Ja’Lynn Polk Fantasy Impact
The 2024 NFL receiver draft class was deep with 11 of them being selected in the first two rounds. One of those receivers was Washington WR Ja’Lynn Polk who was drafted by the New England Patriots with the No. 37 pick, a day after they drafted their QB of the future in Drake Maye. New England was in desperate need of help at the receiver position. At this moment, Kendrick Bourne and Demario Douglas currently sit atop the depth chart which doesn’t exactly strike fear in opposing defenses. The hope is that in pairing Polk with Maye the Patriots will be able to develop a dangerous duo for years to come. This means that Polk will have plenty of opportunities to produce right away as long as the Patriots coaching staff believes he’s ready. Even if they aren’t sure of that they may not have much choice but to throw him out there and see if he can adapt to the NFL. Let’s look at the fantasy implications.
Fantasy Value
Polk’s ADP currently sits in the range of the last pick in the draft to not being drafted at all, which is probably where he should be at the moment. Without knowing how good Maye can be or how productive this passing game can be in general it makes sense to let someone else draft a young receiver who has yet to take a single snap in the NFL and who might be on a very bad offense. People might wonder why Rome Odunze is expected to be a fifth or sixth-round pick when he’s part of an extremely crowded skillset group, but Polk, who could be the No. 1 wide receiver target, isn’t even being drafted in most cases. There are many reasons. First, Polk does not possess Odunze’s talent. Secondly, the weapons opposite Odunze will draw much more attention than those opposite Polk. Lastly, while both Odunze and Polk are linked to rookie signal callers, Williams is considered by most to be the more talented, higher-ceiling prospect. Polk could very well be the first read in this offense, but I’m not sure how valuable that will be in a passing game that is likely to be low-volume and inefficient. Plus, with Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson there, offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt could choose to go more run-heavy, or he could choose to feature the tight ends more since he has two capable tight ends in Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper. Either way, I like the long-term value of Polk but I don’t expect him to make much noise in Year 1.
Dynasty Value
Even in dynasty leagues, Polk isn’t considered a high-value draft pick and I tend to agree. I would put Polk’s value in dynasty leagues around the middle to late second round. He is someone I would love to get on my bench and hold onto to see how Maye and this entire offense develop in the hopes that the Patriots’ offensive scheme can support fantasy-relevant skill players. But I would not be looking to put him in my starting lineup until he showed me something in real game action at the NFL level, and even then he would have to show he could produce consistently. I think there’s a chance that in fantasy circles, particularly in dynasty leagues, he is a bit undervalued, but he didn’t land in the most favorable of situations to produce in his rookie year. If I’m wrong and Van Pelt lets Maye air it out early and often then Polk may simply receive enough volume to be fantasy-relevant, but I’d have to see it first. For now, I’d draft him closer to the end of round 2 and have him just outside of my top-12 rookie wide receivers.
Conclusion
New England had one of the worst passing attacks in football last year. With the selection of Drake Maye, there is hope that it can improve in 2024, but it will likely take time for Maye to develop leading this to, once again, being one least potent passing games in the league. Even if they decide to let Maye sit and roll out Jacoby Brissett as their starter, he is a veteran journeyman who doesn’t have a reputation for lighting up the fantasy stat sheet. No matter who is under center, it will hurt everyone, but possibly none more than Ja’Lynn Polk as he tries to find his footing and adapt to the NFL. So while the Patriots depth chart is wide open and the pathway to volume may be there, I still wouldn’t expect too much from Polk in Year 1. There’s a bit more hope in dynasty leagues, but until we know who they have in Drake Maye it might be smart to temper expectations.
