Courtland Sutton

Week 4 at Las Vegas Raiders
Courtland Sutton paced the Broncos in targets yet again in Week 3 with 10, and he turned that workload into a 8-97-0 line against a tough 49ers defense. Sutton is seeing great usage from Russell Wilson with a 28% target share through three weeks and is currently fifth in the league with 291 total receiving yards. Sutton's impressive yardage total is the result of a strong target share combined with 371 air yards (currently second in the NFL). Maintaining his traditional role as a deep threat, Sutton has seen a boost in efficiency this year with Wilson under center despite the overall struggles of the Broncos offense. His success should continue in Week 4 when the Broncos will travel to Las Vegas to take on a soft Raiders defense. Sutton is a weekly fantasy WR2 as we head into Week 4.

Week 2 vs. Houston Texans
Courtland Sutton and Jerry Jeudy split the receiving workload right down the middle in Week 1 with both players recording four catches on seven targets from Russell Wilson. Sutton managed 72 yards on his four catches, good for over 10 yards per target. That's an efficient line, but unfortunately for Sutton managers Jeudy was on the other end of the long receiving touchdown from Russell Wilson, the lone touchdown the Broncos scored in Week 1. There should be bigger days ahead for Sutton if the WR workload is going to be consumed entirely by him and Jeudy, and Week 2 is a great starting point against a weak Houston secondary that was just burnt by Michael Pittmann for a 9-121-1 line. The Denver offense had a fluky-bad day in Week 1 on the road in Seattle, but Sutton looks poised to bounce back as a WR2 as one of Wilson's top targets moving forward.

2022 Fantasy Upside
Courtland Sutton has been languishing in Denver's quarterback debacle for four seasons now, one of which was cut very short by a torn ACL in 2020. In his other three seasons, Sutton has managed to average over 57 receptions and 864 receiving per year with a combination of Case Keenum, Joe Flacco, Drew Lock, Brandon Allen, and Teddy Bridgewater throwing the passes. In 2021, Sutton had the second-best average depth of target in the NFL at 15.7. He also finished sixth in deep targets, eighth in air yards, and fifth in unrealized air yards. In other words, the Broncos want Sutton to be a deep threat but have not had the downfield accuracy at QB to maximize his talents. Enter Russell Wilson. Sutton will now be paired with arguably the game's best deep ball passer and the Denver offense should be much more potent with Wilson under center. Sutton drafters can expect a significant jump in realized air yards this year, and he will carry substantial touchdown upside being targeted downfield by Wilson. Sutton will compete with several other players for targets this year, but he is poised for a potential breakout season if he can establish a consistent connection with Wilson downfield.

2022 Fantasy Downside
Having talented teammates is great in real football, but not so great in fantasy. Sutton's primary concern for fantasy is the stiff target competition all Denver pass catchers will deal with. Sutton will have to split targets with Jerry Jeudy, Tim Patrick, and Albert Okwuegbunam in the passing game, and RB Javonte Williams will command targets from Wilson coming off his promising rookie season. While Sutton will have weekly blow-up potential with Wilson under center, he will likely face some consistency issues when his teammates have big weeks along the way. There aren't many downsides with Denver pass catchers relative to recent seasons now that Wilson is there, but their stockpile of receiving options may end up being one for Sutton.

2022 Bottom Line
Sutton makes for an exciting WR2 pick this year now that he is getting a massive upgrade at quarterback. Sutton is physically talented and has managed to produce with backup-level talent throwing to him, so it stands to reason we have not seen his ceiling yet. Keep in mind the fact that Sutton will face tough competition for targets if his post-Russ ADP climbs too high, but he has the looks of a WR2 this year.