Below you will find our 2013 Fantasy Football Rookie Wide Receiver Analysis. Have an upcoming 2013 rookie-based fantasy football draft?

The below analysis and rankings are based on a standard PPR scoring format, and clearly the landing spots for these incoming rookie rushers will determine a lot, so you can bet that we will have some updates to this content following the 2013 NFL Draft!

Here we go!

Sort by: QBs | RBs | WRs

Wide Receivers

1. DeAndre Hopkins – WR (Clemson)

Height: 6-1 | Weight: 214 | Forty: 4:57

2/27/13 Combine Update: DeAndre Hopkins weighted in 14 pounds heavier than expected, which is huge if you ask me. I’m not sure how this kid will be viewed on draft day, or if an NFL team will pull him into the ideal situation, but talent-wise, this is still my top 2013 rookie receiver. All of the below still applies, and some!

2/16/13: If you’re a regular here at DraftCalc, well, then you know that sleepers and breakouts are what we do best, and we proven that each and every season… Well, my gut tells me that DeAndre Hopkins is going to be something special. A fast forty time could really put him on the map, so much so that he may not be considered much of a fantasy sleeper come August. For now, though, he is rather underrated, ranging in that 3-7 range for rookie receivers coming out of this 2013 draft class. I think that when all is said and done, Hopkins could end up being the top wide receiver from this 2013 group. Crazy? Watch the youtube footage below and then call me crazy. Hopkins really only had time to shine this past season, but he sure did shine. He pulled in 82 balls for 1,405 yards and 18 scores in 2012, and he managed to have six 100-yard games, and had four multiple-touchdown performances (two of which were 3TD contests). While I’m not suggesting he will ever be as good as AJ Green or Julio Jones, nor am I suggesting that he won’t, Hopkins plays a lot like both of those stud receivers. The crazy part is, Hopkins is just starting to develop his game. He can jump up and get a ball much like Green can, and he knifes through defenses when running routes like Jones does. Speed, hands, unrealized potential and spacial awareness… all this kid has to do is learn how to use all of his skills… Once he matures, bulks up a touch, and if he is in fact drafted to start, elite upside is in the cards. I can’t predict what coaches will do, and I certainly can’t predict what teams will draft what players, but if Hopkins finds an ideal situation, this will be a fun write-up to reflect come this time next year.

2. Cordarrelle Patterson – WR (Tennessee)

Height: 6-2 | Weight: 216 | Forty: 4:42

2/27/13 Combine Update: Cordarrelle Patterson is a talent, and a physical freak, but [level-all]he is very raw. His resume is limited, as I highlighted below, and while he didn’t necessarily hurt his draft stock at the combine, he didn’t exactly boast it. On talent alone, he is still my No. 2 rookie receiver coming out of this draft class, but if DeAndre Hopkins falls into the right situation, Hopkins is in a tier all by himself. As I continue to say, though, landing spots are everything with this rookie class!

2/16/13: Cordarrelle Patterson is a raw talent, and if you take the time to watch the video footage below, you might start thinking that this kid could turn into the next Randy Moss (with some six-foot Reggie Bush action mixed in). And, I’m not saying that Patterson won’t get there, in fact, he has to be one of the most exciting “out of nowhere” and “hard to evaluate” wide receiver talents to come out of college for sometime. He is strong, hard to tackle, he makes defenders miss like, well, like Reggie Bush… and the strange part is, Patterson is 6-3; it almost seems unfair when he comes eye to eye with one single defender. Seriously, watch the video footage below; if you do, you’ll likely come away thinking that this receiver had well over a thousand yards receiving and double-digit scores — but he didn’t. Here comes the downside, though. Much of the damage you see Patterson unleashing on defenses in the video footage below is return yardage, or rushing yardage… the bottom line is that Patterson’s resume is tiny. He is a junior college product and he played just one season at Tennessee, finishing 2012 with just 46 receptions for 778 yards and 5TDs. His jukes are unreal and his ability to escape impossible situations is hard to even explain, but some of that “running backwards 20 yards” won’t work at the next level. Some of it will, sure, but it doesn’t appear Patterson has a good handle on when and where to use the instinct. If Patterson had more experience, and if he wasn’t so raw, he’d rank right up there with Hopkins in my book. However, given I still have him ranked this high, well, that certainly speaks volumes about Patterson’s long-term upside (it just might take him a bit to get into a position to play elite NFL football).

3. Keenan Allen – WR (Cal)

Height: 6-2 | Weight: 206 | Forty: DNR at Combine

2/27/13 Combine Update: Keenan Allen (knee) did not participate in the 2013 NFL Combine, but will hold his Pro Day on April 9. Allen is just wrapping up his lengthy recovery from his torn left PCL. If he can run a fast forty during his Pro Day, he will likely be a first-round pick come April, which will easily place him around this 2-4 fantasy wide receiver range.

2/16/13: Keenan Allen is a quick, shifty play maker, and sometimes you almost forget that he is 6-2, 215 pounds, because he moves around a lot like Panthers’ wide receiver Steve Smith. He has return skills, quicks, and he is very effective on slant routes, something that will help him make an immediate impact during his first season in the pros. Now, he only pulled in 61 balls for 737 yards and six touchdowns in 2012, but that can absolutely be attributed to having a mediocre quarterback in Zach Maynard. I like this kid a lot, and because his passer really held him back, none of us really even know how high his ceiling is. If in the right situation, I can envision Allen becoming a strong fantasy WR2 in 1-2 seasons (with the upside for more, depending on where he lands).

4. Justin Hunter – WR (Tennessee)

Height: 6-4 | Weight: 196 | Forty: 4:44

2/27/13 Combine Update: Nothing Justin Hunter did at the NFL Combine helped, or hurt, his 2013 draft stock. All of the below still applies.

2/16/13: Justin Hunter was well on his way to having a monster season back in 2011… he pulled in 300+ yards and 2TDs in his first two outings, but unfortunately he tore his ACL in the third game of the 2011 season. Well, he bounced back from the injury in amazing fashion, pulling in 1,083 yards and 9TDs in 2012… he went over 100 yards four times (three of which he went over 140), and he had two 3TD outings. Good size, long arms, tremendous speed, there is a lot to like about Justin Hunter. He rebounded well from his ACL injury, and his long arms and speed are sure to help him at that next level. In the right spot, I see no reason why Hunter can’t be one of the better fantasy receivers from this 2013 rookie wide receiver class.

5. Robert Woods – WR (USC)

Height: 6-0 | Weight: 201 | Forty: 4:51

2/27/13 Combine Update: Robert Woods is much heavier than most expected, which is a good thing. AT 6-0, 200 pounds, Woods is looking more like a typical NFL receiver. As I state below, I see a lot of Steve Smith in this youngster; if given a good situation to play in, Woods could easily be a top 2-3 receiver from this 2013 draft class.

2/16/13: Robert Woods had a huge 2011 campaign as a Trojan, pulling in 111 passes for 1,292 yards and 15 scores. An ankle injury lingered on him in 2012, and he pulled in just 76 receptions for 846 yards and 11TDs. The dude is quick, and he plays like a fast Stevie Johnson, or maybe a Steve Smith. He never stops moving his feet, and he knifes through receiving lanes like a pinball. Like so many others in this class, the right landing spot could have Woods looking like the next Steve Smith. However, given that he is just 180 pounds, he’s going to need a great passer to thrive at the next level, or to at least thrive early, so stay tuned for an update after draft day!

6. Tavon Austin – WR (West Virginia)

Height: 5-8 | Weight: 174 | Forty: 4:34

2/27/13 Combine Update: An inch shorter than expected, but faster than most thought. This kid has huge upside from a straight football perspective, but will all his talents translate at that next level? Some say he is a Percy Harvin-type, but at 174, he is much smaller than Harvin, by 3 inches and 10 pounds. That’s quite a bit of a size difference. I like Austin, but his landing spot will need to be ideal for me to buy into his size. Stay tuned for the 2013 NFL Draft!

2/16/13: Tavon Austin, like a few receivers in this class, are hard to rank, because being small doesn’t necessarily rule out one’s chances of becoming an elite caliber receiver in the NFL. Still, at 176 pounds, it’s hard to imagine Austin ever being a fantasy WR1. A fantasy WR2? Sure, it’s possible, but he is going to have to impress me in a major way in order to climb my board; this receiving class is just way too talented to place Austin any higher. Workouts and an attractive landing spot could change my ranking and analysis, but as of this moment, Austin isn’t even having a cup of coffee with the top 3-4 overall receivers above. Oh, but I will leave you with an interesting stat… despite not being utilized much on the ground in 2009-2011, Austin finished 2012 with 72 rushing attemps for 643 yards (8.9) and 3TDs.

The Rest

7. Marquise Goodwin – WR (Texas), Height: 5-9, Weight: 183, Forty: 4:27 –

8. Terrance Williams – WR (Baylor), Height: 6-2, Weight: 208, Forty: 4:52 –

9. Da’Rick Rogers – WR (Tennessee), Height: 6-2, Weight: 217, Forty: 4:52 –

10. Ryan Swope – WR (Texas A&M), Height: 6-0, Weight: 205, Forty: 4:34 –

11. Quinton Patton – WR (Louisiana Tech), Height: 6-0, Weight: 204, Forty: 4:53 –

12. Denard Robinson – WR (Michigan), Height: 5-10, Weight: 199, Forty: 4:43 –

13. Markus Wheaton – WR (Oregon State), Height: 5-11, Weight: 189, Forty: 4:45 –

14. Josh Boyce – WR (TCU), Height: 5-11, Weight: 206, Forty: 4:38 –

15. Kenny Stills – WR (Oklahoma), Height: 6-0, Weight: 194, Forty: 4:38 –

16. Stedman Bailey – WR (West Virginia), Height: 5-10, Weight: 193, Forty: 4:52 –

17. Cobi Hamilton – WR (Arkansas), Height: 6-2, Weight: 212, Forty: 4:56 –

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