Fantasy Football: Top 20 WRs After Preseason Week 3

Michael Floyd has had textbook wide receiver progression through his first two seasons. Last year, Floyd finished as the 21st most productive fantasy receiver. With another year of learning from Larry Fitzgerald under his belt and a stronger rapport building with Carson Palmer, expect the young receiver to continue growing.

It’s called the Peyton Manning effect. Eric Decker finished 8th among fantasy receivers last year, but he is certainly not the 8th best receiver in the league. Now with Decker gone and Wes Welker dealing with yet another concussion, the Denver Broncos will need someone to step up. Emmanuel Sanders is certainly good enough for Manning to make him a top-15 receiver. But let’s just be cautious.

Cordarrelle Patterson might be the most explosive player to enter the NFL in a long time. As a rookie, he only had 45 receptions for four touchdowns, but combining his running and returning skills, Patterson totaled nine touchdowns, second among rookie skill players. He’ll look to pair his established receiving skills with his 13.2 yards per carry and his league-leading 32.4 yards per kick return to make himself a dangerous weapon in 2014.

Being blatantly honest, Randall “Corn on the” Cobb is overrated. It’s difficult to see how the fourth year receiver, who only once has brought in more than 433 yards, could be used as a flex option, let alone a top-10 receiver. If it weren’t for Aaron Rodgers, Cobb wouldn’t have made this list at all. He has one more year to make an impact before he becomes fantasy irrelevant.

2013 was just what the doctor ordered for Philadelphia Eagles wideout DeSean Jackson. After failing to eclipse 1,000 yards for two consecutive years, the burner had his best season with career highs in receptions and yards, while tying his career-best nine touchdowns. Jackson falls to 17 because Pierre Garcon led the league in targets last year, which is certain to hurt the new guy’s production.

Roddy White receives more unwarranted criticism than any other player. Coming into 2013, White had never missed a game in his eight years in the NFL. For six consecutive seasons, he was a perennial top-5 receiver averaging 94/1, 295/8. While injuries were the only thing holding him back in 2013, a healthy White looks to return to dominance. This time around, fellow Falcons receiver Julio Jones will be the only thing cutting into his production.

Who says rookie receivers can’t make an immediate impact? In Week 4, Keenan Allen emerged as Philip Rivers’ favorite target and went on to lead all rookies in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. After picking up the NFL game so quickly, the former Cal Bear is a favorite to really emerge as a star in 2014.

Victor Cruz had one of the best rookie seasons ever for a wide receiver bringing in more than 1,500 yards. But since then, the fourth year receiver’s production has declined each season. Since Cruz was injured last year, he’ll get the benefit of the doubt. If Cruz’s trend continues, he’ll find himself out of a No. 1 receiver job. In this sink or swim year, I’ll bet he swims.

In 10 seasons, Larry Fitzgerald has been a consummate pro. He’s averaged more than 1,100 yards and eight touchdowns over his career, only missed four games and has never complained all while playing for less than superior quarterbacks for the majority of his career. While his yardage has dipped over the last two years, Fitz still managed to catch 10 touchdowns last year. The 30-year-old receiver has at least one more year of dominance.

Andre Johnson is washed up, they say. The Indianapolis Colts aren’t buying it for a second as Andre the Giant torched their secondary for 229 yards and three touchdowns in 2013. The problem is that entering his 12th season, Johnson doesn’t find the end zone like he used to. With that said, he’s still accumulated more than 3,000 yards over the last two seasons. Rest assured, another huge season is ahead.

What a difference one year makes. Alshon Jeffery went from irrelevant to “Hello Mr. Marshall, I want your starting job,” over the course of one season. Sure, teams will no longer be surprised by the former Clemson Tiger, but at the end of the day, what can they do to slow him down? With Brandon Marshall on the other side, and Matt Forte in the backfield, Jeffery will find himself a top-10 receiver.

Vincent Jackson may just be the most underrated player in the NFL. In both of his seasons in Tampa Bay, V-Jax has received top-10 targets. Unfortunately, his quarterbacks were awful, as demonstrated in his inconsistent production. With Josh McCown in town, and considering what he did for the Bears last season, expect Jackson to have a career year.

Jordy Nelson has had two great seasons to go along with four not-so-great seasons. When he and Aaron Rodgers are on and healthy, it’s near-impossible to defend. With a healthy Rodgers back in uniform, expect huge production from Nelson.

With Mike Wallace out of the picture in Pittsburgh, at the time, fourth-year receiver Antonio Brown stepped in as the go-to guy and did not disappoint. In fact, he finished as the 6th best fantasy receiver. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has no one else to throw to, so expect more of the same in 2014.

It’s easy to forget how good Falcons receiver Julio Jones was about to be before injuring his hamstring. As a rookie, he almost topped 1,000 yards while only playing 13 games. As an NFL sophomore, Jones had 1,198 yards and 10 touchdowns. Last season, the former Two-A-Days star was on pace for 131 receptions and 1,856 yards through five games. Surely, he would have slowed down, right? What if he wasn’t going to?

Brandon Marshall has had a near-perfect NFL career. In his eight years, he’s only missed five games and has caught triple-digit passes in five seasons. Three of which ended with double-digit touchdowns, including his two most recent years, meaning he’s not slowing down. His chemistry with Jay Cutler is incredible, so look for the two to hook up plenty of times in 2014.

Between the sidelines, fifth-year receiver Dez Bryant is one of the best. Luckily for fantasy purposes, that’s all that matters. Sure, he may yell Tony Romo’s ear off for only throwing him the ball eight times in a game, but all that means is he’ll get 15 looks the next week. His talent is undeniable, as is his production. Bryant is about as safe of a No. 1 fantasy receiver as you can find.

For once, something went right for the Cincinnati Bengals, as they found gold in A.J. Green. He’s gotten better in each of his three seasons in the NFL, and that should only continue as Andy Dalton gets better. The Red Rocket has been money this preseason completing 70 percent of his passes for 372 yards and a touchdown. If this continues, Green could see his best year yet, by a lot.

Over the last two seasons, Demaryius Thomas all but fully secured his place among the best of the best in the NFL. In two seasons with Peyton Manning, Thomas has brought in 2,834 yards and 24 touchdowns. Eric Decker is out of Denver and Wes Welker is yet again concussed. Don’t be surprised to see Manning rely on Thomas more this year, causing him to catch around 17 touchdowns in a Randy Moss-esque manner.

In 2013, Calvin Johnson struggled as he couldn’t match his 2012 career high of 1,964 yards. In fact, he missed it by a lot only managing to scrap for 1,492 yards and 12 touchdowns in 14 games. The eighth-year receiver’s best years may be behind him. Now that he’s healthy and there’s another receiver in Detroit to take pressure off him, he’ll probably only bring in 1,600 yards and 14 touchdowns. Is that really worth unrealistic trade offers?