Greg Brainos said he is happily scooping up Jalen Coker in the late rounds of Best Ball Mania drafts because the rookie has a clearer path to immediate snaps than most drafters realize. Coker "popped big time in the metrics last year"—posting a top-10 yards per route run in the 2024 class—and Brainos argued you could even make the case he is a better all-around prospect than first-round teammate Xavier Legette. Adam Thielen turns 36 this season and finished 2023 with just 1.06 YPRR over the final eight weeks, so Brainos thinks the Panthers will be forced to funnel more targets to younger legs. He highlighted Coker’s versatility—he can operate as an outside X or as a big slot where he thrived in college—as another reason the staff will keep him on the field. With a wide-open Carolina depth chart and a quarterback who is willing to push the ball vertically, Brainos believes Coker offers undervalued spike-week upside and said his own 23% exposure still “isn’t enough.”

Heath urged dynasty and ultra-deep best-ball managers to stash UDFA Jalen Coker. Coker’s rookie 1D/RR beat Marvin Harrison Jr. and ranked inside the top-10 of the past two classes, while his 1.83 YPRR topped the rookie seasons of Amon-Ra St. Brown and Drake London. In eight games with a 70% route share he averaged 54 receiving yards, a better per-game line than several eventual WR1s posted as rookies. Although draft capital is nonexistent, Heath’s research shows it loses predictive power once a Day 2+ receiver gets on the field. He believes Coker can overtake veteran slot man Adam Thielen in Carolina and is a zero-cost flier worth holding.

Ryan Heath recommended taking deep shots on Jalen Coker in dynasty and late-round best ball. As a rookie UDFA, Coker generated first downs more often than Marvin Harrison Jr. and posted a superior YPRR (1.83 vs 1.74). In eight games above a 70% route share he averaged 54 receiving yards—better rookie marks than Amon-Ra St. Brown, Drake London, and Jayden Reed. Heath notes Coker could overtake 34-year-old Adam Thielen for slot snaps if his per-route efficiency continues.

Pete Overzet pushed back against chat concerns that Jalen Coker is "dead," saying he fully expects the second-year wideout to force his way into three-receiver sets and possibly displace 34-year-old Adam Thielen by season’s end. Overzet compared Coker’s per-route efficiency to DeMario Douglas, stressing that whenever Coker has been targeted he has produced. He also pointed to multiple outs for spike weeks—injury to Thielen, Carolina leaning into four-wide looks, or simply raw talent winning out. At an ADP in the 180s, Overzet views Coker as a cheap upside swing who only needs one of several plausible scenarios to hit in order to pay off.

Tyler Knaeble said Jalen Coker is one of the sharpest Round-18 clicks in early best-ball rooms and even called him a better bet than rookie first-rounder Xavier Legette. Knaeble reminded listeners that Coker made the Panthers’ roster as a 2023 undrafted free agent and actually posted two usable spike weeks, while Legette’s production profile was littered with 2-for-30 and 3-for-17 touchdown-saved lines. He emphasized that targets—not draft capital—drive wide-receiver breakouts: Coker already earned them in limited snaps, running 60% of his routes from the slot and 40% outside, giving Carolina a movable chess piece who can siphon work from both Adam Thielen in the short area and Legette on the perimeter. Because Legette is “a poor man’s DK Metcalf who still can’t run the full tree,” Knaeble expects Panthers coaches to lean on Coker’s length, 4.5-range speed, and polished route craft whenever they need a chain-mover. With the market still treating Coker like a dead roster spot, Knaeble urged drafters to start mixing him in now before any preseason buzz pushes his ADP up a full round.

Pat Fantasy Dog Pound pushed back on the hype around rookie Jalen Coker, saying he refuses to auto-draft Coker in Round 18 the way some drafters are. Pat pointed out that Carolina re-signed Adam Thielen, traded up for first-rounder Xavier Legette this year, and already spent a first-round pick on a wideout last year. Coker would have to leapfrog both veterans or immediately outplay the new first-rounder—an outcome Pat called "no chance." Because there is zero discount baked into Coker’s ADP, Pat advised using the pick on a backup running back or a correlated piece instead of a receiver with almost no path to snaps.