While here every week during the regular season, we’ve seen some good wide receivers shut down by some top-tier cornerbacks. We’ve also seen some massive games that could have been predicted, knowing how great their cornerback matchup was. Not that it’s always going to work out, but a majority of the time, we know which wide receivers to fade.
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That’s what we aim to do here every single week – give you the players who will fall into each category. It’s not to say that you should automatically bench a player just because he’s got a tough matchup, but when they should be benched, I’ll let you know. For the first time this year, we are listing more matchups to worry about than ones to exploit. There are some brutal matchups for some borderline starters, so you’ve picked a good time to visit this article. It may make some of your toughest decisions not so tough.
Matchups to Exploit
Keenan Allen vs. Morris Claiborne
The reports out of Los Angeles are saying that Allen was pulled from last week’s game as a precaution. Most are concerned, but you shouldn’t be. Even since their bye week, Claiborne has allowed Devin Funchess 7/108/0, Tyreek Hill 6/185/2, Demaryius Thomas 8/93/1, and Michael Thomas 9/93/1. If you were to ask Cowboys fans about Claiborne, they’d tell you that this is what to expect – a player who has been very inconsistent throughout his career. It appears he’s in another one of those funks, so this is a matchup that Allen should dominate. On top of that, he’ll see Buster Skrine when he goes into the slot, one of the worst slot cornerbacks in the league.
Doug Baldwin vs. Xavier Woods
This one should come with an asterisk, but it won’t matter much. The Cowboys have been without slot cornerback Orlando Scandrick the last two week with back fractures, and even though they’re saying he may return, he can’t hang with Baldwin at less than 100 percent. Woods is a rookie who has only seen 11 targets in his coverage all year, allowing seven receptions for 54 yards and a touchdown. Coming off the embarrassing loss at home last week, the Seahawks should be able to bully the Cowboys secondary, and specifically Baldwin.
Adam Thielen vs. Morgan Burnett
You’ve heard the rumblings about how Damarious Randall has played better recently, right? Well, it’s likely because he moved back to the perimeter. They moved him back there because of the injuries to Davon House and Kevin King, the two starters who are now out for the year. That leaves strong safety Morgan Burnett coming down to play the slot. He’s a veteran that’s been around a while, but as we’ve seen a lot this year, safeties aren’t covering the slot all the time for a reason – it’s not their position. In coverage as a safety this year, Burnett has allowed a 120.5 QB Rating, the third-worst mark among safeties with 30 or more targets in coverage. Thielen has totaled 12/202/2 and 9/96/0 the last two games against the Packers.
Devin Funchess vs. Ryan Smith
The Bucs have been forced to play Smith more than they would like due to injuries, but here we are. Funchess should be able to post big numbers in this game against him, as he’s allowed a 67 percent catch rate, 14.1 yards per reception, and six touchdowns on just 55 targets in coverage. The 133.9 QB Rating he allows in coverage is the second-highest in the league of those with at least 30 targets in coverage. Shake off the dud last week and get Funchess back into lineups.
Matchups to Worry About
Julio Jones vs. Marshon Lattimore
We have already seen this matchup before just two weeks ago, when Jones finished with five catches for 98 yards, though he didn’t score. That’s nothing new to Lattimore, though, as no wide receiver has scored in his coverage. He’s been one of the best cornerbacks in the league, as quarterbacks targeting him have just a 37.5 rating. To remind you, they get a 39.6 rating by just spiking the ball. The reason you don’t bench Jones is because he’s obviously just as talented, but he also travels into the slot 25 percent of the time, which is out of Lattimore’s zone.
A.J. Green vs. Darius Slay
Just one week after going against Xavier Rhodes in a blowout where he finished with just two catches for 30 yards, he’ll have to go against Slay, who was just announced to the Pro Bowl this week. On 91 targets in coverage against No. 1 wide receivers, Slay has allowed just 6.6 yards per target and three touchdowns in his coverage. He’s definitely a step below Rhodes in terms of shutdown ability, but a tough matchup nonetheless. I’d still play Green, but definitely lower expectations to the WR2 area.
Sterling Shepard vs. Patrick Peterson
This is a tough one, as Peterson doesn’t typically travel into the slot to cover opposing receivers, but this may be a special occasion. It reminds me of their Week 11 game against the Vikings last year where they allowed him to cover Stefon Diggs, who was playing almost exclusively out of the slot. Diggs was on a terror at that point, but Peterson was able to slow him down, as he finished with just six receptions for 37 yards. It’s possible that they don’t have Peterson shadow, but I think he does, making Shepard more of a borderline starter than one to automatically lock in.
Robby Anderson vs. Casey Hayward
We saw what a tough matchup looked like for Anderson with Bryce Petty under center last week, as he finished with just five catches for 40 yards on 12 targets against Marshon Lattimore. The bad news is that he gets another top-five cornerback this week in Hayward. He has been beat for four touchdowns, so while he’s been great in coverage, he hasn’t been as dominant as Lattimore. Still, the issue is that Petty is already limiting to his potential. Hayward has allowed just a 43 percent catch rate in coverage, which the lowest in the league of cornerbacks who’ve seen at least 40 targets. Anderson is a risky WR4 this week and not one you should aim to play.
Jamison Crowder vs. Chris Harris Jr.
We were all over Crowder here last week, but this is not one where you should aim to play him. He’s going to match-up with Harris Jr., who has been football’s No. 1 slot cornerback for quite some time. Over the last two years, he’s allowed just a 53 percent catch rate out of the slot, which is quite ridiculous, as most of them allow somewhere in the 65-75 percent range. He’s also allowed just five touchdowns on 132 targets in coverage, or one every 26.4 targets. I’m usually a Crowder supporter, but he’s going to have his hands full in this matchup.
Marquise Goodwin vs. Jalen Ramsey
This matchup had to get in here, as there are a lot of fantasy owners who are finding it tough to bench a red-hot Goodwin. Let’s be clear here – you don’t want to play wide receivers against Jacksonville unless they’re Antonio Brown– or DeAndre Hopkins-level good. There have been just eight wide receivers who’ve finished as a top-30 wide receiver against them this year, and six of those wide receivers scored. Goodwin has exactly one touchdown this year, so he’s not much of a touchdown scorer. The other two were Antonio Brown and Corey Coleman. Brown saw 19 targets, while Coleman saw 11 of them. Goodwin is playing extremely well, but the matchup with Ramsey and A.J. Bouye isn’t one that you should target. They have combined to allow just 5.8 yards per target and a touchdown once every 54 targets. By playing him, you’re playing with fire.
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Mike Tagliere is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @MikeTagliereNFL.
