The NFL season is finally here, which means it’s time to set your lineups for Week 1 of the fantasy football season. Below are the wide receiver rankings, tiers, and analysis for Week 1.
Wide Receivers Rankings for Week 1
Tier 1: Alpha Wide Receivers
1. Tyreek Hill
2. Amon-Ra St. Brown
3. CeeDee Lamb
4. Justin Jefferson
5. Ja’Marr Chase*
6. A.J. Brown
7. Garrett Wilson
Hill takes the number one spot in the first rankings of the year. He and the Dolphins are in a projected high-scoring matchup with the Jaguars who do not have a great secondary. Although Hill was dealing with a thumb injury, there’s no concern about him missing Week 1.
Lamb got his contract figured out and will be out there for Week 1 for the Cowboys. However, due to his holdout, he didn’t practice much, which could leave him a bit rusty and out of sync with the offense. Additionally, the Cowboys have a tough Week 1 matchup as they visit the Browns great defense. Temper expectations for Lamb this week, but he is still a must-start. Week 1 might be the lowest rank that Lamb has in the wide receiver rankings all year.
Jefferson starts the season with a terrific matchup against the Giants. The Giants have one of the worst projected secondaries in the league putting Jefferson in a prime matchup to start the season even with Sam Darnold at QB.
*Assuming Chase plays, he’s an obvious top-five receiver, but his status for Week 1 against the Patriots remains uncertain.
All of these alpha wide receivers were drafted in the first round of fantasy leagues for a reason and should be in all lineups.
Tier 2: High-end WR1s to Low-end WR2s
8. Mike Evans
9. Davante Adams
10. Chris Olave
11. Puka Nacua
12. Cooper Kupp
13. Deebo Samuel
14. Drake London
Evans leads the tier for this week as the Buccaneers play the Commanders. Last season, starting pass catchers against the Commanders was a fantasy cheat code, and until they show significant defensive improvements, this trend is likely to continue into 2024. Expect Evans to have a big week to start his season.
Nacua and Kupp both have the potential to be the WR1 on their team, but they will take targets away from one another. It is going to be hard to predict which one of them will dominate the target share on a given week, putting both of them outside the top-ten for now.
Samuel and the 49ers have a difficult matchup against the Jets on Monday Night Football. The entire 49ers offense takes a slight hit.
Tier 3: Solid WR2s
15. Marvin Harrison Jr.
16. Jaylen Waddle
17. Brandon Aiyuk
18. D.J. Moore
19. Nico Collins
20. Michael Pittman Jr.
21. DK Metcalf
22. Rashee Rice
23. Malik Nabers
The highlights of tier three of the wide receiver rankings are two exciting rookies making their NFL debuts. Harrison Jr. and the Cardinals should be trailing for most of the game against the Bills putting them in pass mode to catch up. The only reason why Harrison is not in tier two is because he is a rookie and we want to see him prove it on the field first. Nabers and the Giants play a weak secondary against the Vikings but it is a projected low-scoring matchup. As the best playmaker on the Giants, Nabers will receive a large target share. Head coach Brian Daboll will need to get creative with getting the ball to Nabers given the current struggles of their offense.
Tier 4: WR3s or FLEX plays
24. DeVonta Smith
25. Tee Higgins
26. Tank Dell
27. Chris Godwin
28. Amari Cooper
29. Zay Flowers
30. George Pickens
31. Stefon Diggs
32. Terry McLaurin
33. Calvin Ridley
34. Christian Kirk
35. Diontae Johnson
36. Jaxon Smith-Njigba
The final tier of the wide receiver rankings include players that are good starters as WR3s or Flex plays for week 1. Dell and Diggs are competing for the WR2 spot behind Collins on the Texans, with Dell having a slight edge this week due to his established connection with C.J. Stroud. However, all three receivers are likely to cannibalize each other’s targets, which may impact their consistency throughout the season.
Some other quick notes from this tier: Godwin gets a boost this week against the Commanders (see note above about Evans), Cooper has a tough matchup against the Cowboys secondary, while Ridley and Kirk are in a projected high-scoring matchup in Miami.
Main Image: BILL INGRAM/THE PALM BEACH POST / USA TODAY NETWORK
