Updated Wide Receiver Ranks
Having participated in countless mock drafts at this point, it is appropriate to readjust our ranks as we approach the NFL season. Commentary is added next to those players who have significantly moved up or down in the Wide Receiver Ranks. Each player who has moved has a +/- next to his name indicating how many spots he moved.
Michael Thomas, Saints.
Julio Jones, Falcons.
Tyreek Hill, Chiefs.
Kenny Golladay, Lions (+3). He led the league in touchdowns despite playing a considerable chunk of the season with Jeff Driskel and David Blough.
Chris Godwin, Buccaneers (-1).
Allen Robinson, Bears (-1).
Mike Evans, Buccaneers (+1).
DJ Moore, Panthers (+1).
Odell Beckham, Browns (+1).
Davante Adams, Packers (+2). I’m not a Davante Adams fan, but he’s got a clear path to the lion’s share of targets now that Devin Funchess has opted out. I just worry that he’ll fall short of 1,000 yards yet again.
Juju Smith-Schuster, Steelers (+8). I was too low on this guy initially. He had an early breakout age and elite production,and his situation hasn’t changed other than getting his QB back.
DeAndre Hopkins, Cardinals (-6). It’s usually a mistake to bet on guys who have switched teams in the offseason (at least as a WR1). I’d prefer to wait until year two in the desert before I’d invest in Hopkins at this price. Plus, there have been some red flags coming out this season about his attitude and lifestyle, and that’s enough to make me stay away.
Adam Thielen, Vikings (+7). He’s the only game in town, and is actually just as good on the outside as he is in the slot.
AJ Green, Bengals (-3). He got hurt in the early days of camp. For a guy who has had difficulty staying healthy the last couple seasons, that’s a huge red flag for me. If he’s healthy, he’s a Top 5 wide receiver. But he hasn’t been healthy in a long time.
AJ Brown, Titans.
Terry McLaurin, Washington Football Team (+6). Scary Terry doesn’t have much competition for looks in the nation’s capital, he’s got rapport with Dwayne Haskins dating back to college, and he could potentially take a second-year leap. What’s not to like?
DJ Chark, Jaguars (-3). Chark is likely to have a huge season as the only legitimate target for Gardner Minshew, but he’s still not at the level of the guys ahead of him on this list.
Tyler Lockett, Seahawks (+9). Lockett is a baller. He had poor second half stats last year, but that was due to a leg injury. I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt and assuming he was playing at less than 100% during that timeframe.
Cooper Kupp, Rams (-3). I’m still a little nervous that the Rams might get away from three-wide as their base set, which would be bad news for Kupp.
Amari Cooper, Cowboys (-3). Much virtual ink has been spilled over Cooper’s inconsistencies.
Will Fuller, Texans (+13). Great chemistry with Watson and a stud when healthy. When healthy.
Keenan Allen, Chargers (-9). With Philip Rivers, he’s a borderline WR1. With Tyrod or Herbert? It would be foolhardy to expect the same statistical production of seasons past.
TY Hilton, Colts (-5). A great receiver and worthy WR2. I’m just not sure Philip Rivers still has the juice to chuck it deep.
DeVante Parker, Dolphins. He closed out the season on a tear last year after Preston Williams got hurt. Is he a bona fide #1? Maybe. But too many of us have been burned by him too many times in the past, so it’s hard to put him any higher than this. Plus, it’s likely that Tua Tagovailoa will be under center at some point for MIami this season, and rookie QBs produce WR1s less than 10% of the time.
Robert Woods, Rams.
Calvin Ridley, Falcons (+6). I don’t care for the player, but love the situation. Atlanta is going to continue to chuck it, and there aren’t really any pass catching threats on this roster other than Ridley and Julio Jones.
Courtland Sutton, Broncos (-6). Courtland Sutton is a fantastic player, but it remains to be seen whether he’ll still be the focal point of the offense now that Denver has spent a first round pick on Jerry Jeudy.
DK Metcalf, Seahawks (-5). Limited route tree, and I’m concerned there isn’t much room for him to grow beyond what he did last year. Especially if the Seahawks don’t #LetRussCook.
Brandin Cooks, Texans (+7). Dude has been viewed as a WR2 for years. We don’t like him now because he was hurt last year? Seems silly. The Texans traded a second round pick to get him after jettisoning DeAndre Hopkins. If you believe Deshaun Watson is going to finish as a top five QB, you have to believe Cooks is going to have a big season.
Hollywood Brown, Ravens (+7). The volume won’t be there, but the big plays will be. He’s finally healthy, and he put on a lot of weight in the offseason to help him hold up to the rigors of the NFL.
Stefon Diggs, Bills (-1). Lower anticipated volume depresses his value.
Michael Gallup, Cowboys (-1).
Marvin Jones, Lions (+7). He’s kind of like Cris Carter: all he does is catch touchdowns. He’s a reliable WR3.
Jarvis Landry, Browns (-6). Very reliable player, but he’s hurt.
Deebo Samuel, 49ers (-8). Downgraded because of injury and a likely PUP designation, which would cost him the first 6 weeks.
Tyler Boyd, Bengals (-7). Volume likely decreases with Green’s return.
CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys (+7). In my opinion, he was the best wide receiver in the draft. He’s been the talk of Cowboys camp, and he should be starting the season in the slot, which should lead to some easy catches.
DeSean Jackson, Eagles (-5). Who knows what the Eagles WR rotation will be. If you buy into the camp reports, it seems to change by the day. Jackson still had plenty of juice last season, though, so he’s probably the safest bet among the Eagles’ wideouts.
Julian Edelman, Patriots (+4). Always a reliable player, I’m a whole lot more comfortable taking him now that he’ll be catching passes from Cam Newton rather than Jarrett Stidham.
Mecole Hardman, Chiefs (-2). A big play waiting to happen, but he doesn’t see too many targets. Will he see more now that the Chiefs have drafted pass-catching RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire?
Justin Jefferson, Vikings (+7). The cupboard is bare for the Vikings behind Adam Thielen. If he can lock down a starting job, he’s walking into a ton of volume.
Christian Kirk, Cardinals.
Henry Ruggs, Raiders (+3). He is slated to start the season in the slot for Las Vegas, and the Raiders love to chuck it deep.
Jalen Reagor, Eagles (+25). Philadelphia’s wideout room is a mess, but it looks more and more like Reagor is going to open the season as a starter.
Golden Tate, Giants (-10). This isn’t the 90-catch maven we were used to in Detroit. This is a guy who is on the downside of his career and struggles to stay healthy. His ceiling is probably as a WR3. It’s hard to discern who is going to be Daniel Jones’ favorite target in this offense.
Mike Williams, Chargers (+3). There just isn’t very much on the depth chart behind Williams and Keenan Allen. Those are situations to target in fantasy.
Michael Pittman, Colts (-6). He is my favorite WR from the 2020 draft, but it remains to be seen whether he or Parris Campbell is going to be the #2 target in Indy.
Jerry Jeudy, Broncos (+5). Jeudy was praised as the best route runner in the draft and walks into a Broncos offense led by Pat Shurmur, who has a history of success calling plays in the NFL. He’s going to be a starter from Day 1.
Darius Slayton, Giants (-10). Similar to Golden Tate, I just don’t have a good feel for who Daniel Jones “guy” is going to be. I do feel Slayton overproduced last year, and will likely regress statistically in 2020.
Emmanuel Sanders, Saints (-5). Sanders is a good player, but is anyone getting excited about drafting 800 yards receiving and 5 touchdowns?
Curtis Samuel, Panthers (+3). Samuel is an air yards dynamo. He underproduced last year. Big games are coming. Be ahead of the curve.
N’Keal Harry, Patriots (+7). Harry was one of only two wide receivers taken in the first round of the draft last year (the other being Hollywood Brown), and he profiles similarly to the types of wide receivers Cam Newton has had success with in the past (Kelvin Benjamin, Devin Funchess).
Brandon Aiyuk, 49ers (-1). Suffered a slight injury in camp. Probably secure in his role as long as he doesn’t suffer a major injury since Jalen Hurd is out of the year.
Preston Williams, Dolphins (+3). With Allen Hurns and Albert Wilson opting out, there is very little competition behind Williams and DeVante Parker on the depth chart.
Anthony Miller, Bears (+22). Outside of Allen Robinson and Tarik Cohen, there aren’t a whole lot of threats among Chicago’s pass-catchers. He could see a reasonable target volume this season.
Jamison Crowder, Jets (+9). Beat writers say he’s been the best receiver in Jets camp, and that it hasn’t been close. He’s going to be targeted often by Sam Darnold this year.
John Brown, Bills (-10). Stefon Diggs coming to town likely cuts into his volume significantly, making it look like his role this year will be as a one-trick pony deep threat.
Larry Fitzgerald, Cardinals (-7). His floor is probably as a WR3/4, but I just don’t ever find myself taking him in that range. He’s a bargain this late, though.
Laviska Shenault, Jaguars (+5). He can do it all, and he only has to beat out Chris Conley for a starting job.
Denzel Mims, Jets (-2). He’s been hurt, and Jets beat writers are saying that the best WR in camp appears to be Jamison Crowder - and that it isn’t close.
Sterling Shepard, Giants (-6). He probably deserves to go higher than this. I just don’t like Sterling Shepard. Never have. With all the weapons they have on this team, this is the guy I’d worry about the least as a defensive coordinator (which maybe is a reason to draft him - he might soak up targets underneath).
Parris Campbell, Colts (-1).
Sammy Watkins, Chiefs (-1).
Allen Lazard, Packers (+36). He makes a huge leap as a result of Devin Funchess’ decision to sit out this season. He should have ample opportunity if he can lock down the starting job opposite Davante Adams.
Robby Anderson, Panthers (+9). It’s looking like the Panthers are going to be playing a lot of three-wide sets, so Anderson should see a lot of snaps. Still, he’s probably no better than the fourth receiving options in this offense. How many pass-catchers can Teddy Bridgewater support?
Josh Reynolds, Rams (NR). This guy, instead of rookie Van Jefferson, is likely to replace Brandin Cooks as a starter on the outside.
Corey Davis, Titans (+5).
JJ Arcega-Whiteside, Eagles (-2).
Bryan Edwards, Raiders (+20). The talk of Raiders camp, there has been serious chatter that he will begin the season as one of the outside receivers. He’s already earned Derek Carr’s trust.
Alshon Jeffery, Eagles (-3). On the PUP list.
Antonio Brown, FA (+11). As a final round dart throw, you can’t get any more upside than this.
James Washington, Steelers (+4). The sole vertical threat in the Steelers’ O, his sophomore season was torpedoed by Ben Roethlisberger’s injury. With Big Ben back, we just may be able to see what Washington can do in Year 3.
Tyrell Williams, Raiders (-5). All the buzz from Raiders camp has been about rookies Henry Ruggs and Bryan Edwards. Williams appears to be an afterthought.
John Ross III, Bengals (+1). He brings an element to the offense that all of the other Bengals receivers lack: speed. For that reason, he may be a better bet than Tee Higgins this year to see snaps.
Antonio Gandy-Golden, Washington Football Team (-15). Reports out of camp are that he’s behind recently signed journeyman Dontrelle Inman.
Hunter Renfrow, Raiders (-13). Looks like he may have lost his slot job to Henry Ruggs.
Dante Pettis, 49ers (+16). I’ve always been a sucker for Dante Pettis. Dude is immensely talented. With Deebo Samuel out for 6 weeks, Jalen Hurd out for the season, and Brandon Aiyuk nursing injuries of his own, Pettis may have a golden opportunity to step up and show what he can do.
Chase Claypool, Steelers (-7). It’s hard to see him having an impact this year unless Juju, Johnson, or Washington get hurt.
Miles Boykin, Ravens.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Packers (+4). Everyone assumes that Allen Lazard will be the No. 2 not that Devin Funchess has opted out? What if its MVS? He has decent speed, so he’d likely be the Packers’ deep threat.
Tee Higgins, Bengals (-11). More and more, it’s seeming like the Bengals won’t be relying on Higgins to play a major role this year, at least early on.
Devin Duvernay, Ravens (+10). He’s likely to unseat Willie Snead as the slot guy for Baltimore, and he has good speed and collegiate production.
Randall Cobb, Texans.
Van Jefferson, Rams (-11). He likely isn’t going to see meaningful snaps absent an injury to one of the three wide receivers ahead of him on the depth chart.
Breshad Perriman, Jets (-29). Reports out of Jets camp have been anything but positive.
Dede Westbrook, Jaguars (+8). He’s a decent slot receiver for a bad offense.
Adam Humphries, Titans (-9). I can’t see myself having any shares of Adam Humphries this year.
Stephen Sims, Washington Football Team.
Andy Isabella, Cardinals (-9). He presents value as a final round dart throw, but I haven’t grabbed any shares of him yet.
KJ Hamler, Broncos (-5). An injury at training camp that will have him out until the regular season hasn’t done him any favors in his quest to make an impact in Year 1.
Mo Sanu, Patriots (+5).
Gabriel Davis, Bills (-1).
Tyler Johnson, Buccaneers (-6).
Cole Beasley, Bills (-6). I’ve never owned Cole Beasley in the past and I don’t intend to start now.
Kenny Stills, Texans.
Demarcus Robinson, Chiefs (+1).
No longer ranked: Devin Funchess, Marquise Goodwin, and Albert Wilson opted out of the 2020 season, and Kelvin Harmon and Jalen Hurd were placed on injured reserve.