Way too Early Top-12's - WRs

[darin3]

Alright, I've lagged on putting together the WRs since I've been traveling like a madman the past few weeks, and more travel on the horizon so let me pump this out right quick!

 

TIER ONE

 

1.  Cooper Kupp (LAR):  He was a full 3 ppg better than the next best WR in PPR.  No reason to think his rapport with Matthew Stafford will decrease in Year Two.  Robert Woods will be back but I expect Kupp to continue to churn out the catches, yards, and scores in that offense.

 

2.  Davante Adams (GBP):  I expect the Packers to either tag and/or resign Adams very soon, which will cause his buddy A-Rodg to agree to come back as well.  That means more fantasy gold from Adams.  

 

3.  Tyreek Hill (KCC):  Hill, by and large along with the entire KC offense, had a down year.  He finished as WR6 in PPR, but for some reason I expect a big bounce-back in 2022.  There is a fairly big Tier One for WRs, and I could see Hill finishing anywhere in the top-5.

 

4.  Ja'Marr Chase (CIN):  Hmm, it's curious to see if we've really just started to scratch the surface here or this was a one-year wonder.  I think the rapport between Chase and Burrow is tangible and will result in Tier One production.

 

5.  Justin Jefferson (MIN):  I don't think it matters who's at QB for the Vikings; Jefferson will get his.  Of course, Thielen demands targets in this offense, but Jefferson remains the clear #1 for them.  No reason to think he doesn't belong in the top-5 and this completes Tier One in my mind.

 

TIER TWO

 

6.  Deebo Samuel (SFO):  He finished as WR3 in PPR, but with question marks at QB, I'm going to drop him down to #6 in my rankings and he'll lead off Tier Two.  If Trey Lance dumps off to him and/or the offense still has him touching the ball a ton, he may sneak into Tier One.

 

7.  DeAndre Hopkins (ARI):  Of course everything hinges on the return and attitude of Kyler Murray, but if things smooth out and D-Hop stays healthy, you know he's a mega-stud.  Too many question marks, at least right now, to rank him any higher than Tier Two.

 

8.  Stefon Diggs (BUF):  Had a bit of a disappointing 2021 in the eyes of many.  Will Gabriel Davis continue to emerge?   The concerning thing is Diggs only had ONE game over 20 fantasy points in 2021.  He was fairly consistent, but did not have many of the "big games" that he did in 2020.  Some may think this ranking's too high, but I think he's a safe bet for top-10 production with some upside with Allen continuing to improve.

 

9.  CeeDee Lamb (DAL):  I think Lamb really shines as the Cowboys' true #1 WR this year.  Michael Gallup's gone and Amari Cooper's role will start to fade a bit with Lamb maturing into the lead receiver role.

 

10.  Keenan Allen (LAC):  Steady as they come, Allen never has those 20-point outbursts but will get you 13-15 every week.  Safe bet here closing out Tier Two.

 

TIER THREE

 

11.  Robert Woods (LAR):  Two Ram WRs in the top-11?  Yup.  Woods was averaging just under 13 ppg before going out Week 9.  And that was with Kupp going off.  I think the Rams offense will keep both WRs enough involved to warrant Woods being a high-end WR2 with upside for more

 

12.  Dionte Johnson (PIT):  I think the Steelers will bring in a veteran QB who will utilize Johnson as the #1a WR.  Chase Claypool, in my mind, will be #1b, but Johnson's PPR prowess gives him top-12 potential.

 

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Who'd I miss?

Edited February 23, 2022 by darin3

[League_Champion]

I'd have a hard time leaving Renfrow out of there. I could see him having an even better season this year. 

[darin3]

9 minutes ago, League_Champion said:

I'd have a hard time leaving Renfrow out of there. I could see him having an even better season this year. 

 

Was definitely in the Tier 3 radar.  Especially in PPR.  I could see the Raiders adding a vertical threat which could open things up for him.  That said, would things open up more for him or for Darren Waller?  But yeah, good call.  I am a Renfrow fan.  

[League_Champion]

10 minutes ago, darin3 said:

 

Was definitely in the Tier 3 radar.  Especially in PPR.  I could see the Raiders adding a vertical threat which could open things up for him.  That said, would things open up more for him or for Darren Waller?  But yeah, good call.  I am a Renfrow fan.  

 

Great list. I definitely see a bounce back for Hopkins. I've been buying low. 

[darin3]

1 hour ago, League_Champion said:

 

Great list. I definitely see a bounce back for Hopkins. I've been buying low. 

 

There's "another site" that's kinda down on him after Kirk and Green started getting a lot of looks.  But they are both FA's along with Zach Ertz.  I could see them retaining one of Kirk or Green and Ertz, but I don't know if that affects Hopkins' value one way or another.  

[League_Champion]

21 minutes ago, darin3 said:

 

There's "another site" that's kinda down on him after Kirk and Green started getting a lot of looks.  But they are both FA's along with Zach Ertz.  I could see them retaining one of Kirk or Green and Ertz, but I don't know if that affects Hopkins' value one way or another.  

 

I think where you have Hopkins is pretty spot on. 

[purplemonster]

Hopkins is tough to rank. Hard to know if this was a down year or the beginning of the slide 

[rajncajn]

Hard to keep Michael Thomas off that list if he's healthy and they get decent QB playwith Winston or better.  That's two very big if's though and for an early projection he definitely shouldn't be on it.

[League_Champion]

28 minutes ago, rajncajn said:

Hard to keep Michael Thomas off that list if he's healthy and they get decent QB playwith Winston or better.  That's two very big if's though and for an early projection he definitely shouldn't be on it.

 

He's a top 12 talent for sure but way too risky. There's no way he should be in anyone's top 20 right now. He's another that I got for pennies on the dollar last season. If he and Hopkins can figure it out or at least be serviceable I'll be happy. 

[darin3]

1 hour ago, rajncajn said:

Hard to keep Michael Thomas off that list if he's healthy and they get decent QB playwith Winston or better.  That's two very big if's though and for an early projection he definitely shouldn't be on it.

 

Gave him some consideration to throw in at #11 or 12 but just too many question marks.  QB, no Payton, injuries, etc.  Could easily be top-10 if things fall in right.

[irish]

Just throwing out a few names to consider-

 

AJ Brown

Metcalf

Ridley

Evans

McLaurin

Waddle

Godwin

[Shaft]

6 hours ago, irish said:

Just throwing out a few names to consider-

 

AJ Brown

Metcalf

Ridley

Evans

McLaurin

Waddle

Godwin

All good calls, especially when Nuk and Woods are on the list. 

[millworkguy]

Until I hear more about ridley (why/what mental health issue)  there is no way I'm touching him this year.

[stevegrab]

What about Cordarelle Patterson? Or does his hybrid position status and the whole ATL offense situation (QB, Ridley) rule him out. He was 6th in average scoring among WR in my league last year. 

[millworkguy]

1 hour ago, stevegrab said:

What about Cordarelle Patterson? Or does his hybrid position status and the whole ATL offense situation (QB, Ridley) rule him out. He was 6th in average scoring among WR in my league last year. 

 mfl has him at rb now

[stevegrab]

5 minutes ago, millworkguy said:

 mfl has him at rb now

 

I guess that may his designation going forward, he did have dual designation on CBS last year, and I figure that wasn't the only place. Considering he had 3 times as many rushing attempts as receptions (even targets were less than half his carries) RB makes sense.

[millworkguy]

10 minutes ago, stevegrab said:

 

I guess that may his designation going forward, he did have dual designation on CBS last year, and I figure that wasn't the only place. Considering he had 3 times as many rushing attempts as receptions (even targets were less than half his carries) RB makes sense.

Yeah, mfl had him as a wr, and doesn't change positions during the season (that I know of) during the off season they do it about 6 times, but it mainly effects def players 

[League_Champion]

I feel like the WRs are very hard to rank only because there are so many good young ones. The top 5 are pretty much set in stone but outside of that it's a crap shoot. The RBs are another story, they're a mess. 

[darin3]

On 2/25/2022 at 3:54 AM, Shaft said:

All good calls, especially when Nuk and Woods are on the list. 

 

 Feel free to post your own then.  Nuk has been a mega-stud for quite some time and while he had a down year due to injuries last year, he will have a very motivated QB throwing him the ball in a WR-friendly offense.  I picked Woods because he was already on track to be close to a top-12 WR last year and I think Year Two of the Stafford Era in LA could be even better for him.  Kupp obviously deserves top billing but I think Woods will sniff the top-12. 

[Shaft]

30 minutes ago, darin3 said:

 

 Feel free to post your own then.  Nuk has been a mega-stud for quite some time and while he had a down year due to injuries last year, he will have a very motivated QB throwing him the ball in a WR-friendly offense.  I picked Woods because he was already on track to be close to a top-12 WR last year and I think Year Two of the Stafford Era in LA could be even better for him.  Kupp obviously deserves top billing but I think Woods will sniff the top-12. 

 It wasn't a knock on you. And nope, not posting my own. But I would draft Metcalf over Woods, just saying.

[darin3]

10 minutes ago, Shaft said:

 It wasn't a knock on you. And nope, not posting my own. But I would draft Metcalf over Woods, just saying.

 

Welp, what if Russ goes to New Orleans?  Metcalf would be lucky to crack top-20 IMO.

 

Sure, if Russ stays then Metcalf probably sniffs top-12.... you're right there.

[Docniner]

Jaylen Waddle will finish as a top 10 WR and JaMarr Chase will finish as WR1. Nice list though.

[darin3]

8 hours ago, Docniner said:

Jaylen Waddle will finish as a top 10 WR and JaMarr Chase will finish as WR1. Nice list though.

 

Hugh Waddle fan.  I think he could easily slide in.  Only reason I left him out was uncertainty at QB, which appears to be resolved to some degree now with the Fins' staff saying Tua is their guy.  Can Tua continue to keep Waddle involved as much as he was last season?  If so, he can sneak into the top-10 in PPR.

 

As for Chase, he could finish WR1 but with Higgins and Boyd commanding targets it'll be tough.

[purplemonster]

On 2/24/2022 at 11:02 PM, irish said:

Just throwing out a few names to consider-

 

AJ Brown

Metcalf

Ridley

Evans

McLaurin

Waddle

Godwin

AJ Brown especially is the one I'd have in there. His last year was a little weird, he was either a dud or a stud. But injuries played a large role. Regardless his ceiling is high and if he stays healthy he's an easy top 12 pick. I would rank him middle 2nd tier on this ranking. I think he's at the top of it, but would downgrade a bit for injury premium. Waddle also has a trajectory straight up right now, hard to know where he will land 

[Docniner]

Trey Lance will be under center for sure and he will run the ball at times. Even so, I feel that WR DEEBO SAMUEL WILL finish the 2022 season.as a tier 1 WR and top 5 WR in production. He'll probably take a beatin' when he runs the ball but dude is tough as nails. Having a new QB that'll make things happen Deebo will be inspired and motivated to crank out his best year yet.