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The weather is getting slightly chillier — at least in the East — and the beginning of September is already upon us, which means one thing: meaningful games in the NFL are finally here. We’re all counting down the days until the first game of the season, but while you're twiddling your thumbs waiting for next Thursday’s game to kick off, take some time to check out all the fantasy football content all of the fantastic writers at FakeTeams.com are putting out this season.
I personally will be contributing a weekly WR rankings piece — along with DFS content — to help those that get their adrenaline going by playing fantasy football. Back in early August, a few of us on the site ranked the top 75 WRs in fantasy football (which you can check out here) that I will be using to update each week during the upcoming campaign. There’s also a fantasy football draft guide that was created for everyone to use for FREE on the site to help those that may be overwhelmed with everything. With all of that information now out of the way, let’s dive into my updated wide receiver rankings in the week before Week 1 of the 2021 season.
WR Rankings Week 1
| NAME | PREVIOUS RANK | NEW RANK |
|---|---|---|
| NAME | PREVIOUS RANK | NEW RANK |
| Davante Adams | 1 | 1 |
| Tyreek Hill | 2 | 2 |
| Stefon Diggs | 3 | 3 |
| DeAndre Hopkins | 4 | 4 |
| Calvin Ridley | 5 | 5 |
| A.J. Brown | 6 | 6 |
| D.K. Metcalf | 7 | 7 |
| Allen Robinson | 8 | 8 |
| Justin Jefferson | 9 | 9 |
| Keenan Allen | 10 | 10 |
| Terry McLaurin | 11 | 11 |
| Mike Evans | 12 | 14 |
| Robert Woods | 13 | 12 |
| CeeDee Lamb | 14 | 13 |
| Chris Godwin | 15 | 17 |
| Amari Cooper | 16 | 16 |
| D.J. Moore | 17 | 15 |
| Julio Jones | 18 | 22 |
| Cooper Kupp | 19 | 18 |
| Tyler Lockett | 20 | 19 |
| Diontae Johnson | 21 | 21 |
| Adam Thielen | 22 | 20 |
| Kenny Golladay | 23 | 23 |
| Brandon Aiyuk | 24 | 24 |
| Tee Higgins | 25 | 27 |
| Deebo Samuel | 26 | 29 |
| JuJu Smith-Schuster | 27 | 25 |
| Odell Beckham Jr. | 28 | 35 |
| Ja'Marr Chase | 29 | 44 |
| Jerry Jeudy | 30 | 26 |
| Courtland Sutton | 31 | 28 |
| Chase Claypool | 32 | 30 |
| D.J. Chark | 33 | 31 |
| Robby Anderson | 34 | 32 |
| Brandin Cooks | 35 | 36 |
| Tyler Boyd | 36 | 33 |
| Jarvis Landry | 37 | 34 |
| Michael Gallup | 38 | 40 |
| Will Fuller | 39 | 43 |
| Laviska Shenault | 40 | 37 |
| Antonio Brown | 41 | 38 |
| Mike Williams | 42 | 45 |
| Curtis Samuel | 43 | 47 |
| DeVonta Smith | 44 | 46 |
| Michael Thomas | 45 | 52 |
| Marvin Jones Jr. | 46 | 41 |
| DeVante Parker | 47 | 48 |
| Jaylen Waddle | 48 | 50 |
| Darnell Mooney | 49 | 51 |
| Corey Davis | 50 | 39 |
| Michael Pittman Jr. | 51 | 42 |
| Marquise Brown | 52 | 53 |
| T.Y. Hilton | 53 | 68 |
| Mecole Hardman | 54 | 54 |
| Henry Ruggs | 55 | 61 |
| Nelson Agholor | 56 | 59 |
| Russell Gage | 57 | 58 |
| Sterling Shepard | 58 | 55 |
| Cole Beasley | 59 | 64 |
| Christian Kirk | 60 | 60 |
| Elijah Moore | 61 | 57 |
| Jalen Reagor | 63 | 69 |
| Tre'Quan Smith | 65 | 66 |
| Jamison Crowder | 66 | 63 |
| Gabriel Davis | 68 | 62 |
| Parris Campbell | 69 | 65 |
| Emmanuel Sanders | 70 | 70 |
| Jakobi Meyers | 71 | 56 |
| Bryan Edwards | 72 | 67 |
| A.J. Green | 73 | 75 |
| Rondale Moore | 75 | 73 |
| Randall Cobb | 77 | 72 |
| Amon-Ra St. Brown | 78 | 71 |
| Terrace Marshall Jr. | 82 | 74 |
| Marquez Callaway | 97 | 49 |
Notable Omissions (Previous Rank):
John Brown (62), Rashod Bateman (64), Breshad Perriman (67), Darius Slayton (74)
Notable Additions (Previous Rank):
Randall Cobb (77), Amon-Ra St. Brown (78), Terrace Marshall Jr. (82), Marquez Callaway (97)
Biggest movers (Increase or Decrease From Previous Rank):
- Marquez Callaway (+48)
- Ja’Marr Chase (-15)
- Jakobi Meyers (+15)
- Corey Davis (+11)
- Michael Pittman Jr. (+9)
Notes:
- Marquez Callaway is now the No. 1 WR on the New Orleans Saints with Michael Thomas sidelined for at least six weeks. Plus, with Jameis Winston named the starter over Taysom Hill, Callaway is in a prime position to be a massive value in drafts still.
- I’ve lowered my expectations on the Cincinnati Bengals’ passing attack with Joe Burrow still needing time to adjust to his return from a serious knee ailment. Ja’Marr Chase is my biggest faller, as he could struggle in his rookie season. Tyler Boyd benefits the most from the quick passing game.
- Mac Jones being announced the starter of the New England Patriots could lead to more passing opportunities for the WRs and TEs in Foxborough. Jakobi Meyers is regarded as the No. 1 wideout on the Patriots and could very well emerge as Jones’ favorite target.
- Corey Davis has become one of my favorite late-round picks at the WR position. The New York Jets handed him a lucrative contract for a reason and rookie Zach Wilson seems to favor the former first-round pick thus far. I’m also a fan of Elijah Moore and Jamison Crowder at their current ADPs.
- Injuries to T.Y. Hilton, Rashod Bateman, and others have caused me to lower their rankings. Michael Pittman Jr. and Parris Campbell saw an increase in their rankings while the Baltimore Ravens are experiencing a multitude of injuries within their receiving corps.
- Some WRs were surprisingly released recently, causing them to be removed from my top 75 rankings. Amon-Ra St. Brown and Bryan Edwards are guys who could benefit from their teams releasing notable names (a la Breshad Perriman and John Brown).