Last week, Parker Washington ($4,400) went off for 103 yards and 27.3 fantasy points against the Texans. As the Jaguars head to Tennessee for another divisional clash this week, can you trust Washington to continue to put up fantasy-relevant numbers? Let’s take a look at what to expect from the second-year wide receiver for the rest of the season.
Looking Back
Before Sunday’s breakout, Washington had only totaled 118 receiving yards over his first 11 games this season. He did have a memorable highlight with a punt return touchdown against the Patriots in London, but it’s almost impossible to count on those kinds of points for fantasy.
At the start of the year, that was about the only way that Washington was reliably on the field, though, since the Jags added Gabe Davis and rookie Brian Thomas Jr. ($5,800) in the offseason in addition to Christian Kirk, who they signed as a free agent before last year. Buried on the depth chart, Washington only had five targets in the first seven weeks of the season.
Things started to change in Week 8 when he got four targets in a game that Davis, Thomas, and Kirk all left injured. Kirk was ruled out for the season, but Thomas and Davis continued to get most of the looks in the offense until Davis also landed on IR in Week 12 during the team’s bye week. In the midst of those receiver injuries, the offense also struggled since Trevor Lawrence ($5,500) was replaced by Mac Jones ($5,000).
Week 13 vs. the Titans was Washington’s big break. He finished with six catches on a team-high 12 targets and also caught his second touchdown (first receiving) of the season.
Week Thirteen
Mac Jones Passing TD (1)
to Parker Washington (2)
pic.twitter.com/gtWFPDC4wm— NFL TD Videos (@NFLTDVids) December 1, 2024
Part of his surge was definitely due to the Jaguars going pass-heavy in their late comeback bid, but part of it was also due to his increased role, which should continue going forward.
Looking forward
Washington will have a good matchup against the Titans this week, who allowed two wide receiver touchdowns last week and have given up 10 wide receiver touchdowns in their last eight games.
The bigger question for the Jags’ offense is who will be at QB. Jones struggled earlier this season but displayed a strong connection with Washington, so he wouldn’t be the worst thing. Lawrence does bring a higher ceiling to the offense, though, so having him isn’t a problem either.
After this week, the Jags finish the fantasy year with matchups against the Jets, Raiders, and a rematch with the Titans. While those aren’t smash spots for receivers, they should be competitive or winnable games, giving Washington the potential to finish the year strong.
The Bottom Line
Washington isn’t quite in my top 25 WR to start this week even with six teams on a bye week. He’s just outside that, though, and can definitely be a strong WR3 or flex play if you’re forced to hit the waiver wires for a snag-and-start option. He’s still available in over 90% of leagues even after Wednesday’s waiver wire claims were processed.
In DFS contests like the NFL $2.5M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st], Washington has the potential to be a great bargain play as well. The Jaguars are 3.5-point road underdogs and Washington brings great value at +260 to score a touchdown
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