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Houston Texans wide receiver Robert Woods might be set up to have a bounce-back season in his first year in Houston. Playing with a young team with some high hopes, Woods has the opportunity to be the leader and captain of the offense. This is a great opportunity for him to get back to his old form.
2023 Fantasy Football: Robert Woods Profile
Recap of 2022 season
Woods had a down year in 2022, but it was unfair to him with his struggling quarterback play. He caught 53 passes for 527 yards and two touchdowns. The yards and touchdowns were career-lows for him. Ryan Tannehill was the starting quarterback for more than half the year in Tennessee and he seemed to regress prior to his injury. After him, Joshua Dobbs and Malik Willis started multiple games and that didn’t help Woods’ numbers. He played with three different quarterbacks last season and none of them were premiere passers.
Updated Houston Texans outlook
The Texans are like a brand-new team. Demeco Ryans was hired to be their head coach and he was the best option in my opinion. They also drafted C.J. Stroud who was my QB1 in this year's draft. The future looks extremely bright for the Texans, but in a weak division, some think they could compete for a spot in the playoffs this season.
Best-case scenario
Woods finishing around WR24 would be the best-case scenario for me. I think he takes a step forward this season and takes advantage of the new opportunity. I think he is a WR2/FLEX option in fantasy, but he’ll likely fall in a big way because of last year's numbers. He could finish around 1,000 yards and six or seven touchdowns.
Worst-case scenario
Woods finishes as a WR4 or WR5. Right now, he should be their No. 1 wide receiver option, but one of the younger guys could emerge early in the season. This staff will also lean towards a younger guy compared to Woods who is 30 years old. With a first or second-year receiver, there is a much better chance at growth. Woods will get his targets regardless and still have a better year than last year statistically.
Prediction
Woods finishes around WR27. He still has a ton of ability and is now a full-season recovered from a torn ACL. This is usually the season where guys show back to their old ability as the full recovery is usually 18 months. Woods is the most proven receiver in this offense and will make Stroud’s job much easier early on. I think we could see Woods tear it up through the first half of the season and then see his numbers regress a bit in the second half.