We've already reached Week 3, and having a second data point at our disposal is an added bonus. While it's still early to draw concrete conclusions, we're gaining insights into how each team is utilizing its wide receiver corps, helping us shape our Week 3 fantasy WR rankings for standard leagues.
Beyond your set-and-forget fantasy studs, the eternal struggle for fantasy owners lies in choosing those fringe wide receivers. Do you ride the wave of red-hot rookies like Tank Dell, Jayden Reed, and Marvin Mims, fresh off breakout performances, or do you opt for a safer play with less flashy wide receivers in favorable matchups, such as Rashod Bateman (vs. Colts) Christian Kirk (vs.Texans), or Skyy Moore (vs. Bears)?
Before deciding which bubble WR to start, make use of our Week 3 WR rankings for standard leagues to assist in your decision-making process.
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Who are the best fantasy WRs Week 3?
In what should be another offensive-centric game to the delight of fantasy owners, Justin Jefferson (vs. Chargers) sits atop our Week 3 WR rankings. Tyreek Hill (vs. Broncos) isn’t far behind at No. 2, but there's a chance he's held in check for his standards against lockdown corner Patrick Surtain II.
WEEK 3 STANDARD RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
We haven’t given up on Ja’Marr Chase (vs. Rams) just yet as a top-eight WR, as Week 3 looks to be his breakout week in a favorable matchup against an exploitable Rams secondary. We saw Tee Higgins get going last week, and it's only a matter of time before Chase gets his.
UPDATE: With Joe Burrow's calf injury, Chase's Week 3 fantasy outlook takes a hit should backup QB Jake Browning get the start on Monday night. Chase still remains a must-start regardless of who is under center, but his ceiling is undoubtedly capped should Browning start.
CeeDee Lamb (@ Cardinals) should feast against a subpar Cardinals defense, while Amon-Ra St. Brown (vs. Falcons) is always a safe bet to end the week with a top-10 fantasy point output among WRs as long as he stays healthy.
WEEK 3 PPR RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
Who are the best fantasy WR sleepers, waiver pickups Week 3?
Detroit’s Josh Reynolds (vs. Falcons) looks like the team’s No. 2 wideout behind St. Brown, as the veteran wideout is a prime sleeper candidate moving forward, especially after his five-catch, 66-yard, two-touchdown effort against Seattle.
While the potential return of fellow WR Christian Watson (hamstring) lowers his ceiling, Packers’ rookie Jayden Reed (vs. Saints) is worthy of a waiver claim, as he’s logged a high snap share through his first two weeks as a pro and turned that into a four-catch, 37-yard, two TD effort against Atlanta. All of Green Bay's WRs will be tough to start in this matchup, but Watson always has a high ceiling when he's active.
Texans rookie Tank Dell (@ Jaguars) is a trusted option of C.J. Stroud’s, and in a Houston offense that’s going to pass at a high rate in negative game scripts, Dell has major WR3/flex appeal.
Other Week 3 waiver wire additions and sleepers include Josh Downs (@ Ravens), Marvin Mims (@ Dolphins), Tutu Atwell (@ Bengals), Kadarius Toney and Skyy Moore (vs. Bears), and Adam Thielen (@ Seahawks). Atwell and Moore are our favorites, but Toney has some appeal in deep leagues, too.
WEEK 3 FANTASY: Sleepers | Busts | Start 'em, sit 'em
Who are the biggest potential WR busts Week 3?
Among WRs on the start/sit bubble, we'd probably pass on starting Marquise Brown (vs. Cowboys), Treylon Burks (@ Browns), Romeo Doubs (vs. Saints), Rashid Shaheed (@ Packers), Allen Lazard (vs. Patriots), and JuJu Smith-Schuster (@ Jets) this week.
Although Brown could see a high target share in a potential negative game script, the Cowboys' secondary is not a unit we want to face, ending Week 1 allowing the lowest dropback EPA (-0.507) before dominating the Jets outside of a busted coverage. While the elements played a factor in Cleveland's' Week 1 output, the Browns' defense surrendered the lowest dropback success rate (22.22 percent), consistently keeping the Bengals offense off-schedule. We could see more of the same against Tennessee in Week 3, thus limiting Burks and maybe even the disappointing (and banged-up) DeAndre Hopkins.
Doubs, Shaheed, Lazard, and Smith-Schuster also draw tough matchups against the league's better pass defenses, potentially leading to some "bust" performances this week. In Doubs' case, it also doesn't help that Christian Watson (hamstring) will likely make his season debut, cutting into his target share.
WEEK 3 DFS:
DK lineup | FD lineup | Best values | Best stacks
What are the biggest WR injuries Week 3?
We didn't see Watson (hamstring), Diontae Johnson (hamstring), Brandin Cooks (knee), and Jakobi Meyers (head) suit up in Week 2, but we expect Watson to make his season debut this week. That said, we've only left Johnson out of our Week 3 list but will update our rankings accordingly throughout the week.
As for new injuries to watch out for, we saw Davante Adams (head), Jaylen Waddle (head), Garrett Wilson (undisclosed), Odell Beckham Jr. (ankle), and Darnell Mooney (knee) exit their respective contests and fail to return to game action. We've kept Adams, Waddle, Wilson, and Mooney in our Week 3 rankings as there's a chance these wideouts suit up this week, but took out Beckham, as he's officially been ruled out.
As usual, we'll update these standard WR rankings throughout the week, so check back for the latest player movement and analysis.
Fantasy WR Rankings Week 3: Who to start, sit at wide receiver
Rankings based on standard, non-PPR scoring
Rank Player
1 Justin Jefferson, Vikings vs. Chargers
2 Tyreek Hill, Dolphins vs. Broncos
3 Stefon Diggs, Bills @ Commanders
4 Davante Adams, Raiders vs. Steelers
5 CeeDee Lamb, Cowboys @ Cardinals
6 Amon-Ra St. Brown, Lions vs. Falcons
7 A.J. Brown, Eagles @ Buccaneers
8 Ja'Marr Chase, Bengals vs. Rams
9 Calvin Ridley, Jaguars vs. Texans
10 Chris Olave, Saints @ Packers
11 DeVonta Smith, Eagles @ Buccaneers
12 Deebo Samuel, 49ers vs. Giants
13 DK Metcalf, Seahawks vs. Panthers
14 Puka Nacua, Rams @ Bengals
15 Keenan Allen, Chargers @ Vikings
16 Mike Evans, Buccaneers vs. Eagles
17 Tee Higgins, Bengals vs. Rams
18 Mike Williams, Chargers @ Vikings
19 Garrett Wilson, Jets vs. Patriots
20 George Pickens, Steelers @ Raiders
21 Zay Flowers, Ravens vs. Colts
22 Tyler Lockett, Seahawks vs. Panthers
23 Terry McLaurin, Commanders vs. Bills
24 DeAndre Hopkins, Titans @ Browns
25 DJ Moore, Bears @ Chiefs
26 Michael Pittman Jr., Colts @ Ravens
27 Jerry Jeudy, Broncos @ Dolphins
28 Amari Cooper, Browns vs. Titans
29 Chris Godwin, Buccaneers vs. Eagles
30 Nico Collins, Texans @ Jaguars
31 Michael Thomas, Saints @ Packers
32 Jordan Addison, Vikings vs. Chargers
33 Drake London, Falcons @ Lions
34 Christian Kirk, Jaguars vs. Texans
35 Gabe Davis, Bills @ Commanders
36 Jahan Dotson, Commanders vs. Bills
37 Marquise Brown, Cardinals vs.Cowboys
38 Treylon Burks, Titans @ Browns
39 Courtland Sutton, Broncos @ Dolphins
40 Romeo Doubs, Packers vs. Saints
41 Jayden Reed, Packers vs. Saints
42 Jakobi Meyers, Raiders @ Bills
43 Elijah Moore, Browns vs. Titans
44 Tutu Atwell, Rams @ Bengals
45 Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seahawks vs. Panthers
46 Tank Dell, Texans @ Jaguars
47 Rashid Shaheed, Saints @ Packers
48 Skyy Moore, Chiefs vs. Bears
49 Kadarius Toney, Chiefs vs. Bears
50 Kendrick Bourne, Patriots @ Jets
51 Josh Reynolds, Lions vs. Falcons
52 Adam Thielen, Panthers @ Seahawks
53 Braxton Berrios, Dolphins vs. Broncos
54 Tyler Boyd, Bengals vs. Rams
55 Rondale Moore, Cardinals vs. Cowboys
56 Curtis Samuel, Commanders vs. Bills
57 Michael Gallup, Cowboys @ Cardinals
58 Allen Lazard, Jets vs. Patriots
59 Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Chiefs vs. Bears
60 Robert Woods, Texans @ Jaguars
61 Darnell Mooney, Bears @ Chiefs
62 Donovan Peoples-Jones, Browns vs. Titans
63 Joshua Palmer, Chargers @ Vikings
64 Mack Hollins, Falcons @ Lions
65 K.J. Osborn, Vikings vs. Chargers
66 Brandin Cooks, Cowboys @ Cardinals
67 JuJu Smith-Schuster, Patriots @ Jets
68 Rashee Rice, Chiefs vs. Bears
69 Allen Robinson II, Steelers @ Raiders
70 Isaiah Hodgins, Giants @ 49ers
71 Van Jefferson, Rams @ Bengals
72 Rashod Bateman, Ravens vs. Colts
73 Josh Downs, Colts @ Ravens
74 Marvin Mims Jr., Broncos @ Dolphins
75 River Cracraft, Dolphins vs. Broncos
76 Darius Slayton, Giants @ 49ers
77 Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Titans @ Browns
78 Cedrick Wilson, Dolphins vs. Broncos
79 Alec Pierce, Colts @ Ravens
80 Quentin Johnston, Chargers @ Vikings
81 Jonathan Mingo, Panthers @ Seahawks
82 DJ Chark, Panthers @ Falcons
83 Jalin Hyatt, Giants @ 49ers
84 Brandon Johnson, Broncos @ Dolphins
85 Calvin Austin III, Steelers @ Raiders
86 DeVante Parker, Patriots @ Jets
87 Michael Wilson, Cardinals vs. Cowboys
Week 3 WR fantasy projections, rankings from Draft Sharks
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