NFL Draft Betting Preview: Wide Receiver Odds/Rankings

NFL Draft Betting: Wide Receivers

A few months ago, betting on Jaxon-Smith Njigba from Ohio State seemed like crazy talk. Yet, on draft boards, the wide receiver hovers in the mid-first round. However, Njigba is far from the only wide-out in this range. Quentin Johnston is rising in some circles from TCU, and Jordan Addison from USC is just a little behind. 

Only a few wide receivers are on the betting boards currently. The primary two choices of interest involve Njigba and Zay Flowers from Boston College. Their props suggest that Njigba falls and Flowers rises. Is that the bookies just trying to sweeten the pot? Now, that is an excellent question. 

Njigba is -250 to go 13th. Flowers is +145 to move closer to the top 20. There could be five receivers drafted during the first round. 

Jordan Addison is attractive because he is versatile and can fit in any pro-style offense that moves at an elevated tempo. He is +350 to go second among receivers and +750 to get drafted as the top receiver. 

Picking a WR in This NFL Draft is Hard to Project

The belief is that Quentin Johnston has that home-run threat some teams are looking forward to in a wide out. His TCU career can be characterized as inconsistent. Johnston can make tough catches on the sideline and excel on deep balls. He will never be a slant or slot guy, but he is +350 to be the second wide receiver taken (+1000 to go first). The problem is most teams will need help finding that complete package. 

A couple of receivers who could quickly move up or down are Flowers and Njigba. Njigba was hurt just about all of last season. He looked outstanding in the combine, but catching passes in the NFL is always different. Flowers is interesting. He is also a possession receiver with lightning-fast speed (4.42-40). As we mentioned earlier, he is moving upward on boards. Now, Flowers is +150 to be the second wide receiver to come off the board and +400 to go first. That is a far cry from +450/+1000 two weeks ago. Flowers is a player a team might trade up to acquire.

Why are we so apprehensive about wide receivers? That is easy. In 2022, we saw six go in the first round; this year, the class is not relatively as front-loaded. The potential exists, but so does failure. 

How Biletnikoff Award Winner will Fare in the NFL Draft

The one wide receiver who seems to be driving pundits the craziest in their evaluations is Jalin Hyatt. Hyatt figures to be drafted somewhere in the second round, but the Fred Biletnikoff Award winner has 4.4-40 speed and racked up big numbers against some high-profile teams this year.

Some teams may take a shot with Hyatt and hope he can develop some skills in traffic or over the middle. SEC receivers tend to flourish in the NFL, and maybe he ends up in the right offense to utilize his skill set. Again, there is room for development, but the possibility of getting pigeonholed as a slant burner with perimeter skills is troubling. 

Watching For NFL Draft Surprises

Do not be surprised to see Andrei Iosivas go somewhere in the draft's later rounds. The Princeton flanker showed some tremendous skills in the combine. His size and athleticism are a premium in the NFL, and he could turn some heads at the next level. 

Iosivas would be the first Princeton player taken in the draft since Seth DeValve in 2016. Iosivas carries some star potential in the right offense.

Receivers like Jacob Copeland from Maryland have blazing speed and can run routes efficiently. The question boils down to consistency. It concerns us with Michael Wilson from Stanford and Tyler Scott from Cincinnati. The difference with Scott was his role. The receiver has Hyatt speed and a bit more route-running skill. He is one to watch.