RADIO
With the AFC rankings behind us it's time to head on over to the NFC counterpart. It was actually kind of surprising to learn that the NFC was a little harder to rank than the AFC. A lot of that has to do with ebbs and flows in depth, weighing superstar prowess in the process. That's what makes fantasy more fun though, right? Figuring out who goes where, and from a team standpoint it's all the more information to gather.
As with every piece in this series so far, these rankings are fluid based on all the usual moves throughout the summer. Each team's depth chart reflects the roster's outlook at the time of writing. Lastly, this is just part one of the NFC so be on the lookout for part two soon.
If you want to see the rest of this series, starting by division, click here to get caught up.
NFC Fantasy Receiving Corps Ranks
16. Los Angeles Rams
Notable Players: Robert Woods
Welp, to say we aren't off to a hot start would be an understatement. Here's a little tease for the full NFL rank of 1-32: there is more than a decent chance the Rams will rank dead last. Now that I've already ripped them to shreds, let's at least mention the players here. And by "players" I really mean "lone player worth talking about."
Robert Woods moves from Buffalo to Los Angeles, a move I suppose would qualify as a promotion in terms of depth chart. Thanks to Kenny Britt signing with Cleveland, Woods is now the de facto No. 1 receiver for the Rams. Woods is a young receiver who has flirted with borderline fantasy value but it's never really worked out. Britt was actually usable in deeper formats so there is a glimmer of hope for Woods to take advantage of. That's really all this team can do though, hope. Jared Goff is no superstar and this team lacks depth at WR. Woods is no more than a long shot that is only worth waiver wire consideration.
Sorry Tavon Austin believers, time to cut bait. The Rams aren't moving up from sixteenth any time soon.
15. San Francisco 49ers
Notable Players: Pierre Garcon
Poor, poor NFC West. Two teams in a row at the bottom of the barrel.
The marriage of new head coach Kyle Shanahan and wide receiver Pierre Garcon creates some buzz for a poor offense in San Francisco. Shanahan's claim to fame is as a pass-happy wizard and Garcon has shown respectable PPR value in the past. The problem, though, is that this quarterback situation is very much up in the air. So there are a wide range of possibilities here.
Optimism dictates Shanahan and Garcon sync up for decent WR3/flex value in PPR. Garcon is definitely worth a flier within that contest. However, that's about where the 49ers end on this front. The depth chart doesn't show much promise and Brian Hoyer/Blaine Gabbert could make the passing game more complicated than it needs to be. Fifteenth is right where the 49ers need to be right now.
14. Chicago Bears
Notable Players: Cameron Meredith, Kevin White, Markus Wheaton
On paper it's easy to look at the Bears and think "hey, they have three notable players, that's good!" Well, quantity doesn't always dictate quality so having three guys is quite misleading. The reasoning behind listing all three is simply upside. Cameron Meredith is a nice young player who had a stretch of usability last year. Kevin White hasn't been able to show what he can do due to health concerns. And Markus Wheaton has had a bunch of hype that wasn't realized in Pittsburgh. It's a lot of "what if?" hearsay but it's enough to give them the edge over the previous two teams.
The addition of Mike Glennon as the new starting QB certainly helps matters. Even the possibility of Mitch Trubisky getting a start garners interest. No matter who the quarterback is, we need to see some early production from Chicago's receivers before they deserve a serious look in fantasy.
13. Carolina Panthers
Notable Players: Kelvin Benjamin
Finally we have ourselves a player that is not only worth a mid-round pick but one that can be usable right from the onset of the season. Kelvin Benjamin got a bad rap last year thanks to way too much focus around his weight. Sometimes all it takes to understand player's performance is a quick look at the numbers. As you might have read in our NFC South piece, Benjamin only lost 67 yards and two touchdowns between his two healthy seasons. 2016 wasn't nearly as bad as some folks would have you believe. The truth is the hype is still real and now his fantasy ranking and ADP has dipped down to reflect where he should be going.
The Panthers may be looking for a bounce back year, and the addition of running back Christian McCaffery certainly helps. Unfortunately, wide receiver doesn't show much promise outside of Benjamin. The loss of Ted Ginn hurts, while Devin Funchess is a case of too much chatter and not enough production.
12. Detroit Lions
Notable Players: Golden Tate, Marvin Jones
Once upon a time Marvin Jones was sending shockwaves throughout the fantasy world with insane numbers to start 2016. Then when he came crashing down to reality, Golden Tate reclaimed the throne as the team's true No.1 receiver. Tate is now your prototypical border-line WR2 in any format. He'll be drafted as more of a WR3/flex, sure, but that's a reflection of the depth of wide receiver as a whole. There are way too many names who are more attractive than Tate. That said, look to snag him as guy who can contribute right away and end up as a sneaky sleeper.
Now back to Marvin Jones. The odds of Jones repeating his production from weeks 1-4 of 2016 are pretty slim. We're talking about a game where he had 205 yards and two touchdowns. There's bound to be an owner in your league who will consider him a true sleeper so let that person take the plunge. You'd be better served snagging someone with considerably more upside like a John Ross or Eric Decker. The Lions certainly aren't bad on offense, there are simply too many better teams in the NFC for them to be any higher than twelve.
11. Minnesota Vikings
Notable Players: Stefon Diggs, Adam Thielen
The Minnesota Vikings are in a weird state offensively. For starters, quarterback Sam Bradford is coming off a year in which he set an all-time completion percentage record at 71.6%. It's a pretty crazy feat when you consider Bradford's overall career trajectory. The key to that success was an offense that was very dink-and-dunk. Bradford isn't the type of passer to chuck the ball downfield, something that actually benefits both Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen.
Diggs was the better PPR play in 2016 with 84 receptions to Thielen's 69. Thielen, however, had the edge in game-to-game yardage totals. Both players were effective and usable at various points in the season. Looking ahead to 2017, Diggs and Thielen should be owned in PPR and non-PPR alike. You won't be looking to start either of them immediately but you can certainly envision a scenario where having them on your bench is an asset, even in a simple bye week situation.
The Vikings don't possess superstar quality receivers, but they make up for that in being the first team on our list to warrant two legitimate fantasy picks. That's enough to bump them up to 11. Fun fact, further research led to them flip-flopping with the Lions from back in May.
(Note: As of writing Adam Thielen was seen leaving practice with an undisclosed injury. Surely this ranking would change in the event it's something serious.)
10. Seattle Seahawks
Notable Players: Doug Baldwin
Finally we're at the turning point in the NFC where receivers are full-fledged studs. Doug Baldwin has been vastly underrated the last two seasons, racking up over 1,000 yards in each campaign. While 2015 saw him grab and astounding 14 touchdowns, 2016 was his breakout year in terms of his reception total. He was tied with Jarvis Landry for the seventh most catches in the league at 94. That was enough to land at eighth in PPR scoring among wide receivers. All of that is a long way to say that Baldwin's 2017 outlook is strong.
Doug Baldwin might not have all the fanfare we're accustomed to seeing from an Amari Cooper or DeAndre Hopkins, but he can certainly produce in bunches. He's the first true high-end WR2/borderline WR1 on this list and that's enough to land the Seahawks in the top-10. Beyond that, there aren't really any other receivers worth mentioning in Seattle. Jermaine Kearse and Tyler Lockett are likely to have a big game here or there but it's really the Doug Baldwin show.
9. Dallas Cowboys
Notable Players: Dez Bryant
The gap between the Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys is very, very thin. Some might be thinking Dez Bryant's injury history should give Seattle the edge but I'm not counting him out just yet. He still possesses superstar talent who can catapult right back up into top-five status. Even if you were to grant the Seahawks the edge since Baldwin is healthier, the Cowboys have a big advantage in terms of depth.
Dak Prescott has somewhat of an arsenal at his disposal with Cole Beasley, Terrance Williams, Brice Butler, and Ryan Switzer. None of those guys make the "notable players" section since you're not really going to be drafting any of them. Having said that, Beasley is an interesting name for those you in a deep PPR league. I for one, actually started him in a 14-team two-flex league. It's not flashy but hey, depth still means something. This is a Cowboys team that will spread the ball around enough to get you to sniff at someone on the waiver wire. Hopefully that means someone steps up in some usable fashion. Considering all four NFC East teams are cracking the top-10, coming in at nine is impressive enough for Dallas.
