This season, I’ll be taking you through my favorite wide receiver start/sits using the brilliant Slot vs Wide tool on the Razzball website. This tool is revolutionary in analyzing not just the difficulty of a wide receiver’s matchup but also the success of their opponent against a specific style of player. I recommend using it to help you with those tough start-sit decisions though you’re welcome to add your questions in the comments too. Please also check out my rankings at ffdfantasyfootball.com and you can find my long-form videos on the Fantasy First Down YouTube channel and my Slot/Wide analysis on the Razzball Fantasy YouTube channel.
Be sure to check out the latest tools on Razzball.com: Slot vs. Wide PPG Allowed | WR Slot vs. Wide| DEF Targets Allowed | Home vs. Away | Wins vs. Losses | TD Tool
Top WR Starts
- Player: Josh Downs and Michael Pittman
- Matchup: Vikings
- Out Wide/Slot Matchup Ranks: 1/2
The Colts have finally made the move; ending the Anthony Richardson experiment, at least for now. Joe Flacco takes the reins and we’ve seen how good he can be for his wide receivers. In three games with Flacco under center earlier in the season, Josh Downs had 217 yards and 2 touchdowns and Michael Pittman had 185 yards and 2 touchdowns. Both are startable in the best matchup in football against the Vikings.
- Player: Courtland Sutton
- Matchup: Ravens
- Out Wide Matchup Rank: 2
After appearing in this article last week, Courtland Sutton made the most of a great matchup against the Panthers, turning his 11 targets into 100 yards. This week he faces the Ravens and is once again a good starting option.
- Player: Chris Olave
- Matchup: Panthers
- Out Wide Matchup Rank: 4
Chris Olave tore up a difficult matchup, taking the Chargers for 107 yards. This week he gets the awful Panthers with the hopeful return of Derek Carr. As one of the few Saints weapons left, Olave should have another good game.
- Player: Darnell Mooney
- Matchup: Cowboys
- Out Wide Matchup Rank: 7
This is just a friendly reminder that Darnell Mooney is the WR12 this season. In a juicy matchup against the Cowboys, he’s a strong start.
Desperation WR Starts
Xavier Worthy (KC vs TB): Xavier Worthy has surpassed 50 yards just once this season, despite an alarming lack of target competition. His five touchdowns have wallpapered over a lot of production cracks but he’s very much a boom/bust option at this stage.
Tyler Lockett (SEA vs LAR): It’s hard to trust anyone in the Seahawks offense at the moment, but on paper Tyler Lockett has a great matchup against the Rams. If DK Metcalf out, Lockett is a viable start but as we saw last week, he comes with plenty of risk.
Sterling Shepard (TB @ KC): The Chiefs are best attacked over the middle of the field and that means a lot of Cade Otton, Rachaad White and slot receiver Sterling Shepard. His snap count is far from secure and we may see more Jalen McMillan in the slot this week as well, but there are worse starting choices than Shepard in deeper leagues.
Jalen Coker (CAR vs NO): Jalen Coker had a nice little breakout party against the Broncos last week, turning six targets into 78 yards and a touchdown. He gets one of the league’s best slot matchups this week and is a viable desperation start in deep leagues. With Diontae Johnson out of town, Coker is likely a Panthers starter for the rest of the season. But it remains to be seen if he can be a consistent fantasy starter.
Top WR Sits
- Player: Jaylen Waddle
- Matchup: Bills
- Out Wide Matchup Rank: 29
This one is for Bobby LaMarco, the Grand Poobah of Razzball NFL Fantasy and President of the Anti-Jaylen Waddle Club. Waddle hasn’t topped 50 yards since week one and while we expected a bounce back with Tua Tagovailoa returning, that certainly didn’t occur. It would be just like Jayden Waddle to randomly blow up in this difficult matchup against the Bills, but I’m not risking it.
- Player: Cedric Tillman and Jerry Jeudy
- Matchup: Chargers
- Out Wide Matchup Rank: 28
Last week I was very high on Cedric Tillman, starting him in four leagues and putting him in this very article. This week I’m starting him in none. The Chargers matchup is tough and we haven’t seen if Tillman’s role is a permanent shift in usage or fluky. Meanwhile, Jerry Jeudy has been surprisingly quiet with Jameis Winston and now is not the time to expect a change in that because of just one good week.
- Player: Jaxon Smith-Njigba
- Matchup: Rams
- Out Wide Matchup Rank: 32
JSN has been consistently inconsistent. In good matchups he’s been solid, even good at times. But in tough matchups he busts on a weekly basis. The Rams are the toughest slot matchup out there so I’m not risking Smith-Njjigba, despite the likely lack of DK Metcalf.
- Player: Demario Douglas
- Matchup: Titans
- Slot Matchup Rank: 19
The Titans remain a very tough wide receiver matchup. While slot receivers have had a little more success than their out-wide counterparts (who have scored the third fewest points), I still don’t trust Demario Douglas this week. It will be very difficult for the Patriots to move the ball in this game and Douglas has had 4 receptions for 26 yards in the last two weeks total.
WR Exceptions
Jayden Reed (GB vs DET): I’m not suggesting you should sit Jayden Reed. This is the best matchup for slot receivers in the league and Reed always has immense upside. But his floor is far lower than most appreciate. He’s had just 73 yards over the last three weeks combined with two 2-reception games. Malik Willis could be the quarterback this weekend too and that could be OK, or it could be a total mess. There are many more question marks to consider than earlier in the season when Reed seemed to be a must start. So today, I’m just suggesting you think twice about your other options before putting Reed into your lineup.
Tank Dell (HOU @ NYJ): The Texans face the brutal Jets secondary in Week 9 but I’m still starting Tank Dell. The Texans have few other weapons and will need to lean on Dell, Joe Mixon and Dalton Schultz.
Tee Higgins (CIN vs LV): The Raiders are typically a tough out-wide matchup but Tee Higgins has been on fire when healthy and I can’t recommend you sit him, despite the opponent and his injury.
Good luck in Week 9 and remember, every player will be a sit in some leagues and a start in others so if you have any start-sit questions, drop them in the comments below or hit me up on Instagram @TheFantasyFirstDown
| Download Table as CSV | |||
| Note: Filters and sorting in the table below apply to the output | |||
| # | Defense | Total PPG Allowed | Slot PPG Allowed | Wide PPG Allowed | Slot% | Wide% | Next Opp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MIN | 45.9 | 19.1 | 26.8 | 42% | 58% | IND | |
| BLT | 43.4 | 16.8 | 26.6 | 39% | 61% | DEN | |
| DET | 43.1 | 22.9 | 20.2 | 53% | 47% | GB | |
| JAX | 38.2 | 12.6 | 25.6 | 33% | 67% | PHI | |
| TB | 35.4 | 13.3 | 22.1 | 38% | 62% | KC | |
| NO | 34.3 | 16.2 | 18.1 | 47% | 53% | CAR | |
| ATL | 34.3 | 14.1 | 20.2 | 41% | 59% | DAL | |
| ARZ | 34.2 | 14.7 | 19.4 | 43% | 57% | CHI | |
| CAR | 33.9 | 10.1 | 23.8 | 30% | 70% | NO | |
| WAS | 33.3 | 13.8 | 19.5 | 41% | 59% | NYG | |
| HST | 33.2 | 13.8 | 19.4 | 42% | 58% | NYJ | |
| NE | 33.2 | 13.5 | 19.7 | 41% | 59% | TEN | |
| PHI | 32.5 | 15.2 | 17.3 | 47% | 53% | JAX | |
| CLV | 32.3 | 12.7 | 19.6 | 39% | 61% | LAC | |
| IND | 31.7 | 12.3 | 19.4 | 39% | 61% | MIN | |
| NFL Average | 31.7 | 12.8 | 18.9 | 40% | 60% | ||
| CIN | 31.4 | 11.2 | 20.3 | 36% | 64% | LV | |
| NYG | 30.9 | 10.1 | 20.8 | 33% | 67% | WAS | |
| SEA | 30.5 | 11.1 | 19.4 | 36% | 64% | LA | |
| SF | 30.4 | 14.4 | 16.0 | 47% | 53% | BYE | |
| DAL | 30.1 | 9.2 | 20.9 | 31% | 69% | ATL | |
| GB | 30.0 | 11.0 | 19.0 | 37% | 63% | DET | |
| PIT | 29.9 | 12.1 | 17.8 | 41% | 59% | BYE | |
| LA | 29.7 | 7.7 | 22.0 | 26% | 74% | SEA | |
| CHI | 28.3 | 8.9 | 19.4 | 32% | 68% | ARZ | |
| LV | 27.4 | 13.0 | 14.3 | 48% | 52% | CIN | |
| BUF | 26.9 | 13.0 | 13.9 | 48% | 52% | MIA | |
| KC | 26.7 | 15.0 | 11.7 | 56% | 44% | TB | |
| DEN | 26.2 | 10.4 | 15.8 | 40% | 60% | BLT | |
| TEN | 25.1 | 11.7 | 13.4 | 47% | 53% | NE | |
| MIA | 24.8 | 9.9 | 15.0 | 40% | 60% | BUF | |
| LAC | 24.8 | 10.7 | 14.1 | 43% | 57% | CLV | |
| NYJ | 22.9 | 9.8 | 13.2 | 43% | 57% | HST |
Good call on Tank Dell
But does it count if the article comes out after the game is played?
That is on us. Ben gets a pass. We had some scheduling issues on the backend. Our bad!
Have a DK replacement problem too, again. Leaning Tolbert > Jeudy, also have Pierce and MWilson. Got a good feel about Pierce this week, but the floor could be a zero.
Yeah I would lean Tolbert but they’re all awkward.
Ben!
DK is sitting again, which leaves me with Doubs, Elijah Moore, or Darius Slayton.
Thoughts?
Doubs is a solid start. Don’t love the others. Assuming you only need to start one, Doubs is the easy choice.
Better stash- Keaton Mitchell or Kimani Vidal?
Thanks!
Neither is a particularly good stash. But I think Mitchell is the better of the two.
Thanks Ben!
One more question for the weekend- would you rather have Trey Benson or Jonathan Brooks in a keeper league?
Thanks!
Jonathan Brooks for me
Thanks my man!!
PPR need some upside at flex
Kmet, Noah Brown or Troy Franklin
I’d go with Noah Brown but all are lottery tickets at best.
Thanks Ben! Also got Wicks, I forgot
Wicks had a massive drop in snaps last week so I wouldn’t risk him. But check my rankings if you want to find who else I have above Brown. ffdfantasyfootball.com