Fantasy Football experts make huge decision on Chargers WRs against Titans

After catching three touchdowns in the season's first two games, many Bolts fans were tricked into thinking Quentin Johnston was on the verge of a breakout season. Parallel with that, it seemed he was taking over as the Los Angeles Chargers' WR1 mantle from Ladd McConkey.

In the words of the immortal Lee Corso - and, apparently, Keenan Allen, not so fast my friend.

With 28 catches and five touchdowns, Johnston is indeed elevating his performance from 2024. But as the season has progressed McConkey has come alive ... and both have been leap-frogged by returning Allen.

Those three receivers - and the quick ascension of tight end Oronde Gadsden - give quarterback Justin Herbert four legitimate receiving targets and are a big reason why the Chargers are 5-3 and huge favorites to beat the Titans in Tennessee on Sunday.

After a slow start, McConkey is back to looking himself with 22 catches and two touchdowns over the last three games. Johnston has only 14 receptions in the span.

The swing in production is not lost on NBC's Fantasy Football gurus, who this week are urging owners to start McConkey and keep Johnston on the bench. In its weekly "Start 'Em Sit 'Em" offering, NBC explains why McConkey has a better chance of finding the end zone over Johnston.

Start: Ladd McConkey

"McConkey has 27 catches for 294 yards and three scores over his past four weeks," it writes. "Quentin Johnston has been active for the past two games and it hasn’t made a difference. McConkey has a 31 percent target share over that span. More importantly, the Chargers are treating him as their No. 1 wide receiver with a 33 percent first-read target share."

Sit: Quentin Johnston

"McConkey’s return to the lineup has decimated Johnston’s fantasy outlook. Johnston has seven targets since returning from his hamstring injury, good for a seven percent target share. He has just 11 percent of the team’s air yards over the past two weeks. His role declined in Week 8 in particular. He ran 79 percent of the routes — a good mark for most receivers but one that is well below Johnston’s season-long average — and was not targeted once. Fantasy managers should take a wait-and-see approach with Johnston going forward."

The Chargers expect to find the end zone multiple times Sunday as whopping nine-point favorites over the lowly 1-7 Titans.