We’re firmly into fantasy football draft season, meaning now is the time to get an edge on your leaguemates and dive into analysis. Sleepers can be the difference between making the playoffs and missing them entirely, but who are the names to watch for moving forward?
One wide receiver to keep an eye on is Kayshon Boutte, who was traded to the Houston Texans last month and has the opportunity to step up in a key role. Is he the team’s new WR2, and is he worth drafting in the late rounds?
Kayshon Boutte fantasy outlook with the Texans
During the Texans’ training camp period, it seemed the team was quite pleased with the growth of Jayden Higgins, last year’s second-round pick at wideout. Reports indicated he’d taken his game up a step, but an untimely ACL tear ended his season before it could even begin. With Tank Dell still rehabbing a severe knee injury and not yet ready to return, the depth chart at the position appeared quite thin beyond star Nico Collins and second-year talent Jaylin Noel.
As such, Houston’s front office took a swing and traded for Kayshon Boutte, who had shown signs of promise with the New England Patriots but was crowded out of the picture by his former team’s offseason overhaul. Once the Pats traded for A.J. Brown and signed Romeo Doubs, Boutte slid into WR3 territory and was fighting for a depth role.
Now, he finds a new home with a team that desperately needed a player of his ilk. Boutte is far from a star, but he’s shown the ability to play an important role in the past. His box-score numbers don’t stand out much – he amassed 551 yards and six touchdowns on 33 catches over the course of 14 games last season. However, there are things to like about his profile. Here are some pertinent numbers from our trade article last month:
Boutte also led all NFL wide receivers with at least 30 targets in passer rating when targeted (133.2), yards per target (12.0), and EPA per target (0.74), also finishing 11th in receiving yards over expected (153).
Granted, Boutte saw a target share of just 12.3% last season, far from one that’s conducive for fantasy output. However, he was elite as a deep threat on a per-target basis, so there’s already some boom-or-bust upside as a desperation FLEX as he heads to Houston. Moreover, that target share could certainly improve to around 18% based sheerly on the lack of other options in the passing game – Collins will gobble up looks as the alpha and Dalton Schultz should get plenty of work underneath and in the middle of the field, but the pathway for Boutte as the third option is wide open.
To answer the question of whether he’s likely to become the Texans’ WR2 this season, signs point toward yes as things currently stand. Xavier Hutchinson, who presents the most significant threat for snaps at wideout, has been uninspiring at best and bad at worst in his young career with the team. The depth chart is very thin otherwise.
However, the end result of whether Boutte is immediately a fantasy asset you can start and feel good about in any capacity leans more to the negative. He logged five games of double-digit points last season, but those largely only came when he connected on a deep shot or a touchdown. As mentioned earlier, that makes him a desperation FLEX at the moment. There’s no shame in drafting him in the very late rounds and hoping his role expands, though – in which case he could be a sleeper candidate worth snagging for cheap as a flier.
