5 WRs to fade in 2024 Fantasy Football ft. Stefon Diggs

The 2024 fantasy football season is quickly approaching as it begins before Week 1 of the NFL regular season. The biggest reason for this is to allow leagues to host their fantasy drafts and tweak their rosters prior to the official kick off. The draft is usually the most important part of any fantasy league, so it's important to always have a solid strategy.

Wide receivers are the deepest position in fantasy football each year due to the massive amount of reliable options. They have also become more popular in recent years in the opening rounds of the draft, arguably replacing the value of most top-tier running backs. While this has proven to be a beneficial strategy, here are five wide receivers to avoid in the early rounds this year.

2024 Fantasy Football WR fade candidates

Stefon Diggs

#1 - Keenan Allen

Keenan Allen has been one of the most consistently reliable wide receivers in fantasy football. He has exceeded 100 receptions and 1,100 yards in five of the past seven seasons. The issue is that he was traded to the Chicago Bears during the offense, joining a crowded wide receiver room with DJ Moore and Rome Odunze.

He will also be playing with rookie quarterback Caleb Williams instead of superstar Justin Herbert. This could all potentially decrease his usually massive workload he always had with the Los Angeles Chargers.

#2 - Calvin Ridley

Calvin Ridley has always served as his team's WR1, both with the Atlanta Falcons and Jacksonville Jaguars. This is unlikely to be his role with the Tennessee Titans with DeAndre Hopkins on their roster as well.

Hopkins has also always received a large target share, so this could potentially be one of Ridley's least productive fantasy football seasons. Will Levis is also arguably the worst starting quarterback he's ever played with, after Matt Ryan and Trevor Lawrence.

#3 - Stefon Diggs

Stefon Diggs has recorded at least 103 receptions, 1,183 yards, and eight touchdowns in each of his four seasons with the Buffalo Bills. He has arguably been the most consistently productive wide receiver in the entire NFL during his impressive run with Josh Allen.

His situation for the 2024 NFL season will change drastically after being traded to the Houston Texans. While he remains with an elite quarterback like CJ Stroud, he will have a ton more target competiton from Nico Collins and Tank Dell.

#4 - Terry McLaurin

Terry McLaurin has turned in impressive averages of 75 receptions for 1,050 yards and five touchdowns per season in his five years with the Washington Commanders. He has also excelled despite their failure to find a reliable starting quarterback.

While they may have done so in Jayden Daniels with the second-overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, rookie quarterbacks always create a ton of risk for fantasy football wide receivers. The target hierarchy in Washington is unclear this year with a rookie quarterback, Jahan Dotson on the rise, and newcomer Austin Ekeler being among the best receiving backs in the NFL.

#5 - Cooper Kupp

Just a couple of years ago, Cooper Kupp turned in one of the best wide receiver seasons in fantasy football history when he won the rare receiving triple crown. Since then, he has been a bit plagued by injuries and his role with the Los Angeles Rams appears to be decreasing.

Kupp has always been the top target for Matthew Stafford by a wide margin, but that began to shift to Puka Nacua last season. The breakout rookie is expected to be the clear WR1 in their offense this season, so Kupp is likely to see a diminished workload.