Matt HarmonSource
Matt Harmon artwork
VideoFrom Matt Harmon

Denzel Boston's Scorching Hot Start | Reception Perception The Show

STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this video and kept the full transcript here for context.

10 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Sep 25, 2026
Published
Fri, September 25, 2026
9
Player insights
9
Players mentioned
Topics
Bryce LanceCaleb DouglasCarnell TateDenzel BostonDeshaun WatsonJalen McMillanJerry JeudyMalachi FieldsTed Hurst
Player analysis

Player insights

9

Bryce Lance

NegativeUsage13:50

Bryce Lance has been active for 75% of the Saints' routes, though Matt Harmon characterizes him as a 'sacrificial player' within the current offensive scheme.

Insight page

Caleb Douglas

NegativeInjury13:23

Caleb Douglas has shown flashes of potential with his in-breaking routes, but Matt Harmon notes he is not a perfect player and recently suffered an ankle injury at the end of his Week 2 game.

Insight page

Carnell Tate

NegativeUsage13:17

Carnell Tate has recorded seven catches for 65 yards while playing over 45% of routes for a struggling Titans offense.

Insight page

Denzel Boston

PositiveBreakout0:00

Matt Harmon identifies Denzel Boston as the most impressive rookie receiver through the first two weeks, citing his league-leading 95.5% route participation and efficient 2.44 yards per route run. Boston operates primarily as an X receiver (98% on the line of scrimmage) and has demonstrated elite route-running, specifically snapping off outs and digs at 90-degree angles. His performance, including a touchdown catch-and-run against Tampa Bay, confirms his prospect profile, leading Harmon to suggest he should have been a first-round pick and is a major win for dynasty managers.

Insight page

Deshaun Watson

NegativeProjection2:32

Matt Harmon remains highly skeptical of Deshaun Watson's long-term future as the Browns' starting quarterback. While Watson recorded his best EPA per dropback since 2020 against Tampa Bay, Harmon attributes this to the poor quality of the Buccaneers' defense rather than a genuine resurgence, labeling Watson an 'abject failure' as a starter.

Insight page

Jalen McMillan

NegativeDepth Chart14:58

Matt Harmon suggests that Jalen McMillan's return from injury could lead to him competing for snaps currently held by Ted Hurst, who is currently operating as the team's starting X receiver.

Insight page

Jerry Jeudy

NegativeBust15:25

Matt Harmon argues that the Browns should look to trade Jerry Jeudy, noting that despite high snap counts, he has failed to produce and the team could save $3 million in cap space. Harmon suggests the team should prioritize giving more opportunities to K.J. Hamler and Denzel Boston over underperforming veterans.

Insight page

Malachi Fields

NegativeUsage0:31

Matt Harmon notes that Malachi Fields is one of only 10 rookie wide receivers to run a route on more than 45% of their team's dropbacks through the first two weeks of the season.

Insight page

Ted Hurst

NegativeRole13:57

Ted Hurst has been serving as the team's starting X receiver, participating in 74% of routes. Matt Harmon noted he was targeted frequently during the two-minute drill, though his long-term role remains uncertain as Jalen McMillan's return from injury could impact his snap share.

Insight page
Full transcript

Episode Transcript

320
0:00Hey, listen. In Cleveland, there is no
0:01question. Denzel Boston, back-to-back
0:04weeks now, making big plays, big making
0:07big splash plays. And I think we knew
0:09this is kind of sort of the game that
0:11Denzel Boston would play in Cleveland.
0:14But there have been some really early
0:15returns here in Cleveland for Denzel
0:18Boston connecting with Deshaun Watson.
0:26>> Really impressive start to his NFL
0:28career is
0:31Denzel Boston off to here, okay? 10
0:33rookie wide receivers have run a route
0:35on more than 45% of their team's
0:37dropbacks so far heading into Monday
0:40night football. One of them is Malachi
0:42Fields actually who will play on Monday
0:43night football. But Denzel Boston, 95.5%
0:47he has been out there in terms of the
0:48route participation. He is clearly
0:52far and away the number one rookie in
0:54that metric. He's actually been
0:55efficient with his opportunities. 2.44
0:57yards per route run. He's doing all this
1:00while basically only playing as an X
1:03receiver. I charted the game in week
1:06two. He is in the slot 10% of his snaps.
1:10He is on the line of scrimmage 98% of
1:13the time.
1:14I actually think there is some long-term
1:17flexibility for Denzel Boston to do more
1:19than that. But he has really answered
1:21the bell in terms of his ability to play
1:23X receiver. I think he's been really
1:25impressive through two weeks. Like this
1:27isn't just a one-week thing either. He
1:29had the touchdown where the big
1:31touchdown in week one where obviously
1:32the game was so beyond over at that
1:35point. So certainly week two, you know,
1:37was more impressive from what we got
1:39with Denzel Boston there. By the way, it
1:41also could have been a bigger game. You
1:42know, he had a he had a he had a
1:43touchdown the long catch and run. He
1:44could have had a second touchdown where
1:46it's a really nice go route that he
1:48runs. He creates a sliver of separation
1:50along the sideline in the end zone. Um
1:52Deshaun Watson, who I'll get back to in
1:54just a second, to his credit put a
1:56really nice ball on Denzel Boston and it
1:58just kind of slips out of his hands last
2:00minute as he's going out of bounds. So,
2:03could have been an even bigger day for
2:05Denzel Boston.
2:07Again, like the conclusion of this story
2:09and I want to get into the specifics
2:11here, but the conclusion of this story
2:12is
2:12I can't believe this guy was a second
2:14round pick. He should have been a no
2:16doubt about it first rounder in this
2:18draft class. I think it's crazy. Like
2:19we'll see what the long-term ceiling is
2:21for Denzel Boston, but clearly a good
2:23player. The Browns have a really nice
2:25starting X receiver. Their second
2:27receiver that they took in the NFL
2:28draft. I think Casey Costeption has
2:30looked really good, too. But Boston
2:32every down player X receiver winning on
2:34some big boy stuff so far.
2:36>> Okay, so let me just play devil's
2:37advocate here and ask you because again
2:40you charted the guy. I want to know
2:41where he's winning first of all, but
2:43second of all he's taking on a Tampa Bay
2:45defense that is not anticipated not
2:47projected to be a very good passing
2:49defense, right? So, he did have a a nice
2:51game here. What? Hit me. Hit me. You're
2:53shaking your
2:54>> defense sucks.
2:55The Bucks defense has been so bad
2:57through two weeks. I mean this this is
3:00yeah I thought you were understating it
3:02by saying not anticipated to be very
3:04good. If I was a Bucks fan and and I say
3:06this often. Shout out to me. I have a
3:07personal trainer. He is a he is a Tampa
3:09Bay Buccaneers fan and he is constantly
3:11asking me why is every
3:14bad quarterback have their best day ever
3:16against us? I've trained with him for
3:18three years now. He said the same thing
3:20about Todd Bowles' defense and it's so
3:22true to the point that
3:24>> Yeah.
3:24>> Deshaun freaking Watson who has been an
3:26abject failure as the starting
3:28quarterback for the Cleveland Browns
3:30just that had his best day from an EPA
3:32per dropback standpoint since the damn
3:34pandemic, okay? Against this Tampa Bay
3:37Buccaneers
3:38defense. It's it's it's clearly best EPA
3:40per play as a member of the member of
3:43the Cleveland Browns. These are the
3:44dates it ranks 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 eighth
3:48highest since the 2020 season. These are
3:51the dates that he has had better games
3:53than what he had from an EPA per
3:55dropback perspective against the Bucks
3:57in week two. November 26th, 2020,
4:00October 18th, 2020, November 22nd, 2020,
4:05October 11th, 2020, December 27th, 2020,
4:09January 3rd, 2021
4:12in the playoffs against the Tennessee
4:13Titans, November 8th, 2020.
4:16That's what we're talking about here.
4:18Excuse me, that was week 17 game. Excuse
4:19me, against the the Tennessee Titans. Uh
4:21yeah, yeah. Anyways, that's what we're
4:23talking about here. Like that's how long
4:24it's been since the this quarterback has
4:27had a game at this level. Absolutely
4:30insanity that the Bucks are I mean their
4:32their linebackers is really the funny
4:34thing is actually James, it's not even
4:35so much
4:36the matchups that Denzel Boston is
4:38getting as this perimeter receiver
4:40that's been so bad for Tampa. It's these
4:42linebackers. I mean, Alex Anzalone's
4:45been a mess for this team. They can't
4:47cover like the underneath stuff. The
4:48tackling has been so bad. I mean, Bowles
4:50had me going crazy. And I think Bowles
4:52has not been great. So, it's just This
4:53is why it's really frustrating as Bucks
4:55fan cuz he's your head coach and now
4:57you're tied to Baker. There's a lot to
4:58talk about with the Bucks, but
5:00um
5:00I mean, Todd Bowles had me going crazy
5:02on the tackling for the Denzel Boston
5:04post route catch and run touchdown. I I
5:06just wanted to underscore the point that
5:08the
5:09>> [laughter]
5:09>> the Bucks have not just been
5:10underwhelming. They have been a
5:12nightmare to watch on defense through
5:14two weeks.
5:15>> 2020 was Deshaun Watson's best year
5:18um
5:18relatively easily. He had 4,800 yards
5:20that year, 33 touchdowns, just seven
5:23interceptions uh across 16
5:26>> 2020? James, our our our company didn't
5:28even exist yet.
5:30>> great Oh my god, that's a great point.
5:32>> We [laughter] hadn't even seen
5:33January 3rd, 2021. We started the the
5:36business in March 2021.
5:38We
5:39we we the show didn't even exist.
5:41>> That is such a great point. What the
5:43hell, bro? That's so funny. Um dude, by
5:45the way, I thought this was like I don't
5:47know why I thought this was like a Andre
5:50or not Andre Johnson, a new Hopkins
5:52here. Brandon Cooks led the way. 1,150
5:55yards for that 2020 Houston team with
5:59Will Fuller. Remember Will Fuller,
6:01y'all? Will Fuller had 879.
6:05>> No, he had 879. But, he did have eight
6:07touchdowns.
6:08>> Yeah, that was going crazy for Will
6:09Fuller. I think that was like the year
6:11that Will Fuller had a He eventually got
6:12popped for PEDs and then like basically
6:14never played again. Um, yeah. But, yeah,
6:16by the way, just to underscore again the
6:18Watson part of this,
6:19the Browns were soft launching like
6:21benching him before the game.
6:23Multiple insiders came out before the
6:25game saying, "Hey, hey, hey, yeah, yeah,
6:26they're probably kind of consider, you
6:29know, the quarterback position after
6:31this game." And my conspiracy theory all
6:33along was they were just they were just
6:34going to sacrifice Watson just see hope
6:37against hope he he showed anything in
6:39the first two weeks and then they were
6:39just going to play Shrader-Sanders in
6:41the home opener against the Panthers in
6:42week three. Well, you're definitely
6:43playing Watson after coming off a win
6:45and his best best game in, you know, six
6:47freaking years or whatever. So, it just
6:49again, that's how bad the Bucks defense
6:51was. But, to but to bring it back to the
6:52Boston
6:54Watson connection, I actually thought it
6:56they they hooked up on a couple of um
6:59outbreaking routes that were, you know,
7:00just quicker. And that was what I
7:02thought Watson did well in this game.
7:04Again, the long post route catch and
7:06run.
7:07That was really impressive for Boston
7:08where he just slivers into a hole in
7:11zone coverage on the route. Watson hits
7:12him in time and then nobody tackles him
7:14afterwards. He runs it
7:16into the end zone. But, uh he had a
7:17couple of really nice quick out route
7:19wins where Watson did just kind of took
7:21what the defense gave him.
7:23And what was giving him was these single
7:24looks with Denzel Boston who I think it
7:26has always to me, going back to his
7:28prospect profile, been really impressive
7:30just snapping off those routes quickly
7:33at that 90° angle, whether it's outs,
7:35digs. And I think you saw some of that
7:37in this game, for sure.
7:38>> All right, there you go. Um, so, Denzel
7:40Boston off to a very quick start here
7:43in his rookie campaign.
7:44>> Maybe the only rookie we can say is off
7:46to a quick start. I mean, it's not
7:48really it's not really been a good start
7:50for rookie wide receivers. You know,
7:52some of the other names that have
7:53actually been on the football field for
7:55over 45% of routes. Carnell Tate
7:58>> Nothing.
7:59>> You know, I mean
8:00seven catches for 65 yards. The Titans
8:02are not a good team. Caleb Douglas has
8:04had actually some really nice moments. I
8:06think he picked up an an ankle injury at
8:08the end of this week two game, but
8:10definitely I I charted him in week one
8:12was noticeably not a perfect player. I
8:14think people are getting a little
8:15carried away with some of the routes,
8:16but he did have some real nice in
8:18breakers. Rakim Lemon has been out
8:20there, but he has nine receiving yards
8:22on
8:2461 routes, 81% of the routes. I mean,
8:27he's the third receiver now at this
8:28point, so he's just he's a he's a long
8:30wait and see. Bryce Lance, 75% of the
8:33routes. He's been a sacrificial player
8:35for the New Orleans Saints. Ted Hurst,
8:3874% of the routes. You know, he's
8:40actually they they man, speaking of this
8:43game, there was this
8:45freaking five hour lightning rain delay
8:49where they the Bucks come back and
8:51they're right away in the two minute
8:52drill. They actually tried to pepper Ted
8:54Hurst a good bit in that one. He's been
8:56the team's starting X receiver. We'll
8:58see if Jalen McMillan can get healthy
9:00and take some snaps from him, but he's
9:02been okay. He we know he's a
9:03developmental guy. Baker has not been
9:05good through the first two games, that's
9:07for sure. Jace Conceicao, 70%. Again,
9:10he's he's flashed in like the quick
9:11areas. I think he looks pretty good out
9:13there. There's more to be had. Malachi
9:15Fields, Jeremy Bernard, Chris Bell are
9:17the other guys. So it's pretty clearly
9:19been Denzel Boston. It's two weeks, but
9:22he's been the most impressive rookie
9:23receiver.
9:24If I'm Cleveland, you know, Jerry Jeudy
9:26has actually been on the field a lot for
9:28this team. You wouldn't know it cuz he's
9:29not doing not doing anything with those.
9:31I would try to see what you can get.
9:33Like you can save about three million
9:34bucks if you trade Jerry Jeudy. There
9:36are teams like both teams that played on
9:38Sunday night football have receiver
9:39issues Kansas City and Indianapolis. I
9:41don't know if they'd give you a pick and
9:43I don't really even know if he'd he'd
9:44help them all that much but I'd I'd see
9:46if you can get Jerry Jeudy off the
9:47roster and just like give as much to
9:49Denzel Boston and K.J. Hamler on the
9:52Browns. A lot of problems for the
9:53Cleveland Browns but
9:55good quarterback play in week two.
9:57Obviously we don't know what the hell's
9:58going to happen long term with that
9:59team. Probably it's not going to be
10:00Deshaun Watson. I'm still pretty
10:01confident in saying that. I think this
10:02was more of a Bucks thing. It's not
10:04going to be Deshaun Watson. It's not
10:05going to be Deshaun Watson but whoever
10:06it is at quarterback
10:08I mean they they got two guys here and
10:09Boston has really really impressed me
10:11and been a He just looks like the player
10:12I expect him to be through two weeks
10:14here. So big win if you got Denzel
10:16Boston on your dynasty team. Big win if
10:18you've got some Denzel Boston stock if
10:20you're a Cleveland Browns fan.

More episodes from Matt Harmon

6