Fantasy football breakouts for all 32 NFL teams, led by Bijan Robinson, Jameson Williams

As football organizations get ready to report for training camp within the next few weeks, all of them has a player, or maybe a couple, who is on the verge of a break out and could be the difference maker in the championship of your fantasy league.

Maybe it is a first-round pick who has arrived to team X/Y/Z with big expectations now that he has developed into a starter or it is a veteran journeyman who found himself in the best situation he could possibly imagine. Or it could be a former star who is due for a revival after a poor campaign or a unknown who is poised to step up and take on a larger role.

As the fantasy draft season approaches, The Athletic’s NFL beat reporters are here to break down it to you who is prepared for a career year in 2024.

Arizona Cardinals

WR Michael Wilson

I mentioned before that RB James Conner was reasonable as a fantasy option in the prior season and should be this year as well. Undoubtedly, rookie wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. , will have his share of the ball. This, seasoned fantasy players already know. The only surprise, or “breakout”, here is that he would not be worth consideration until mid to late rounds of a fantasy draft. That’s Wilson. He was fairly solid as a rookie in 2023 despite a procedure that sidelined him for four games (38/565/3). It should increase this year particularly with QB Kyler Murray as part of the team for the full season. He’s worth a look. — Doug Haller

Atlanta Falcons

RB Bijan Robinson

The Gryphon was 56th in fantasy points per game in 2023 of TruMedia. That is not what people expected after the Falcons drafted him eighth. He made lot of mistakes as football player, but his worst time was when he did not score any touchdown for four consecutive games and his largest mistake that year was that he only scored only eight touchdowns; four rushing and four receiving. Specifically, with the newly hired Zac Robinson as an offensive coordinator, Bijan Robinson is likely to lessen his work as a receiver and become more of a plain running back as opposed to the role he has in Arthur Smith’s offense. Hmm, that could be good for his usage, I thought to myself, watching him continue to pour himself a what seemed to be another drink . Kyren Williams scored 12 rushing touchdowns for the Rams last year in the same offence. The fantasy concern with Robinson is if Tyler Allgeier takes away his rushing attempts and potentially goal-line work as the season continues. — Josh Kendall

Baltimore Ravens

WR Rashod Bateman

Yes, I know that the 2021 first-round pick has had breakout predictions of that level in prior offseasons and has yet to come close to even being a fantasy factor. And of course when you are counting on Ravens’ wide receivers for your weekly lineup, then it’s always wise to use the word precaution. But this was the first time that Bateman was completely recovered from his symptoms at least since he was in the NFL. He silenced the rumors of frequent trades with a contract extension in April. The Ravens did not keep Odell Beckham Jr. who gave Bateman the inside track as the team’s No. 2 wide receptor behind Zay Flowers. Given that everyone wanted them to get Bateman involved more this entire offseason, it will be on both, offensive coordinator Todd Monken and quarterback Lamar Jackson, to actually do so for the sophomore wideout. — Jeff Zrebiec

Buffalo Bills

TE Dalton Kincaid

The optimizer platform ranks additional 10 other flexible skill players, but too many changes surround Josh Allen, so drafting most Bills here would be dangerous. We just don’t know who will get the touches that is who will get the bale and who will get the moves. However, outside of Allen the position that appears to be the less of a toss-up is tight end where Dalton Kincaid is a lock. In his rookie year Kincaid was second only to Stefon Diggs in Targets. In the total of 18 games including playoffs, he has been targeted 102 times for 81 catches of the balls, the yards touched were 777 and the scores made were three. The last number should increase with the trust that grows with Allen. Based on the rate, TruMedia estimated that Kincaid made 80 percent of such tackles. Two percent of his regular-season targets ranked him third among tight ends behind only Durham Smythe and Cole Kmet. — Tim Graham

Carolina Panthers

QB Bryce Young

Hard to think that last year’s number one pick can produce worse numbers than he did in his rookie season, during which Young ranked last in the NFL passing efficiency, completing the season with 11 TD passes and one 300-yard passing game — in a 33-30 loss to Green Bay in the week 16. The Panthers spent their free agency ammo as well as their premium draft choices to bolster Young’s protection and surround him with more weapons. Even though he won’t suddenly become a passing wizard, or even a guy who will hover close to passing thirds — it is only plausible to expect that he will experience a spike in productivity while working with the weaponized receiving core that comprises the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Diontae Johnson and first-round pick Xavier Legette. — Joseph Person

Chicago Bears

WR Rome Odunze

This year the No. 9 pick will be the third Bears wideout that will be selected in most fantasy football leagues. Heck, he might even go after tight end Cole Kmet, who is coming off of a career year and linking up with a play caller in Shane Waldron that has pointed that out. Still, on almost any other roster, Odunze wouldn’t be the runner-up to the fantasy benchwarmers. Coaches are very careful, especially during spring practices, not to hype any player, not to mention, a rookie, but Matt Eberflus was confident enough to brag about Odunze. He’s off to a good start and should have good games due to the attention that DJ Moore and Keenan Allen will command. — Kevin Fishbain

Cincinnati Bengals

TE Mike Gesicki

Joe Burrow cranks out career years for tight ends as frequently as the patriarchy cranks out scandals. The most recent addition is Gesicki but unlike C. J. Uzomah, Hayden Hurst, and Tanner Hudson, Gesicki has the skills to make dozens of the big one. He will be employed as a huge slot and expected to abuse opponents that have a nickel CB or a slow S. Most importantly, he could finally give Burrow a tight end that could regularly take advantage of the vs middle between Higgins and Chase. That is achievable if you go for a 700 yds and 7 touchdowns. — Paul Dehner Jr.

Cleveland Browns

RB Jerome Ford

He had his coming-out party in TE David Njoku while WR Amari Cooper as been consistent. Outside of the quarterback position, there is no issue with weapons for both teams The browns have question marks at the RT spot and at the RB position where they’ve got Chubb and the talented Hines both coming off season ending ACL injuries. Chubb was not in the spotlight last year while in the place of him, Ford managed to catch a touchdown from the Deshaun Watson only a year ago lining up as the wide receiver. Ford is going to get snaps and opportunities just in case Chubb comes back and plays something to the tune of a full season, and a fantasy bet on Ford entails the awfulization of Chubb not to come back in a fulltime capacity. — Zac Jackson

Dallas Cowboys

RB Rico Dowdle

Towards the end of last season, Dowdle begun establishing himself a little more as the second string back to Pollard. When Pollard went to free agency him and the Cowboys failed to get major help through the draft or free agency, Dowdle should benefit. Dallas Cowboys do not have a clear cut No. 1 running back, in fact they drafted to have the running back by committee that will include Elliott as one of the members, but Dowdle can be the volume guy in Dallas, who gets the most of the carries in standard ways. — Saad Yousuf

Denver Broncos

WR Marvin Mims Jr.

The Broncos made a trade of Jerry Jeudy in March which created one of the barriers that limited Mims from getting the necessary snaps in his rookie stint. As a second round draft choice, he was always a bundle of activity out on the field. Among the players who had more than 30 targets, only four players had yards per target more than Mims, they include; Chris Moore of Tennessee Titans with 12. 1, Khalil Shakir of the Buffalo Bills 13. 6, Brandon Aiyuk of the San Francisco 49ers 12. 8 and Nico Collins of the Houston Texans 11. 9. Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton, in his interaction with the media, has more or less guaranteed increased usage of Mims in the second year. Mims was also a Pro Bowler returning kicks and should help immediately in that facet of the game as the NFL returns to using more returner friendly kickoffs in the coming years. — Nick Kosmider

Detroit Lions

WR Jameson Williams

The offense of the Lions is very much fixed, and there will hardly be many touches for new players. But one dude that could have a massive year is Williams whom is the No. 12 of the 2022 draft and may be due for a large year. Despite the less than ideal beginning to his tenure in Tulsa, when you ask people around the drill, they tell you they’ve seem a change in demeanour from Williams. He realizes he will be expected to perform well after Reynolds’ move to Denver, which is not a big issue, given his abilities. What is more, during all spring he worked with the first-team offense and seemed more concentrated than ever. Something it will turn into, sure what? — Colton Pouncy

Green Bay Packers

WR Jayden Reed

Then you might say last year was Reed’s year of coming out as rookie of the pack as he made the most receptions (64) and receiving yards (793) and even equaled the most touchdown receptions (8). Still, quarterback Jordan Love and his receivers won’t have to take half the season to familiarize themselves with each other like last year which may equal or surpass the production of 2023 second-round slot-receiver out of Michigan State. Reed, along with Christian Watson, are the two closest things to a true No. 1 wideout on a team, technically speaking, that lacks an end-all-be-all guy at the position. — Matt Schneidman

Houston Texans

WR Tank Dell

Of course, the Texans have signed Stefon Diggs this year, but Dell could easily come back from a broken fibula that cut his 2023 season short. Diggs and Nico Collins will attract a lot of focus, and Dell will probably overreact. He was the second on the team in the receiving yards and touchdowns with 709 yards and seven touchdowns catching 47 balls in only 11 games of this rookie season. Therefore, a full season, restoration of the rapport with C. J. Stroud, under whom he was targeted 75 times last season and the addition of Diggs should mean an even more profound effect for the young Dell. — Mike Jones

Indianapolis Colts

WR Josh Downs

Where is Downs, it seems like he will be one of those players who will conduct his business unnoticed this summer? Of course, the Colts re-signed Michael Pittman Jr. On a $70 million deal and drafted Adonai Mitchell in the team during the recent draft. Downs should not be ruled out either, both players could be in for big campaigns. Last year, Downs very soon became Indianapolis’ second option in passing game, and he made a rookie franchise record 68 receptions for 771 yards and two touchdowns. Should Anthony Richardson be healthy for Downs in the second year, he could be on the path of better production as demonstrated by the several occasions that the quarterback hit his top slot receiver during the spring drills. — James Boyd

Jacksonville Jaguars

QB Trevor Lawrence

I never thought I’d be picking with Lawrence, but just listen to my reasoning behind it. Though he didn’t establish himself until the second half of the 2022 season, he quickly put up stratospheric numbers that he would ride into the 2023 season on. However, with Lawrence overcoming a bunch of significant injuries and an offense that, including him, committed a lot of foolish errors last year, his potential to be a stud on fantasy was put into suspended animation. Still, he had a veteran team around him securing more stability on the position of the offence line and in theory, he should have had a healthier campaign. That recipe would make Lawrence a high-end desirable faith-based QB. — Jeff Howe

Kansas City Chiefs

WR Hollywood Brown

Kansas City Chiefs reinforced the position of their receivers in the offseason, and the player who should count on receiving many passes together with Kelce is Brown. Kansas City wants to regain effectiveness of its offense when Patrick Mahomes airs it out. Generally, Brown is recognized for his pace and enhanced route running and, therefore, should work in the intermediate and deep parts of the field. He was good during the offseason by showing that he was on the same page with Mahomes. Kansas City’s run game will more than likely depend on Brown during the early part of the season. That second-year player Rashee Rice could be at risk of suspension to start the season based on the league’s personal conduct policy. Even Rookie Xavier Worthy is going to transitioning to the league as well. — Nate Taylor

Las Vegas Raiders

RB Zamir White

After experiencing the rigorous workout of this off-season, White should rightfully be called “The Tank” if Bettis is “The Bus. ” There is no guarantee White will be the Raiders’ bell cow after Josh Jacobs left for Green Bay but he has four things going for him: 1) he did decent in his four-start audition at the end of last season with the Chargers; running for 397 yards on 84 carries; 2)Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce has made it clear he wants to run the ball, Regardless of all the fancy toys that include Davante Adams, Jakobi Meyers, and Brock Bowers; 3) new OC Luke Getsy has also mentioned that he likes White, in Nay, he could most probably do a bench press and lift all three at the same instance. — Vic Tafur

Los Angeles Chargers

WR Joshua Palmer

All the major players have left the team, Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, and Austin Ekeler are no more with the team. precisely those three players have scored as much as 48. Very low fractions of the targets 6 percent and 52. 7 percent of the passing yards and almost half of the total first downs. The passing touchdowns Justin Herbert is responsible for represent 7 percent of the team’s total passing touchdowns. One is going to have to rise to the occasion and cover for the lack of production — even if Jim Harbaugh prefers a heavier focus on running. In sociocultural approach, it will be Palmer I guess. Herbert was his patient and he already builds a proper relationship with him. This can be seen whenever Allen and Williams incurred injuries in the past seasons; he took charge. He is a very professional receiver basically. This season can be a Palmer’s career one if he is lucky enough to remain injury-free. — Daniel Popper

Los Angeles Rams

TE Colby Parkinson

Hereby, the most relevent ones are receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua, whom Rams head coach Sean McVay plans to use in a throwback Kupp-and-Robert Woods setup. Another clear pick is running back Kyren Williams, who was still highly efficient in 2024 though he played in just 12 games as he inflicted an ankle injury midway through the season (Williams also suffered a foot injury which forced him out of most of the OTAs this spring; however, he should be fully ready for the training camp this summer). My sleepers are where things get a little more interesting — former Jet, now a free agent, Parkinson is expected to have a large role in this next modeling of McVay’s offense and the second-year tight end, Davis Allen, despite having a reduced sample size in the OTAs, had a (cough) major mental workload in OTAs. Wideout veteran Demarcus Robinson seems to be defying the calendar at the moment. — Jourdan Rodrigue

Miami Dolphins

WR Jaylen Waddle

This is a tricky question for a team with a lot of plays in their offense going usually to specific players. Thus, I’m bending the rules a bit, calling my selection Waddle, who was a fantasy bust in 2023, finishing 34th in PPR WR . 5 PPR scoring. I believe he could be on PR in 2024 mainly because he was almost expected to touchdown but ended up scoring zero. The powerhouse that is the Dolphins offense managed 57 Offensive TDs in the last season, and Waddle only had 4 of those. Of his nine target marked inside the red zone, four of them were closer to River Cracraft than Tyreek Hill 23. That won’t happen again. If Waddle remains fully healthy, I believe he has a shot at finishing as a top-12 wide receiver – which he was last season – and you can obtains him significantly later in best-ball drafts than he should be draftable at given his potential. — Jim Ayello

Minnesota Vikings

TE Robert Tonyan

I’m zigging. Well, kind of. Why not have a little fun, be a little different to retain the competitive edge to at least try to give you that? According to the history, Tonyan came in the spring. He obviously isn’t a stranger to Lambeau Field- he’s played for all four NFC North teams in his career. That was three seasons ago when he made 11 touchdowns, but in the spring he seems brisk, and the Vikings might start the season without T. J. Hockenson. Most of the tight ends’ duties are pretty well-defined, and as long as Coach Kevin O’Connell is calling the shots, both Josh Oliver and Johnny Mundt will definitely be on the field; however, Tonyan could get some action too and if he does, he could surprise quite a number of people with all round performance. — Alec Lewis

New England Patriots

WR Demario Douglas

Of course, it’s rare to be able to view the leading receiver on any team as a break out candidate. But such is life for the Patriots as Douglas led the team in receiving yards last season with 561 and no other Patriot reached 419 yards. The team and area also established new talents in both signing and drafting a new receiver, which could demote Douglas less in the depth chart. But from the summer practices I saw him he should be able to develop and become that shifty slot receiver a player who is much better in his second year than in his rookie season all in a [possible] poor offence. — Chad Graff

New Orleans Saints

WR Rashid Shaheed

He is mightily talented, but compared to his teammate Chris Olave, this third-year wideout went undrafted. But he caught as many touchdown passes in the previous season as Olave did, and that is five, on less than half the targets Shaheed got, 87 targets for Olave. The speedster already punched into the NFL map last season and made the first-team All-Pro as well as Pro Bowler as a returner, and he had an average of 13. 6 per punt return along with a touchdown. Perhaps due to Shaheed’s development in the previous two seasons, it seems that there is more to progress this time where the new OC Klint Kubiak can use Shaheed in 2024. — Larry Holder

New York Giants

WR Wan’Dale Robinson

Robinson’s finish at the previous season brought hope that the 2022 second-round pick might be one of the Giants’ focal points on the offence. He averaged 4. and in the last five games of the season, looked pretty wretched with 8 catches for 52 yards. No wonder, Robinson began producing for the team after recovering from the torn ACL he had as a rookie the previous season. He probably will not be making spectacular catches for deep passing and may not be the go-to guy for scoring most of the team’s touchdowns. But he can copy essentially the same role that Cole Beasley played in Buffalo when playing for Brian Daboll writing a lot from the slot. — Dan Duggan

New York Jets

TE Tyler Conklin

He has not been very prominent the last two years but he has still been one of the most efficient TE’s due to the poor quarterback play and lack of support to the passing game alongside Wilson and Hall the TE has been crucial. Conklin has the tenth most receiving yards and seventh most receptions amongst tight ends in the past two seasons. He did not get a single touchdown in the year 2023 due to no mistake of his own. He should get significantly more — starting with his scores one — with Aaron Rodgers under center. The two have a history of the functioning relationship of the last year and Rodgers is as comfortable with him as with any weapon other than Wilson. — Zack Rosenblatt

Philadelphia Eagles

RB Saquon Barkley

Eagles enthusiasts in keeper leagues all across the country probably were happy to see Barkley sign with the team. Lastly, Parcells’ team cannot call on the two-time Pro Bowler being run over, there are no other weapons from the side of offense on the field. Barkley is just 27, and brings his youth and skills to an already well-talented group of backfield and what should still be one of the best O-line crews in the league. The percent of his yards before contact should rise, and because he is elusive, he should gain more big plays. New OC Kellen Moore should also increase Barkley’s danger as a pass catcher; Austin Ekeler and Ezekiel Elliott are also two backs that scored over 50 catches and at least 400 receiving yards while playing for Moore. — Brooks Kubena

Pittsburgh Steelers

TE Pat Freiermuth

Pittsburgh gives quite limited options: Russel Wilson, who is 35 and was with the team only for a year, RBs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren who don’t necessarily control the ball equally, and George Pickens who is bound to be covered most of the time. When it comes to factors in Freiermuth’s favor, his heading into the contract year, playing with a veteran quarterback, and, and most particularly, an OC who appreciates the TE position like Arthur Smith does. Freiermuth has not been performing like a second-round pick but has the talent in him (if only the injuries would stop). Despite the changes of four quarterbacks and a questionable offensive coordinator in Matt Canada, he has caught about 50 passes, 500 yards, and scored 4 touchdowns every year. Freiermuth has demonstrated good chemistry with Wilson and could work as a No. 2 option in Pittsburgh. — Mark Kaboly

San Francisco 49ers

WR Deebo Samuel

Owners of hell fantasy football teams are fully aware that 49ers pass catchers may be infuriating due to the fact that there are many of them. Which is why any player, Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk or George Kittle, can have 120 receiving yards one weekend and 32 the next. Samuel, however, might have some extra motivation this year Added from 15th November, 2017 to 21st November, 2017 View in workshop Deviation from the norms set in this calendar as a result of alteration of some tasks times or dates 17 4  Increases in some tasks’ difficulties 20 5 Extra motivation this year: Samuel If he is part of the team in 2025, they have an escape clause enabled in his contract, which makes this year technically a contract year for him. No, we are not expecting a 2021 type of season for Samuel who was in his contract year previously. The threat of Violence used to be such that there were just far and few in between as compared to today’s scenario. But Samuel can gear up when he’s provoked and there is a good chance that contract saga will last through the season. — Matt Barrows

Seattle Seahawks

WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Smith-Njigba was prepared to perform better last season; however, he only had limited playing time as the Seahawks’ key injuries at offensive tackle forced the team to deploy an additional tight end instead of a third wide receiver. Smith-Njigba was that recipient to which the Seahawks were partially anomalous and certainly did not expect. Even the most conservative of expectations include something like a substantial increase over his numbers of the previous year (63-628-4). — Mike Sando

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

RB Rachaad White

The fact is certain, White will have opportunities. He possibly is a better receiver than he is a runner so he is going to avail himself both as a receiver and as a runner. The Bucs did not go out and acquire another running back to challenge him for playing time, so unless Bucky Irving or Chase Edmonds greatly outperforms White in training camp and the preseason, he should see the lion’s share of the carries. The only other running back in football that was on the field at more of his team’s snaps last season was Christian McCaffrey. The question mark is how his part will be transformed by the new position of the offensive coordinator Liam Coen. — Dan Pompei

Tennessee Titans

WR Calvin Ridley

A third-year pro from a 2020 fantasy breakout in Atlanta, then limited by injuries and a suspension in Jacksonville before a decent not-great 2023 season in Nashville has been a rollercoaster. Of course, this will be one of the most important campaigns in the 29-year-old Ridley, who needs to return at the level of a top wideout. He has some positives, such as opposing DeAndre Hopkins, and will levis affection for and effectiveness in the deep pass. Newbie head coach Brian Callahan has all the enthusiasm from successful stint in Cincinnati and while nobody will liken Ridley to Ja’Marr Chase, he is the x-factor wide out in this team. — Joe Rexrode

Washington Commanders

RB Brian Robinson Jr.

It continues to be unknown how it will be used under Kingsbury as an offensive coordinator coupled with the team having a rookie quarterback. However, power-running Robinson is projected to start in the backfield as a runner while Austin Ekeler is recommended for the passing suited role though Robinson is also competent in this aspect. The primary running backs for Kingsbury in Arizona — Kenyan Drake during 2019-2020 and James Conner in 2021-2022 — had 18 and 22 rushing touchdowns , respectively, even when the team started a mobile QB Kyler Murray. Reliance on the run game to ease Jayden Daniels into the NFL should also enhance Robinson’s attractiveness. — Ben Standig