2012 Fantasy Football Draft Prep: ADP Trends for Wide Receivers

A couple of injuries to key receivers to report as we take a look at the recent ADP trends for wide receivers in standard scoring leagues. Depth remains strong overall at this position, so before you roll the dice on a receiver with injury concerns, it might be a good idea to take a healthy player instead—unless they continue to fall down the draft board to a value worth the risk.

Miles Austin’s Hamstring

Fantasy owners who invested a pick in the fourth or fifth pick on Miles Austin know all too well his hamstring problems he struggled through last season. While Austin attributed his injury on lack of conditioning because of the lockout, he’s continued to have setbacks this month, and the Cowboys aren’t sure when he will be back.

Expected to miss the rest of the preseason, anticipate his ADP dropping from its current position as the 23rd receiver (6.07) off the board in standard league mocks. Because of his talent and situation when healthy, I have a hard time seeing Austin fall outside of the top 35 receivers in most drafts.

Currently a mid-sixth-round pick, we should target Austin somewhere around ninth round. When healthy, Austin is a WR2 talent, and it’s not like you’ll have to deal with off-the-field problems with this veteran like you would with Kenny Britt, who is going off the board in the same area.

Denarius Moore is another name going in the ninth round that has been held back throughout camp with a hamstring problem. I respect Moore’s game and he could be a great receiver in this league, but we should target Austin before the talented second-year pro.

Hakeem Nicks Working His Way Back From Foot Injury

Last week Nicks was activated off the PUP list and seems to be rehabbing well (knock on wood) from his foot aliment suffered during OTAs. The talented young wideout should have enough time to condition himself to be ready for the Giants' early Week 1 matchup against the Cowboys.

Going in the fourth round, I find his current ADP to be fair; but remember Nicks has been an injury-prone player thus far in his career. Thankfully he’s yet to suffer a serious injury, but he may frustrate you by finding his way on the injury report often.

Just know that he tends to play through most of his injuries, so if you find him with the questionable tag weekly, he’s proven to be a gamer in the past.

Standard League ADP’s below are from Fantasy Football Calculator.

Wide Receivers	ADP
Calvin Johnson	1.06
Julio Jones	2.06
Larry Fitzgerald	2.09
Andre Johnson	3.04
A.J. Green	3..06
Brandon Marshall	3.07
Greg Jennings	3.07
Wes Welker	3.09
Roddy White	3.10
Jordy Nelson	4.04
Victor Cruz	4.04
Hakeem Nicks	4.06
Dez Bryant	4.09
Steve Smith	5.02
Marques Colston	5.04
Percy Harvin	5.04
Brandon Lloyd	5.05
Mike Wallace	5.07
Demaryius Thomas	5.10
Antonio Brown	6.03
Eric Decker	6.04
Jeremy Maclin	6.05
Miles Austin	6.07
DeSean Jackson	6.09
Vincent Jackson	7.02
Steve Johnson	7.03
Dwayne Bowe	7.04
Pierre Garcon	7.09
Torrey Smith	8.05
Reggie Wayne	8.06
Titus Young	8.10
Robert Meachem	9.04
Kenny Britt	9.04
Denarius Moore	9.09
Malcom Floyd	9.10
Darrius Heyward-Bey	10.04
Anquan Boldin	10.05
Randy Moss	10.07
Nate Washington	11.01
Austin Collie	11.01
Santonio Holmes	11.06
Justin Blackmon	11.08
Lance Moore	11.08
Randall Cobb	12.02
Greg Little	12.04
Vincent Brown	12.09
Mike Williams	12.09
Kendall Wright	13.04
Jonathan Baldwin	13.06
Sidney Rice	13.06

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