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Jackson Sparks
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Outside of the very top guys, the wide receiver position as a whole feels boom-or-bust on any given week, and last week was no different. With so many options at the deep position, it can be tough to decide who to start and who to sit for that WR3 or flex spot. What we can do is look at target share, average yards per catch (especially in standard leagues), and red-zone targets. While you don’t necessarily want TD-dependent guys, it’s always nice to have players who get more scoring chances. Our Week 3 fantasy WR rankings will take all those factors into consideration while also looking at matchup stats from the past two weeks.
DeVonta Smith (@ Dallas) is strong across both standard and PPR formats, but he’s in line for a possible explosive week against an awful secondary. Jalen Reagor also sees a boost as the No. 2 WR in Philadelphia. Quez Watkins is a standard-specific play, but he’s an attractive player if you’re looking for a guy who’s going to get a lot of deep shots. Starting Michael Pittman Jr. or Zach Pascal (@ Titans) is never going to be sexy, but we have enough evidence from last year and the early part of this season to know we must consider WRs vs. the Titans’ hot garbage in the back end of their defense. Of course, if Jacob Eason is starting, that plan will be squashed in a hurry.
WEEK 3 PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
Christian Kirk and Rondale Moore (@ Jaguars) continue to be attractive WR3/flex considerations, especially in standard with the big-play nature of the Cardinals’ offense. Someone has to take targets next to DeAndre Hopkins, and those two are the prime candidates in a great matchup. Marquise Brown (@ Lions) has his greatest appeal in standard, as the Ravens will rush the ball an insane number of times, but we could easily see Brown scoring on a big play or two for the third straight week.
WEEK 3 STANDARD RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
After ranking Allen Robinson outside the top 24 in Week 1, he returns to the top 15 for Week 3 (@ Cleveland) as we had him in Week 2. We knew it would wheels up for him after he got through with his matchup with Jalen Ramsey, but now he’s a perennial WR1 regardless of matchup moving forward. The Browns’ defense was expected to be carved up in Week 1 at Kansas City, but they even looked weak against the Texans. However, if Justin Fields starts for an injured Andy Dalton (knee), then Robinson might bump back down to a middle WR2.
The Tampa Bay (@ Rams) wide receivers are tough to evaluate this week. Jalen Ramsey could be in shadow coverage on any of the trio of Antonio Brown, Chris Godwin, and Mike Evans. For this reason, you probably have to start all of them and play Ramsey Russian Roulette this week. He can’t take all of them away, and last week, both Pascal and Pittman had good games against the Rams.
The Bengals’ trio of Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, and Tyler Boyd (@ Steelers) are concerning this week, too. It’s never fun to start guys in Pittsburgh, and Joe Burrow should be harassed early and often. At least one of them will probably produce, but it would be a shocker if they all were solid fantasy options by the end of Sunday. Still, after the Raiders went big through the air against Pittsburgh, anything is possible. Another trio, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson, and Chase Claypool (vs. Bengals) could all have big weeks, but that might be reduced to a duo after Johnson’s knee injury. Stay tuned for injury updates. It’s tough to evaluate them with Ben Roethlisberger’s ineffectiveness through the first two weeks, but the matchup is just plain ole good. Johnson and Claypool are more attractive in standard leagues. The Jaguars have yet another trio of potential starters against Arizona, though Laviska Shenault’s shoulder injury threatens his availability.
Marquez Callaway (@ Patriots) is falling fast, and a trip to New England isn’t going to help him regain his value. Brandon Aiyuk’s free fall also continues, and you can find him down in the rankings right by Callaway. We’re not high on Browns’ receivers against the Bears even if Odell Beckham Jr. (knee) finally suits up. Jarvis Landry (knee) is banged up, but the Browns simply don’t throw enough to feel great about any of their other options. The same goes for all of Miami’s receivers against Vegas, as Will Fuller V (personal) could be joining the fold as the QB situation gets even shakier.
Again, this position is the toughest one to rank as we move down toward the bottom, but use these as a guide if you need a tie-breaker between similar guys. It’s still too early to purely rely on previous game stats, but we’re close to being able to use those indicators more.
We’ll be updating these WR rankings as needed throughout the week, so check back for the latest changes and analysis.
Fantasy WR Rankings Week 3: Who to start at wide receiver
Rankings based on standard, non-PPR scoring
Rank | Player |
1 | DeAndre Hopkins, ARI @ JAX |
2 | Tyreek Hill, KC vs. LAC |
3 | Davante Adams, GB @ SF |
4 | Tyler Lockett, SEA @ MIN |
5 | Stefon Diggs, BUF vs. WAS |
6 | DK Metcalf, SEA @ MIN |
7 | Keenan Allen, LAC @ KC |
8 | Calvin Ridley, ATL @ NYG |
9 | Cooper Kupp, LAR vs. TB. It’s time to view Kupp as a top-10 play at the position this year, regardless of format. He’s currently No. 1 in PPR leagues and No. 2 in standard over the first two weeks. That said, the Tampa Bay defense is still a scary matchup, even though their weakness is at cornerback. They’ll at least have some answers to limit Kupp so we don’t have him at the top this week, but his upside looks like the overall WR1 any given week. |
10 | Justin Jefferson, MIN vs SEA. Jefferson, Adam Thielen, and K.J. Osborn are all inside the top-30 WRs in either format, but weirdly enough, Jefferson is third among Vikings’ wideouts in FPPG. This should correct itself with time, and the Seahawks defense doesn’t scare anyone in the backend. You could probably even play all three receivers in the same lineup and get solid production. Osborn hasn’t quite climbed our rankings dramatically yet, but if he has another nice game, he’ll surely ascend even more than he has. |
11 | Adam Thielen, MIN vs. SEA. See Justin Jefferson. |
12 | CeeDee Lamb, DAL vs. PHI. As suspected, Lamb and Amari Cooper will take turns being the No.1 WR in Dallas week to week. In Week 2, it was Lamb who led all Cowboys’ pass-catchers with nine targets. The Eagles’ secondary actually looks respectable, so we’ll see how productive the Cowboys’ wideouts are. We’re sure whichever WR we rank lower will be the one who emerges that week, but the good news is both always have top-12 upside. |
13 | Allen Robinson, CHI @ CLE. Robinson would’ve been a complete bust in Week 2 if he hadn’t scored a touchdown. He caught just two-of-four targets for 24 yards and didn’t look to have an early connection with Justin Fields. The Browns’ secondary didn’t look all that impressive vs. Houston, so it could be time for Robinson to finally emerge this season. We’ll see how Fields looks after a full week with the first-team offense (assuming Andy Dalton’s bum knee keeps him out). |
14 | Chris Godwin, TB @ LAR. It’s tough to tell who Jalen Ramsey will cover in this matchup, but we suspect it will be Mike Evans. With Godwin operating out of the slot, he’s probably the least likely to be shadowed by Ramsey. That said, he could be the focal point of the Buccaneers offense this week. Antonio Brown only caught one pass vs. Atlanta, but he should see a bounce-back performance if he avoids Ramsey. Since Evans is the likely Ramsey victim, he has bust potential written all over him. |
15 | Courtland Sutton, DEN vs. NYJ. Sutton had a career day with nine catches on 12 targets and 159 yards. He is the current league leader air yards (the amount of yards the ball travels in the air on a passing play, from the line of scrimmage to contact point.) with 301, so clearly, Teddy Bridgewater is willing to push the ball down the field to him. He gets another juicy matchup with the Jets in Week 3 at home, so wheels up for Sutton. |
16 | A.J. Brown, TEN vs. IND. Brown struggled mightily at Seattle, but he usually doesn’t stay down long. He still led all Titans with nine targets but secured just three for 43 yards. Meanwhile, Julio Jones drew eight targets and caught six of them for 128 yards and had a touchdown reversed in a controversial ruling. Is this a sign Julio is going to take over the No. 1 WR job? We don’t know yet, so for now, we’ll have Brown ranked ahead of him. Make no mistake, though, you want to be playing both of these guys. The Colts’ defense hasn’t shown they have trouble against high-flying passing offenses. |
17 | D.J. Moore, CAR @ HOU. Moore looks comfortable with Sam Darnold early, and it paid off to the tune of 11 targets, eight catches, 87 yards, and a touchdown in Week 2. Houston’s defense should be a prime candidate for Moore to build on his excellent performance. It seems he’s finally establishing himself as the bona fide No. 1 WR, while Robby Anderson is now back to his deep-threat role. |
18 | Brandin Cooks, HOU vs. CAR. It doesn’t matter who the quarterback is for Houston — Cooks is going to be heavily targeted. In Week 2 at Cleveland, Cooks drew 14 targets, catching nine for 78 yards and a touchdown. The next closest Texans were a foursome that had two targets each. If Davis Mills is starting (and it sure sounds like he will), he’ll rely on Cooks. He refuses to be mediocre regardless of his surroundings. His PPR floor is high, but he also has a top-notch upside with his deep-threat ability. |
19 | Terry McLaurin, WAS @ BUF. Backup quarterbacks often rely heavily on their stud WR. This was the case in Taylor Heinicke’s first start of the season vs. Giants, as he targeted McLaurin 14 times, yielding 11 catches for 107 yards and a touchdown. It’s quite simple really — backup quarterbacks are backups for a reason, and they don’t flourish at going through a full possession of reads, so they lock in on their No. 1 WR. So, in a way, this is a good thing for McLaurin. However, he will get the Tre’Davious White treatment as Washington travels to Buffalo, so we’ll see how efficient he is with those targets. |
20 | Marquise Brown, BAL @ DET. Evidently, Brown is on pace for a true breakout season. Through two weeks, he’s netted 12 catches for 182 yards and two touchdowns. While we’ve been accustomed to staying away from the Ravens’ passing attack outside of Mark Andrews, Brown is clearly the top receiving threat in the offense now. Detroit will probably be bottom five in fantasy points allowed to WRs at season’s end, so we love this matchup. There is a chance this game gets out of hand early and the Ravens just pound the ball, but it would be tough to justify benching him at this point. |
21 | Amari Cooper, DAL vs. PHI. See CeeDee Lamb |
22 | Deebo Samuel, SF vs. GB. Samuel is the No. 1 WR in San Francisco, and he’ll remain in that chair until further notice. With Brandon Aiyuk in the Kyle Shanahan doghouse, Samuel benefits greatly. He leads the league in receiving yards (282) after two weeks, so it’s easy to see why we love him. We’ll see how Green Bay’s defense looks against Detroit, but it sure looked awful against the Saints. |
23 | Antonio Brown, TB @ LAR. See Chris Godwin. |
24 | DeVonta Smith, PHI @ DAL. This could be a huge breakout game for Smith after a major down week vs. the 49ers in Week 2. While he caught just two passes for 16 yards, he led all Eagles in targets with seven. His performance stung last week, but we always like a No. 1 WR in a matchup against the Cowboys. Jalen Reagor is an OK option at flex, but there might not be enough passing work to go around. If you’re in super deep leagues and/or are just feeling dangerous, Quez Watkins is a guy who will always have a chance to score on a deep ball, which is best for standard leagues or DFS lineups. |
25 | Diontae Johnson, PIT vs. CIN. Diontae Johnson looks to be on track to play in Week 3, and although the Steelers offense is awful, Johnson has drawn 22 targets through two weeks. He’s a great play in PPR leagues for that reason alone. Juju Smith-Schuster and Chase Claypool also receive their fair share of targets in this short passing game, but they’re more of flex considerations. |
26 | Mike Evans, TB @ LAR. See Chris Godwin. |
27 | Julio Jones, TEN vs. IND. See A.J. Brown. |
28 | Sterling Shepard, NYG vs. ATL. Shepard is all of a sudden a great play at your flex position. He is tied for the lead for receptions (16) in the NFL and looks like Daniel Jones’ true No. 1 WR. Kenny Golladay hasn’t been effective thus far, but maybe he’ll start being a factor in a great matchup for WRs vs. Atlanta. If nothing else, he draws some coverage away from Shepard |
29 | Ja’Marr Chase, CIN vs. PIT. The Raiders had success against the Steelers defense, but Derek Carr is playing at a level well above Joe Burrow. Cincinnati still has offensive line issues, and the Steelers’ front seven isn’t going to let Burrow get comfortable. One of the Bengals WRs’ will have a nice day surely, but we can’t expect all three of them to do so. It’s honestly a crapshoot as to who will lead the team in fantasy points among WRs, but Chase is our pick this week, despite only having four targets last week. Tee Higgins (9 targets) and Tyler Boyd (10 targets) could have something to say about that, though. |
30 | Rondale Moore, ARI @ JAX. Moore is top 10 in the league in receiving yards (182) and he had a breakout game last week, catching seven passes for 114 yards and a touchdown. Against Jacksonville, we’re targeting the entire Cardinals offense this week, including Christian Kirk. |
31 | Chase Claypool, PIT vs. CIN. See Diontae Johnson. |
32 | Robby Anderson, CAR @ HOU. See D.J. Moore |
33 | DJ Chark, Jaguars, JAX vs. ARI |
34 | Tee Higgins, CIN @ PIT. See Ja’Marr Chase. |
35 | Mike Williams, LAC @ KC |
36 | JuJu Smith-Schuster, PIT vs. CIN. See Diontae Johnson. |
37 | Michael Pittman Jr., IND @ TEN |
38 | Marvin Jones, JAX vs. ARI |
39 | Robert Woods, LAR vs. TB |
40 | Odell Beckham Jr., CLE vs. CHI |
41 | Christian Kirk, ARI @ JAX. See Rondale Moore |
42 | Kenny Golladay, NYG vs. ATL. See Sterling Shepard. |
43 | Corey Davis, NYJ @ DEN |
44 | Zach Pascal, IND @ TEN |
45 | Tim Patrick, DEN vs. NYJ |
46 | Jaylen Waddle, MIA @ LV |
47 | Tyler Boyd, CIN @ PIT. See Ja’Marr Chase. |
48 | Jakobi Meyers, NE vs. NO |
49 | Sammy Watkins, BAL @ DET |
50 | Laviska Shenault Jr., JAX vs. ARI |
51 | Will Fuller V, MIA @ LV |
52 | Jalen Reagor, PHI @ DAL. See DeVonta Smith. |
53 | Darnell Mooney, CHI @ CLE |
54 | Cole Beasley, BUF vs. WAS |
55 | K.J. Osborn, MIN vs. SEA. See Justin Jefferson. |
56 | Quintez Cephus, DET vs. BAL |
57 | Nelson Agholor, NE vs. NO |
58 | DeVante Parker, MIA @ LV |
59 | Darius Slayton, NYG vs. ATL |
60 | A.J. Green, ARI @ JAX |
61 | Quez Watkins, PHI @ DAL. See DeVonta Smith |
62 | Marquez Valdes-Scantling, GB @ SF |
63 | Russell Gage, ATL @ NYG |
64 | Henry Ruggs III, LV vs. MIA |
65 | Brandon Aiyuk, SF vs. GB |
66 | Marquez Callaway, NO @ NE |
67 | Bryan Edwards, LV vs. MIA |
68 | Mecole Hardman, KC vs. LAC |
69 | Hunter Renfrow, LV vs. MIA |
70 | Emmanuel Sanders, BUF vs. WAS |
71 | Tyrell Williams, DET vs. BAL |
72 | KJ Hamler, DEN vs. NYJ |
73 | Jamison Crowder, NYJ @ DEN |
74 | Randall Cobb, GB @ SF |
75 | Deonte Harris, NO @ NE |
76 | Allen Lazard, GB @ SF |
77 | Gabriel Davis, BUF vs. WAS |
78 | Demarcus Robinson, KC vs. LAC |
79 | Van Jefferson, LAR vs. TB |
80 | Anthony Schwartz, CLE vs. CHI |
81 | Terrace Marshall Jr., CAR @ HOU |
82 | Marquise Goodwin, CHI @ CLE |
83 | Jalen Guyton, LAC @ KC |
84 | Braxton Berrios, NYJ @ DEN |
85 | Dyami Brown, WAS @ BUF |
86 | Byron Pringle, KC vs. LAC |
87 | DeSean Jackson, LAR vs. TB |
88 | D’Wayne Eskridge, SEA @ MIN |
89 | Kadarius Toney, NYG vs. ATL |
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