Week 3 WR Start, Sit Fantasy Strategy: Houston Wideouts In Tough Spot Against Pittsburgh

There are not a lot of matchups to shy away from in Week 3 as most wide receivers are going to be in decent spots. Given the injuries over Week 2, you might be forced into some of these bad situations and that happens at times. However, there are some strong options opening up this week as potential pick up so be sure to check out the waiver wire articles for grabs. DJ Chark has been ruled out while Michael Thomas and Davante Adams carry questionable tags this week. Julio Jones also has mentioned a hamstring injury so we are starting to see the top end wideouts get a bit banged up. Tune into our Week 3 Rankings & Projections.

Start Em

Darius Slayton Vs. San Francisco 49ers

Both Darius Slayton and Golden Tate are startable for me this week. I know the matchup against the 49ers is not going to look appealing in those matchup rankings, but Jason Verrett is doubtful and Richard Sherman is on IR. They are also going to miss Nick Bosa for the rest of the season and Dee Ford for this week. This defense is not where it usually is. In five games without Shepard, Slayton has seen 33 targets and gone for 37 yards and four touchdowns.

Russell Gage Vs. Chicago Bears

Atlanta’s passing attack continues to be a fantasy gold mine and Russell Gage has benefitted from the early volume. He has had 21 targets so far this season, catching 15 of them for over 150 yards and a score already. Chicago is a tough defense, but we can expect their best corners covering Calvin Ridley and Julio Jones. This offense will continue to put up big numbers and Gage is a weekly start in 12+ team leagues as a WR3 or FLEX option. We saw him come on last season and with a lack of run game this offense is solely putting up numbers through the air.

Corey Davis @ Minnesota Vikings

Corey Davis looked like he was off to a big game but didn’t do much in the second half against Jacksonville. He had five targets but did have a 3-36-1 line. With AJ Brown unlikely to suit up this week, we can look at Davis once again. He gets a mediocre Vikings secondary who has allowed 405 yards and five touchdowns to receivers already this season. This offense has looked good early and Ryan Tannehill looks to have a better report with Davis this season compared to last.

N’Keal Harry Vs. Las Vegas Raiders

N’Keal Harry is coming off a strong game where he had 12 targets, catching eight of them for 72 yards. Both him and Julian Edelman have been heavily targeted early on with Cam Newton and the Patriots have a matchup against the Raiders secondary this week. Harry might not need to see this type of volume again as the Pats were trailing last week, but 7-8 targets are where he is projected. It is a great spot and Harry is worth a look if you are in need of a spot start.

DeSean Jackson Vs. Cincinnati Bengals

The injuries keep on coming for the Eagles as Jalen Reagor is out for the next few weeks at a minimum. DeSean Jackson has remained healthy through two weeks and saw his snaps and targets improve in Week 2. He had nine last week and seven the week before. While he hasn’t had the breakout game yet, the volume was there against two quality secondaries. Cincinnati is a defense to target and I expect a get right game for the Eagles offense and Jackson to be a part of it.

Sit Em

Henry Ruggs III @ New England Patriots

Henry Ruggs was a game-time decision last week and ended up suiting up against the Saints. He was hardly targeted and the knee injury likely was something that hindered him. Carrying that into this week against the Patriots secondary, I won’t be risking Ruggs like I did last week. Derek Carr has spread the ball around early this season and Ruggs doesn’t have the heavy target share to get him over the hump in tough matchups.

Brandin Cooks @ Pittsburgh Steelers

Houston’s offense has a brutal start to the season and it doesn’t get easier in Week 3. Brandin Cooks saw just five targets in Week 1 and then eight last week. However, Will Fuller hardly played last week resulting in a tick up in targets. The Steelers are a defense that will make it tough on Houston with an above-average secondary but also a pass rush that is going to eat this Texans offensive line alive.

Sammy Watkins @ Baltimore Ravens

Sammy Watkins will return this week after leaving the game late. He will take on a secondary that has allowed 14.3 fantasy points per game to opposing wide receivers through the first two weeks. Baltimore has faced Houston and Cleveland in that span. Watkins had a strong week and for three quarters against a good Chargers secondary, he disappeared. There are just too many options in this offense to rely on Watkins on a week-to-week basis. And factoring in the matchup, I will pass.

Cooper Kupp @ Buffalo Bills

Cooper Kupp had a better game against Philadelphia but still has just 11 targets through the first two weeks. Going up against a Bills secondary that limits wide receivers in the fantasy department, I am looking elsewhere if possible. I expect this to be a fairly low scoring game and both offenses will likely be a bit run-heavy. The Rams defense can make this a slugfest as well.

Emmanuel Sanders Vs. Green Bay Packers

Emmanuel Sanders struggled in the Week 2 loss to the Raiders and had just three targets. He caught one of them for 18 yards. Sanders also saw just five targets in Week 1. This is a tougher spot against the Packers secondary where he will likely see Jaire Alexander more often than not. Alexander isn’t exactly a corner I like to target. If Deonte Harris and Tre’Quan Smith are going to be involved as much as they were in Week 2, this is a downgrade for Sanders as well. We should expect Alvin Kamara to be the focal point of the offense.