2021 Fantasy Football WR: 5 Wide Receiver breakouts

Nearing your fantasy football live draft and looking for a wide receiver that no other league owner will target? Well, believe it or not, amongst all of the big-name wide receivers, there are some down on the depth chart who might just be good options as breakout players this season.

Targeting second or third-year players who haven’t quite lived up to their full potential yet is one of the best ways to find a 'diamond in the rough'. On that note, here's a look at five wide receivers who could have breakout fantasy campaigns in 2021.

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#1 Diontae Johnson, Pittsburgh Steelers

Diontae Johnson showed a lot of promise in his rookie season in 2020. However, the wide receiver endured quite a sophomore slump when it came to dropped passes.

Johnson dropped just six passes in 2019 and a whopping 13 dropped passes in 2020. Diontae Johnson has spent all off-season working on his hands and has shown great improvement in training camp already. With all of the focus on JuJu Smith-Schuster and Chase Claypool, that could give Johnson the opportunity for redemption.

Here’s Diontae Johnson catching the ball. Hasn’t dropped one today. Deep breaths! pic.twitter.com/8f2fKuLD8y

— Joey (@JoeyMulinaro) July 29, 2021

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#2 Jakobi Meyers, New England Patriots

The New England Patriots added Nelson Agholor, Jonnu Smith, Hunter Henry and Kendrick Bourne in this off-season's free agency. But one of the remaining wide receivers from 2020 is Jakobi Meyers.

Meyers and quarterback Cam Newton had a good connection throughout 2020, and that should work in Meyers' favor this season even if there are a lot of offensive targets around him.

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#3 Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals

Tee Higgins' rookie season was overlooked by many. His near-record-breaking rookie campaign ended with an injury in the last game of the season. Higgins had almost 1,000 receiving yards last season, and although the Bengals drafted Ja'Marr Chase in the first round, that should help Higgins in coverage.

Bengals WR Tee Higgins said he wants to be a Pro Bowler, get a 1,000 receiving yards and wants to make the playoffs. pic.twitter.com/5k3nsojJZc

— Ben Baby (@Ben_Baby) July 29, 2021

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#4 Jerry Jeudy, Denver Broncos

Jerry Jeudy’s rookie season was hindered by both a shaky quarterback situation and dropped passes. Jeudy did manage 52 receptions for 856 yards and three touchdowns, though.

He could end up catching passes from either Drew Lock or Teddy Bridgewater. With a second-year progression, Jeudy should be able to hit 1,000 receiving yards this season and be considered a breakout wide receiver.

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#5 Laviska Shenault Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars

A second-round pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2020, Laviska Shenault Jr., had 58 receptions for 600 receiving yards and five touchdowns; Shenault also had 91 rushing yards.

That standout performance was without a consistent quarterback under center. With Trevor Lawrence as the possible starting quarterback this year, Shenault's numbers should be even better. He could even be the number one wide receiver with the Jacksonville Jaguars.