Terry McLaurin

Terry McLaurin has long been a dynasty darling.  The talent has always popped off the screen, with him being very obviously being held back by subpar QB play until this year.  There would be flashes, like him winning contested catch situations against future HOF corners like Stephon Gilmore, him winning deep down the sideline making a catch over the shoulder in the most body contorted Willie Mays centerfield fashion you’ll ever see.

There was uncertainty regarding his dynasty value going into the season, having never finished as a WR1 despite the obvious talent.  That ended in 2024, as he finished with 89 catches for 1185 yards and 14 TDs.  The difference?  He has his answer at QB in prodigious rookie Jayden Daniels. Daniels had a historic season, and it boosted McLaurin to new heights, allowing him to average 16.1 fantasy points per game.

So what do we do with Terry McLaurin now that the he’s delivered on the promise we saw?  McLaurin is entering into his age 30 season, and you wonder how much time you have left with him as a premium asset.  McLaurin is our WR24 currently, so there are names ahead of him that you could potentially acquire in a package involving him to tier up to a top 12 asset, or you could tier down to a younger asset that is lower in our rankings if your roster is built for the future.

If contending, I am holding Terry unless I can get into the elite top 12 tier.  If my roster is one stock with rookie picks and young assets, I would likely send him for a late 1st.  McLaurin’s current value offers your roster flexibility to retool as needed to optimize your roster.

Author: Justin Currie (@Chev90)

Jayden Daniels has had a magical rookie season. Daniels was the QB-4 in fantasy football in 2024 and is just behind the likes of Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson in dynasty rankings across the fantasy football industry. 

Jayden Daniels will lead the Commanders into Detroit where it will be a hostile environment. The Commanders are 9.5 point underdogs and the game is shaping up to be a shootout with a 55.5 point projected total. Daniels was No.1 in carries with 161 and No.2 in red zone carries with 43. Daniels was 9th in passing touchdowns (27) and his 80 pass attempts in the red zone ranked 7th.

In order for the Commanders to win, they will need Daniels to show his highest form both in the passing and running game. This may prove to be a tall task as receiver depth behind Terry McLaurin is lacking. In the playoffs where weaknesses get exposed, this is something to monitor when the tempo of the game increases.  Expect plenty of scoring on both sides Saturday night!

Jeremiah Retzlaff, @coachretzlaff1

The Washington Commanders have fired  Head Coach Ron Rivera as the team will look to move in a different direction in 2024. While Rivera is known as a players’ coach, he was only 26-40-1 through four seasons in Washington. The Commanders have already requested the right to interview several candidates, including Dan Quinn, Mike MacDonald, and Anthony Weaver.

Offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy will also likely be a candidate, however, the offense will certainly be going through changes this offseason. A new offensive philosophy combined with the No.2 pick in the NFL Draft will brighten the 2024 fantasy outlook of Terry McLaurin, Jahan Dotson, and Curtis Samuel. They haven’t had a reliable signal caller in this offense since Kirk Cousins, and it is thought the Commanders may look to select a quarterback in the upcoming NFL Draft.

This offense will again be a huge question mark in 2024, nonetheless, there is nowhere to go but up. Even when Sam Howell was succeeding this past season, he still failed to connect with the team’s best offensive player (McLaurin). The pieces are in place, and with improvements at quarterback, offensive line, defense, and head coach, this team could surprise people in 2024.

After suffering a turf toe injury in the preseason, Terry McLaurin is now off the injury report and will be active against the Arizona Cardinals this weekend. The injury was deemed minor; however, there were still doubts about his availability for week one. McLaurin will once again resume his role as the top wideout in the Washington offense and look to gain chemistry with first-year starter Sam Howell.

While Jahan Dotson has been a trending name recently, fantasy managers shouldn’t be mistaken about who the wide receiver to own in this offense is. McLaurin is coming off a top 15 fantasy football finish in 2022 and three straight 1000-yard receiving seasons. He has managed to accomplish this despite poor quarterback play over that span and has become one of the premier deep threats in the NFL.

McLaurin has dealt with questions at the quarterback position in Washington for four years straight, and 2023 will be no different. Sam Howell has impressed this preseason; nonetheless, the 2022 5th-round pick has a long way to go to prove he is a quality NFL starter. McLaurin’s fantasy production will once again unfortunately be dependent on the play of an unproven quarterback. However, Howell won’t be worse than recent Washington quarterbacks, leaving him as a safe bet to return on his low-end WR2 ADP.