Wide Receiver Matchups to Target in Week 7: Diontae Johnson, Tee Higgins, Jameson Williams, Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Week 7 WR Matchups to Target is here. We stayed hot last week with two more home run picks (fantasy points totaling three times a player’s DK salary), taking us to seven such picks over the last three weeks. 

Each week we will use matchup data from PFF to determine wide receivers to target based on who they will be primarily lining up against that week. These are players more likely to return a 3x multiplier on their DraftKings salary, a benchmark for consistently winning DFS cash games. 

Below are five of the top WR vs. CB matchups for this week’s DFS main slate. Use these to set season-long lineups, make player prop picks, and gain an edge in DFS. Let's get to it.

Diontae Johnson, Carolina Panthers

$6,600 on DraftKings, $7,100 on FanDuel; vs. Benjamin St-Juste

Johnson is the WR28 this season and has truly been boom-or-bust, with three top-12 performances to go along with three games outside the top 50. He has been a different player with Andy Dalton under center this year, averaging six catches and 76.5 receiving yards per game with the Red Rifle vs. 2.5 catches and 17 yards with Bryce Young.

Johnson and the Panthers face off against a vulnerable Commanders secondary on Sunday who rank 29th in pass defense DVOA and 28th in fantasy points given up to opposing receivers. 

Johnson is far and away the leader of this receiving corps, with more than double the number of targets of the next closest player on his team, Xavier Legette. 

Johnson has great underlying metrics making him an easy player to bet on going forward - he ranks second in the NFL in red zone targets and third in overall targets. 

Johnson's nagging injuries are something to watch leading up to Sunday, but in a game with the highest over/under of the week in which the Commanders are 9.5-point favorites, expect a lot of action for the 28-year-old through the air.

Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals

$6,400 on DraftKings, $7,800 on FanDuel; vs. Martin Emerson Jr.

Higgins had a slow start to the season coming off of injury but is coming on as of late, with 16 catches for 160 yards over his last two games. He is the WR13 in fantasy points per game while ranking 4th in expected points per game at 19.9.

The Bengals have a matchup with the Browns this week, PFF’s fifth best matchup for opposing receivers. The Browns rank 24th in fantasy points to opposing receivers and 20th in pass defense DVOA. 

The fifth-year pro is tied for the best individual matchup of the week against outside corner Martin Emerson, with a 99.6 matchup grade per PFF. Higgins will see a lot of man coverage against Emerson as the Browns lead the NFL in man coverage rate. Higgins has also been Cincinatti’s top receiver against man coverage this year in both target rate and fantasy points per route run.

Targeting Higgins is a great way to get a piece of the Bengals' offense this week without paying up for Ja'Marr Chase. Target him in GPP contests especially.

Ja'Marr Chase & Tee Higgins are going to FEAST 🍽️ pic.twitter.com/okG2gqZvAV

— PFF Fantasy & Betting (@PFF_Fantasy) October 18, 2024

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Jameson Williams, Detroit Lions

$6,000 on DraftKings, $6,500 on FanDuel; vs. Shaquill Griffin

Williams has been exciting to watch as the Lions’ No. 2 option this year. This explosiveness has finally been on display no matter where he is on the field, ranking second in yards per reception and eighth in both yards after catch and average depth of target.

Williams has a 73.1 PFF receiving grade so far in 2024, ranking 22nd among the 66 wideouts with at least 135 receiving snaps. He lines up all across the formation and excels in zone coverage and against the blitz.

Despite the reputation Brian Flores’ defense has been building, the Vikings rank dead last in the NFL in fantasy points given up to opposing receivers. Williams has an extremely high ceiling this week.

Jameson Williams
(data per @FantasyPtsData)

Overall
19% target share
39.2% air-yard share
27.1% first-read share
2.59 YPRR

When Jared Goff is blitzed
25% target share
41.2% air-yard share
4.77 YPRR
35.3.% first-read share

Why does this matter?

MIN has the second highest…

— Derek Brown (@DBro_FFB) October 18, 2024

Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seattle Seahawks

$5,900 on DraftKings, $6,100 on FanDuel; vs. Dee Alford

Smith-Njigba has had a largely forgettable start to 2024, finishing in the top-24 just once thus far. 

Despite coming into Week 7 as the WR34 in fantasy points per game, the second-year receiver is seventh in receptions. Smith-Njigba’s 29 first-read targets are tied for second among the 34 receivers with at least 65 slot receiving snaps this year. 

The Seahawks travel to Atlanta this week. The Falcons passing defense ranks in the bottom-third in DVOA and fantasy points allowed to receivers.

Smith-Njigba will match up against CB Dee Alford in the slot on Sunday. Alford’s 52.7 PFF slot coverage grade ranks third worst among starting slot corners. He also ranks bottom-four in catch rate allowed, missed tackles, and yards allowed per coverage snap.

Consider Smith-Njigba and Tyler Lockett as cheaper pivots if you are looking to save salary in DFS this week.

Noah Brown, Washington Commanders

$4,000 on DraftKings, $5,000 on FanDuel; vs. Mike Jackson

Brown has been largely off the fantasy radar this year but deserves a mention in what is predicted to be the highest-scoring game of the slate. 

While the Commanders were noted above as one of the worst teams against the pass this year, the Panthers have not fared much better, ranking 31st in pass defense DVOA and 21st in fantasy points allowed to opposing receivers. 

The Panthers deploy zone coverage at a top-10 rate. Brown ranks in the top 30 receivers in fantasy points per route run against zone.

As the WR57 in DK salary this week, Brown is a dart throw that allows you to get a piece of the Commanders' offense if you can’t fit Terry McLaurin in your budget.

Thanks for reading, and good luck with your DFS contests!

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