← The Herd with Colin Cowherd
The Herd with Colin Cowherd
FantasyPros - Week 2 Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Rankings & Tiers: Studs, Sleepers, and Must-Starts (Ep. 1698)
00:39:01
Loading summary
Transcript118 lines
- [00:00]
Pat Fitzmaurice
This is an I Heart podcast.
- [00:05]
Honey German
Hi, it's Honey German and I'm back with season two of my podcast. Gracias. Come again. We got you when it comes to the latest in music and entertainment with interviews with some of your favorite Latin artists and celebrities. You didn't have to audition.
- [00:17]
Chris Welsh
No, I didn't audition.
- [00:18]
Andrew Erickson
I haven't auditioned like over 25 years.
- [00:21]
Honey German
Oh, wow. That's a real G talk right there.
- [00:23]
Chris Welsh
Oh, yeah.
- [00:24]
Honey German
We'll talk about all that's viral and trending with a little bit of Cheeseman and a whole lot of laughs. And of course, the great beavers you've come to expect. Listen to the new season of Dashes. Come again on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.
- [00:42]
Chris Welsh
What's up, friends and welcome into Fantasy Pros. This is the Fantasy Football podcast. I'm Chris Welsh and we have got ranks for week two, week one in the books. And joining me for the week two rank show, of course, is Pat Fitzmaurice, Andrew Erickson. Both might be making appearances when we talk about the accuracy contest because yes, we do have a weekly accuracy contest that we put out there every single week and into the season long stuff. We talked about it in the last episode, Fitzy, where you did quite good in I believe it was draft. No, I think it was in season. You're always an in season killer. You kind of did it again today, which we're going to talk about in just a second. So how we feeling for week two?
- [01:20]
Andrew Erickson
Good.
- [01:21]
Pat Fitzmaurice
I'm ready to overreact to a lot of things that happened in week one and just assume that it's all going to continue apace and that everything is going to repeat. So let's go from there. No, I'm just kidding. This is always kind of an important show, I think, because trying to figure out what might be an overreaction and what, you know, we probably shouldn't underreact to. So yeah, they're going to be some fiery takes coming.
- [01:48]
Chris Welsh
Ericsson, if we weren't overreacting, did we really even have a weak one? You know what I'm saying?
- [01:52]
Andrew Erickson
No, it's a good point to bring up because I think that a lot of what I've absorbed from the media is, you know, we're overreacting to this, we're overreacting to that. Well, it's like we have to react to some things and now is it becoming advantageous to almost react too much when maybe we're not reacting enough to some of these teams. And really what I'm most interested is who is this year's New Orleans Saints right where you saw in the last, the first two weeks of last year's come out? Is this the, like the, the newest, the greatest show on turf with Derek Carr and Clint Kubiak in this offense, they killed the Panthers in week one and then they played Dallas and then killed Dallas in week two. Then obviously things just fell way. Things got way off the rails. So is there another team like that? Is that the Steelers, is that the jets like, like teams like this that really blew up in week one? Is it here to stay? And are the Miami Dolphins as bad as they looked in week one as well? We're going to all break it down.
- [02:42]
Chris Welsh
Yeah, well, the answer is yes to the last one. But in this episode we're going to be breaking down our wide receiver ranks. We've got the three tiers. Wide receiver 1 through 12, 13 through 24. You get it. We're going to be picking out some of the big names, a lot of wide receiver stuff from big names and some potential overreactions to some players vaulting up in value. Hopefully we'll be answering your week two questions as far as wide receiver goes. But first let's do take a look at the accuracy ranked contest in week one. Give a shout out to the top three rankers out there. Matthew Mutchler from Fantasy Sports Advice Network finished number one, I believe was like number one in quarterback and two in running back or flip it just really good in that area. That's really hard to do in the ranks context contest. Nick Mariano from Roto Baller was number two and Kyle Senra from Going for two was number three. Those are your top three. But gentlemen, you guys know where I'm going this the two guys here on the show, not me, finished killer this week. Fitz, you were top 10. You finished ninth in the ranks contest. Let's start with that. What do you think got you there? I mean that's a ridiculous out the gates run, finishing inside the top 10. As soon as I saw it, I was like, yeah, of course this happened. You killed it again, my friend.
- [04:00]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Oh, thanks, Walsh. I really didn't pay that much attention to the ranks this week. The one thing I was kind of dwelling on was the fact that I ranked A.J. brown ahead of Pukinakua this week. And I kept thinking about that and thinking that I probably didn't have that good a week, but I must have, I don't know, maybe I got some other things right. But that Felt like a pretty bad miss at the top of the wide receiver rankings.
- [04:23]
Chris Welsh
I'm like, Fitz, you were so amazing. What are all the good things you're like, I don't know. I didn't pay attention. That's just how good you are. Okay, Erickson, you're not going to be left behind, though. You finished 13th. So we had two top 15 finishes from the guys on this show. Erickson, did anything stand out as, you know, that player that maybe vaulted you into it that you had put really high that you hit, or you could also say you didn't pay attention. And you, you. You're only focused on a negative like the AJ Brown one.
- [04:50]
Andrew Erickson
No, I wasn't as focused on the AJ Brown one because that was the one that everybody essentially got wrong. It. I was really more focused on just the jets and Steelers game, like, just that being like the total opposite of what I thought and continually moving jets players down. Pretty sure I told someone on Reddit to start Jerome Ford over Breeze Hall. So, yeah, I did not feel great about that. So that was the biggest negative and miss from my rankings. But Keenan Allen, he was a big hit. I mean, he was outside the top sick. He was like, way buried in ECR rankings. We talked about him. This guy should be in the top 36. And he finished, I believe, as a top 10 wide receiver on the week. I think he was wide receiver nine and a half ppr because he scored the touchdown. So I felt good about that. And I did have Daniel Jones pretty high up in the quarterback rankings and I think that he was QB1 on the week. So it's like, that was another one that we didn't talk about. Daniel Jones is because you weren't playing him. But in some of these two quarterback leagues, if you look at my rankings, like, hey, like, Daniel Jones ended up pulling out a massive win for you. So those are the hits. But I'm definitely more. I was definitely thinking about the jets, the jets game, and just being really wrong about that. And the thing with that particular game was. And they even talked about it, Fields. I was under the impression that the Steelers would know Fields. Like, hey, they know this quarterback. They're going to be able to stop him. But Fields said in the production meeting after, like rewatching that game in the broadcast, they talked about it, how Fields knew the Steelers and what they were going to do. And when I think about it in retrospect, I'm like, man, this makes so much sense. Like, Rogers knew what the jets were going to do defensively because he knows that personnel, he shredded them and that's why Justin Fields shredded the Jets. So yeah, I just looked at it on the complete wrong angle and it was a shootout waiting to happen.
- [06:28]
Chris Welsh
Quarterback revenge narratives put that in the bucket and we'll come back to that at a different time. You guys want to check out the ranks weekly fantasypros.com rankings you can. We'll be referencing that in this show, but you want to go and check out how these two guys do, make sure you're there and everybody else. Congrats to the people in the top three. Before we get to the wide receiver ranks, we got another wide receiver to talk about because this is your chance to win a signed ja' Marr Chase Bengals jersey for free courtesy of our friends@pristineauction.com here's all you got to do. Go to fantasypros.com contest. There's a little form. Do that and then either download the Fantasy Pros app, leave a review for the podcast, follow us on x Instagram or TikTok at fantasypros. And guess what? You do all those things because the more actions you complete, the more entries you will receive. We'll be announcing a winner on the podcast near the beginning of next month, so if you're watching on YouTube, be sure to subscribe and turn on notifications so you can be alerted when new episodes are up. And to claim that prize, the Jamar Chase autographed jersey. What a way to come out swinging. Let's come out swinging for week two. Here is our top 12 board. Gentlemen, it looks like aforementioned Jamar Chase coming in at number one this week in the consensus ECR ranks CD Lamb at two, Justin Jefferson at three. Malik Neighbors, Brian Thomas. That fills out your top five. Nico Collins, Puka Nakua, Amonra St. Brown Lad Makaki Jackson, Smith in Jigba, Garrett Wilson and Marvin Harrison. Those are your wide receiver ones for the week. Your top 12. I wanted to throw this one as a quick aside because I think in any ranks show that we do the top 12 kind of like, you know, like what's the conversation? They're all starters. We're not putting narratives out there. Da da da. The rank differences are kind of fun. I just wanted to hit you guys with this lot of negative Nico Collins discourse out there. There's multiple wide receiver ones that failed this past week. Nico Collins, Brian Thomas, even Brian Thomas Saving touchdown, obviously. A.J. brown there. There seemed to be something really negative in the streets about Nico. People wanting to kind of come off of him in the ranks ECR6. Both of you guys are higher on him this week. So Fitz, just to you don't have to go crazy into this because obviously like people are going to be starting Nico Collins. But just curious like your level of worry, I know it's relatively minimal because you have him higher, but just talk to us about Nico Collins and the people that are fear mongering him.
- [08:51]
Pat Fitzmaurice
I'm putting this one in the stuff happens category. Like no concerns about Nico's target share his talent. My only real concern with the Houston passing game is the offensive line, but the Texans had that problem last year too and Nico smashed whenever he was healthy. Maybe people are a little alarmed because like what's kind of wild about that game for Nico is that the Rams were sometimes covering him with Emmanuel Forbes, the former first round pick of the Washington Commanders who did not pan out at all for the Commanders. So may maybe that's a little worrisome but in the grand scheme of things I'm not concerned.
- [09:29]
Chris Welsh
Erickson. You don't seem to be. You got them three, you got them really high this week. So you think this is a bounce back. I almost kind of wanted to ask you and I know at the end of the day it's probably going to be like neither but if you were more worried about Nico or Brian Thomas after the week and that is probably answer neither. But Nico definitely you're not worried about this week as he is three on your wide receiver ranks.
- [09:48]
Andrew Erickson
Yeah, I think that this is a good bounce spot for him. They're playing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. We know that this is a classic pass funnel defense and again when Nick chubb is your RB1, you're going to have to attack the Buccaneers defense through the air. We saw the Falcons with Bijan Robinson have the league the week's worst rushing success rate among all running backs. BJ Robinson the 101 in almost all of our fantasy drafts he was the worst running back on a per rush basis from a success rate against the Buccaneers defense. So they're going to have to sling it. Nico Collins against this blitz heavy Todd Bulls defense. What does that mean? Big plays. Because if they sell out for the blitz, he's on man to man coverage. He's a monster after the catch. And C.J. stroud again, he's always under pressure but he still shows that he stands in the pocket and he delivers throws. So yeah Stroud, strap in baby. It's going to be a long day at the office. You're going to take some hits, but I think Stroud is a warrior. In the last time Stroud played a Todd Bowles defense as a rookie, guys, he threw for 470 yards and five touchdowns. That's a rookie. So he's been able to have massive games against this defense. It's very boom or bust. We know Nico Collins can have monster big games. I think that he bounces back in a big way in week two.
- [10:59]
Chris Welsh
Another wide receiver. You were mentioning the jets and your fear, Erickson, and you said, let's do it again. Let's not get him in there. Garrett Wilson is ECR wide receiver 11. So that's a starting wide receiver. Fitzy, you're like slightly down. You. You don't really even count in this. You're like, team Garrett Wilson, you get to own him because you have him at 12. You have receiver one. Erickson was like, man, the jets players, they all were just so good, even though I thought they'd be bad. Let's do that again. 15, you are not like out necessarily on Garrett Wilson, but you're not close to consensus on on the rank. So what's going to change this week for you and is it just still like the same fears on Fields that like last week was more of a mirage and things are going to come back down to earth this week?
- [11:43]
Andrew Erickson
I think that maybe they'll come back to earth a little bit. I mean, I'm not out again. I'm only a couple spots of ecr and really it's just because I'm expecting players. I have T. Higgins right ahead of Garrett Wilson. I just don't think that the T. Higgins thing is just going to bomb for two weeks in a row. I don't think the Bengals offense is going to bomb for two weeks in a row because they're not playing the Cleveland Browns. So just because some of the other guys around him. But again, it moved him up significantly from where he was ranked last week for me, which is obviously way too low. So again, I think it's a plus matchup here against Buffalo. Their secondary is really banged up. We obviously saw the Ravens take full advantage of that and Garrett Wilson is the alpha in the jets passing game. So again, the only thing that I would say is the jets can't sneak up on the Bills like maybe they did with the Steelers with their offense. Now, at least Buffalo, okay, at least they kind of know what is coming.
- [12:27]
Chris Welsh
A little bit more.
- [12:28]
Andrew Erickson
So maybe it's not as an explosive effort from this Fields in passing game against the Bills, but I like what I saw with Garrett Wilson. And he's definitely someone you're going to be starting.
- [12:37]
Chris Welsh
Fitz, you got him as wide receiver one. With what you saw out of Fields in week one, is it just giving you just a little bit more breathing room and feeling like that Garrett Wilson can tap into his upside?
- [12:47]
Pat Fitzmaurice
I mean, I don't know that week one really changed my draft season stance on Wilson. Just a good receiver who is going to have a huge target share in a low volume passing attack. And you know, we saw Justin Fields have 22 pass attempts and nine targets for Garrett Wilson, 41% target share. So, you know, and occasionally because he is so much better than any other pass catcher on this roster. Like the jets, second best receiver is probably the fifth best receiver on most other rosters. Occasionally Garrett Wilson is going to draw shadow coverage from top cornerbacks. So it might be kind of a boom or bust profile. And he boomed in Week 1. Maybe booms again in Week 2. Jets might need to throw more than 22 times to keep up with the Bills. So Yeah, back end wide receiver 1.
- [13:36]
Chris Welsh
Second best pass catcher is a running back, not even a wide receiver. So. All right, let's go take a look at your wide receiver twos. These are wide receivers 13 through 24. And this is the meat of the episode, friends. We start with Drake London at 13. Probably a lot built around that shoulder right now. AJ Brown drops to 14, T. Higgins, Mike Evans, Cortland Sutton, DK Metcalf at 18, Devonte Adams at 19, Ameka Egbuca at 20, Zay Flowers, Tetaroa McMillan, Terry McLaurin and Ricky Pierasol at 24. So we got a lot of guys to cover in here. So let's get to A.J. brown. Kind of the elephant in the room here. ECR14 and you guys are both back in. You've got him higher. Fitzy, let's why don't we let you kick it off here? You're the highest. You put him at wide receiver nine this week, so the expectation is a big bounce back. Erickson has got him at 11, so you guys both pushed him as wide receiver ones. Let's hear the jump back into his wide receiver one after a huge disappointing week one.
- [14:31]
Pat Fitzmaurice
There's a user in the fantasy pros discord who asked me about a trade offer he received. He was offered A.J. brown and Bucky Irving for Jamar Chase and we both agreed he should take it. Like A.J. brown had almost 1500 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2022. He had 106 catches and almost 1500 yards and seven touchdowns. In 2023 and last year he had 1056 yards and seven touchdowns in 13 games for the run. Heaviest team in the league. There is not that big a production gap between Ja' Marr Chase and A.J. brown and a legitimate RB one like Bucky Irving more than bridges that gap. So yeah, it was weird that AJ Brown had one target in Week one. Jalen Hurts did a lot of scrambling and a lot of checking down in Dallas Goddard, but I'm not terribly worried this week. The Eagles go up against the Chiefs who have a top run defense. We saw the Chargers go really pass heavy against Kansas City in Week one. I guess the only slight concern I have with AJ Brown is this. Like what if new Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Pattillo is a major downgrade from Kellen Moore who was the Eagles OC last year before he left to take the Saints head coaching job? If that's the case, maybe we get disappointing seasons from some of the Eagles skill players, but I'm not worrying about that after one week.
- [15:51]
Chris Welsh
Yeah, and Erickson, when you look at the rank, A.J. brown didn't move to a spot where anyone's going to probably find justifiable benches. You know what I mean? Like when you start to get to wide receiver like 18, 19, 20, I think you start to get clumped where someone might be like, you know, should I do this or this? Like the confidence is still there. So it's a little bit of a side. You guys are just committing to being higher than what the expert consensus what the, you know, the talk around town is for A.J. brown. You just feel confident he can get back to where he was before.
- [16:19]
Andrew Erickson
Yeah, I think that A.J. brown is probably set up for a bounce back effort here. Again, he has really nowhere else to go but up after basically only seeing one target. I do echo some of the concerns that Fitz brought up with the potential downgrade with the offensive play caller. And I think against the Kansas City Chiefs, I wouldn't actually be surprised if devonte Smith actually has the bigger bounce back game between the two Eagles wide receivers you look at. Historically, Smith has cooked the Kansas City Chiefs defense. I remember writing about this in some of the betting primers we did for the super bowl this past year. Devonte Smith had a big game in the Super Bowl. 69 receiving yards, four career games against the Chiefs defense. Devonte Smith 99 yards, 100 yards, 122 yards and 69 yards in this past Super Bowl. So Smith actually might have the bigger game again. He was also not coming off a monster game himself not as involved as Dallas Goddard, even the running backs, Saquon Barkley in the passing game. So yes, I think Brown can improve here. But as I'm looking at this rank, I know we mentioned Garrett Wilson before. I think I probably need to make some adjustments moving Wilson ahead of A.J. brown just because, hey, I think there maybe is just some slight concerns with, hey, a brand new play caller coming out and doesn't target his alpha wide receiver one. And you have to remember AJ Brown missed so much time in the off season with this hamstring injury. Now this kind of happened last year with Mark Andrews where we had this injury that wasn't really reported or talked about and then we saw him just be a ghost for almost half the season before turning on the second half. So if AJ Brown starts out again and maybe takes a backseat to devontae Smith against this chief's defense, I maybe I wouldn't be super, super surprised.
- [17:56]
Honey German
Hola, it's Honey German and my podcast, Gracias Come Again is back. This season we're going even deeper into the world of music and entertainment with raw and honest conversations with some of your favorite Latin artists and celebrities. You didn't have to audition.
- [18:09]
Chris Welsh
No, I didn't audition. I haven't auditioned like over 25 years.
- [18:13]
Honey German
Oh wow. That's a real G talk right there.
- [18:15]
Chris Welsh
Oh yeah.
- [18:16]
Honey German
We've got some of the biggest actors, musicians, content creators and culture shifters sharing their real stories of failure and success. You were destined to be a star. We talk all about what's viral and trending with a little bit of Cheeseman, a lot of laughs and those amazing Vivras you've come to expect. And of course we'll explore deeper topics dealing with identity struggles and all the issues affecting our Latin community. You feel like you get a little whitewashed because you have to do the code switching.
- [18:47]
Chris Welsh
I won't say whitewash because at the end of the day, you know, I'm me. Yeah, but the whole pretending and co, you know, it takes a toll on you.
- [18:53]
Honey German
Listen to the new Season of Grass has come again as part of Michael Tura Podcast Network on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast or wherever you get your podcast.
- [19:03]
Chris Welsh
I'm Dan, he's Ty. Hello. And we're the Solid Verbal College Football Podcast.
- [19:08]
Andrew Erickson
College football season is here and you know what that means.
- [19:14]
Chris Welsh
Your team is going to break your heart three times probably before Halloween. Uh huh. But fear not, the Solid Verbal will be right there with you through every soul crushing loss and impossible comeback. Join us all season long, all year long, as we ride the rollercoaster of this ridiculous sport.
- [19:33]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Whether you're a die hard fan or a casual observer, we'll help you make sense of all the chaos and of course, celebrate the madness. Tune in for previews, recaps, bits you.
- [19:44]
Chris Welsh
Won'T hear anywhere else, and all the.
- [19:46]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Emotional support you need as a college football fan.
- [19:49]
Chris Welsh
We don't just love college football, Ty, we live it.
- [19:54]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Listen to the solid verbal college football podcasts on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
- [20:03]
Chris Welsh
What's up everybody? Daniel Jeremiah here and I'm Bucky Brooks On Move the Sticks. We take you inside the game. From scouting reports and player development to team building philosophies, coaching trends and how front offices construct winning rosters. Every week we study the tape, talk to decision makers and share the insights you won't find anywhere else. It's the kind of conversation that connects the dots. From college football prospects to the NFL stars of tomorrow, we break down the draft, analyze matchups and evaluate how teams put it all together on game day. Plus, we dig in the coaching strategies, roster construction, and the trends that shape the league year after year. Whether you're a die hard fan or just love understanding the game on a deeper level, we give you the full picture. If you want insight that goes beyond the box score, this podcast is for you. Don't miss it. Listen to the Move the Six podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. DK Metcalf returns to Seattle. So we have got some we got some revenge game narrative going on here and he's also ECR wide receiver number 18 you2 are both lower. Fitz, you particularly are lower. So he comes in as like a mid wide receiver too. You have him outside of wide receiver too. You have met number 25 so seven spots difference. Erickson's got him a little bit higher, but just the general statement is you guys both have them lower. So what's got you down on DK Metcalf returning to Seattle?
- [21:31]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Yeah, I mean I sort of understand the appeal with him. Like DK had a pretty good game against the jets in Week 1. Four catches for 83 hours and a touchdown on seven targets even at a big game on a a big gain on a wide receiver screen, which was kind of cool. We haven't seen a lot of that type of usage for Metcalf in the past and DK does have the revenge narrative going for him this week against the Seahawks. But Seattle's cornerbacks are pretty good. They've got Devon Witherspoon and Reek Woollen. And look, we thought Drake London was going to be awash in targets two years ago when Arthur Smith was the Falcons head coach and Drake London was the only good receiver on the Atlanta roster. London averaged 6.9 targets a game that year and finished with 905 yards and two touchdowns. I think a lot of people are betting on safe target volume for DK Metcalf this year. I'm not so sure that's a safe bet.
- [22:24]
Chris Welsh
Yeah, I don't know if any passing game with the Steelers feels safe, so I don't disagree with you, Erickson. What do you think? You're. You're higher than Fitz, you're lower than consensus. But you do have him as a wide receiver too. I think he was like the number two yards after the catch wide receiver in Week one, a bunch of plays off of his legs. And Rogers did find some level of comfort here. What do you think about DK Metcalf this week?
- [22:45]
Andrew Erickson
Yeah, Metcalf, that was a fun sweat betting the under on his receptions because it cashed. He did finish under four and a half, but he went for over 80 receiving yards, which is not necessarily a something. But we talk about this on the betting show where it's like, hey, do you want to bet the yards? You want to bet the catches? And this one ended up working out betting the under on the receptions. Although he did have a drop in this game, I think that the usage for him being more of an underneath type of target, was very different from what we've seen from him in Seattle where he was really used as a down the field big X receiver and I think that makes him really interesting in this matchup. And I'm bringing up a point that I made earlier with the jets and how some of their players, the offensive players, knew the defense. Metcalf knows about this defense. So am I going to fade the revenge game narrative when we just saw it work out for this exact team with the quarterback and Aaron Rodgers? I don't think so. So I that's why I moved Metcap off in my rankings originally. I had him closer to where I had him ranked last week, which was outside the top 30. I'm more optimistic about him now as a wide receiver to net, not as high as ecr, closer to ecr. But I think that the narrative is going to be like, hey, we want to get DK Metcalf a touchdown. I mean, Aaron Rodgers threw four touchdowns last week and none went to dk, which was kind of weird because that's where you assume that's where he would see his biggest role. So the fact that he spent last year with Seattle, I think that's going to help the Steelers passing game. He can provide some intel for Rodgers, for Arthur Smith to scheme up a game plan that's going to be effective against some of these corners. So yes, they are talented, but so is DK Metcalfe and he's a monster with the ball in his hands. And if they're doing that giving him layup touches and targets close to the line of scrimmage, like you could see him running for a lot of yards.
- [24:22]
Chris Welsh
And in Homecoming, another really talented wide receiver, especially out of week one was a mecca. Igbuka, he looked awesome and shout out to Debro. Debro was really high ranked on him. We were doing the Sunday stream and people were asking questions and just all in. And it looks like we kind of might need to be considering to be all in. He is wide receiver 20 this week. I mean, four spots off from Mike Evans. The ranks are pretty interesting. Erickson, you are right on consensus. Fitz, you're a little bit lower. We'll go to you in a second. But talk to us about the positive narrative Ericsson on a Mechag booker this week again and why he can continue to thrive.
- [24:58]
Andrew Erickson
Well, I think the thing with Houston and I noticed this was they were having Derek Stingley match up a lot with Devonte Adams in that first matchup. So when you look at, okay, we have a perimeter cornerback, who are we going to match him up against with Tampa Bay? It's probably Mike Evans. Like, this is what Mike Evans usually does. He always draws the opponent's number one cornerback. And what does that mean for Mika AG Buka? The dude's just going to eat again. Like, that's just what he's going to do. He's just going to feast. He's going to get favorable looks against the lesser cornerbacks on the Houston Texans. It doesn't mean that he's never going to draw any type of coverage from Stingley, but Stingley's legit and if Baker Mayfield knows that, yes, Mike Evans will get his opportunities. But Mike Evans is entering this matchup with a more Boomer breast profile where Egbuca again, as good as he was last week, he only had six targets. Like there's room for that to grow, especially when you lead the team in routes run. I mean, he's an absolute stud. He lines up all over the field he lines up at wide, lines at slot. And Baker Mayfield loves him. Everyone in the Buccaneers loves him. So you just got to keep starting him.
- [25:55]
Chris Welsh
So if it's. You have a little bit left. Less optimism at least as far as your rank goes here. If you know you're doing like a two wide receiver league, your ranks are pretty much being like he's not a starter this week where the ECR would have him. I kind of agree with the like Stingley idea here, but again, I don't want to paint it like you hate him or anything like that. But what, what's got the like negative rank? Is it more about you? Just the love of these other players or the uncertainty of the week to week role?
- [26:19]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Yeah, I mean I love the player. I Buca is going to be a really good NFL receiver. I think we know that. I'm just not quite ready to put him in the top 20. Really nice debut with the two touchdowns. But you know, as Erickson pointed out, only six targets. The target volume was just okay, 18.8 target chair. So, you know, like if he had fired out with like 14 targets, I might feel a little bit more strongly. So I want to be a little cautious for now. By the way, just for the record, that Seahawks Steelers game is in Pittsburgh, so DK does not get to go back to Pike Place market before the game. But that might be good. He won't get fish slime on his hands.
- [26:54]
Chris Welsh
Oh yeah. Did I say returns to Seattle? Yeah, I think I.
- [26:59]
Andrew Erickson
Said coming.
- [27:01]
Chris Welsh
Yeah, I may have said like he returns to. I meant has he played Seattle. But you can be fine.
- [27:05]
Andrew Erickson
Will not be the homecoming queen this year.
- [27:08]
Chris Welsh
All right, this guy, this last guy in this range here is I think is probably one of the most polarizing players this week because there's a lot of narrative built around him. It's Ricky Pierasol, ECR wide receiver, 24. And there's a lot of reasons behind it. Obviously the quarterback play. Will Brock Purdy play or not? Not even sure if that matters as much. And not that Mac Jones is good, but he'll slang it. We saw what he did with Brian Thomas last Juwan Jennings. That is a bigger question that could put him out there. So you compare those and you know, Fitz and I and Offline had kind of talked about like, you know, whether those two play could really be dependent on the rank. But then on the other side of it, you have a horrifically bad Saints team and you've got a projection God. And Ricky Pearsall. Ricky Pearsall is number three receiving on PFF's projections for the week. So you've got all these things that are coinciding. There's a lot of questions. There's a lot of thought after optimism, except when it comes to YouTube. Wide receiver 24. Fitz has got him at 31. Erickson, you've got him at 33. I get the concerns. Fitz, why don't we start with you? There's a lot of stuff. There's tons of questions about Pierasol. So if you want to lay it out, here's where he is. If this happens and that happens, feel free to it. But what do you think about Pearsall this week?
- [28:20]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Yeah, I mean, this is just sort of a placeholder ranking, and I guess I'm tentatively ranking him as if Brock Purdy will not play this week. Although maybe I shouldn't, like, if the 49ers have to start Mac Jones at quarterback. Like Brian Thomas Jr. Thrived with Mac Jones in Jacksonville last year. And the target volume should be pretty good for Pierce, all with no George Kittle. He is the hamstring injury, probably no Juwan Jennings, who's one of about 47 wide receivers who picked up a shoulder injury in week one. So, yeah, I may have to come up a little from wide receiver 31. I think you're probably playing Ricky Pierce all under almost any circumstances this week.
- [29:00]
Chris Welsh
Yeah, I think he's like, if you want to tie it to something. I think it's more tied personally to Juan Jennings being out there because Mack is going to sling the ball. That's not a good team that they're playing. Christian McCaffrey is going to go, but as you mentioned, there's no Kittle. There's none of that. That's the narrative I'm painting. Erickson, you hate him. 33, barely startable. Let's hear it.
- [29:19]
Andrew Erickson
I think that I'm just wrong. I think because I'm like looking at my notes trying to make paint the picture for why he should be outside the top 30. And I'm just drawing blanks because I can't really think of a good reason. So this is something that I'm gonna have to adjust. I think Fitz brings up a good point where we do have some ambiguity with, well, who the other receivers are going to be playing in this game, who's the quarterback going to be? And I can't get out of my mind that if Mac Jones starts this game again, they just gave the big contract to Brock puri. Do the 49ers really want to go out and make Mac Jones look really, really good. Like that's just about keeping the back of my mind. And I don't think that they want to do that. And we, we all know the Shanahan system. It's like he could probably go out there and throw for three touchdowns and 300 passing yards and then they'd be.
- [30:01]
Chris Welsh
Like, well, why they gave the contract to Brock Purdy?
- [30:04]
Andrew Erickson
Like I, I could see them trying to avoid that. It's like we're just gonna feed McCaffrey, like that's what we're gonna do. He's gonna score all the touchdowns. We're not gonna pad Mac Jones stats whatsoever. So I'm definitely big braining a little bit here, but it wouldn't shock me if they just don't have this massive passing output against the Saints. I think that Koolaid McKinstry is kind of an underrated cornerback, to be honest. I think that he kind of looked pretty good in some of his matchups when he was going up against Marvin Harrison Jr. In week one. I think that he's going to draw coverage with Ricky Pearsall, so I think that's something to kind of monitor. But that being said, outside the top 30, with just the optics and the targets, the opportunity he could see, especially just after a breakout game in Week one, picking up where he left off at the end of last year. So he's definitely going to be moving up the ranks.
- [30:47]
Chris Welsh
We are extremely excited to announce our new presenting sponsor, Hard Rock bet. Everybody knows and loves the Hard Rock hotels and casinos. And now you can use the top rated Hard Rock Bet sportsbook to place your bets all NFL season and beyond. Hard Rock Bet is the only legal sportsbook in the state of Florida. It's also available in my hometown, Arizona, Ohio, New Jersey, Indiana, Tennessee, Virginia, Illinois and Colorado, with more states launching all the time. You can also play on Hard Rock Bets online casino if you're in New Jersey. So as we gear up for the NFL season, sign up for Hard Rock Bet and make a $5 bet. You'll get $150 in bonus bets if you win. Head over to Hard Rock Bet now. Sign up and make your first deposit today.
- [31:32]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Payable and bonus bets. Not a cash offer. Offered by the Seminole Tribe of Florida in Florida. Offered by Seminole hard Rock Digital LLC in other states. Must be 21 and physically present in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey.
- [31:42]
Andrew Erickson
Ohio, Tennessee or Virginia to play.
- [31:44]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Terms and conditions apply. Concerned about gambling in Florida? Call 1888- admit-it in Indiana if you.
- [31:49]
Andrew Erickson
Or somebody you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-809 with it. Gambling problem.
- [31:53]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Call 1-800- gambler in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, in New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia.
- [31:58]
Chris Welsh
Gentlemen, our final wide receivers. These are wide receivers 25 through 36. We start with DJ Moore going up against Detroit, Devonte Smith, Tyree Kill. All the way down to 27. Travis Hunter, George Pickens, Jacoby Myers, Jameson Williams, Debo Hollywood Brown, Roma Dunze, Jerry Judy and Calvin Ridley. Some interesting ones in here. Maybe some guys undeserved. Tyreek Hill really falls. DJ Moore kind of tumbles down a bit. But let's talk about Jameson Williams. ECR 31. Some big expectations last week. Not quite there. You guys both have bigger expectations this week. Erickson, you are the highest wide receiver, 21. A 10 wide receiver spot difference. That is pretty dramatic. So talk to us about Jameson Williams and why you are bullish on him.
- [32:40]
Andrew Erickson
Well, the Lions are playing at Ford Field, which is the Coors Field of the NFL and they're going to score points this week. Guys, I think the Lions aren't as bad as what we saw in Week 1 against the Green Bay packers on the road. They're home in the Dome. I think that you're going to get a bounce back performance of the Lions overall. You just look at the total in that game. You look at the implied team totals. Lions are number two on the week. So Vegas is expecting them to score points. I'm expecting them to score points here. And how do they do that with their number one or number two, most explosive playmaker and Jameson Williams. The thing with Williams is he can win you your week and I want to have that offensive firepower in my lineup as a wide receiver. 3 Again, I'm ranking him as a wide receiver too, because I just don't think you should bench him. Like you need to have his upside in your lineup because of the weak winning upside he can deliver. Again, I don't think that taking away what the Lions offense looked like in Week one is necessarily going to help us because the packers were selling up to stop all explosive plays. It's why Jameer Gibbs had 10 targets. It's why Dave Montgomery was seeing multiple targets in the passing game. They were doing everything in their power to make sure that no, there's going to be no explosive downfield plays from this offense. I don't think that the Bears will have as much success with that with the Lions playing at home where they can, I think, dictate pace a little bit more offensively so I'm going to buy the dip on JMO Fitzy.
- [33:56]
Chris Welsh
You're there with it. You got him right at the end of your wide receiver twos. You're buying big weeks ahead.
- [34:01]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Yeah, I love Erickson's Coors Field comparison. So, like, what does that make Lambeau Field? Well, sure, baseball guy. What are the big pitchers perks? Seattle, Paul.
- [34:10]
Chris Welsh
Yeah. Great American ballpark. Now I'd be like the Reds. Great American ballpark. Yankees.
- [34:14]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Yeah. So that's. That's Lambeau Field. And we saw the Lions offense just have a shipwreck game against the packers in Green Bay. Nothing worked. There were no big plays. The Packers DBs kept everything in front of them. And the pass rush was getting to Jared Goff quickly. The Green Bay defense might end up being one of the best in the league. Like the. The sort of matchup that has us downgrading packers opponents in our rankings all season. I expect the Lions offense to get well this week at home against the Bears. Chicago's D played well for half of the Monday night game against the Vikings, then kind of fell apart in the second half. Bears cornerback Jalen Johnson didn't play in that game. He's been out with a groin injury that caused him to miss most of training camp. And Jalen Johnson is by far Chicago's best cornerback. If he's out, Goff is going to have a big day and Jamo is going to be part of it.
- [35:02]
Chris Welsh
Kind of back to what we said at the beginning of the show. You know, overreactions, they come in all different forms. And sometimes it can be like, I had this great guy that I drafted and he didn't have a great week, and now I don't know if I want to get him out there. And it's like that might be just too close to the overreaction train for a guy like Jameson Williams. Calvin Ridley comes in at ECR 36. Ericsson, you were pretty vocal about your concerns and you hit a bet on the under. Thank you. To his crucial and critical awful drop. That definitely got you there. Yeah.
- [35:34]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Woohoo.
- [35:34]
Chris Welsh
ECR36. You guys are both higher on him. Fitz, we'll start with you. You've got him at wide receiver 30, so you got him as like a mid wide receiver. Ericsson's even a little bit more bullish again. So, Fitzy, why don't you hit us with some Calvin Ridley real quick?
- [35:48]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Yeah, Ridley just had that brutal matchup against the Broncos with the best pass rush in the league in Denver. And also Patrick Certain Junior just a lockdown corner who was on Ridley for most of the game. I just think a wide receiver 36 ranking in ECR is an overreaction. I drafted Calvin Ridley in a lot of leagues and just kept him on the bench last week in leagues where I could afford to knowing it probably wasn't going to be a very good week. I too won a little bit of money betting the under on his receiving yardage. But I'm starting Ridley everywhere this week. His matchup against the Rams, like, not easy, but also not the skull and crossbones matchup that Ridley had last week against Denver.
- [36:28]
Chris Welsh
Yeah, Erickson, you've got him at wide receiver 26. I like Amanda. Looked like good. Look really good. Like a lot of good underlying stuff, but, you know, decent amount of that was about Ridley being taken out of the game. You think he's going to bounce back? In the world of big rank jumps, this is a 10 wide receiver jump between barely being a startable wide receiver 3 to him almost being a 2 for you. So you think we're going to have a complete turnaround for Ridley this week?
- [36:52]
Andrew Erickson
Yeah, because this is kind of where I was ranking him during draft season. I think this is kind of the area he was in. I just knew week one, it's like, guys like week one's not going to be good. Like, you have to keep this in mind when you draft Calvin Ridley. And we even talked about it in off season shows where it's like Calvin Ridley the best buy low after week one. So if you don't draft them, you just go trade for him for week two, because he's going to bomb in week one. And that's exactly what we saw. And to again, to his discredit, I would say he didn't help himself. I mean, he helped me make money with the Unders on the props. But him dropping passes and basically making Cam Ward's dad, you know, almost like, oh, no. Like, what's going on with this guy? That was, yeah, Cam Ward's dad. They panned him in the stadium when Calvin really dropped the ball and man was like so defeated. It's like, come on, you got to help.
- [37:33]
Chris Welsh
Went out to the stairs, held the railing, was like, oh.
- [37:38]
Andrew Erickson
Classic disappointed dad. Just like, oh, man. So we should get a better effort from Ridley. Yes, the Rams do have a fierce pass rush like we saw against the Houston Texans. However, I think the Titans offensive line, even though they're dealing with a JC Latham injury, still probably better than the Houston Texans. And look, Cam Ward's not afraid to just sling it and to stand in that pocket and just rip it. And I think that's going to give Ridley opportunities. And again, the Rams cornerbacks, I think, are still not that great. Even that pass rush, I think, hides some of their vulnerabilities in the secondary. They didn't get exposed against the Texans, who really only had Nico Collins, but I think that really is going to see enough volume. And again, he had a 28% target share. He played all the snaps, and He's a top 30 receiver in the projection. So even just median projections, I think that he's being undervalued outside the top 30 in ECR.
- [38:24]
Chris Welsh
All right, top 36 wide receivers in the books. Those are the names. You guys can check them out over@fantasypros.com rankings. But that leads us to our final thing. Who's a wide receiver that did not hit this? That absolutely should have. It makes you sick to your stomach or you just think they're going to finish a little bit higher. Fitz, we'll start with you. Which wide receiver did we not talk about that was on the list?
- [38:43]
Pat Fitzmaurice
That should have been Chris Olave is just outside the top 36 in ECR. I've got him just inside. Like, I'm not that far above consensus, but I'll probably be above consensus on him most of the year. Like, I think Olave is underrated. The reason he found drafts is mostly because of the concussion fears. Well, he's healthy now or mostly healthy. Did some spend some time in the medical tent in that Saints Cardinals game, But Lavi had 13 targets, caught seven of them for 54 yards. And I think that's kind of indicative of what we're going to see this year. Heavy target volume all year. And while he's probably not going to be super efficient with those targets since they're coming from Spencer Rattler, I think the sheer target volume and catch volume Chris Olave has is going to make him a Wide Receiver 3. A playable Wide Receiver 3 all year long.
- [39:31]
Chris Welsh
A lot of it looks like he's got like a timeshare built in that tent. It's.
- [39:35]
Pat Fitzmaurice
It's.
- [39:36]
Andrew Erickson
Well, Spencer Rattler's not helping when he throws hospital balls to Chris Olavier.
- [39:40]
Chris Welsh
I'm sure it's all going to be a lot better this week with the 49ers pass rush in their corners. I'm sure it's going to be a lot better.
- [39:45]
Andrew Erickson
Spencer Rattler is going to be put through the blender. The Robert Sala blender's coming it's not.
- [39:50]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Going to be good.
- [39:51]
Chris Welsh
Take out all the frustrations, all the players that are injured, they're going to take it out on them. All right, Erickson, your wide receiver 3. He didn't make it. Of course this is the name. Of course this is the guy. Let's hear it.
- [40:01]
Andrew Erickson
Just one bad week and we're all out. I mean, I'm going right back to the the well here with Jalen Waddle, I still think that he can be a top 36 receiver and it has to do with the matchup. The Patriots secondary was absolutely destroyed by Geno Smith. Of all the quarterbacks, Geno Smith, Jacoby Myers, Trey Tucker, everyone was making plays, especially downfield explosive plays. The Patriots are missing Christian Gonzalez and he makes a big difference in their secondary. So when he's not out there, this past defense was one of the worst that we saw in Week one. The Dolphins, their defense is still an S. I think their offense can bounce back just a little bit here playing at home. And I think the thing to point out too, part of the reason why the offense was so terrible in Week 1 didn't have a lot of volume. They only ran 46 offensive plays because the Colts scored, I think on every single possession that they had. So the Dolphins just didn't really have the ball that much to go along with all the turnovers. But they averaged 63 plays per game last season. So that's almost that's 17 less plays. And the lowest plays per game last year among all NFL teams was 58. So just an increase in just play volume from the Dolphins offense. You're going to see more targets for Jalen Waddle for Tyreek Hill and it's a plus matchup. Jalen Waddle historically is also just cooked the Patriots. You look at some of the game logs he's done against this team, he's very, very productive against the New England Patriots. They're playing at home. So I think that as the defense I think is still a mess for Miami, but I think their offense doesn't play nearly as bad as it did in week one.
- [41:27]
Chris Welsh
Hopefully through our conversations here we answered your guys questions, your big wide receiver questions for week two if we did not don't want you guys to forget we've got our weekly start and sit live stream on our YouTube channel where you guys can come and ask whatever type of start and sit questions. Wide receivers, other positions. We're here every Thursday, 3pm Eastern. So for those listening on the podcast go to YouTube.com fantasypros subscribe Click the bell. Get notified so you don't miss when those live streams go live. We're here for you. That's going to do it. Thank you guys so much. You guys rock. That wide receiver ranks in the books. Go to fantasypros.com rankings for more. Good luck in week two. We'll talk to you next time right here on Fantasy Pros.
- [42:05]
Andrew Erickson
Thanks for listening to the Fantasy Pros Fantasy Football podcast. If you love the show, the best free way to support us is by leaving a positive review on apple podcasts@fantasypros.com review or on Spotify. Follow us on X Instagram and TikTok at Fantasy Pros and subscribe to our YouTube channel at YouTube.com fantasypros.
- [42:47]
Honey German
Hi, it's Honey German and I'm back with season two of my podcast, Gracias. Come again. We got you. When it comes to the latest in music and entertainment with interviews with some of your favorite Latin artists and celebrities. You didn't have to audition.
- [42:59]
Chris Welsh
No, I didn't audition.
- [43:00]
Andrew Erickson
I haven't auditioned like over 25 years.
- [43:03]
Honey German
Oh, wow. That's a real G talk right there.
- [43:05]
Chris Welsh
Oh, yeah.
- [43:06]
Honey German
We'll talk about all that's viral and trending with a little bit of Cheeseman and a whole lot of laughs. And of course, course, the great biblas you've come to expect. Listen to the new season of Gracias. Come again on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.
- [43:24]
Chris Welsh
I'm Dan. He's Ty. Hello. And we're the solid verbal college football podcast. Tune in for previews, recaps, bits you won't hear anywhere else, and all the.
- [43:35]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Emotional support you need as a college football fan.
- [43:37]
Chris Welsh
Join us all season long as we ride the roller coaster of this ridiculous sport.
- [43:42]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Listen to the solid verbal college football podcasts on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
- [43:50]
Chris Welsh
We don't just love college football, Ty. We live it. Tune in to all the Smoke podcast.
- [43:57]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Where Matt and Stack sit down with.
- [43:59]
Chris Welsh
Former first lady Michelle Obama.
- [44:01]
Andrew Erickson
Folks find it hard to hate up close.
- [44:04]
Chris Welsh
And when you get to know people.
- [44:05]
Pat Fitzmaurice
And you're sitting in their kitchen tables.
- [44:07]
Chris Welsh
And they're talking like we're talking, you.
- [44:09]
Andrew Erickson
Know, you hear our story, how we grew up, how Barack grew up, and.
- [44:13]
Chris Welsh
You get a chance for people to.
- [44:14]
Pat Fitzmaurice
Unpack and get beyond Race all the Smoke featuring Michelle Obama. To hear this podcast and more, open.
- [44:20]
Chris Welsh
Your free iHeartRadio app, search all the Smoke and listen.
- [44:24]
Andrew Erickson
Now.
- [44:24]
Pat Fitzmaurice
This is an iHeart podcast.