Terry McLaurin

2022 Fantasy Upside
He may not be Patrick Mahomes, but the arrival of Carson Wentz means Terry McLaurin gets an upgrade at the quarterback position. McLaurin has been able to make the best out of a bad situation, averaging 1,030 yards per season in his first three years. Not only did McLaurin have to overcome bad quarterback play, but he was also the only real receiving threat in Washington. Last season, the team’s second-leading wide receiver was Adam Humphries with 383 yards. In fact, only two other receivers on the team even topped 200 receiving yards. This year, Washington added 1st-round rookie Jahan Dotson, and Curtis Samuel should be healthy. Both receivers should be able to take some heat off McLaurin as he improves his efficiency.

2022 Fantasy Downside
McLaurin took a step back in 2021, averaging fewer receptions (1.3 less) and fewer receiving yards per game (12.6 less). He also saw a significant drop in his catch percentage, falling to 59.2%, which ranked 169th out of eligible receivers last year. If that inefficiency continues, and McLaurin sees a loss of targets with the arrival of Dotson and return of Samuel, that could spell a significant decrease in production for McLaurin. And while Wentz may be an improvement at quarterback, he’s still not an elite option who is going to take full advantage of McLaurin’s abilities.

2022 Bottom Line
McLaurin is a fairly safe bet to top 1,000 yards again this year. While McLaurin’s catch percentage was bad last year, we can likely attribute that more towards the quarterback play rather than McLaurin’s own abilities. Wentz should be able to get McLaurin back on track and more on pace towards what the wide receiver was able to accomplish in 2020. The team and system certainly hurt McLaurin’s overall value, but he’s still an extremely talented player. He should be viewed around the WR15 range heading into 2022.