Let’s keep our Week 15 rankings rolling with a look at the best wide receivers for the coming week. Who has the best matchup? Who has been struggling? Let’s take a look:
- Calvin Johnson – Detroit Lions – at Oakland
- Wes Welker – New England Patriots – at Denver
- Hakeem Nicks –New York Giants – vs. Washington
- Jordy Nelson –Green Bay Packers – at Kansas City
- Percy Harvin –Minnesota Vikings – vs. New Orleans
- Roddy White –Atlanta Falcons – vs. Jacksonville
- Mike Wallace –Pittsburgh Steelers – at San Francisco
- Laurent Robinson –Dallas Cowboys – at TampaBay
- Marques Colston –New Orleans Saints – at Minnesota
- Victor Cruz –New York Giants – vs. Washington
- Larry Fitzgerald –Arizona Cardinals – vs. Cleveland
- A.J. Green –Cincinnati Bengals – at St. Louis
- Dez Bryant –Dallas Cowboys – at Tampa Bay
- Steve Smith –Carolina Panthers – at Houston
- Brandon Marshall –Miami Dolphins – a tBuffalo
- Dwayne Bowe –Kansas City Chiefs – vs. Green Bay
- Vincent Jackson –San Diego Chargers – vs. Baltimore
- Antonio Brown –Pittsburgh Steelers – at San Francisco
- Stevie Johnson –Buffalo Bills – vs. Miami
- Miles Austin –Dallas Cowboys – at TampaBay
- Julio Jones –Atlanta Falcons – vs. Jacksonville
- Santana Moss –Washington Redskins – at New York Giants
- Brandon Lloyd –St. Louis Rams – vs. Cincinnati
- Mike Williams –Tampa Bay Buccaneers – vs. Dallas
- Anquan Boldin –Baltimore Ravens – at San Diego
- James Jones –Green Bay Packers – at Kansas City
- Demaryius Thomas –Denver Broncos – vs. New England
- Nate Washington –Tennessee Titans – at Indianapolis
- DeSean Jackson –Philadelphia Eagles – vs. New York Jets
- Santonio Holmes –New York Jets – at Philadelphia
- Lance Moore –New Orleans Saints – at Minnesota
- Donald Driver –Green Bay Packers – at Kansas City
- Michael Crabtree –San Francisco 49ers – vs. Pittsburgh
- Jeremy Maclin –Philadelphia Eagles – vs. New York Jets
- Torrey Smith –Baltimore Ravens – at San Diego
- Plaxico Burress –New York Jets – at Philadelphia
- Jabar Gaffney –Washington Redskins – at New York Giants
- Pierre Garcon –Indianapolis Colts – vs. Tennessee
- Mario Manningham –New York Giants – vs. Washington
- Kevin Walter –Houston Texans – vs. Carolina
- Deion Branch – New England Patriots – at Denver
- Golden Tate –Seattle Seahawks – at Chicago
- Nate Burleson –Detroit Lions – at Oakland
- Darius Heyward-Bey –Oakland Raiders – vs. Detroit
- Eric Decker –Denver Broncos – vs. New England
- Johnny Knox –Chicago Bears – vs. Seattle
- Malcolm Floyd –San Diego Chargers – vs. Baltimore
- Jerome Simpson –Cincinnati Bengals – at St. Louis
- Titus Young –Detroit Lions – at Oakland
- Greg Little –Cleveland Browns – at Arizona
Thoughts:
- Percy Harvin had a receiving touchdown in his fourth straight game in Week 14. In fact, over the past four weeks he has 32 receptions (8 receptions or more in three straight weeks) with 393 yards and 5 TD (along with 91 rushing yards). Yes, the return of Adrian Peterson will likely diminish his role a little bit, but his recent success will mean that he should remain a focal point of the offense. Taking on a Tampa Bay defense that has been poor against the pass (248.8 passing yards per game and 22 TD) he’s a solid WR1 for the coming week.
- Jordy Nelson has been a great option all season long (51 receptions for 957 yards and 10 TD), and we all know that the defense he’s taking on doesn’t matter much. With Greg Jennings out of action, Nelson should be viewed as an even better option this week. He’s a lock as a WR1.
- We’d like Dwayne Bowe a lot better this week if he actually had a real quarterback throwing him the ball, wouldn’t we? It’s not meant as a shot at Tyler Palko, but it’s become clear that he isn’t the man for the job. In what is going to be a shootout against the Packers (at least a one-sided one), the Chiefs should be primed to throw the ball early and often. The question is who will be under center? Could Ricky Stanzi get a chance to throw? If that happens, could Bowe produce? He’s a viable WR2, but if he was in a better situation he’d likely be a WR1.
- Obviously the return of Miles Austin clouds the WR situation inDallasa little bit. Who is the better option? Is itAustin? Is it Dez Bryant? Is it Laurent Robinson? Robinson has scored a touchdown in six of his past seven games and has at least 70 yards in four of his previous five. All three are going to be WR2, at worst, with a favorable matchup with the Buccaneers, but I would use Robinson as my first choice.
- Brandon Marshall will look to redeem himself after he was pitiful in his last matchup against the Bills (1 reception for 5 yards in Week 11). However, with that on our minds, do we trust him? He’s a WR2, for sure, but not more than that.
- Things appear to be clicking again for Stevie Johnson and Ryan Fitzpatrick. Johnson has at least 52 yards in each of his past three games (including 116 yards against the Chargers in Week 14) as well as 2 TD. He hasn’t done much in his career against the Dolphins, however, with 12 receptions for 139 yards and 1 TD in four career matchups. That said, with the way he’s going right now he is going to have value as a low-end WR2.
- DeSean Jackson showed a little bit of life in Week 14, with 4 receptions for 59 yards and 1 TD. Do you trust him as anything more than a WR3 against Darrelle Revis and the New York Jets? It’s tough, that’s for sure.
- At least Santonio Holmes has scored in three straight games, right? The lack of yards of late keeps him from being a WR2 option (he has 22 yards or less in two of his past three games), but in three receiver formats he definitely has appeal.
- Demaryius Thomas has become the big receiver for the Broncos over the past two weeks, as he has 11 receptions for 222 yards and 3 TD. Does that mean we should trust him as more than a WR3? Absolutely not, given the way Broncos games go. Still, in that spot he’s worth considering, especially against the Patriots.
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Make sure to check out all of our Week 15 articles:

Quick question: how drastic would your adjustments be if Charlie Batch is the Pittsburgh starting WR?
Steve Smith or V Jax? PPR league
I need three… PPR league
Austin, Marshall, Cruz, welker, Brown
Brown is looking like my favorite but idk Austin can go off and Marshall wants to prove himself
foolintherain – There would be a slight adjustment, but I don’t think either WR is going to fall dramatically.
AJ – I’d go Steve Smith, though it is close.
Austin – Welker & Cruz are obviously must plays. For the third, I would rank them Marshall, Brown then Austin. It is close, but I think Marshall is going to have a big day.
Kevin smith or bradshaw …..torry smith or d Thomas
Should I start julio jones or stevie johnson? Quick response needed…I know i’m gonna kick myself for not starting julio jones.
eric – Thomas for the WR spot. As for the RB, the health of Smith is going to determine it and that’s something we can’t answer for sure. At this point, though, I’d be leaning towards Bradshaw.
chris – Sorry I missed you on this one
hey, im in semi finals of the playoffs and i need to know who to start?
QB, 2RB, 1RB/WR, 2WR
QB vick,tebow
RB lesean mccoy, chirs johnsn, steven jackson, sproles
WR nicks, nelson, coloston, miles, marshall, larry fitz
thanks!
QB – Tebow
RB – McCoy & Johnson
WR – Nicks & Nelson
FLEX – Colston (though it’s real close here)
Need 3 WR’s. Which 3 should I start? Santonio Holmes, Santana Moss, J. Gaffney, D. Thomas
Also have Torrey Smith
Who do I start Robinson , Cruz , harven , or Thomas from broncos need to start 2 of them
Spill – I’d go with Moss, Holmes & Thomas
Montes – I’d go with Harvin & Robinson with Cruz as my next option.
Nate Washington at Indy, or Dwayne Bowe at Green Bay?
I’d definitely go with Bowe