We’re back for Week 8 in the midst of Bye-medgedon! I’ve got my work cut out for me this week. Let’s review my favorite WR starts and sits this week, utilizing Razzball’s Wide Receiver Fantasy Points Scored Slot vs. Wide and our Defense Slot vs. Wide. The Slot vs Wide chart breaks down how many fantasy points a wide receiver has scored so far this season from the slot vs. out wide. With three weeks under our belts, the sample size is growing, and trends are starting to emerge.
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 | RB Zone vs. Gap Rushing | DEF Zone vs. Gap Rushing |
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Starts
- Player: Zay Flowers
- Opponent: vs. Bears
As Lamar Jackson nears a return to the starting lineup, Zay is bound to get his Flowers. Chicago permits the highest rate of fanatsy points to WRs in the slot at 49%. The Bears also allow the fifth-most points (24.8) to WRs and are one of five teams to give up double-digit (10) TDs to WRs. Luckily for Baltimore, Flowers has the highest slot usage of all Ravens’ WRs, while drawing at least eight targets in all but two games. In a must-win game for the Ravens, I expect him to produce his third game of the season with double-digit targets and tally his second TD.
- Player: Rome Odunze
- Opponent: at Baltimore
The Ravens are coming off a bye, but still are allowing the second-most points to WRs on a per-game basis. Odunze has been limited to 31.5 yards and zero TDs over his previous two games, so his shareholders might be down on him. This is a get-right game for him as he produces 85% of his production out wide, where the Ravens give up close to 60% of fanatsy points to WRs. Over his first four games, Odunze generated nearly nine targets per game while scoring a TD in all four. The Bears will need to get back to involving their WR1 early and often to reap the benefits from Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.
WR3 Starts (WRs ranked outside the top 25)
- Player: Romeo Doubs
- Opponent: at Pittsburgh
As we enter the next chapter of Aaron Rodgers’ story, Doubs has all my focus. He’s the go-to WR for Jordan Love as the only WR over double-digit points at 13.1 per game. The Steelers’ secondary is very beatable as they allow the most points to WRs lined out on the perimeter at 32.8 points per game. Doubs should be able to exploit the defense out wide, where he produces 91% of his fantasy points. In a shortage of players at your disposal, he’s a must-start! Don’t forget what the Bengals did against this defense on TNF.
- Player: Troy Franklin
- Opponent: vs. Cowboys
Courtland Sutton is rightfully getting a lot of hype this week, but I think Franklin is the play for the Broncos this week. He’s becoming the main slot WR, scoring 54% of his points, the most on the team. In a dream matchup against the worst secondary to WRs, Dallas gives up the seventh-most points to slot WRs. Franklin has scored both TDs this season when facing defenses ranked within the top three, which Dallas happens to classify under. He also ranks third among all WRs with 11 red zone targets. Out-smart your league mates and get Franklin into your lineup!
Sits
- Player: Deebo Samuel Sr.
- Opponent: at Kansas City
It’s difficult to trust any Commanders’ WR with Jayden Daniels out. Add in a road game in Kansas City, which allows the fewest points to WRs, as well as the fewest out wide and the third fewest from the slot. Samuel Sr. had one bad game and one good game with Marcus Mariota as his QB in Weeks 3 and 4. Oddly enough, the best WR with Mariota was Luke McCaffrey, who couldn’t haul in a pass in Week 7. I am equally worried about Terry McClaurin, who returns from injury. I have concerns about the target distribution among this WR duo against KC.
- Player: Keon Coleman
- Opponent: at Carolina
This Buffalo Bill is surprisingly trending downward. After a huge Week 1 performance, he’s topped 40+ yards just once. Over the Bills’ last four games, he’s second on the team with targets (17), but is fourth with 79 receiving yards. He enters Week 8 facing a Panthers’ secondary that is allowing the second-fewest total points to WRs and the second-fewest points out wide to WRs. 83% of Coleman’s fantasy points come when he’s lined out wide in the formation, so I do not expect much from him this week. It’s hard to bench players with limited options, but I prefer Tez Johnson, Matthew Golden, Elic Ayomanor, Alec Pierce, and Xavier Legette.
WR Slot vs. Wide Prediction
- Player: Luther Burden
- Opponent: at Baltimore
Desperate times during Bye-medgedon call for desperate plays. Burden fits the bill as the Ravens allow the most points to slot WRs. You might be thinking, why not Olamide Zaccheaus? Zaccheaus (60%) and Burden (40%) account for most slot usage for the Bears’ offense. While Zaccheaus plays more snaps, he has only surpassed 40+ receiving yards twice and has not yet scored a TD. Burden is an essential boom or bust play with four games under 22 receiving yards, but he has two games with 51 and 101 yards with a TD. Burden has the best chance to provide an explosive play from the slot against Baltimore.
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ARZ | 27.4 | 11.3 | 16.1 | 39% | 61% | DEN | |
| ATL | 35.2 | 9.0 | 26.1 | 29% | 71% | SF | |
| BLT | 35.4 | 11.1 | 24.4 | 34% | 66% | CIN | |
| BUF | 37.3 | 11.8 | 25.6 | 35% | 65% | BYE | |
| CAR | 32.1 | 6.6 | 25.5 | 20% | 80% | TB | |
| CHI | 35.0 | 8.7 | 26.3 | 23% | 78% | NE | |
| CIN | 34.4 | 17.0 | 17.4 | 49% | 51% | BLT | |
| CLV | 34.2 | 14.3 | 20.0 | 42% | 58% | TEN | |
| DAL | 34.4 | 14.5 | 19.9 | 41% | 59% | PHI | |
| DEN | 33.1 | 8.7 | 24.4 | 30% | 70% | ARZ | |
| DET | 38.5 | 13.6 | 24.9 | 31% | 69% | GB | |
| GB | 29.8 | 9.8 | 19.9 | 34% | 66% | DET | |
| HST | 34.4 | 12.5 | 21.9 | 37% | 63% | NYG | |
| IND | 28.2 | 9.7 | 18.5 | 35% | 65% | MIN | |
| JAX | 33.1 | 8.9 | 24.2 | 29% | 71% | BYE | |
| KC | 23.1 | 10.2 | 13.0 | 46% | 54% | SEA | |
| LA | 28.9 | 12.3 | 16.6 | 45% | 55% | LV | |
| LAC | 25.5 | 9.1 | 16.4 | 36% | 65% | BYE | |
| LV | 36.2 | 16.5 | 19.7 | 46% | 54% | LA | |
| MIA | 27.9 | 10.8 | 17.1 | 35% | 66% | NYJ | |
| MIN | 28.3 | 8.1 | 20.3 | 35% | 66% | IND | |
| NE | 32.7 | 9.4 | 23.3 | 28% | 72% | CHI | |
| NO | 35.1 | 11.4 | 23.7 | 32% | 68% | PIT | |
| NYG | 27.3 | 8.7 | 18.6 | 33% | 67% | HST | |
| NYJ | 33.9 | 14.7 | 19.1 | 40% | 60% | MIA | |
| PHI | 37.2 | 16.8 | 20.4 | 44% | 56% | DAL | |
| PIT | 32.8 | 8.2 | 24.6 | 23% | 77% | NO | |
| SEA | 28.9 | 8.8 | 20.1 | 25% | 75% | KC | |
| SF | 26.5 | 5.8 | 20.7 | 24% | 76% | ATL | |
| TB | 29.0 | 11.9 | 17.1 | 37% | 63% | CAR | |
| TEN | 28.7 | 10.0 | 18.7 | 33% | 67% | CLV | |
| WAS | 35.9 | 10.8 | 25.1 | 30% | 70% | BYE | |
| NFL Average | 31.9 | 11.0 | 20.9 | 34% | 66% |
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