2013 Fantasy Football: Final Wide Receiver Rankings
As far as fantasy football goes, the third preseason game is where the interesting news ends. Now that almost to the new season, position battles are for the most part settled and the likelihood of significant injuries is nearly diminished.
That means I can finally rank my fantasy wide receivers for the 2013 season. It actually means I can no longer change my mind anymore and I’m stuck with whatever splendidness (or mistakes) I happen to publish here.
The biggest stock shifters, plus anyone who rose up or dropped down into a different tier, are marked in bold and followed by a brief explanation. If you’d like a refresher to top off your glass with my earlier fantasy football rankings and Kool Aid you can find them here.
With that, it’s onto my final wide receiver rankings for 2013:
The Elites
1 Julio Jones, ATL
2 A.J. Green, CIN
3 Calvin Johnson, DET
4 Brandon Marshall, CHI
5 Dez Bryant, DAL
6 Randall Cobb, GB
7 Demaryius Thomas, DEN
8 Andre Johnson, HOU
Top Talents
9 Vincent Jackson, TB
10 Roddy White, ATL
11 Marques Colston, NO
12 Danny Amendola, NE
13 Reggie Wayne, IND
Last year Reggie Wayne finished in the top ten of most statistical receiving categories during his quarterback’s rookie season. This year the QB is a year more experienced, the offence is more balanced, and the other starting WR is a deep threat who will allow the veteran Wayne to roam freely through coverage. He’s 34 in age but top 20 in fantasy.
14 Victor Cruz, NYG
15 Larry Fitzgerald, ARI
16 Wes Welker, DEN
17 Steve Smith, CAR
18 DeSean Jackson, PHI
The new offense in Philadelphia appears to be quite effective at moving the ball. DeSean Jackson appears to be the biggest threat for getting yards quickly. It appears QB Michael Vick enjoys throwing to him. You can connect the dots.
19 Jordy Nelson, GB
20 Lance Moore, NO
Quality Starters
21 Dwayne Bowe, KC
Offensive line issues in Kansas City will create consistency problems all year long. Consistency problems are not what I want in one of my top WRs since the position is adherently inconsistent to begin with. Dwayne Bowe is a low end WR2.
22 Antonio Brown, PIT
23 Golden Tate, SEA
24 Eric Decker, DEN
25 James Jones, GB
26 Cecil Shorts, JAC
27 Tavon Austin, STL
28 Torrey Smith, BAL
29 Pierre Garcon, WAS
30 Hakeem Nicks, NYG
31 Greg Jennings, MIN
32 Mike Wallace, MIA
33 DeAndre Hopkins, HOU
34 Alshon Jeffery, CHI
35 T.Y. Hilton, IND
36 Anquan Boldin, SF
37 Steve Johnson, BUF
38 Emmanuel Sanders, PIT
39 Kenbrell Thompkins, NE
He isn’t the rookie everyone was talking about during the offseason, but he’s the one everyone will be talking about all season long. Kenbrell Thomkins has exploded during the preseason and shown excellent chemistry with his QB. New England is known for having no-name WRs and turning them into all-stars; Thompkins is their newest such endeavor.
40 Miles Austin, DAL
41 Vincent Brown, SD
There is exactly one WR in San Diego who isn’t injured, newly signed, or a rookie; his name is Vincent Brown.
42 Sidney Rice, SEA
43 Mike Williams, TB
Middle Depth and Spot Starts
44 Josh Gordon, CLE
45 Kenny Britt, TEN
46 Chris Givens, STL
47 Kenny Stills, NO
48 Rueben Randle, NYG
49 Greg Little, CLE
50 Nate Burleson, DET
51 Denarius Moore, OAK
52 Julian Edelman, NE
This offseason Julian has moved up and down the depth chart as those around him have changed, but toward the end of the preseason it looks like he’s settled in at the #3 spot. The Patriots use a number of WRs even with multiple TE sets so Edelman is sure to see targets, plus if Danny Amendola goes down he’s likely the next man up.
53 Riley Cooper, PHI
54 Kendall Wright, TEN
55 Michael Floyd, ARI
56 Brandon LaFell, CAR
57 Andre Roberts, ARI
58 Brian Hartline, MIA
59 Jermaine Kearse, SEA
With Percy Harvin out for the majority of the season the Seahawks needed someone to step up in a big way in the slot and in the return game. Enter Jermaine Kearse, a training camp stud and the Seahawks’ new WR3 and return man.
60 Austin Collie, SF
61 Malcom Floyd, SD
62 Josh Morgan, WAS
63 Darrius Heyward-Bey, IND
Low End
64 Santonio Holmes, NYJ
He’s the closest thing to a star WR that the Jets have but that doesn’t change the fact that he’s still a Jet. The QB competition between an overrated underperforming veteran and an overrated unproven rookie will yield a starter but not a winner. Santonio Holmes may not be healthy to start the season but even if he is his upside is extremely limited.
65 Brian Quick, STL
66 Ryan Broyles, DET
67 Rod Streater, OAK
68 Cordarrelle Patterson, MIN
69 Jacoby Jones, BAL
70 Mohamed Sanu, CIN
71 Nick Toon, NO
Every year in New Orleans even third and fourth WR become occasional fantasy contributors. Nick Toon is the #4 guy.
72 Santana Moss, WAS
73 Stephen Hill, NYJ
74 Justin Hunter, TEN
75 Andrew Hawkins, CIN
76 Robert Woods, BUF
77 Jason Avant, PHI
78 Justin Blackmon, JAC
79 Dexter McCluster, KC
80 Jarius Wright, MIN
81 Terrance Williams, DAL
82 Donnie Avery, KC
83 Domenik Hixon, CAR
84 Jacoby Ford, OAK
85 Harry Douglas, ATL
86 Leonard Hankerson, WAS
87 Keenan Allen, SD