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2020 Fantasy Football: Don't Shy Away From Eagles WR Jalen Reagor Rising ADP

Philadelphia Eagles rookie receiver Jalen Reagor leads all wideouts in average draft position. SI Fantasy's Dr. Roto certainly isn't afraid of that prognosis.

Dr. Roto

If you take a closer look at the Philadelphia Eagles fantasy fortunes for 2020, it is easy to figure out where they'll get most of their offensive production. Second-year running back Miles Sanders seems primed to make a massive leap in his sophomore season, and tight end Zach Ertz should once again be one of the three most targeted at his position. However, a little bit murkier is the Eagles wide receiving corps. It is filled with question marks, injuries, and unproven talent. When the passing game is critical to a team's playoff success, it’s hard to know which receiver quarterback Carson Wentz will use most frequently.

If I had to guess as to the receiver who will be the most targeted, I would choose rookie wide receiver Jalen Reagor. This might shock some fantasy fans, considering that Reagor has not yet caught a pass in the NFL, but I see a pathway for his immediate success. Head Coach Doug Pederson has said that Reagor will be the backup to DeSean Jackson to start the season, but when has Jackson ever lasted a full season without injury? Additionally, assumed WR1 Alshon Jeffery is dealing with a Lisfranc injury, which could potentially have him starting the season on the PUP list. There were also rumors during the draft that the Eagles were open to trading Jeffery. This seems somewhat impossible until he returns to the field, but it might become increasingly more likely by the trade deadline if he is healthy.

The Eagles traded for 49ers castoff Marquise Goodwin during the draft, hoping that Goodwin can reclaim some of the form that saw him go for 962 receiving yards back in 2017. However, Goodwin has been dealing with ankle and knee injuries for the past two seasons, and the 49ers gave up on him thinking that they were chronic and that Goodwin's best days are behind him.

Others on the wide receiving depth chart include last season’s second-round pick J.J. Arcega-Whiteside and former college quarterback Greg Ward. The Eagles think that Arcega-Whiteside still has a lot of potential and that last season was a disaster mainly because he was injured from the beginning of training camp. GM Howie Roseman has already told reporters that the team still feels that Arcega-Whiteside has tremendous upside and that the team is counting on his production this season. While this might be true, Arcega-Whiteside has always lacked one important thing to becoming a top NFL wideout—speed. If he cannot separate from opposing cornerbacks at the line of scrimmage, he might not be able to do much outside of using his tremendous size in the red zone. Greg Ward showed some promise in the last few games of 2019, but he is still learning the position and cannot be relied upon as much more than a WR4 at best.

Ed Kracz of Eagle Maven even suggested that Reagor will beat DeSean Jackson's team rookie record for receiving yards (912).

Which brings us back to Jalen Reagor. Reagor has excellent speed, and a 42" vertical leap, which makes him play bigger than his 5' 10" height would suggest. Reagor also has never played with a quarterback of the caliber of Carson Wentz. Wentz will get the ball to Reagor in space and allow him to break off some big plays. The one thing that could hurt Reagor’s chances of playing immediately is his ball security issues. Reagor dropped more passes that the coaching staff would have liked at TCU, and the Eagles are hoping that Reagor can improve his hands at the NFL level. If so, look for Reagor to have about 65-75 receptions for about 875 yards, which should lead the team by season's end, making him an excellent late-round value in fantasy leagues. 

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