Marvin Harrison Jr. Tops Third-Year Wide Receivers to Flower Anew in Fantasy Football

Few flowers bloom in a matter of days. Some take weeks, heck, some take years. A bamboo plant can take over a century to flower. So, how does that translate to fantasy football?

Well, it means that sometimes a player needs time to reach their peak in football. Specifically, we look at the 2024 NFL Draft. A bunch of star wide receivers were drafted, and while their roles have been solid, their production has fallen short of their ceiling. Entering 2026, we find them primed for career years as flowering fantasy football draft targets.

Marvin Harrison Jr.

2024 Final Ranking: WR30
2025 Final Ranking: WR49

The eye test passes for Harrison Jr., branded "Maserati Marv" by Fox's Gus Johnson. He needs to quarterback play and the demand to be set forth by the coaching. Luckily for Harrison Jr., he will have the gunslinging Jacoby Brissett as his quarterback. As his play-caller, Harrison Jr. gets Mike LaFleur, who called plays for Matthew Stafford's Rams over the past couple of seasons.

The new offense shall favor the 3rd-year wideout. Drew Petzing loved to attack with zone rushes, which favor shorter passing and a high run rate, and James Conner and company saw much of the benefit. LaFleur will let Brissett loose and attack down the field and outside the hashes. As the Cardinals' WR1, there is little reason why Harrison Jr. should not be a top-20 wide receiver in fantasy football with true top-5 upside.

Rome Odunze

2024 Final Ranking: WR49
2025 Final Ranking: WR41

Odunze is good, and Caleb Williams has seen that clear as day. Odunze had a great 2025 season in which he played 14 games, drawing 99 targets (7.1 per game) and catching 48 passes for 15.6 yards per reception and 6 touchdowns. The departure of DJ Moore will now bring Odunze into a new realm of football, with a few tweaks to be set forth by Ben Johnson.

The glaring weakness in the Williams-Odunze connection was that of efficiency. While Odunze had 99 targets, he caught less than 48% of those passes. That cannot even be Odunze's fault, as he accounted for just 5 total dropped balls.

Ben Johnson is the best offensive mind in the NFL. It can be debated, but if not the best, he is top-3. It would be rash not to expect Odunze to play much more efficient football in 2026. He can easily catch in excess of 70 footballs for 1,300+ yards and double-digit touchdowns.

Jalen McMillan

2024 Final Ranking: WR55
2025 Final Ranking: WR138*

*McMillan played just 4 games after return from injury.

While McMillan is not a WR1 threat and hardly a WR2 threat, he is absolutely going to be viable in fantasy football. Upon return from injury, McMillan had 15 targets (3.8 per game) and 12 catches (80% rate). He did so on 14.8 yards per reception, explosive and well over the NFL average. With Mike Evans gone, McMillan is the Buccaneers' WR3. However, the spread offense shall let Emeka Egbuka, Chris Godwin, and McMillan split the work, with McMillan easily surpassing a 15% target share.

Tampa Bay was middling in pass rate in 2026 at 17th in the NFL (55%). The team makes a change at offensive coordinator, parting ways with Josh Grizzard and hiring former Falcons offensive coordinator and Rams pass-game coordinator Zac Robinson.

A change of scenery is expected to help both Baker Mayfield and Robinson as his play-caller. It is to be remembered that Mayfield played about half of 2025 while battling through with a painful shoulder AC-joint sprain. His game fell off a cliff, dropping from over 40 yards per game to 20 yards per game, including his Week 12 game, in which Mayfield passed for 41 total yards.

Amid higher expectations and the departure of Mike Evans, McMillan should logically have a career year in the 3rd of his NFL career. McMillan's expectation should see him catching over 50 balls for 700-1,100 yards. He will be a prime Flex candidate with WR2 handcuff upside.

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