Ministry of Pain
Footballguy
As the game evolves and passing appears to take precedence, we see more and more teams advancing with strong WRs and little to no strength at RB or possibly TE. I still feel a strong QB production is vital to your weekly success, but when we get into the WR3 or flex spots then the board really opens up to a lot of different moves. Most of the time it seems WRs are the preference and if you have made it this far you likely have a few options as you go down the roster. Folks actually benched Eric Decker last week and Mike Wallace in many as well, you don't do that unless you had some options. But many teams are already rolling combos out there like Calvin/AJ, or Green/Marshall so the real question is not who your WR1 or WR2 is but who are you gonna roll the dice on at WR3? I have a short list of likely plays based on what I am observing in my leagues. Feel free to add any you like.
Josh Gordon: I actually own him as a WR3 in several leagues. His game has elevated him to WR1 stature at the moment but the reality is Gordon was a 7th round pick or later in many leagues. I have seen him behind Marshall/Brown on several rosters and that means he is almost house money for some owners. I have to say that I am not expecting much from him this week. I don't see how you can bench him but he has almost nothing at QB, maybe they can sling it his way a half dozen times if he's lucky. Can he go for 60/TD on 3 receptions? Yeah he can and that's about all I would hope for this weekend in New England.
Alshon Jeffrey: Really trending up over the last 5 weeks with an avg of 22.5 and he's taking a huge bite out of Brandon Marshall's numbers. He started off slow, had a big game week 4 @Det but he was on most folks benches. He then went off even bigger the next week with 37 vs NO. That forced him into line ups where he welcomed his new owners with a 5 spot vs NYG, ouch. Owners that stuck with him though got 17+ his next 4 games and then he had 8 against St Louis, but then last week he went off. The catch in the end zone with defenders around him, how he hung onto that ball is a mystery to me. My gut says he will be lucky to hit 15 this week but that assumes Marshall gets a few more targets, no guarantee of that but Jeffrey has got to come down off his high a little bit.
Riley Cooper: Has an avg of 19.6 last 5 weeks however that number does not tell the whole story as he has single digits the last 2 games. I believe Bloom pointed out that he was dragged down at the 1 yard line on one catch, PI in the end zone on another so he is still getting good looks and he has a red hot QB who can't throw everything to DeSean Jackson all the time. I like Cooper a lot this week to bounce back and 20 points would be a nice shot in the arm for most owners. Detroit secondary has been mostly on the giving side, gotta take a shot at it if you have the bullet in hand. Pop that sucker in the pistol and fire!
Michael Floyd: A WR4 for a lot of teams to start the season. 23 points a week avg over the last 3 weeks. 4th overall for that span. 8 out of 9 last games has hit double digits/PPR. It's almost a no brainer that you play him this week vs Rams. He had 4/82 against them on 6 targets in week 1. 4 of his last 9 games he has had 10+ targets. If you own him you gotta play him but the last 3 weeks he is 11-12 points over what his avg was weeks 4-10. So what I'm saying is he is riding high, quite high over where he was so either things are really clicking and this continues or he is likely to have a dip in his numbers and perhaps Fitzgerald will eat like a king this weekend.
Eric Decker: Ever heard of chasing points? You never want to be the guy who says take this away and you have…but honestly Decker was performing very poorly before last week. It's not surprising he was on some benches. He had single digits 3 of his last 4 weeks with a whopping 12 posted in there to break it up. He broke 15+ 3 of his 1st 5 games, then before last week only once the entire rest of the season, it has not been an easy ride. Is he a WR3? I wouldn't be betting on 20-25+ again this week.
Anquan Boldin: It's hard for CK to keep Davis owners happy, Crabtree now lurking, but yet Boldin has 17+ 3 weeks in a row. Those numbers are way over what he did most weeks as he hit single digits 5 times from weeks 2-10 including some tasty games like Jax where he did nothing. It's a tough roll for Boldin owners if they choose to go with him this week.
Keenan Allen: I know he is some folks WR1 but for a lot of owners this was overkill behind the likes of Marshall/Nelson for most of the season. Giants at home this weekend, no way you can bench him right now. The only thing that has stopped him and contributed to his single digit weeks is lack of targets. When he has 10-12 targets it's bombs away, when he has 5-6 you end up with the 3/45 stat line. Allen has become the rock solid WR3/Flex guy for many many owners out there, this ship is solid as long as Allen keeps his head in the game, just don't lose focus as he is the big rookie in this bunch.
Doug Baldwin: Guy has been double digits 4 weeks in a row in PPR. He has an injured WR1 in Harvin who seems to be taking steps back with his injuries at the moment. Tate is up n down, Baldwin makes the most of his targets which unfortunately are not as strong/many as others on here. There is a ceiling here and that seems to be in the 13-17 range, meaning you might want to look elsewhere.
Kendall Wright: He's red hot going into the playoffs right now with 14, 17, 22 and 13 his last 4 weeks hitting double digits in each of them. 9, 12, 7 and 11 on the targets the last 4 weeks, those are solid and he clearly is a big part of the game plan in the passing game. 2nd year player correction.
Harry Douglas: I never thought he would be decent but he has posted 27, 24, 11, 9, 25, 16 and 13 the last 7 weeks. His ceiling has come down with the arrival of Roddy White finally but Douglas has been a solid WR3 and fill in for Julio owners that might have picked him up along the way. The 25 point weeks seem a distant memory for now but 12-15 is still solid if that's all you need to advance. Super stacked or loaded teams likely see Douglas as strictly a flex spot.
Julian Edelman: 23 targets the last 2 weeks. You would think with Gronk, Vereen, and Amendola back in the cuts that Edelman would be a distant memory but not so. 32 and then 19 the last 2 weeks. What do you do with Cleveland coming to town? Both the Broncos and Texans managed to get up on new England and that pushed Brady to throw more. I don't think I could start Amendola this week but I know some of you will or have few options. What are the odds Cleveland jumps out on New England this week?
These 11 Wide Receivers I listed represent a trend in the numbers right now. Over the last 5 weeks they have some of the highest points per game amongst the top 20 WRs hence why I listed them all. I would bet many of you might have 2 or even 3 WRs on this list. Going to be tough filling out those final couple spots and hoping you pick the right guy, failure to do so could mean end of season. Good luck to all of you, happy hunting.
Josh Gordon: I actually own him as a WR3 in several leagues. His game has elevated him to WR1 stature at the moment but the reality is Gordon was a 7th round pick or later in many leagues. I have seen him behind Marshall/Brown on several rosters and that means he is almost house money for some owners. I have to say that I am not expecting much from him this week. I don't see how you can bench him but he has almost nothing at QB, maybe they can sling it his way a half dozen times if he's lucky. Can he go for 60/TD on 3 receptions? Yeah he can and that's about all I would hope for this weekend in New England.
Alshon Jeffrey: Really trending up over the last 5 weeks with an avg of 22.5 and he's taking a huge bite out of Brandon Marshall's numbers. He started off slow, had a big game week 4 @Det but he was on most folks benches. He then went off even bigger the next week with 37 vs NO. That forced him into line ups where he welcomed his new owners with a 5 spot vs NYG, ouch. Owners that stuck with him though got 17+ his next 4 games and then he had 8 against St Louis, but then last week he went off. The catch in the end zone with defenders around him, how he hung onto that ball is a mystery to me. My gut says he will be lucky to hit 15 this week but that assumes Marshall gets a few more targets, no guarantee of that but Jeffrey has got to come down off his high a little bit.
Riley Cooper: Has an avg of 19.6 last 5 weeks however that number does not tell the whole story as he has single digits the last 2 games. I believe Bloom pointed out that he was dragged down at the 1 yard line on one catch, PI in the end zone on another so he is still getting good looks and he has a red hot QB who can't throw everything to DeSean Jackson all the time. I like Cooper a lot this week to bounce back and 20 points would be a nice shot in the arm for most owners. Detroit secondary has been mostly on the giving side, gotta take a shot at it if you have the bullet in hand. Pop that sucker in the pistol and fire!
Michael Floyd: A WR4 for a lot of teams to start the season. 23 points a week avg over the last 3 weeks. 4th overall for that span. 8 out of 9 last games has hit double digits/PPR. It's almost a no brainer that you play him this week vs Rams. He had 4/82 against them on 6 targets in week 1. 4 of his last 9 games he has had 10+ targets. If you own him you gotta play him but the last 3 weeks he is 11-12 points over what his avg was weeks 4-10. So what I'm saying is he is riding high, quite high over where he was so either things are really clicking and this continues or he is likely to have a dip in his numbers and perhaps Fitzgerald will eat like a king this weekend.
Eric Decker: Ever heard of chasing points? You never want to be the guy who says take this away and you have…but honestly Decker was performing very poorly before last week. It's not surprising he was on some benches. He had single digits 3 of his last 4 weeks with a whopping 12 posted in there to break it up. He broke 15+ 3 of his 1st 5 games, then before last week only once the entire rest of the season, it has not been an easy ride. Is he a WR3? I wouldn't be betting on 20-25+ again this week.
Anquan Boldin: It's hard for CK to keep Davis owners happy, Crabtree now lurking, but yet Boldin has 17+ 3 weeks in a row. Those numbers are way over what he did most weeks as he hit single digits 5 times from weeks 2-10 including some tasty games like Jax where he did nothing. It's a tough roll for Boldin owners if they choose to go with him this week.
Keenan Allen: I know he is some folks WR1 but for a lot of owners this was overkill behind the likes of Marshall/Nelson for most of the season. Giants at home this weekend, no way you can bench him right now. The only thing that has stopped him and contributed to his single digit weeks is lack of targets. When he has 10-12 targets it's bombs away, when he has 5-6 you end up with the 3/45 stat line. Allen has become the rock solid WR3/Flex guy for many many owners out there, this ship is solid as long as Allen keeps his head in the game, just don't lose focus as he is the big rookie in this bunch.
Doug Baldwin: Guy has been double digits 4 weeks in a row in PPR. He has an injured WR1 in Harvin who seems to be taking steps back with his injuries at the moment. Tate is up n down, Baldwin makes the most of his targets which unfortunately are not as strong/many as others on here. There is a ceiling here and that seems to be in the 13-17 range, meaning you might want to look elsewhere.
Kendall Wright: He's red hot going into the playoffs right now with 14, 17, 22 and 13 his last 4 weeks hitting double digits in each of them. 9, 12, 7 and 11 on the targets the last 4 weeks, those are solid and he clearly is a big part of the game plan in the passing game. 2nd year player correction.
Harry Douglas: I never thought he would be decent but he has posted 27, 24, 11, 9, 25, 16 and 13 the last 7 weeks. His ceiling has come down with the arrival of Roddy White finally but Douglas has been a solid WR3 and fill in for Julio owners that might have picked him up along the way. The 25 point weeks seem a distant memory for now but 12-15 is still solid if that's all you need to advance. Super stacked or loaded teams likely see Douglas as strictly a flex spot.
Julian Edelman: 23 targets the last 2 weeks. You would think with Gronk, Vereen, and Amendola back in the cuts that Edelman would be a distant memory but not so. 32 and then 19 the last 2 weeks. What do you do with Cleveland coming to town? Both the Broncos and Texans managed to get up on new England and that pushed Brady to throw more. I don't think I could start Amendola this week but I know some of you will or have few options. What are the odds Cleveland jumps out on New England this week?
These 11 Wide Receivers I listed represent a trend in the numbers right now. Over the last 5 weeks they have some of the highest points per game amongst the top 20 WRs hence why I listed them all. I would bet many of you might have 2 or even 3 WRs on this list. Going to be tough filling out those final couple spots and hoping you pick the right guy, failure to do so could mean end of season. Good luck to all of you, happy hunting.
Last edited by a moderator: