Calvin Ridley is finally back after an indefinite suspension due to gambling on NFL games during the 2o21 season. Ridley missed 30 games due to that suspension. By the time he sees the field this year, it will have been 686 days since his last NFL regular season game. With the long layoff, what is Calvin Ridley’s fantasy football outlook in 2023?
Calvin Ridley Fantasy Football Outlook 2023
Calvin Ridley 2021 Fantasy Season Review
With Calvin Ridley being absent for the entire 2022 season we will look at him the last time we have seen him which was in 2021. Ridley was the number-one receiver of the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons ranked bottom five in total yards in 2021. Ridley played in five of seven games, missed two due to injury and was suspended after week 7, and missed the rest of the season. Ridley finished with 31 catches, 281 yards, and two touchdowns, Ridley was on his way to having his worst year in the NFL. At the time Ridley was suspended, he was WR22 in fantasy points per game. 56 yards per game on 10 targets per game is obviously not what you are looking for from a number-one receiver. Ridley led the Falcons with a 21% target share at the time of his suspension.
Calvin Ridley Pre Suspension
Prior to his suspension in 2021 Calvin Ridley was viewed as a top-tier fantasy option. A consensus second-round pick in fantasy drafts in 2021, Ridley was viewed in the same light as current first and second-round fantasy wide receivers. During his two middle seasons 2019 & 2020, Ridley was WR9 in points per game including WR5 in 2020. For Ridley’s career, he averages 68 yards per game on eight targets per game. This was mostly played with Julio Jones who commanded a higher target share than Ridley during the games they played together. Calvin Ridley has scored at least 12 PPR points in 65% of his games and 15 PPR points in 55% of his career games.
Calvin Ridley 2023 Outlook
Ridley enters the 2023 season as a member of the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars finished top 10 in passing yards and passing touchdowns in 2022. Ridley joins a wide receiver core with Christian Kirk and Zay Jones, who combined for over 250 targets last season. The Jaguars were top five in the NFL in wide receiver targets and bottom five in running back targets. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence was top 10 in the NFL in red-zone pass attempts and touchdowns in 2022. Lawrence made his first Pro Bowl in 2022 and is looking to leap into the MVP conversation in 2023. The Jaguars have 102 available vacated targets this year, that is the perfect opportunity for Calvin Ridley. The Jaguars wide receivers led the position in drops in 2022.
Trevor Lawrence to Calvin Ridley is going to break the NFL in 2023
— Nick’s Fantasy Football (@DynastyFieldsSF) June 13, 2023
Calvin Ridley is easily the best wide receiver that Lawrence has played with. Ridley is stepping into the number-one receiver role for the Jaguars, Kirk has mainly been a secondary option in his career and Zay Jones a third option. Ridley has the chance to bounce back as a top-12 fantasy receiver in 2023.
ADP
Calvin Ridley’s current ADP is WR16 in the middle of the third round. Given his history, he has had second or third-round draft value, so getting him in the third is a discount. Getting him in the third round is a good spot, some of the receivers going ahead of him include Tee Higgins and DK Metcalf. I like Ridley ahead of both of them due to the target opportunity compared to the others. If Trevor Lawrence breaks out like most think he will, Ridley has top-five wide receiver potential in 2023.
Main Image: Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK
