looking for, he just may come in 10lbs lighter than they prefer.
6. Javon Baker, WR UCF
His suddenness in and out of breaks is at a high level, and his ball skills are second to few. He has an interesting career that saw super high, highs winning a championship with Alabama, but also rarely seeing the field, Baker resurrected his career in Orlando, and my expectation is he falls in the mid-rounds of the NFL draft and earns a role early in an NFL offense.
7. Adonai Mitchell, WR Texas
8. Ja’Lynn Polk, WR Washington
Overshadowed for two seasons at Washington, behind stud receivers Rome Odunze and Jalen McMillan, Polk finished with 108 targets in 2023, good for 15th in the country. Although his 16.8 yards per reception could be digested to interpret Polk as a deep threat, that is not his game – Polk dominates the middle quadrants 5-15 yards from the line of scrimmage.
9. Roman Wilson, WR Michigan
He has what it takes to become a dynamic No. 2 in an NFL offense during his Rookie campaign. With traits to morph into a dynamic slot receiver, Wilson is on the slighter side of upper body strength, but has some of the strongest hands in the class to boot. I see multiple ways Roman Wilson can succeed in the NFL, although a best comparable is tough, he shows traits similar to Jaxon Smith-Njigba in his gait, as well as the ball skills and route running ability of an Amon-Ra St. Brown.
10. Keon Coleman, WR Florida State
11. Brenden Rice, WR USC
He brings a unique package to the position that Zay Jones did out of East Carolina in 2017, the ability to play bigger than you are while being silky smooth on inside breaking routes as well as understanding defensive schemes and play breakdowns. Rice’s ability to never give up on a play will translate to the NFL and make his future QB very happy
12. Brian Thomas Jr., WR LSU
Thomas’ speed off of the line of scrimmage caused headaches for opposing defensive coordinators, regardless of alignment or talent(McKinstry/Arnold) – he creates quick separation and gets even or leaves defenders on downfield routes. Despite his ability to win often downfield (10 of 17 touchdowns were 25+ yards downfield), he struggles with concentration drops at times in the shallow areas, while not pressing defenders downfield Thomas’ motor tends to run idle while working to get open. In a potent offense, willing to push the football and gameplan around him – Thomas has the upside to become a lethal number 2 early on during his rookie campaign, but if he is attached to a balanced, uninspired offense his abilities could be restricted for some time.
13. Ladd McConkey, WR Georgia
Georgia HC Kirby Smart was quoted saying “If it wasn’t for YouTube, I wouldn’t know who Ladd was – I was watching a camp and he was beating kids that we were recruiting, and nobody was recruiting him – all he does is make plays.”
14. Malachi Corley, WR Western Kentucky
After gaining nearly 40lbs of mass since walking onto the WKU campus, Corley has become a YAC monster, finishing with 8.6 YAC/reception in 2023. Over the last three seasons, he has amassed 2,056 total yards after catch.
15. Johnny Wilson, WR Florida State
16. Tahj Washington, WR USC
Washington’s resilience in situations hasn’t suppressed him but made him better while playing with Drake London, Jordan Addison, and in 2023, Brenden Rice (son of Jerry Rice) and current 2024 NFL Draft Prospect. He finally crested 1,000 receiving yards in 2023, posting a career-best 18 yards per reception, and leading the country in Yards per Route Run on “Deep Throws (20+ Yards)” at 39.73.
17. Jacob Cowing, WR Arizona
18. Xavier Legette, WR South Carolina
19. Anthony Gould, WR Oregon State
Although his frame is slight and Gould likely weighs in around 160lbs, his length and features are that of a player that is closer to 6′ tall, this allows him to contort at the catch point and enhance his catch radius. His attack of the football at the catch point, his demeanor on in/out breaking routes is a key in his war chest.
20. Devontez Walker, WR North Carolina
Walker will fit into any offense as a pure stretch receiver with the raw talent to become a real number 1 within two years. Showing small flashes of Justin Jefferson-type body control and play-making ability, the allure of Walker will be viewed in a broad range this spring.
21. Malik Washington, WR Virginia
Washington is a sturdy wide receiver who packs a punch and brings the lunch pail with him, forcing 35 missed tackles in 2023 to go along with over 50% of his receiving yards coming after the catch. Overlooking Washington for his height would be a failure of evaluation as he was arguably the most dominant receiver outside of Malik Nabers and Rome Odunze in 2023. He seeks to earn opportunities early during his NFL career and mold into a trustable veteran slot receiver, similar to Tyler Lockett, but thicker.
22. Ricky Pearsall, WR Florida
In the final game of the 2023 season, he was 52 yards shy of eclipsing 1,000 receiving yards, something no Florida Gator receiver has accomplished since 2002 when Taylor Jacobs did it. Not Kadarius Toney, Van Jefferson, Riley Cooper, Percy Harvin, Chad Jackson, or Demarcus Robinson.
23. Jamari Thrash, WR Louisville
24. Ryan Flournoy, WR Southeast Missouri State
25. Isaiah Williams, WR Illinois
Williams has the gifts to be a dynamic playmaker on day one, however, his downfield routes leave you wanting more creativity and refinement. Early in his career, expect his usage to stay around the line of scrimmage and expand to downfield shots, similar to the advancements seen at Illinois.
Cody Carpentier
