Putting together fantasy wide receiver rankings for Week 3 feels like a fool's errand in many ways. There are so many injuries up and down the ranks, starting at the top with Michael Thomas, Chris Godwin, Davante Adams, and A.J. Brown. As we move down, we encounter guys like Kenny Golladay, Courtland Sutton, Jamison Crowder, and Parris Campbell -- all of whom matter who matter in some form. (Update: Sutton, Campbell, Thomas, Adams, Crowder, and Brown are all not expected to play.) Hopefully you have healthy wideouts or a good position in your league's waiver order because you'll need it -- just like we'll need an eraser for the frequent updates we'll be making to this list throughout the week.
We won't have a good read on all the injuries until later in the week, so our time right now is better spent analyzing what we should and shouldn't believe in so far. One team that has us believing in all of its key receivers is the Falcons. They seem intent on throwing the football all over the place, mostly to Julio Jones, Calvin Ridley and Russell Gage. Jones and Ridley are unquestioned every-week starts at this point, while Gage is worth adding and considering in PPR formats and some deeper standard leagues, too.
WEEK 3 PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
There are now two weeks to make us believers in Marquez Valdes-Scantling, too. Aaron Rodgers hit him deep again in Week 2 and only an ankle tackle prevented a touchdown. He's the type of boom-or-bust WR3 that DeSean Jackson, Mike Williams, Brandin Cooks, and Breshad Perriman are supposed to be, but perhaps MVS is ushering in a new era. At least we can count on John Brown in that role. On the flip side, we were let down last week by Scotty Miller with Chris Godwin out -- not every future Hall-of-Fame quarterback can make magic happen for our sleepers, apparently, but a Week 3 matchup with Denver could get him back on track, as Tennessee and Pittsburgh both had success through the air against the Broncos.
WEEK 3 STANDARD RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
Other players who impressed us in Week 2 and appear to be on the rise: CeeDee Lamb, the Cowboys rookie who had 106 receiving yards; Diontae Johnson, who found the end zone receiving and almost returned a punt for a TD, too; Laviska Shenault, who not only caught three more passes but also ran the football five times (UPDATE: He's an appealing play with DJ Chark out on Thursday night); and KJ Hamler, who showed his explosiveness all over the Denver offense but might be a few weeks away from making a real impact now that Jeff Driskel figures to be in for Drew Lock (shoulder).
WEEK 3 DFS CASH LINEUPS: Yahoo | DraftKings | FanDuel
Again, these rankings are just a rough draft, as injuries figure to once again wreak havoc with this position. Fortunately, there are always new options, so we'll stay on top of all the changes.
WEEK 3 DFS TOURNAMENT LINEUPS: Yahoo | DraftKings | FanDuel
Note: We'll continue to update our WR rankings throughout the week, so check back for the latest movement and individual player analysis.
MORE WEEK 3 DFS: Best stacks | Best values | Lineup Builder
Week 3 Fantasy WR Rankings (Standard)
These rankings are for non-PPR leagues.
WEEK 3: Sleepers | Busts | Start 'em, sit 'em
| Rank | Player |
| 1 | DeAndre Hopkins, ARZ vs. DET |
| 2 | Chris Godwin, TB @ DEN. Godwin has to clear concussion protocol to play. If he's active, he's in your lineup. |
| 3 | Amari Cooper, DAL @ SEA |
| 4 | Allen Robinson, CHI @ ATL |
| 5 | Julio Jones, ATL vs. CHI. Jones was dinged up Sunday, and he saw the Atlanta production go more toward Calvin Ridley and Russell Gage, though he dropped a sure TD that would've made his final statline much more palatable. Julio is still an every-week fantasy starter, though. |
| 6 | Odell Beckham Jr., CLE vs. WAS. Finally, OBJ and Baker Mayfield connected for a long touchdown. Hopefully that's a sign of good things to come. |
| 7 | JuJu Smith-Schuster, PIT vs. HOU |
| 8 | Tyreek Hill, KC @ BAL. Baltimore has multiple strong cornerbacks that it will use to try and slow down Hill, but because of his potential to find the end zone from anywhere on the field, you can't consider sitting Hill this week or any week. |
| 9 | Calvin Ridley, ATL vs. CHI. Ridley has elevated himself to WR 1B in the Atlanta offense, and he's an every-week start until further notice, even against a Bears defense that held the Giants in total check. |
| 10 | Keenan Allen, LAC vs. CAR |
| 11 | Kenny Golladay, DET @ ARZ |
| 12 | Mike Evans, TB @ DEN |
| 13 | Tyler Lockett, SEA vs. DAL. The Patriots couldn't scheme to stop Lockett, so at this point, no one can. He's matchup-proof, and the Cowboys just allowed a huge day to the Atlanta passing game, so Lockett should be licking his chops. |
| 14 | Adam Thielen, MIN vs. TEN |
| 15 | DeVante Parker, MIA @ JAX. Parker appears to be healthy, and Jacksonville is more likely to allow big plays to Parker than to shut him down. It's hard to ever predict where Ryan Fitzpatrick will throw the ball, but this is as good of a matchup as he'll see all year. |
| 16 | Terry McLaurin, WAS @ CLE |
| 17 | Robert Woods, LAR @ BUF. Woods got a big contract and a rushing touchdown in the same weekend -- good for him. Now he gets a revenge game against the Bills. Since Tre'Davious White is more likely to guard Cooper Kupp, you can feel good about Woods in any format here. |
| 18 | DK Metcalf, SEA vs. DAL. Metcalf beat Stephon Gilmore for a deep touchdown on Sunday Night Football. If you needed any proof that he's taken another step in Year Two, that was it. |
| 19 | Marquise Brown, BAL vs. KC |
| 20 | Cooper Kupp, LAR @ BUF. Kupp's more likely to see Tre White than Woods is, although these wideouts move all over the formation enough that you can probably continue to start Kupp, too. |
| 21 | Stefon Diggs, BUF vs. LAR. Diggs might match up with Jalen Ramsey in this one, but it's hard to sit Diggs coming off such a big Week 2. He's a flex play at minimum, even in shallow leagues. |
| 22 | T.Y. Hilton, IND vs. NYJ |
| 23 | Diontae Johnson, PIT vs. HOU. Johnson looks to be one of Ben Roethlisberger's favorite receivers, often utilizing crossing patterns to get open again and again with his dynamic speed. And if you're in leagues that count return yardage, too, Johnson is one of the top options you could have. |
| 24 | D.J. Moore, CAR @ LAC |
| 25 | Julian Edelman, NE vs. LV. Edelman managed a career-high 179 receiving yards on the road in Seattle with a bad knee. Imagine what he might do to a much worse Raiders team! |
| 26 | Allen Lazard, GB @ NO |
| 27 | Corey Davis, TEN @ MIN |
| 28 | Marquez Valdes-Scantling, GB @ NO |
| 29 | John Brown, BUF vs. LAR. If Diggs indeed gets covered by Ramsey, Brown could become Josh Allen's favorite target for a day. But even without speculating on that, Brown has proven good enough to play regardless of Diggs. |
| 30 | Will Fuller V, HOU @ PIT |
| 31 | Jarvis Landry, CLE vs. WAS |
| 32 | A.J. Green, CIN @ PHI. Tyler Boyd is the safer play of these two Bengals WRs, as he's caught 11-of-13 targets on the season. Conversely, Green has only caught 8-of-22 balls thrown his way. But that means the veteran is due for some positive regression, and Joe Burrow looks for him further down the field in higher-upside areas. You probably don't own both, but a healthy Green looks like the play with more upside this week and most weeks, while maybe you use Boyd in PPR leagues. |
| 33 | Tyler Boyd, CIN @ PHI |
| 34 | Tre'Quan Smith, NO vs. GB |
| 35 | Emmanuel Sanders, NO vs. GB |
| 36 | Marvin Jones, DET @ ARZ |
| 37 | Laviska Shenault Jr., JAX vs. MIA. Shenault caught three passes and rushed five times in Week 2. It's that consistent offensive involvement that makes him especially appealing in this favorable matchup against the Dolphins. He's worth using in DFS for Thursday Night Football for sure and warrants WR3/flex consideration in 12-team or deeper leagues with DJ Chark (chest) out for the contest. |
| 38 | CeeDee Lamb, DAL @ SEA. Lamb caught six passes for 106 yards in Week 2 as Dallas mounted a furious comeback. It won't happen every week, because there are too many mouths to feed in this offense, but that's the upside to be aware of with this rookie. |
| 39 | DeSean Jackson, PHI vs. CIN. Jackson was far from a deep threat in Week 2, but a heavier target share has us feeling better about his chances of being a semi-consistent fantasy contributor this year. OBJ showed the Bengals defense can be beat deep, so maybe it will be Jackson's turn. |
| 40 | Larry Fitzgerald, ARZ vs. DET |
| 41 | Darius Slayton, NYG vs. SF |
| 42 | Brandin Cooks, HOU @ PIT |
| 43 | Jerry Jeudy, DEN vs. TB |
| 44 | Russell Gage, ATL vs. CHI. Playing Gage in PPR leagues makes sense. Playing him anywhere else is playing with fire as Atlanta's passing game manages to feed all of its mouths in the early going, but if someone were to get the short straw, it would likely be Gage. |
| 45 | Bryan Edwards, LV @ NE |
| 46 | Preston Williams, MIA @ JAX. We love this matchup for Williams on Thursday night, but a couple questionable drops meant the second-year wideout caught only one pass in Week 2. There's a lot of risk here, but Williams is at least worth considering in DFS as an upside play. |
| 47 | Michael Gallup, DAL @ SEA. The biggest concern all season for Gallup will be whether Lamb pushes Gallup out of the No. 2 WR role. In Week 2, Gallup only saw five targets compared to Lamb's nine. It's not a trend yet, but if it continues, Gallup will be more boom or bust than we might've expected. |
| 48 | Keelan Cole, JAX vs. MIA |
| 49 | Chris Hogan, NYJ @ IND |
| 50 | Mike Williams, LAC vs. CAR. The only player who didn't seem to benefit from Justin Herbert was Williams. Tyrod Taylor had looked for the big fella on go routes a number of times in Week 1. That might not be a trend going forward, but it's worth noting depending on the Chargers' Week 3 QB decision. |
| 51 | Anthony Miller, CHI @ ATL |
| 52 | Sammy Watkins, KC @ BAL. Watkins will likely have to make it through concussion protocol just to suit up for this tough Monday Night Football matchup. |
| 53 | Robby Anderson, CAR @ LAC. Anderson topped 100 yards in Week 2 and is two-for-two in having good games with Teddy Bridgewater throwing him the football. If Christian McCaffrey misses time, an increased importance on throwing the football could be huge for Anderson and co. |
| 54 | Michael Pittman Jr., IND vs. NYJ |
| 55 | N'Keal Harry, NE vs. LV. Harry caught eight-of-12 targets for 72 yards against the Seahawks. He was heavily involved in the New England screen game. It seems like in games where the Patriots decide to air it out, Harry will have a consistent role. It's just tough to predict which games those will be. |
| 56 | Golden Tate, NYG vs. SF |
| 57 | KJ Hamler, DEN vs. TB |
| 58 | Hunter Renfrow, LV @ NE |
| 59 | Adam Humphries, TEN @ MIN |
| 60 | Kendrick Bourne, SF @ NYG |
| 61 | Cole Beasley, BUF vs. LAR |
| 62 | Braxton Berrios, NYJ @ IND |
| 63 | Greg Ward, PHI vs. CIN. |
| 64 | Chris Conley, JAX vs. MIA |
| 65 | Isaiah Ford, MIA @ JAX |
| 66 | Scotty Miller, TB @ DEN. Miller let everyone down with Chris Godwin out, and now it's hard to even recommend him in PPR leagues this week. Maybe he'll be a much less popular DFS play that you can take advantage of, though. |
| 67 | Danny Amendola, DET @ ARZ |
| 68 | Chase Claypool, PIT vs. HOU. Claypool showed his upside with an 84-yard touchdown catch Sunday, but he's still at best competing with James Washington for No. 3 WR duties in this offense. Claypool is more of a watchlist guy than a player to consider starting now. |
| 69 | Mecole Hardman, KC @ BAL. If Watkins misses this game, Hardman should see an increased role and therefore an increased chance of a big play. |
| 70 | James Washington, PIT vs. HOU |
| 71 | Van Jefferson, LAR @ BUF |
| 72 | Curtis Samuel, CAR @ LAC |
| 73 | Damiere Byrd, NE vs. LV. Byrd hardly ever leaves the field for New England, being their most-snapped wideout two weeks running. That didn't result in any catches in Week 1, but he hauled in six catches on nine targets for 72 yards in Week 2. He'll likely fluctuate production-wise, but as long as he's on the field so much, deep-league PPR owners should take notice. |
| 74 | Justin Jefferson, MIN vs. TEN |
| 75 | Demarcus Robinson, KC @ BAL. Robinson could also benefit from an absent Watkins, but this matchup is too tough to consider playing him in. |
| 76 | Zach Pascal, IND vs. NYJ |
| 77 | Randall Cobb, HOU @ PIT |
| 78 | Zay Jones, LV @ NE |
| 79 | Brandon Aiyuk, SF @ NYG |
| 80 | John Ross III, CIN @ PHI |
| 81 | Josh Reynolds, LAR @ BUF |
| 82 | Jalen Guyton, LAC vs. CAR. A week after we touted Guyton, he caught a touchdown. He's likely just the No. 3 WR at best here, with a number of passing-game options at TE and RB, too. So don't concern yourself with Guyton outside of deep leagues, although Carolina can be beaten through the air (and on the ground and just about any way you want). |
| 83 | Steven Sims, WAS @ CLE |
| 84 | Kenny Stills, HOU @ PIT |
| 85 | Miles Boykin, BAL vs. KC |