We all know who the elite wide receivers in the game are, though they haven’t necessarily been showing it on a weekly basis. Does that mean we send them spiraling down our rankings? Of course not, because all it takes is one big day to get the narrative back where we expected it to be (see Evans, Mike for instance). So who are the receivers we should be trusting? Who carries too much risk heading into Week 4? Let’s take a look at how our rankings currently look:
- Julio Jones – Atlanta Falcons – vs. Tennessee
- Keenan Allen – Los Angeles Chargers – at Miami
- Amari Cooper – Dallas Cowboys – at New Orleans
- Davante Adams – Green Bay Packers – vs. Philadelphia
- Sammy Watkins – Kansas City Chiefs – at Detroit
- DeAndre Hopkins – Houston Texans – vs. Carolina
- Odell Beckham – Cleveland Browns – at Baltimore
- Michael Thomas – New Orleans Saints – vs. Dallas
- T.Y. Hilton – Indianapolis Colts – vs. Oakland
- Julian Edelman – New England Patriots – at Buffalo
- Kenny Golladay – Detroit Lions – vs. Kansas City Chiefs
- Cooper Kupp – Los Angeles Rams – vs. Tampa Bay
- Tyler Lockett – Seattle Seahawks – at Arizona
- Sterling Shepard – New York Giants – vs. Washington
- Mike Evans – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – at Los Angeles Rams
- Tyler Boyd – Cincinnati Bengals – at Pittsburgh
- DJ Moore – Carolina Panthers – at Houston
- Adam Thielen – Minnesota Vikings – at Chicago
- JuJu Smith-Schuster – Pittsburgh Steelers – vs. Cincinnati
- Chris Godwin – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – at Los Angeles Rams
- Terry McLaurin – Washington Redskins – at New York Giants
- Brandin Cooks – Los Angeles Rams – vs. Tampa Bay
- Robert Woods – Los Angeles Rams – vs. Tampa Bay
- Calvin Ridley – Atlanta Falcons – vs. Tennessee
- Larry Fitzgerald – Arizona Cardinals – vs. Seattle
- D.J. Chark – Jacksonville Jaguars – at Denver
- Allen Robinson – Chicago Bears – vs. Minnesota
- Marquise Brown – Baltimore Ravens – vs. Cleveland
- Mecole Hardman – Kansas City Chiefs – at Detroit
- Christian Kirk – Arizona Cardinals – vs. Seattle
- Stefan Diggs – Minnesota Vikings – at Chicago
- Tyrell Williams – Oakland Raiders – at Indianapolis
- Emmanuel Sanders – Denver Broncos – vs. Jacksonville
- Josh Gordon – New England Patriots – at Buffalo
- Marquez Valdes-Scantling – Green Bay Packers – vs. Philadelphia
- Curtis Samuel – Carolina Panthers – at Houston
- John Brown – Buffalo Bills – vs. New England
- Demarcus Robinson – Kansas City Chiefs – at Detroit
- Mike Williams – Los Angeles Chargers – at Miami
- John Ross – Cincinnati Bengals – at Pittsburgh
- Will Fuller – Houston Texans – vs. Carolina
- DK Metcalf – Seattle Seahawks – at Arizona
- Courtland Sutton – Denver Broncos – vs. Jacksonville
- Marvin Jones – Detroit Lions – vs. Kansas City
- Nelson Agholor – Philadelphia Eagles – at Green Bay
- Diontae Johnson – Pittsburgh Steelers – vs. Cincinnati
- Jarvis Landry – Cleveland Browns – at Baltimore
- Dede Westbrook – Jacksonville Jaguars – at Denver
- Preston Williams – Miami Dolphins – vs. Los Angeles Chargers
- Corey Davis – Tennessee Titans – at Atlanta
Thoughts:
- Who would’ve expected Keenan Allen to be so highly ranked? He’s been targeted at least 10 times in each of the first three games, putting up at least 98 yards (he’s averaging 134.7 yards/game) and scoring 3 TD. Taking on a Miami defense that’s allowed 7 TD and is among the 10 worst at stopping opposing wide receivers, why wouldn’t we expect another big day?
- The numbers for Davante Adams haven’t been impressive thus far, with 15 receptions for 198 yards and 0 TD, but he also has had some difficult matchups. The Eagles have allowed the fourth most points per week to opposing wide receivers, including 6 TD allowed, so there’s a good chance that Week 4 brings his breakout performance. He’s one of the best and should continue to be viewed as such.
- After missing Week 2 Sterling Shepard returned for Daniel Jones’ NFL debut and showed an instant rapport with him. He turned 9 targets into 7 receptions, 100 yards and 1 TD and now faces a Washington defense that’s allowed the most points per week to opposing wide receivers (9 total TD, with 8 receiving and 1 rushing). With Saquan Barkley sidelined the Giants will likely be taking a pass-heavy approach once again, making Shepard a WR1 for the coming week.
- Is it a surprise that Mike Evans took advantage of the New York Giants’ secondary in Week 3? He was targeted 15 times, turning it into 8 receptions, 190 yards and 3 TD. Based on those numbers it would be easy to push him up the rankings significantly, but the Rams pose a much stiffer test (third fewest points allowed to opposing wide receivers). Despite the big day, he’s a WR2 this week.
- Speaking of the Giants, this week it will be Terry McLaurin’s turn to expose their leaky secondary. The third round pick has scored a TD in each of the first three games this season, picking up at least 62 yards per game while averaging 8 targets per contest. Most weeks he’s going to be a WR3, but for this one consider him a solid WR2 due to the upside.
- In the first game post-Ben Roethlisberger JuJu Smith-Schuster was still a little productive, as he was targeted 7 times and managed 3 catches, 81 yards and 1 TD. The Bengals have allowed the seventh fewest points per week to opposing wide receivers, so if Mason Rudolph can’t become more efficient he is likely to struggle. At this point he still has WR1 upside, but it’s better to consider him a solid WR2 on a weekly basis.
- Larry Fitzgerald looked like the lead receiver over the first two weeks, but Christian Kirk was the more targeted option in Week 3 (he was targeted 12 times, putting up 10 catches for 59 yards). It brings question as to who the go to option will be this week, especially as the Seahawks improve defensively. Both are options, but they are more WR2/3 as opposed to “good” plays for the coming week.
- The Chiefs’ Mecole Hardman is going to be a boom or bust option, at least until Tyreek Hill returns, but he’s shown a lot of boom over the past two weeks (6 receptions for 158 yards and 2 TD). Taking on the Lions there’s every reason to bet on him to boom again, and while the risk keeps him more as a WR3 he’s going to be worth considering.
- Marquez Valdes-Scantling is coming off a big day against the Broncos, turning 10 targets into 6 receptions, 99 yards and 1 TD. This week he gets a Philadelphia defense that’s allowed the fourth most points per week to opposing wide receivers, as one of just seven teams to allow 600+ receiving yards to them over the first three weeks. He’s the number two receiver in a positive matchup, and that makes him a worthwhile WR3.
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Make sure to check out all of our Week 4 rankings:
Quarterbacks |
Running Backs |
Wide Receivers |
Tight Ends |
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Defenses |
Who is the odd man out here this week? M. Sanders, Kirk, McCoy? This is for flex and RB spot. Non PPR.
Kirk, assuming McCoy is healthy
Hey roto. I have Evans and cooks as my starters. For my flex I’m between Boyd and Shepard. Who would you put in?
Thanks for all your help!
Shepard for me this week
Kirk or Mvs in a standard league?
i’d roll Kirk for this week, but not by much
1 pt PPR Need 2
RB Burkhead
RB Freeman
WR A Thielen
WR C Kirk
.5 PPR Need 1 Flex and 1 TE
WR Demarcus Robinson
WR Mike Williams
WR DJ Moore
TE D Waller
TE G Olsen
Standard Need 2
WR A Thielen
WR M Williams
WR Demarcus Robinson
RB J Conner
Question 1 – Thielen/Kirk (I don’t trust the RB to get enough touches)
Question 2 – Waller / Moore
Question 3 – Conner / Thielen
Ceases to amaze me. Paul Richardson is having a great year and is performing equally or maybe even a little better than McLauren. Yet he is barely ranked and with McLauren missing practice (friday) someone can make a wise decision to consider him.
McLaurin has nearly double the yards, so I wouldn’t say they have performed equally. That said ifMcLaurin is out, Richardson looks like a much better play
How crazy would I be to play Mecole Hardman over Mike Evans (assuming Godwin plays) in a quarter point PPR league?
Evans is a better receiver, but his situation is so shitty that I have a lot of trouble trusting him. Assuming that Godwin plays I could see Evans getting in the 6-8 target range and they probably won’t be good targets. Hardman will probably see in the 5-7 range, but the quality of the target will probably be better. I’m banking more on upside here I think and I think both floors are probably about the same. However, if Godwin is out then the expected target increase probably swings it back in Evans’ favor. How crazy am I?
It’s fairly crazy, especially since Hardman is going to be a boom or bust type option and is no guarantee to get targets. It’s not that Evans is a can’t miss, but he’s “safer’
Prof,
.5 PPR. Having a hard time picking my FLEX this week: Chris Carson/F1 McLaurin?
Thanks as always
Carson
Got to play Mark Andrews, Sutton or John Brown in a full PPR. Leaning towards Andrews. Thoughts?
He’s def. the safe choice. That’s how I’d lean!