2019 Fantasy Slot Receivers
A few years back, when I asked Doug Baldwin — one of the pre-eminent slot receivers of the last decade — about the importance of the position, he summed it up pretty well.
“The slot receiver’s kind of the quarterback of the receivers,” he said in 2015. “More so because the slot receiver has more responsibilities in terms of reading coverages and different adjustments based on what coverages you’re seeing. It’s a lot more complicated. … You have to know a lot more. You have to stay within the confines and the framework of the offense — you have a lot of freedom because you have a little bit more space, but at the same time, your job is usually to get someone else open, or to get open on a crucial down where it’s one-on-one. You have to be versatile, and you have to understand how your route goes into the concept, based on the different coverages you can see.”
In the 2019 regular and postseason, per Pro Football Focus data, slot receivers regardless of position (receivers, running backs, and tight ends) accounted for 32% of all targets, 31.6% of all receptions, 32.3% of all receiving yardage, and 34.3% of all receiving touchdowns. Slot receiver Jayden Reed was near the top of the leaderboard in avoided tackles, among other categories, but he'll need an NCAA waiver to be granted eligibility in 2019 after transferring from.
10. Adam Humphries 9. Golden Tate 8. Dante Pettis 7. Cooper Kupp 6. Jarvis Landry 5. Julian Edelman 4. Adam Thielen 3. JuJu Smith-Schuster 2. Antonio Brown 1. Tyreek Hill
It was an apt description in 2015, and though Baldwin has retired, the role of the slot receiver is quite similar to what it was then — and in 2019, one could argue that it’s even more important now. Three- and four-receiver sets are now the norm in the NFL, which means that teams will have double slot packages in which big and small receivers work together. And there’s no shame to the position — it’s not just for the Wes Welkers of the world anymore. Guys who can win outside just fine find themselves in the slot quite frequently, and you’ll find a few names that will rank highly on our upcoming list of outside receivers on this list as well.
In Episode 2, a pair of notable slot receivers - Julian Edelman and Jarvis Landry - were revealed at Nos. 90 and 84, respectively. With that in mind, Cynthia Frelund unveils her top projected. Overall, opposing wide receiver units are No. 2 against the Vikings with 32.8 fantasy points per game on 86-1,235-12 receiving. And it gets worse: The Vikings are horrendously thin at cornerback. Let’s ignore the fact that last year’s starters — Xavier Rhodes, Trae Waynes and Mackensie Alexander — all left this offseason via free agency.
2019 Fantasy Slot Receivers Receiver
Other Top 11 lists: Tight ends Centers Guards Offensive tackles Edge defenders Interior defensive linemen Linebackers Safeties Outside cornerbacks Slot defenders
So, here are the 11 best slot receivers in the NFL as we head into the 2019 season.
When watching Jacksonville’s 2018 passing offense, two things are abundantly clear — Jaguars receivers had one heck of a time with consistent production with Blake Bortles and Cody Kessler throwing the ball all over the place, and the acquisition of Nick Foles was a necessity to give those receivers any chance of improvement. Among those receivers, Westbrook may have the most potential, as he brought in 59 slot receptions on 83 targets for 646 yards and five touchdowns. Not bad for a second-year receiver who’s never had a lot of help from his quarterbacks at the NFL level.
Westbrook uses nimble feet and an impressive catch radius to make contested catches, and he has a good knack for getting open in zones. His drop rate was a problem at times, but with a credible quarterback at the helm, Westbrook could be a rising star in a big hurry.
Jamison Crowder proved to be the most important offensive player for the Jets in 2019. He quickly became a favorite target of Sam Darnold’s and finished the year with a team-high in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns.
Whether it was a combination of game script, scheme or a lack of protection, Darnold loved throwing the ball Crowder’s way. The wideout owned a 24.8 percent target share, 11th-highest in the league in 2019, and he made the most of it.
2019 Fantasy Slot Receivers Players
Crowder’s ability in the slot made him even more valuable, though, and his production ranked among the best in the NFL at the receiver position. Adam Gase used Crowder the best of the Jets’ skill position players. Crowder ran 70 percent of his 802 offensive snaps out of the slot in 2019 and caught 58 balls from the slot, which ranked fourth in the league behind only Larry Fitzgerald, Cooper Kupp and Julian Edelman, according to Pro Football Focus. His five touchdowns and 648 yards out of the slot also ranked fifth and ninth in the league, respectively.
Crowder wasn’t just a great slot receiver, he was also the Jets’ best red zone receiver as well. He led the team with 15 targets, which accounted for 30.6 percent of the Jets’ targets inside the 20-yard line, which ranked 20th in the league. All six of his touchdowns came in the red zone as well, including this beauty against the Ravens that had a 24 percent completion probability, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.
Crowder’s success is, sadly, a direct result of the Jets’ inept offense. New York ranked 28th in yards per completion with 10.7, which is coincidentally Crowder’s yards per completion total as well. The Jets also finished dead last with only 33 red zone attempts, meaning the Jets leaned on their slot receiver more inside the 20.
The signing of Crowder during the 2018 offseason came with little fanfare, but the production far outweighed the rest of that free agency class. Another year with Darnold and Gase should help Crowder build on his solid 2019 campaign, especially after Joe Douglas fortified the offensive line – which should help Le’Veon Bell – and brought in two speedy outside receivers in Breshad Perriman and Denzel Mims.
Fantasy Slot Receivers 2019
Regardless of the improvements on offense and the development of Darnold, the Jets will likely lean on Crowder once more in 2020 amid all of the uncertainty around the influx of talent. It will be hard to gauge how much better this team will be this season without a full offseason, but Crowder’s presence should ease concerns given his easy inclusion in Gase’s offense with Darnold at the helm. A healthy quarterback and stable offensive line should only make things easier for Crowder and the Jets, and their slot production could see a spike in efficiency even if the stats don’t increase.