Juwan Johnson will enter his fourth year with the New Orleans Saints, and based on previous projections, this could be his best year yet. Johnson has shown steady improvement over his career and is set to explode in a revamped Saints offense. He is TE1 in New Orleans and possibly the third receiving option in the offense.
2023 Fantasy Football: Juwan Johnson Profile
Recap of 2022 season
Johnson had a career year in 2022 with 508 years and seven touchdowns. He also saw 65 targets, which is more than double the ones he had in the 2021 season. He was able to do this with the quarterback roulette the Saints had during the season. Johnson was listed as a receiver in college, and 2022 showed that he could make the transition to tight end. He played in 16 games and started in 12. Johnson did not have a 100-yard receiving game in 2022 but has several games where he caught 60+ yards.
Updated Saints outlook
The Saints traded for Derek Carr in the offseason from the Las Vegas Raiders to settle the quarterback room. Wide Receiver Michael Thomas is expected to be back this season to pair with Chris Olave, who exploded in his rookie season. Running back Alvin Kamara had a down year but should bounce back this season and show he has a little left in the tank. The NFC South is wide open for the Saints to win if they can beat the Atlanta Falcons.
Best-case scenario
The best case for him is that his numbers see a slight uptick. If he can catch 50 passes for anywhere from 600-700 yards and eight touchdowns it is a success. With Carr at quarterback, he has a more consistent option to deliver the ball. With Thomas back, he could see fewer targets than he would if Thomas were out of the lineup. Johnson is TE1 or FLEX in fantasy, and he solidifies that this season in his best-case scenario.
Worst-case scenario
The worst care for him is that he regresses, and what we saw in 2022 was a fluke. Johnson was just a player putting up numbers on a bad team, and it will show this year. If his numbers stay the same, it would still be a success, but regression would see him catch less than 40 passes for around 400 yards and only one or two touchdowns. The targets will be there for him, but he won’t be able to repeat the same production.
Prediction
Johnson is a legit receiving threat and the addition of a new quarterback shows. At the very least he should be able to repeat his production from last year, but he will likely explode this year and take an even bigger jump than he did last year. This year he should be able to solidify himself as a TE1 or a flex option in fantasy.