Renner's NFL Draft preseason WR rankings: Here's the catch; finding a true first-round talent might be a reach

There is talent to be had in the upcoming receiver class. It just may not come in the form of No. 1 receivers. If you want possession receivers or undersized weapons, this class is for you. There may not be a ton of action in the first round in this class, but I could easily see a dozen receivers coming off the board on Day 2 by the time April rolls around.  

Here are my top 10 wide receiver prospects (ordered from No. 1 to No. 10) ahead of the college football season.

Position rankings: EDGE • DT • LB • CB • S • IOL • OT • TE • RB • QB • WR

Note: ⭐️ represents each player's 247Sports star rating as a high school recruit

Jordyn Tyson

ARIZST • WR

6-2, 195 | Redshirt junior | ⭐️⭐️⭐️

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• Player type: Movable No. 1
• Room for improvement: Drops
• Early grade: Round 1

Tyson's tape stood out head and shoulders from the rest of the class in my eyes. He's a very refined route-runner with a lot of tools in his bag. He's got great body control to get off press and adjust to errant passes. Truthfully, there wasn't much to dislike outside of his seven drops. It felt like watching Rome Odunze's tape at Washington before he came back for his senior season.

You just know that if the guy takes a next step he'll end up a top 10 pick.

Given the effort he puts in refining his craft and even on run play, Tyson seems like a safe bet to
be taken very early next April.

Ja'Kobi Lane

USC • WR • #8

6-4, 200 | Junior | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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• Player type: Red zone specialist
• Room for improvement: Muscle mass
• Early grade: Early Day 2 

If you were starting a basketball team from this receiver class, Lane is likely going first overall. He's 6-foot-4 with a big wingspan and can really go up and get it. Of his 43 receptions last season, 12 ended up in scores. His body control at that size is unique and makes him a massive target for quarterbacks to find downfield.

Now, he just needs to put on some muscle. It's a big reason why his production was mediocre last season with those 43 catches going for only 525 yards. He has all the tools to be a bully at the line of scrimmage and catch point besides the heft. If he adds that, Lane likely punches his ticket to the first round.

Eric Rivers

GATECH • WR • #3

5-11, 175 | Redshirt senior | ⭐️⭐️⭐️

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• Player type: Deep threat
• Room for improvement: Proving it against better competition
• Early grade: Early Day 2

Rivers is the twitchiest mover in the draft class. The amount of times he's just striding away from cornerbacks downfield on tape was too many to count. On top of that, Rivers also has the kind of short-area quicks to get off press coverage without being touched. It's why he averaged 18.8 yards per catch last season and averaged the second-highest yards per route figure in college football (3.57).

Now, his lack of size will limit his role at the next level. He's a vertical tree specialist or screen weapon without a ton in between. That's fine, though, in a league increasingly predicated on juice at receiver.

Carnell Tate

OHIOST • WR • #17

6-2, 191 | Junior | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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• Player type: X receiver
• Room for improvement: Muscle mass
• Early grade: Early Day 2

He's not Jeremiah Smith, but he's a No. 1 receiver on 98% of teams in college football. With Emeka Egbuka gone to the NFL, Tate should see far more than the 67 targets he got last season. On those he was wildly effective, though, hauling in 52 of them for 733 yards and four scores. Tate makes it look so easy at times that he lulls you to sleep. Most receivers with his size frame can't run near the full route-tree in the manner he can. He has prototypical X receiver traits, but just needs to fill out his frame to hang with NFL corners.  

Makai Lemon

USC • WR • #6

5-11, 195 | Junior | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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• Player type: Slot receiver
• Room for improvement: Reps split wide
• Early grade: Early Day 2

I've trended toward bigger and faster options above him on this list, but there's an argument to be made that Lemon is the most skilled receiver returning in college football. That's crazy to say considering as a freshman he played both receiver and corner for the Trojans (albeit as a backup). While his 764 yards last season may not look all that impressive, it's because he was part of a rotation. His 3.03 yards per route actually ranked 12th in the FBS in 2024. He's tough, competitive, fluid, and reliable -- all the traits you want from a modern slot receiver. If he goes to a Ben Johnson or Sean McVay sort of offense, he'll catch 100 balls a year.  

Eric Singleton Jr.

AUBURN • WR • #1

5-10, 180 | Junior | ⭐️⭐️⭐️

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• Player type: Vertical threat
• Room for improvement: Stronger hands
• Early grade: Early Day 2

Singleton spent his first two seasons at Georgia Tech where he went for over 700 yards in each season, but was somewhat tapped out by the quality of its passing attack. He's the type of undersized receiver who was unthinkable 30 years ago, but is becoming indispensable in today's NFL. The type of athlete who can consistently create space for himself 15+ yards down the field. It's why his averaged depth of target has been a healthy 13.7 yards downfield for his career. Now at Auburn, Singleton joins one of the scariest receiving corps in all of college football.

Antonio Williams

CLEM • WR

6-0, 187 | Senior | ⭐️⭐️⭐️

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• Player type: Vertical slot receiver
• Room for improvement: Fighting through contact
• Early grade: Day 2

Williams is another ready-made NFL slot receiver. He's been starting for Clemson since his true freshman year in 2022 although he missed most of 2023 with ankle and toe injuries. I love how fearless he is over the middle of the field as he has a build that could pass for a running back. I just wish he had a little bit bigger of a catch radius, but it hasn't shown up too much in college with a 74.9% reception rate on targets for his career.

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KC Concepcion

TXAM • WR • #7

5-11, 190 | Junior | ⭐️⭐️⭐️

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• Player type: Movable full tree route-runner
• Room for improvement: Reliability
• Early grade: Late Day 2

While there have been blatant abuses of the transfer portal in recent years, I can't fault Concepcion one bit for jumping from NC State to Texas A&M in the portal this offseason. After a standout 845-yard, 10-score freshman campaign, Concepcion just could not build any rapport with NC State's quarterbacks last season. He saw his targets drop by 17 and receptions drop by 19 as they struggled to hit him on much more than screens. Concepcion did himself no favors with seven drops either. He gets a fresh start at Texas A&M where his undeniable talent will hopefully shine through again. He's got outstanding ability to shake defenders on his routes and after the catch. The junior receiver has the potential to be a 3 level route-winner, but we just need to see it featured more.

Jaden Greathouse

ND • WR • #1

6-1, 215 | Junior | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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• Player type: Big slot
• Room for improvement: Winning vertically
• Early grade: Late Day 2

Greathouse was a small part of a heavy wide receiver rotation at Notre Dame last season until the final two games when he did more than anyone else on the Irish roster to single-handedly win them a national title. He went for over 100 yards in both the semifinal and title game with 13 catches on 14 targets for 233 yards and three scores overall.

It's hard to believe he was kept under wraps for so long, but you can't do what he did in those two games without some serious talent. I do wish Greathouse was a touch more explosive because boy is he a fluid route-runner. That likely keeps him from being more than a big slot at the next level. Although with his size, post-catch ability, and reliable hands (one career drop and 13-16 on contested catches) he doesn't need pure juice to be productive in the NFL.

Eric McAlister

TCU • WR • #1

6-3, 205 | Junior | ⭐️⭐️⭐️

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• Player type: Possession receiver
• Room for improvement: Initiating contact to get open
• Early grade: Late Day 2

Every single time McAlister has been on a college football field, he's produced. From his first two seasons at Boise State, to last season not even starting at TCU, McAlister racked up catches and yards when called upon. Despite being fourth on the team in routes run, McAlister finished second on TCU in receiving yards with 762. His 2.89 yards per route ranked 16th in college football and was higher than the likes of players like Tetairoa McMillan and second-round teammate Jack Bech. He's a big-framed receiver with sneaky speed and wiggle at the top of his routes. He hauled in six of his eight deep targets and 15 of his 24 targets from 10-19 yards last season for the Horned Frogs. I expect him to rise up draft boards as their unquestioned No. 1 this fall.