Wild Card Weekend Wide Receiver Start/Sit: Stefon Diggs, Jaylen Waddle, and More
An in-depth look at the top start/sit decisions at wide receiver for Wildcard Weekend
As we enter Wild Card Weekend, our pool of players to choose from has significantly decreased. There are only six games this wekeend, which leaves us little room to differentiate between our DFS or playoff pool opponents.
Which leaves us with two questions:
- Which chalky players do you follow the crowd with?
- Which players do we use to differentiate ourselves?
The answers to those questions are what will win or lose playoff fantasy pools, so let's dig in and see which wide receivers we should be targeting (and avoiding) this weekend. I'm going to break this into four sections: studs to start, under-the-radar guys to target, studs to sit, and under-the-radar guys you shouldn't target. It's going to be important to narrow down our targets this weekend, and the weather in Kansas City and Buffalo might help us make those decisions.
Start-your-studs
CeeDee Lamb
Lamb has been a target monster all season and this week should be no different. He's set up to have a big week against a Packers secondary that is dealing with some injuries, and he's a chalky player that should be forced into all lineups.
Amon-Ra St. Brown
St. Brown was just named to the All-Pro team (deservedly so) and gets an indoor track this weekend. With Sam LaPorta dealing with injury, there's no reason ARSB shouldn't see double-digit targets. Get St. Brown in your lineups if you can.
Puka Nacua/Cooper Kupp
Similar to St. Brown, the Rams' two stud receivers don't have to worry about the elements this weekend. I like them both to put up big numbers, but think Kupp has a little more upside if you're deciding between the two (with Nacua being the higher floor player, for what it's worth).
Amari Cooper
Cooper is one of my favorite plays this weekend as he doesn't have to deal with the weather, gets to face an iffy Texans pass defense, and should see plenty of targets with the Browns down a receiver in Cedric Tillman.
Nico Collins
I don't love picking on the Browns defense, but the Texans' target tree should be pretty narrow this weekend. Collins has a very good shot at seeing up double-digit targets and putting up big numbers.
Mike Evans
Both Evans and Chris Godwin are set up nicely to abuse an Eagles secondary that has struggled mightily as of late. Evans has more upside between the two, but Godwin fills a "high floor" role similar to Nacua.
Under-the-radar starts
I wouldn't stretch to roster any of these players, but all have a path to success as you look to differentiate yourself from your opponents this weekend:
- Brandin Cooks
- Jayden Reed
- Romeo Doubs
- Demarcus Robinson
- Elijah Moore
- David Bell
- Jameson Williams
- Jalen Tolbert
- Bo Melton
- Trey Palmer
Sit-your-studs
Tyreek Hill (and Jaylen Waddle)
The revenge factor is fun (and he could prove me wrong, obviously), but I'm trying to avoid weather as much as possible this weekend.
Rashee Rice (and all Chiefs receivers)
See above. Rice is the only Chiefs receiver worth looking at, for the most part, but I'm trying to avoid this game as much as possible.
A.J. Brown/DeVonta Smith
I'm trying to minimize risk this weekend, and both of these players are incredibly risky as Brown hasn't practiced all week and Smith is still dealing with an injury. That's compounded by the fact that Jalen Hurts is dealing with a finger injury. I'm avoiding both of these guys this weekend.
Stefon Diggs
The Bills game is shaping up to be a mess in terms of weather, and I don't want to have to rely upon the wind to die down in order to find fantasy points. While Khalil Shakir might be worth a punt play in DFS tourneys, I don't want to spend up on Diggs at all.
Diontae Johnson/George Pickens
Both of these guys have put up big numbers recently, but most of those numbers came on big plays. If the weather ends up being anything close to what it's supposed to be, big plays are going to be very hard to come by through the air.
Under-the-radar sits
You're probably not looking at any of these guys for the most part, but just to be safe, here are a bunch of the non-stud wide receivers who won't be on my rosters:
- Cedric Wilson (weather)
- Christian Watson (too much of an injury risk)
- Justin Watson (weather)
- Michael Gallup (he's not seeing targets)
- Marquez-Valdez Scantling (he's not good -- and weather)
- Khalif Raymond (dealing with an injury)
- Josh Reynolds (I'm not completely out on him, but you're probably only getting three or four targets)
