It took us long enough but we've finally moved on from ranking each wide receiver corps division by division. This week's focus shifts over to a look at the 16 teams in the AFC, ranking them accordingly. For the sake of brevity, this will be broken up into two parts.
The top few teams should come as no surprise, but the middle is where you can really start to nitpick. The approach taken was to find the appropriate balance between talent, depth, and fantasy scoring.
Some teams that have either improved or regressed since we visited their division. While we can't retroactively adjust their divisional ranking, their off-season moves will be referenced in their AFC ranking. Lastly, this is your weekly reminder that all of these rankings reflect each team's depth chart as of the time of writing.
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AFC Fantasy Receiving Corps Ranks
16. New York Jets
Notable Players: Quincy Enunwa, Robby Anderson
Right off the bat we have a New York Jets team that has gone under a considerable makeover this summer. Specifically, the Jets still had Eric Decker on their roster when we discussed the AFC East. Fast-forward a month and a half and things look a lot more grim in New York. Quincy Enunwa is a solid player who could easily be a WR3/flex on a better team. Unfortunately, thanks to a disastrous quarterback situation and an all-around dreadful offense, Enunwa is relegated to no more than a late-round flier on your bench. His 857 yards and four touchdowns were respectable in 2016, but you can't really rely on any Jets receiver in 2017.
Robby Anderson showed some flashes last year, but he too faces the same problem as Enunwa. If anything, it's even worse for Anderson who is No. 2 on the depth chart. Here's your not-so-hot take of the week: expect the Jets to struggle on offense early and often. Their dead-last ranking in the AFC is rightfully deserved. Harsh, but what do you expect from a team that is clearly tanking?
15. Cleveland Browns
Notable Players: Kenny Britt, Corey Coleman
By hook or by crook, Kenny Britt finished 2016 with 1,002 yards and five touchdowns with the Los Angeles Rams. Believe it not, that stat line just barely made him a WR3 in PPR, finishing 29th at the position. Now with the Browns, Britt has some intrigue as a deep flier in PPR formats. I know what you're thinking; the Browns need a quarterback, bad. Well, the Rams weren't exactly in tip-top shape at QB last year either.
Jared Goff and Case Keenum accumulated a total of 14 touchdowns and 18 interceptions. Average their completion percentages and you get 57.75%. Since Cody Kessler is the only quarterback the Browns retained from last year, let's focus on him. In nine games played, Kessler totaled six touchdowns with just two interceptions to go along with a completion percentage of 65.6%. It's wonky math, but the point here is that Kessler is more efficient than anything Britt had in Los Angeles. Throw in the possibility that Deshone Kizer steals the gig, exceeding rookie expectations in the process, and Kenny Britt is well worth a late round bench stash.
Corey Coleman, on the other hand, needs to stay healthy in order to evaluate his worth fairly. Keep an eye on his progress when waiver wire season is in full swing, but don't overpay for him on draft day. The Browns may be bad, and 15th certainly proves that, but Britt gives them a glimmer of hope.
14. Baltimore Ravens
Notable Players: Mike Wallace, Jeremy Maclin
Mike Wallace managed to put together a serviceable year in 2016 with 1,017 yards and four TDs. He was worth using as a high-end WR3/flex and should be able to repeat that stat line in 2017. In fact, there's room for improvement. Steve Smith's retirement and Dennis Pitta's release leave open a whole bunch of targets in Baltimore. Target him in the middle rounds for usable production.
Jeremy Maclin wasn't with Baltimore when we first visited the AFC North. Some expect Maclin to swoop right into a significant role with the Ravens. Not only was Maclin hurt for most of last year with the Chiefs, but he was also just flat out bad whenever he was on the field. 536 yards and two touchdowns over 12 games is nowhere close to being a fantasy asset. Even if we assume he's fully healthy, it'll be hard to trust Maclin right away in any sort of week-to-week format.
13. Kansas City Chiefs
Notable Players: Tyreek Hill
Remember when I said it's all about balancing talent, depth, and fantasy scoring? The Kansas City Chiefs are a case where they don't need depth to to jump up a bit to 13th in the rankings. Tyreek Hill is a flashy playmaker who is utilized in every facet of Kansas City's offense. Between his receiving, rushing, and returning numbers, Hill racked up 1,452 yards and 11 touchdowns. Obviously the returning numbers don't help you if your league doesn't reward you for individual players on special teams. Even if that's the case, his playmaking ability shows that the Chiefs are going to rely on him heavily. And now that Maclin is gone, Hill should see a uptick in targets. Hill is the perfect fifth rounder who has the talent for much, much more.
Only 13th in the AFC, the Chiefs didn't have much of a chance in when it came to their divisional ranking either.
12. Jacksonville Jaguars
Notable Players: Allen Robinson, Allen Hurns
The headache that is Blake Bortles remains strong in Jacksonville. Bortles might have stumbled his way into another top-10 fantasy season due to volume, but he managed to break Allen Robinson owners' hearts in the process. Here is a short list of receivers who had a better year than Robinson in 2016: Tyrell Williams, Rishard Matthews, Mike Wallace, Pierre Garcon. That right there is what we call severe regression. Luckily, Robinson's draft value has followed suit, pushing him back to the fourth or fifth round in most formats.
Unfortunately, this whole kerfuffle impacts Allen Hurns as well. He's pretty much undrafted at this point and won't have any real value until the Jaguars start putting together a more consistent offense.
11. Buffalo Bills
Notable Players: Sammy Watkins, Zay Jones
I'm sure there are some skeptics out there who are running away from Sammy Watkins. His health is an obvious concern, but even in 13 games during the 2015 season Watkins had a strong year. 1,047 yards and nine touchdowns showed he doesn't need a ton of catches to put up fantasy points. Problem is, he followed up with a measly nine game campaign the following year. Assuming he's fully healthy heading into the 2017 season, Watkins could be one of the biggest steals of the year. A borderline third/fourth rounder sets Watkins up for make-or-break status. I for one, will be hoping he falls to me.
Zay Jones is a promising rookie who can benefit from a Buffalo team desperate for more pop in their offense. The Bills have used a rotation approach to their No. 2 wideout so it'll be nice to see Jones slide into that spot. He's a sneaky flier in the later rounds with the potential to breakout in his rookie year. Jones has legit WR3 upside. Plus, if Sammy Watkins goes down Jones has even more value. The Bills are an underrated source of fantasy pieces, slotting them at 11th within the AFC.
10. Tennessee Titans
Notable Players: Rishard Matthews, Eric Decker, Corey Davis
The Titans have the potential to be one of the league's most potent offenses in 2017 and beyond. The arsenal of Marcus Mariota, DeMarco Murray, Derrick Henry, Delanie Walker, Rishard Matthews, Eric Decker, and Corey Davis is just about as good as it gets for a team on the upswing. For the purposes of this article, let's look at that trio of receivers with Mariota under center. At full strength, Tennessee could challenge for the top spot in the AFC South.
As it currently stands, Rishard Matthews has a stronghold on the No. 1 spot. This is partly due to him being the only notable receiver from last year, but it's also because Eric Decker and Corey Davis are battling off-season injuries. Matthews had a WR3 worthy year in PPR, a feat that isn't out of the question in 2017. There are so many other possibilities here, though, that it's tough to predict what the Titans will look like in the passing game. This is a case where depth is the most important factor in their ranking of 10th.
9. Houston Texans
Notable Players: DeAndre Hopkins, Will Fuller
If Eric Decker and Corey Davis were healthy the Texans and Titans would be swapped in the rankings. Instead, DeAndre Hopkins gives Houston the edge here. Hopkins struggled in 2016 thanks to abysmal quarterback play. Luckily for fantasy owners, his ADP has been relegated to the third round. That spot means he's another candidate for a bounce back year that could double his draft day value. Owners should be on their hands and knees praying to the fantasy gods that quarterback DeShaun Watson gets the starting gig come week one as he'd be a massive improvement despite his rookie status.
8. Miami Dolphins
Notable Players: Jarvis Landry, Devante Parker
Always a PPR machine, Jarvis Landry has seen his ADP bump up to the third round for the 2017 season. That's a little high for my taste but it's not like there's a strong case to be made against it. He's a great player who produces enough to be a "set it and forget it" fantasy asset. There really isn't much else to say about the guy. He is what he is at this point so expect him to repeat a similar stat line of 1,136 yards, four touchdowns, and 94 receptions in 2017.
Devante Parker is the wild card here. Parker his entering his third season in the NFL and his third season with plenty of hype. That's just it though, up until this point that's all he's been, hype. At some point he has to actually break out to justify all the hoopla. That said, he's currently going in the ninth round so it's not like he's being over drafted. Parker does have enough talent to become a piece you can use on a weekly basis. Just don't get too trigger happy during your draft.
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