Wide Receiver Matchups To Target in Week 3

Week 2 of the NFL season is in the books and the wide receiver position was a little unpredictable. Out of all the wide receivers referenced in last week's wide receiver matchup article, Terry McLaurin finished as WR-4, Mike Evans was WR-5 and Diontae Johnson was WR-6, so we were alright with those calls.  Mitchell Trubisky crushed Allen Robinson because he threw him so many uncatchable balls, and while Anthony Miller failed to make a catch, he did drop a touchdown which would have been nice. Marquise Brown was slowed by Bradley Roby so I was simply wrong on that call and in surprising fashion, Michael Gallup was only targeted five times in a game where Cowboys receivers were targeted 25 times by Dak Prescott. To round out the bad calls from Week 2, while Danny Amendola did see an increase in targets with Kenny Golladay out, leading the team with seven, but he only caught two balls and Parris Campbell missed almost the entire game due to injury.

Nothing is more important than matchup analysis when it comes to fantasy football. Through two weeks of action, the Colts, Texans, 49ers, Ravens and Patriots Defenses are looking like units you want to avoid because they limit opposing passing attacks. On the other side of things, the Raiders, Cardinals, Seahawks, Cowboys and Vikings Defenses are units that give up big time passing yardage and we may want to exploit them moving forward.

Now, here are the top WR vs CB matchups for Week 3. Use these to set season-long lineups, as well as gain a competitive edge in the DFS games.

Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams

$7,100 FanDuel/$6,300 DraftKings - vs Taron Johnson

The Bills Defense has been pretty solid so far this season, but they can be exposed in the passing game opposite Tre'Davious White. White does not follow receivers to the slot and he should line up on Robert Woods for much of the game meaning Cooper Kupp could be in for a big day. The Bills have been very stout against the run, giving up just 4.1 yards-per-carry and just 151 yards on the ground so far this season, which means the Rams will need to put the ball in the air a lot in this game especially since the Bills are favored.

Allen Robinson, Chicago Bears

$6,900 Fanduel/$6,200 DraftKings - vs Isaiah Oliver

The Falcons Defense has given up the fifth-most fantasy points to wide receivers so far this season, surrendering more than 15 fantasy points to four wide receivers through two games. Allen Robinson has underwhelmed so far in 2020, but that's not his fault, as Mitchell Trubisky has been throwing a lot of uncatchable balls his way. Robinson may have let us down in Week 2, but the matchup won't get much better than this. If Robinson can't get it done against the Falcons you seriously need to consider benching him moving forward.

Pivot: Darius Slayton, NY Giants - $5,500 FanDuel/$4,900 DraftKings - vs Emmanuel Moseley

The 49ers Defense has been solid through the first two weeks of the season, giving up just 409 yards through the air and 8.7 yards-per-catch, but those stats are somewhat aided by the fact that the 49ers played the Jets and their terrible offense last week. The 49ers were absolutely decimated by injuries in Week 2 which means Daniel Jones should have time to throw against the normally dominant 49ers defensive front. The Giants also suffered some injuries in Week 2, losing both Saquon Barkley and Sterling Shepard which means the Giants will likely need to throw the ball in Slayton's direction more often.

Terry McLaurin, Washington Football Team

$6,700 FanDuel/$5,900 DraftKings - vs Terrance Mitchell

The Browns Defense has been stingy against the run so far in 2020, giving up just 3.3 yards-per-carry which has forced teams to put the ball in the air against them. As a result, the Browns have given up the third-most receiving yards-per-game and the sixth-most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers. The Browns defensive line will give the Washington offensive line fits in the running game, which means McLaurin should see plenty of targets in Week 3.

D.K. Metcalf, Seattle Seahawks

$6,500 FanDuel/$6,500 DraftKings - vs Chibode Owuzie

The Cowboys Defense has been struggling so far this season and they're banged up in the secondary, including Chibode Owuzie, which is problematic. D.K. Metcalf has delivered several big plays so far this season and there's no reason to think he won't continue to dominate as the Cowboys have surrendered a league-high 10 catches of over 20 yards so far this year. The over/under between the Cowboys and Seahawks is set as 56.5 points so it makes sense to get the Cowboys and Seahawks receivers in your lineups.

Marvin Jones, Detroit Lions

$6,100 FanDuel/$5,800 DraftKings - vs Patrick Peterson

The Cardinals Defense has given up 12.7 yards-per-catch so far this season which is fourth-worst in the league. The Lions will finally get Kenny Golladay back this week which should take some attention away from Marvin Jones. The over/under between the Lions and Cardinals is set at 55.5 points which means there should be lots of points scored in this one, so it makes sense to get Jones in your lineup because the Lions never fully commit to the run and are likely to throw a lot.

Tyler Boyd, Cincinnati Bengals

$5,800 FanDuel/$5,900 DraftKings - vs Nickell Robey-Coleman

The Eagles Defense is fairly stout against the run, surrendering just 3.6 yards-per-carry which means Joe Mixon likely won't have a ton of success on the ground in Week 3. The Eagles are favored in this one and given the Bengals struggles in the running game, they're going to put the ball in the air a lot this week. A.J. Green will have a tough matchup on the outside against Darius Slay, which will leave Tyler Boyd with the much easier matchup out of the slot. In Week 2, Cooper Kupp had five catches for 81 yards out of the slot in a Rams win. The Bengals will likely need to throw a lot more than the 27 times that Jared Goff put it in the air last week, so Boyd should see more volume than Kupp did.

Pivot: Russell Gage, Atlanta Falcons - $5,600 FanDuel/$5,100 DraftKings - vs Buster Skrine

The Bears Defense is fairly tough against opposing wide receivers but Buster Skrine has been picked on out of the slot. Russell Gage is especially appealing in Week 3 because Julio Jones is dealing with a hamstring injury, which means Gage may see additional targets from Matt Ryan. The Falcons defense is not capable of stopping anybody, so the offense will need to score a lot in order to come out of this one with a win.

CeeDee Lamb, Dallas Cowboys

$5,600 FanDuel/$5,400 DraftKings - vs Ugo Amadi

The Seahawks Defense has given up the most fantasy points to wide receivers through the first two weeks of the season, and they've been absolutely gashed by opposing slot receivers. In Week 1 the Seahawks gave up 114 yards to Russell Gage and in Week 2 they surrendered 179 yards to Julian Edelman. Both the Cowboys and Seahawks defenses are banged up heading into this one, so look for this game to be a shootout with the over/under set at 56.5 points.

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