With the Fantasy Football season right around the corner, wide receivers will be at an all time premium. Here’s who you should choose.
Besides quarterback, wide receiver will be the deepest position in fantasy football. When you start to get outside the top 20 at running back, it starts to get ugly, quick. Wide receiver has depth and on any week, anyone inside the top 50 can give you 20 or more fantasy points. The NFL is a pass happy league now and we should target wide receivers on teams with a good quarterback. For instance, I would much rather have Willie Snead (who is the number two wide receiver on the Saints) who has Drew Brees throwing him the ball than Jeremy Maclin who is the Baltimore Ravens number one receiver.
Try to load up on wide outs who are on teams who pass a lot. The Detroit Lions, New England Patriots, New Orleans Saints and Green Bay Packers are teams who I don’t mind having their second wide out on my roster. I trust wide receivers who have good quarterbacks throwing them the ball. I am not sure that at any point of the season I will have a player on the Cleveland Browns or San Francisco 49ers because of the poor quarterback play they will have all season. Third year receivers tend to have their break out seasons and I will target a bunch of them (Kevin White, Amari Cooper and Allen Robinson). Here is my list of wide receiver’s ranked from 50 to 26. There is a lot of talent in this group and you should target these players in the middle to late rounds in your drafts.
50. Kevin White, Chicago Bears: The Chicago Bears drafted Kevin White with seventh pick in the 2015 NFL draft. Injuries have been a big problem for White but going into minicamp he is healthy now. He will get well over 100 targets if he stays healthy and the Bears need to see what they have in him. High upside but a lot of risk.
49. Josh Doctson, Washington Redskins: Josh Doctson was drafted in the first round of the 2016 NFL draft. His coach compares him to AJ Green and will take over the Pierre Garcon role. Garcon received 111 and 114 targets in the last two years. Good late round pick with upside.
48. Tyrell Williams, Los Angeles Chargers: Finished last season as the number fourteen receiver in fantasy football. With Keenan Allen coming back he will take away from targets but there will still be plenty of looks for Williams. Not a sexy pick in drafts but will be a consistent number three receiver heading into 2017.
47. Corey Coleman, Cleveland Browns: The Cleveland Browns drafted Corey Coleman to be a game changer and he showed flashes of that in his rookie season. Injuries slowed him down last year and his biggest problem will be his quarterback play. High upside and can finish the season as a top 25 receiver.
46. John Brown, Arizona Cardinals: I might have him way too low but he only played in 40 percent of snaps last year due to his sickle cell trait. He should be a full go this year and if he is, he will jump up my rankings. Great upside and has the chance to finish the season inside the top 20 if his health allows it. All the tools in the world to be a great NFL wide out. Draft him later in the drafts and he will be a steal.
45. Mike Wallace, Baltimore Ravens: Doesn’t have the upside he once did but should be a solid number three or four wide receiver this year. I don’t want many wide receivers on the Baltimore Ravens but he should be a good bet for over 100 targets, 65 catches and 1,000 yards.
44. Rishard Matthews, Tennessee Titans: There were just two wide receivers with more than 100 targets who caught more touchdowns on a per target basis, Jordy Nelson and Davante Adams. With Corey Davis and Eric Decker coming into town his numbers will take a hit. He showed a good connection with Marcus Mariota and can be his security blanket this year.
43. Jordan Matthews, Philadelphia Eagles: As a Philadelphia Eagles fan, Jordan Matthews showed he can be a good NFL receiver but he drops the ball too much. With Alshon Jeffrey and Torrey Smith in Philadelphia he will lose some targets but can still be effective. Not a top 20 wide receiver like some thought in 2015 but he will be a valuable fantasy wide out this year.
42. Jeremy Maclin, Baltimore Ravens: Jeremy Maclin is in a better situation now in Baltimore than he was in Kansas City. The Ravens need a wide receiver who Joe Flacco can trust and Maclin will be that guy to start the season. Not a lot of upside here but you can do a lot worse as your number three wide out.
41. Adam Thielen, Minnesota Vikings: 2016 was the Adam Thielen coming out party. He showed his upside with a 202-yard, two touchdown game vs. the Green Bay Packers in week 16. Solid number three wide out who can sneak into the top 30.
40. Randall Cobb, Green Bay Packers: Randall Cobb is the first of three Green Bay receivers to crack the top 40 of my list. Cobb has finished as a top 12 receiver in fantasy twice in his career and he still has Aaron Rodgers throwing him the ball. If Jordy Nelson or Davante Adams get hurt, he will be a top 25 wide out in fantasy.
39. Devante Parker, Miami Dolphins: Devante Parker showed the flashes of being a number one receiver last year despite only getting seven or more targets in a game just three times. If he is going to take the next step, he will need to gain not only his coaches trust but Ryan Tannehill’s. Good upside but comes with risk.
38. Pierre Garcon, San Francisco 49ers: Pierre Garcon takes a big hit to his fantasy value moving from Washington to San Francisco. He will be the number one target on the team but the San Francisco 49ers might have a bottom three offense in the league next year.
37. Eric Decker, Tennessee Titans: Injuries were a big factor last year for Eric Decker but the move from New York to Tennessee will only help his value. He is a good red zone target and if he is healthy next season he can be a steal in drafts this year.
36. Cameron Meredith, Chicago Bears: Cameron Meredith is a better PPR receiver heading into the 2017 season but he has good upside. He broke his thumb and will miss most of training camp which can hurt his value at the start of the year. The Chicago Bears offense isn’t a juggernaut but can put up some points in a good matchup.
35. DeSean Jackson, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: DeSean Jackson is the ultimate boom or bust player in fantasy. If you have owned him in the past, you know exactly what I mean. He will be the deep threat for Jameis Winston and if you play him on the right week, he can win you your week.
34. Jamison Crowder, Washington Redskins: With Pierre Garcon and DeSean Jackson leaving town, there are a lot of targets that opened in Washington. The Redskins love to throw the ball and Crowder will be a focal point of the offense. Not a lot of upside but will be a consistent source of catches and yards next year.
33. Martavis Bryant, Pittsburgh Steelers: Talent and production have never been the problem with Martavis Bryant. In eight of his 21 career games, Bryant scored 14 or more standard fantasy points, four of them with 20 or more. Great upside in one of the best offenses in the league.
32. Brandon Marshall, New York Giants: Brandon Marshall is a top tier receiver when it comes to talent in the NFL. He is escaping one of the worst offenses of the Jets and goes across town in a pass friendly Giants offense. Being on the opposite side of OBJ will allow Marshall to get single coverage from the opposition’s number two and three corners. Marshall will end up on a lot of my teams because of his upside.
31. Stefon Diggs, Minnesota Vikings: Injuries were a big problem with Stefon Diggs last season. When he wasn’t on the injury report, he averaged 9 catches a game with 107 yards per game. If he stays healthy, Diggs is a top 25 receiver in the leagues this year.
30. Donte Moncrief, Indianapolis Colts: There have been just four games in which both Andrew Luck and Donte Moncrief played in where they didn’t connect for a touchdown. If Luck is healthy this year, except double digit touchdowns from Moncrief this year.
29. Tyreek Hill, Kansas City Chiefs: The biggest problem with Hill is he is in an average offense at best. If the Chiefs open the playbook and get Hill the ball more often, he has the game changing speed to score plenty of fantasy points. His offense scares me but I love his talent. Draft him as your number two or three wide receiver this year and hope the Chiefs take more shots down the field. He will also score multiple touchdown on special teams which is a nice bonus.
28. Emmanuel Sanders, Denver Broncos: Emmanuel Sanders is a talented receiver but his biggest downside is his quarterback play. Denver also loves to run the ball. He has the talent of a top 30 receiver but his team will limit his upside.
27. Golden Tate, Detroit Lions: Tate totaled 943 yards and four touchdowns over the final 11 games in 2016, which was good enough to be the number 10 wide receiver in that span. The Lions throw the ball a ton and Tate will receive well over 125 targets next season. I love wide outs that are the number one on their team. Good upside and has the potential to finish the year as a top 15 receiver.
26. Terrelle Pryor, Washington Redskins: Terrelle Pryor might see the biggest quarterback improvement in the move from Cleveland to Washington. Pryor is a freak athlete who now is on a pass heavy offense in Washington. Good floor for Pryor this year but his upside is a little limited. He has worked with Randy Moss and Antonio Brown in the offseason to better his game. He can easily finish inside the top 15 at wide out this year.
