Rams Wide Receiver Fantasy Outlook: Are Demarcus Robinson, Tyler Johnson and Others Worth Starting in Week 3?
Taking a look at the Rams' wide receivers heading into week 3.
The Los Angeles Rams have been hit hard by injuries in the first couple weeks of the regular season.
In the fantasy football world, the biggest injuries to the LA roster came at wide receiver. Puka Nacua was placed on injured reserve after suffering a knee injury in week 1. Cooper Kupp then went down with an ankle injury in week 2.
Kupp doesn’t look like he’ll be placed on IR (at least for now), but he is expected to miss at least this week. So with Nacua and Kupp out for week 3, which Rams’ receivers are the best fantasy options? Let’s break it down.
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Season Stats
Through two weeks, Demarcus Robinson is leading the LA receivers in snaps (120). Tyler Johnson has played 96 snaps, while rookie Jordan Whittington is at 28 snaps. Tutu Atwell has seen the field for 16 snaps so far.
Robinson has six receptions on 11 targets, going for 92 yards and no scores. He had seven targets in week 1 before just four in a lopsided week 2 loss.
Johnson has been targeted 10 times, making seven grabs for 99 yards. Whittington has 22 yards on two catches and targets, while Atwell is at 48 yards on three receptions and four targets.
Xavier Smith, Drake Stoops and Sam Wiglusz are all wide receiver options currently on the team’s practice squad. None of them have NFL regular season game experience.
Week 3 Matchup and Projections
The Rams look to avoid an 0-3 start when they battle the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday afternoon.
That’s actually a favorable matchup on paper, at least that’s what the stats from the first two weeks tell us. San Fran’s defense has allowed opposing receivers to score 41 fantasy points per game. Wideouts have 369 yards and four touchdowns on 22 receptions and 35 catches through two weeks.
San Fran allowed New York Jets’ Allen Lazard to go for 89 yards and two touchdowns in week 1. Garrett Wilson had 60 yards on six catches that week.
Last week, Justin Jefferson caught a 97-yard touchdown pass on his way to a 133-yard game. Jalen Nailor added 54 yards and a score.
Things look favorable for the Rams, but they lack a true star receiver now, so it will be much easier for the Niners to slow down whatever LA receiver is having the best day.
Our week 3 PPR wide receiver projections like Robinson the most, as he’s projected for 11 fantasy points. Johnson is at nine points, while Whittington is set at eight points.
Robinson is currently owned in 73% of fantasy leagues. Johnson is at 28%, Whittington sits at 11% and Atwell is at just 5%.
Who to Start in Week 3
Let’s break things down between standard league options and deeper league possibilities.
While none of the Rams’ receivers are great standard league options, Robinson will at least be in starting conversations,
He found success at the end of last season, but he also wasn’t the primary option in those contests. Things will be much tougher as the Niners could shadow him with their best cornerback.
I’d follow our projections and say Robinson is the Rams’ best fantasy wideout for week 3. I’d need to see your other starting options before making a final call on him starting or not, but Robinson definitely should be in the running. Check back to FantasySP over the weekend, as Robinson might find himself in a start/sit trending story.
Robinson should be starting in deeper formats.
I’d view Johnson, Whittington and Atwell as deep league starting options only, and take them in that order as well.
Johnson gets the edge over Whittington and Atwell simply because he’s been playing more this season. Expect Johnson to finish behind only Robinson in snaps played amongst the receivers.
I wouldn’t say Johnson needs to be starting in deeper leagues, but he can definitely be in consideration for one of your final starting spots. The deeper the league, the more confident I would be starting Johnson this week.
Whittington and Atwell simply haven’t played much this season, and so it’s hard to expect much out of either player. While they are options in deeper leagues, I’d prefer to leave them on my bench this week.
If either player logs a bunch of snaps or performs well, they’d become better starting options in week 4 - if Kupp remains out.
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