We’re back for part III of the Fantasy Football One-Hit Wonders series and today we are looking at the wide receiver position. If you missed the first two parts and want to check out which quarterbacks and running backs are the biggest fantasy football one-hit wonders, here is Part I and Part II.
Wide Receiver Fantasy Football One-Hit Wonders
Honorable Mentions
2001 Stats: 98 receptions – 1,598 receiving yards – 8 receiving touchdowns – 5 rush attempts – 35 rush yards
2001 Fantasy Ranks: WR: 3 / Overall: 13
1996 Stats: 76 receptions – 1,201 receiving yards– 14 receiving touchdowns
1996 Fantasy Ranks: WR: 1 / Overall: 14
2010 Stats: 72 receptions – 1,162 receiving yards – 15 receiving touchdowns – 1 rush attempt – 4 rush yards
2010 Fantasy Ranks: WR: 2 / Overall: 7
1995 Stats: 102 receptions – 1,497 receiving yards – 13 receiving touchdowns – 4 rush attempts – 21 rush yards
1995 Fantasy Ranks: WR: 5 / Overall: 10
2014 Stats: 91 receptions – 1,287 receiving yards – 12 receiving touchdowns – 11 rush attempts – 37 rush yards
2014 Fantasy Ranks: WR: 6 / Overall: 17
2011 Stats: 54 receptions – 858 receiving yards – 11 receiving touchdowns
2011 Fantasy Ranks: WR: 15 / Overall: 37
The Top Five
5. Michael Clayton
Drafted 15th overall out of LSU, Michael Clayton made an instant impact as a rookie. Usually, rookie wide receivers don’t put up big numbers but Clayton didn’t get that memo as he compiled one of the best seasons ever for a rookie by putting up 80 receptions, 1,193 yards, and seven touchdowns. Tampa had found a superstar alpha, or so they thought.
After a stellar rookie campaign, Clayton had minor knee surgery in the offseason, which proved to be devastating to his career as he was never the same. He struggled with consistency and injuries throughout his sophomore year and that would become the theme of the rest of his career. From turf toe at the end of his sophomore season to being placed on the injured reserve the following year, Clayton was never again able to regain that rookie form.
Clayton ranks number five for me on this list with the only reason for him not finishing higher being that his peak year wasn’t quite as good as the rest of the guys on this list. In terms of how much of an outlier his rookie season was, he never again reached 40 receptions or 500 yards in another year. The most drastic drop was his touchdown production. Clayton had seven touchdowns in his rookie year and only three more over the next seven years! What makes him one of the biggest fantasy one-hit wonders of all time is that outside of his WR13 finish in his rookie year, his next best finish was WR74 and every year was below replacement level.
2004 Stats: 80 rec – 1,193 receiving yards – 7 receiving touchdowns – 5 rush attempts – 30 rush yards
2004 Fantasy Ranks: WR: 13 / Overall: 35
4. Drew Bennett
Drew Bennett is one of the biggest out-of-nowhere fantasy football one-hit wonders on this list. After going undrafted out of UCLA in 2001, he spent the first three years of his career as a role player before having a massive breakout in 2004 when he compiled 80 receptions, 1,247 yards, and 11 touchdowns, including scoring an NFL record eight touchdowns within a three-game span.
For Bennett, it wasn’t even injuries that derailed his career, as he just fell off back into the middling role player he had always been. His next couple years for the Titans were solid and better than before his breakout year, but nothing close to that magical 2004.
To put in perspective how much of an outlier his 2004 season was compared to any other year of his career, Bennett’s next best season was a drop by 32 receptions, 509 yards, and seven touchdowns. These drops alone were better than most of his seasons! Finishing as the WR7 and 19th best player overall in 2004, Bennett never finished higher than WR38 or better than replacement level in any of his other seven seasons.
2004 Stats: 80 rec – 1,247 receiving yards – 11 receiving touchdowns – 1 rush attempts – 12 rush yards
2004 Fantasy Ranks: WR: 7 / Overall: 19
3. Brandon Lloyd
From one out-of-nowhere guy to another, Brandon Lloyd gives Drew Bennett a run for his money for that crown. The biggest difference between the two is that Lloyd was drafted in the fourth round of the 2003 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers. At one point, Lloyd looked like he could be on a fast track out of the league when he put up one of the worst season-long stat lines for a starting wide receiver in NFL history in 2006 by putting up 23 receptions for 365 yards in 12 starts.
Finally, in 2010, Lloyd was able to have a true breakout while playing for the Denver Broncos. After mostly being a disappointment through his first seven seasons in the NFL, he was now on his fourth team after being traded and released multiple times. In 2010, at age 29, he was able to produce in a big way with 77 receptions, an NFL-leading 1,448 yards, and 11 touchdowns on his way to being the best wide receiver in fantasy. The following season, his fall off was as quick as his rise as he struggled to start the year and was dealt away to the Rams mid-season.
What makes Lloyd one of the biggest fantasy football one-hit wonders ever is not only how out-of-nowhere his season was, but also at how incredibly good it was. He was the best wide receiver in fantasy football that year and the sixth-best player in the entire league regardless of position! He only had one other year being above replacement level and his next best finish at wide receiver was WR24.
2010 Stats: 77 receptions – 1,448 receiving yards – 11 receiving touchdowns – 1 rush attempt – (-18) rush yards
2010 Fantasy Ranks: WR: 1 / Overall: 6
2. Braylon Edwards
Braylon Edwards is the most heralded player on this entire list after being drafted third overall in the 2005 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. Edwards was a size-speed freak that also produced big time in college, setting a lot of records in his time at Michigan, many of which still stand today.
His rookie year started rocky but showed a lot of promise before he suffered a knee injury that ended his year. He came back strong the following season and showed the type of growth you would want to see from a wide receiver in his second season. The following year, now his third in the NFL, Edwards put everything together for a monster 2007 season in which he compiled 80 receptions, 1,289 yards, and 16 touchdowns. The sky looked like the limit for Edwards at age 24 but off the field issues combined with drop issues turned that trajectory upside down.
Edwards ranks second among the biggest fantasy football one-hit wonders among all wide receivers as he was never able to even sniff those numbers again. His next highest receptions total was 61 from 2006 and his highest yardage and touchdown totals came in 2010 with the New York Jets when he totaled 904 yards and seven touchdowns. In terms of fantasy finishes, his WR3 and seventh overall finish in 2007 was the only time he finished higher than WR21 and 56th overall.
2007 Stats: 80 receptions – 1,289 receiving yards – 16 receiving touchdowns
2007 Fantasy Ranks: WR: 3 / Overall: 7
1. Josh Gordon
Back to back Cleveland Browns both on this list and as the top dog on multiple lists. It makes me sad as a Browns fan that they could easily have the greatest lineup of fantasy football one-hit wonders of all time. Gordon has one of the biggest rollercoaster careers ever making him one of the biggest “what if” players to ever play in the NFL.
After dealing with off-the-field issues in college, Josh Gordon was a second-round pick by the Cleveland Browns in the 2012 NFL Supplemental Draft. He showed right away how elite of a talent he was as he finished as one of the best rookie wide receivers that year. In the off-season, those off-the-field issues crept up again and he was suspended for the first two games of the 2013 season. That didn’t stop Gordon from leading the NFL in yards that year and putting up monster game after monster game.
Unfortunately, it was all downhill from here as Gordon was never able to overcome his demons and he continued to have substance abuse issues leading to multiple suspensions. After his 87 reception, 1,646 yard, nine touchdown shortened sophomore season, Gordon never had more than 41 receptions, 737 yards, and four touchdowns in a single season again while missing more games due to suspension than he’s played.
During that incredible 2013 season, Gordon became the first wide receiver in NFL history to post 200+ yards in back-to-back weeks when he put up 237 yards in Week 12 and 261 yards in Week 13. He scored 227 fantasy points that year which ranked him as the second-best wide receiver and eighth-best player overall in fantasy football that year despite being suspended the first two games. His 227 points account for more than 40 percent of his career total. His WR2 finish is the only time he finished higher than WR37 and the only year he was above replacement level. Gordon’s record-breaking performance in a suspension-shortened season combined with an inability to replicate any season even close, allows him to rank first among the greatest fantasy football one-hit wonders of all time at the wide receiver position.
2013 Stats: 87 receptions – 1,646 receiving yards – 9 receiving touchdowns – 5 rush attempts – 88 rush yards
2013 Fantasy Ranks: WR: 2 / Overall: 8
Stay tuned for the fourth and final part of this series when I take a look at the biggest fantasy football one-hit wonders at the tight end position.
