What makes Boyd the Bengals WR to have in fantasy football?

Last season, with Green missing the entire year, Boyd put together the best year of his career so far. The former second-round pick out of Pittsburgh would catch 90 passes for 1,046 yards and five touchdowns. Also, Boyd commanded 148 targets for the Bengals (seventh-most in the NFL).

For Boyd, he could be in line for an even more expanded role with Burrow targeting him in 2020. In his final season at LSU, Burrow picked apart opposing defenses, throwing for 5,671 yards, 60 touchdowns, and six interceptions. However, the reason to have so much confidence in Boyd this season is due to Burrow’s willingness to target the slot wide receiver.

While leading LSU to a National Championship, Burrow completed 111 of his 527 attempts to Justin Jefferson. Jefferson would also contribute 1,540 yards and 18 touchdowns. Even though Boyd isn’t the same wide receiver as Jefferson, he could very well become Burrow’s No. 1 target since he operates the majority of his snaps out of the slot.

Again, both Green and Boyd could see themselves being viable players to use in fantasy football. With that being said, seeing that the unusual offseason could limit rookies, Burrow may decide to stick with what he’s comfortable in doing. Which is keeping his sights on the wide receivers who can do damage out of the slot position.

A season ago, Boyd evolved into a decent option in fantasy football, finishing as WR18 in PPR leagues. Although, his efficiency was mediocre, averaging just 0.42 fantasy points per route run (51st among WRs in 2019), and he averaged only 1.52 fantasy points per target (80th among WRs in 2019).

So far this offseason, Boyd is being taken after Green in ESPN fantasy football drafts. Therefore, Boyd could bring a better return on investment than the seven-time Pro Bowler.

Nonetheless, given the state of Cincinnati’s roster, they’re likely to be playing from behind in most games. As a result, that gives them a chance to pass the ball often. And seeing that Burrow is now leading the charge at quarterback, Boyd should see more efficiency in his game. All in all, Boyd could very well be the Bengals wide receiver to have in fantasy football this season.