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As players change teams and rookies are added through the NFL draft, there is a discernable impact on veteran wide receivers, specifically their projected volume.
The constant turnover in the NFL could result in a wide receiver that saw a high target share one year suddenly become an afterthought.
Here are a handful of experienced wide receivers set to lose targets in 2021.
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A.J. Green, Arizona Cardinals
I had to do a double-take when I looked this up. A.J. Green saw 104 targets in 2020. That is absolutely absurd. A.J. Green is done. Finished. Dust. It's over for the future Hall of Famer. Green posted six games with zero or one catch(s) last season.
He was signed by Arizona to be a veteran presence, nothing more. At best, he is fourth on the depth chart behind DeAndre Hopkins, Rondale Moore, and Christian Kirk. If Larry Fitzgerald returns, Green falls to fifth. This story likely ends with Green being a healthy scratch over the second half of the 2021 season. However many targets the 33-year-old Green sees this season is how many too many he sees. It won't be many.
Darius Slayton, New York Giants
In his rookie season, Darius Slayton saw 84 targets. In his sophomore season, Slayton saw 96 targets. Slayton is not a bad receiver, but he's barely going to see the field in 2021. The Giants signed Kenny Golladay, who is going to lead the team in targets by a sizable margin. Sterling Shepard and Evan Engram will compete for second and third in targets. The team also spent a first-round pick on Kadarius Toney. Regardless of your opinion on a wide receiver that spent four years in college and didn't produce at all until his senior season, he's a first-round pick, so he's going to play. There's also this guy named Saquon Barkley around.
Slayton is currently the sixth option in the passing game. He is only going to play in four-receiver sets, which will send his 91.5% snap share plummeting. He is not fantasy relevant in the slightest.
Keelan Cole Sr., New York Jets
I've always liked Keelan Cole. He's under-appreciated as a reliable set of hands. However, he is not coming anywhere near the 88 targets he saw last season. Cole left Jacksonville and signed with the Jets. At the time, he was arguably their WR3. One Corey Davis signing and one Elijah Moore drafting later and Cole is the WR5. If they end up cutting Jamison Crowder, Cole can expect to be active every week and on the field in four-receiver sets. That is not a recipe for fantasy success. Cole, unfortunately, no longer matters.
Russell Gage, Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons did not lose any pass catchers of consequence. They still have Julio Jones, Calvin Ridley, and Hayden Hurst. They did gain a big one - generational tight end Kyle Pitts. Unless everyone is wrong, Pitts is going to hit the ground running and push for 100 targets. Russell Gage saw 109 targets last season. The only way he gets near that number again is if Julio cannot stay healthy again. Otherwise, Julio, Ridley, and Pitts will monopolize the majority of the targets on this team. Gage can still be useful and will still have his moments, but it's difficult to imagine him matching his 2020 production as he falls to the fourth option in the Falcons' passing game.
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