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I don’t want to jinx anything, but Week 1 went somewhat according to plan. The players we thought would breakout in the first week of the season (Amari Cooper, Stefon Diggs, Golden Tate) had great games. Some of the big-name receivers (A.J. Green, Julio Jones, Doug Baldwin) didn’t put up gaudy numbers, but they were still useful.
The wide receiver landscape in fantasy football is becoming clearer by the week, but there are still some situations that need to be smoothed out. I’m particularly talking about the Washington Football Team’s offense, which looks like a trainwreck right now.
Let’s see what Week 2 has in store for the league’s pass-catchers.
WR Rankings - Week 2
Rank | Player | Team | Opponent | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Rank | Player | Team | Opponent | Notes |
1 | Julio Jones | ATL | GB | Julio carved up GB for 9/180/2 in the playoffs last year. |
2 | Antonio Brown | PIT | MIN | Downgrade AB because of matchup at your own peril. He's impervious. |
3 | Jordy Nelson | GB | @ATL | No better bet for a receiving TD in the entire league. |
4 | Michael Thomas | NO | NE | NE secondary got carved up by Tyreek Hill. Thomas at home is a lock. |
5 | Amari Cooper | OAK | NYJ | Should've had an even bigger day if not for drops. No one on NYJ can cover him. |
6 | Brandin Cooks | NE | @NO | Cooks returns to the turf dome to face an atrocious NO secondary. |
7 | A.J. Green | CIN | HOU | HOU usually limits WR1s, but Green exploded on TNF last year and CIN will have many opps. |
8 | Mike Evans | TB | CHI | Like HOU, CHI is very good at limiting WR1s. Still, Evans is a target hog and a TD machine. |
9 | Odell Beckham Jr. | NYG | DET | Truly don't know what to expect coming off injury, but he gets a sweet matchup to start. |
10 | Larry Fitzgerald | ARI | @IND | Missed out on a huge day after dropping TD. Still went 6/74, now gets cupcake matchup. |
11 | Stefon Diggs | MIN | @PIT | Tougher matchup on the road, but Joe Haden hasn't been good in years. Diggs is the real deal. |
12 | Doug Baldwin | SEA | SF | SEA is a different team/offense at home, but their o-line can destroy an offense. Should be easier sledding vs. SF. |
13 | Chris Hogan | NE | @NO | Adam Thielen wrecked NO from slot on MNF. Now it's Hogan's turn. |
14 | Tyreek Hill | KC | PHI | 5 straight games with a 65+ yard TD. The league's premier big-play maker. |
15 | Michael Crabtree | OAK | NYJ | Cooper was the preferred end zone target vs. TEN, but Crab should get plenty of looks in a weak matchup. |
16 | Keenan Allen | LAC | MIA | Demanded huge target share and scored TD vs. tough DEN CBs. MIA a much easier time. |
17 | Dez Bryant | DAL | @DEN | Got erased by Janoris Jenkins (again), now gets another tough matchup, but should find more success after LAC did. |
18 | DeAndre Hopkins | HOU | @CIN | Volume and Deshaun Watson looking for him often have him high, but HOU is a trainwreck. I'd be uneasy about him. |
19 | Golden Tate | DET | @NYG | The Giants get eaten alive in the slot, where Tate has now found a home. |
20 | Demaryius Thomas | DEN | DAL | DAL CBs can be beaten and Thomas beat stellar LAC CBs for 5/67 in Week 1. |
21 | Randall Cobb | GB | @ATL | Cobb might be back. 9/85 vs. SEA last week. Went 6/82 vs. ATL last year in playoffs. |
22 | Cooper Kupp | LAC | WAS | Kupp may or may not be a real thing, but another easy matchup will benefit him. |
23 | Adam Thielen | MIN | @PIT | Can't play against NO every week, but Thielen's breakout continues vs. good but beatable PIT secondary. |
24 | Jeremy Maclin | BAL | CLE | Antonio Brown ate from the slot vs. CLE last week, now Maclin gets his turn. |
25 | John Brown | ARI | @IND | Brown played the second-most WR snaps for ARI in Week 1. He's going to get behind horrible IND secondary. |
26 | Terrelle Pryor | WAS | @LAR | 11 targets is very ecnouraging. Drops, missed connections and WAS offense looking terrible is not encouraging. |
27 | Alshon Jeffery | PHI | @KC | People are slowly starting to realize Jeffery isn't as good as many think. Trip to Arrowhead/Peters should amplify that. |
28 | Jarvis Landry | MIA | @LAC | Gets the best matchup against tough LAC secondary. Slot WR Bennie Fowler scored 2 TDs vs. them. |
29 | Rishard Matthews | TEN | @JAX | Still Mariota's favorite option at WR. Outlook is better if Ramsey misses game. |
30 | Sammy Watkins | LAR | WAS | Kupp a safer option but Watkins was still very involved in a Week 1 blowout. |
31 | Martavis Bryant | PIT | MIN | If he matches up with Rhodes often, could be another long day at the office. |
32 | Devante Parker | MIA | @LAC | Will face off vs. Hayward or Verrett, which means the Parker breakout could be delayed. |
33 | Kelvin Benjamin | CAR | BUF | CAR wants to run the ball early and often and melt away games. Not good news for Benjamin. |
34 | Davante Adams | GB | @ATL | Cobb looking healthy could spell doom for Adams. Looks like the 3rd option at WR, 4th on offense after Ty Mont. |
35 | Pierre Garcon | SF | @SEA | Brutal matchup, but his floor is incredibly enticing. He's going to get 10 targets every week. |
36 | T.Y. Hilton | IND | ARI | Maybe Brissett can find him more often than Tolzien. What a mess. |
37 | Corey Davis | TEN | @JAX | Looks almost fully healthy, but this is a tough matchup vs. Bouye/Ramsey. |
38 | Tyrell Williams | LAC | MIA | Played very well vs. tough DEN CBs and now gets a much easier matchup. Sneaky flex option. |
39 | Eric Decker | TEN | @JAX | Decker has best matchup against JAX slot CB, but he looked slow and out of sync in Week 1. |
40 | Jamison Crowder | WAS | @LAR | WAS offense looks dreadful, but Crowder might have the best individual matchup in passing game. |
41 | Emmanuel Sanders | DEN | DAL | Was an afterthought in Week 1. Easier sledding vs. DAL this week, but concerning. |
42 | Marqise Lee | JAX | TEN | Someone has to catch passes right? Lee was very solid last season, but couldn't corral a pass in Week 1. |
43 | Kenny Golladay | DET | @NYG | "Babytron" will follow his breakout game against one of the toughest secondaries in league. Keep him on your bench. |
44 | Jordan Matthews | BUF | @CAR | Zay Jones isn't a thing. Matthews will start racking up catches as he gets into rhythm with Tyrod. |
45 | Nelson Agholor | PHI | @KC | Looks good (weird I know), but a trip to Arrowhead could hurt the entire offense. |
46 | Kendall Wright | CHI | @TB | Wright is the Bears' only wide receiver and I'm not even joking. |
47 | Corey Coleman | CLE | @BAL | The bets bet for WR production on CLE, though BAL secondary is imposing. |
48 | Allen Hurns | JAX | TEN | TEN secondary can be beaten, but will Bortles even throw the ball downfield? |
49 | Paul Richardson | SEA | SF | I like his big-play ability vs. burnable SF secondary. |
50 | DeSean Jackson | TB | CHI | No idea what to expect from him, but he's still D-Jax. |