“Stromme a Better Way,” Top 70 Fantasy Wide Receivers

Mike Stromme

Tier One:

Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons Odell Beckham Jr., New York Giants DeAndre Hopkins, Houston Texans

Really, AB and Julio are 1A and 1B in my books. You really cannot go wrong with either guy on your roster. Odds are, they’re both going in the first round. OBJ and Hopkins are both athletic freaks, but I trust Eli and that Giant offense more than Osweiler in Houston.

Tier Two:

5. Brandon Marshall, New York Jets

6. Jordy Nelson, Green Bay Packers

7. A.J. Green, Cincinnati Bengals

8. Keenan Allen, San Diego Chargers

9. Demaryius Thomas, Denver Broncos

10. Allen Robinson, Jacksonville Jaguars

11. Alshon Jeffery, Chicago Bears

12. Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys

13. Mike Evans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

14. T.Y. Hilton, Indianapolis Colts

15. Josh Gordon, Cleveland Browns

Odds are, if you missed out on one of the four mentioned above and went running back early, one of these guys are going to be your WR1. When building the top-half of your roster, you cannot take chances. This is why Brandon Marshall is the best WR you can grab outside of the big four above. Nobody who can play at his level has had a better track record of success. He’s a boring WR1, but you won’t be disappointed on a week-to-week basis. The return of Ryan Fitzpatrick just made things much easier.

Same goes for three of the next four behind Marshall. Thomas, Green and Nelson have been the most consistent WR1 outside of Marshall. Nevermind the torn ACL, Nelson will rebound just fine. There’s a large enough track record of players coming back and producing like they never left.

The next four (Jeffery, Bryant, Evans and Robinson) are all just as good as the WRs within their tier, but have some question marks. Can Jeffery stay healthy this season? He wasn’t in 2015. How will Dez rebound from a 2015 where he was injured for good stretches and underperformed while in the lineup? Can Romo stay healthy as well? Will he lose red zone opportunities to Ezekiel Elliot? And Evans, looks like a WR1, catches balls like a WR1, but can he reach the end zone a little more? He was only there three times in 2015.

T.Y. Hilton will have HUGE weeks, and let you down in others. He needs to be a little more consistent before he can ascend in my rankings. Josh Gordon may not be active until Week 5, but look out when he does, he’s played like one of the top four every time he’s touched the ball at the NFL level. Whoever is lucky enough to snag him, may win their league. He’s that good. He’s only 25, and has a career line of 161/2,754/14 on 302 targets in 35 games (87/1,646/9 came in 2013 alone). His quarterbacks? Brandon Weeden and Josh Campbell. If he’s hanging around in your draft anytime after the fourth round, jump and regret nothing.

Tier Three:

16. Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals

17. Brandin Cooks, New Orleans Saints

18. Julian Edelman, New England Patriots

19. Amari Cooper, Oakland Raiders

20. Eric Decker, New York Jets

21. Jeremy Maclin, Kansas City Chiefs

22. Kelvin Benjamin, Carolina Panthers

23. Doug Baldwin, Seattle Seahawks

24. Golden Tate, Detroit Lions

25. Emmanuel Sanders, Denver Broncos

26. Sammy Watkins, Buffalo Bills

27. Allen Hurns, Jacksonville Jaguars

Now, this is right around where your high-end WR2s come into play. What you want from your second WR is, week-in, week-out consistency. Which is why there is a good run on possession receivers. Fitzgerald, Cooks, Edelman, Decker and Tate all could have 100+ receptions and the likes of Benjamin, Maclin and Watkins are all talented WRs who look to get the lion’s share of targets in offenses not particularly known for their throwing prowess. Again, at this stage of the draft, if you’re looking at a wideout, go with consistency.

Tier Four:

28. Randall Cobb, Green Bay Packers

29. Michael Crabtree, Oakland Raiders

30. Jordan Matthews, Philadelphia Eagles

31. Jarvis Landry, Miami Dolphins

32. John Brown, Arizona Cardinals

Cobb has flourished as Aaron Rodgers’ number two option in the past, I expect the same in 2016. In Oakland, Derek Carr has a 1A and a 1B, Cooper being 1A and Crabtree being 1B. Where Cooper is the big-play, break-out potential guy, Crabtree is the safe, dependable, possession receiver who tends to find the end zone. Matthews fell just short of 1,000 yards in 2015. He should pass the millennial mark in receiving in 2016, another year with Sam Bradford and switching to a West Coast offense can only help. Landry has been a PPR monster ever since he came into the league in 2014. However, he lacks big-play ability and I believe that new HC Adam Gase is going to spread the wealth a little more, Parker, Stills and even rookie Leonte Carroo will siphon off some of Landry’s targets. John Brown will steal you his fair share of weeks, but still has a high floor for a big-play guy.

Tier Five:

33. Josh Doctson, Washington Redskins

34. Willie Snead, New Orleans Saints

35. Tavon Austin, Los Angeles Rams

36. Donte Moncrief, Indianapolis Colts

37. Steve Smith Sr., Baltimore Ravens

38. Kendall Wright, Tennessee Titans

39. Torrey Smith, San Francisco 49ers

40. Michael Floyd, Arizona Cardinals

41. DeSean Jackson, Washington Redskins

42. Markus Wheaton, Pittsburgh Steelers

43. Travis Benjamin, San Diego Chargers

44. Stefon Diggs, Minnesota Vikings

45. Pierre Garcon, Washington Redskins

Now that you have the dependability at WR (at least you should by now), swing for the fences. Go for the big-play, because odds are, these WRs are going to be your flex at best. Why not take a chance on the rookie WR in 2016 that I believe can make a legitimate fantasy impact? Pssst! It’s Doctson. Or, take a chance on his other two WR teammates, DeSean or Pierre? Why not? Kurt Cousins was statistically the most accurate QB in football last season, completing almost 70% of his passes. Doctson is big, fast and has WR1 upside. Not to mention, he could be a major red zone threat at 6′-2”.

Snead should get his fair-share of targets from Brees. Tavon Austin low-key had over 900 total yards and 9 all-purpose touchdowns. Steve Smith Sr. and Kendall Wright are the top receiving options on their respective teams, although I do worry about Smith’s Achilles and the potential emergence of Dorial Green-Beckham. Markus Wheaton should get a good share of the targets Martavis Bryant left behind, Sammie Coates could also push him for the right to be Antonio’s Robin. Benjamin’s Phillip Rivers’ deep threat/big play secondary option and we saw glimpses of Stefon Diggs’ greatness, can he put it all together in 2016?

Tier Six:

46. Dorial Green-Beckham, Tennessee Titans

47. Danny Amendola, New England Patriots

48. Devante Parker, Miami Dolphins

49. Mohamed Sanu, Atlanta Falcons

50. Kamar Aiken, Baltimore Ravens

51. Will Fuller, Houston Texans

52. Vincent Jackson, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

53. Tyler Lockett, Seattle Seahawks

54. Sterling Shepard, New York Giants

55. Rueben Randle, Philadelphia Eagles

56. Terrance Williams, Dallas Cowboys

A lot of talented receivers in this group, all of which have some sort of road block. An injury to any of the players ahead of these guys on the depth chart, and suddenly the names on this list become VERY interesting.

Tier Seven:

57. Laquan Treadwell, Minnesota Vikings

58. Michael Thomas, New Orleans Saints

59. Kevin White, Chicago Bears

60. Sammie Coates, Pittsburgh Steelers

61. Tedd Ginn, Carolina Panthers

62. Corey Coleman, Cleveland Browns

63. Kenny Britt, Los Angeles Rams

64. Marvin Jones, Detroit Lions

65. Anquan Boldin, Detroit Lions

66. J.J. Nelson, Arizona Cardinals

67. Nate Washington, New England Patriots

68. Victor Cruz, New York Giants

69. Jermaine Kearse, Seattle Seahawks

70. Cecil Shorts, Houston Texans

Alright, bottom of the barrel. If you’re still looking for a WR this late, just swing for the fences with a Jack Cust-level of inhibition (remember him?!?!). If they hit, amazing! If not, drop ’em and try to get lucky on the waiver wire, not a big deal.

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