2012 Fantasy Football Week 2: Wide Receiver (WR) Rankings / Projections

Three catches for 14 yards is nothing to brag about, but because of the successful track record Wes Welker has, one would think this is just a disappointing day. Perhaps not, as ESPN’s Mike Reiss points out that Welker rotated with Julian Edelman and only played about two-thirds of New England’s offensive snaps.

While this news brings pause for concern, I can’t imagine Tom Brady will forget about his favorite possession receiver and I wouldn’t be surprised if Welker is featured this week.

Look to Welker as a starter against the Cardinals, but if this should continue we may need to think about benching him against weaker opponents, especially when the Patriots can run the football like they did against the Titans.

What We Learned From Week One

- More than off-season hype, Pierre Garcon is set for a big year if he can stay on the field. Unfortunately, during his long touchdown reception Garcon suffered a foot injury, but is expect to play against the Rams.

- Julio Jones also lived up to his lofty expectations and is set to challenge Calvin Johnson for the top fantasy receiver to own in 2012.

- Rookie receivers Stephen Hill and Alshon Jeffery are ready to make an impact early on. Jeffery will see his role expand as the season moves along, but I’m still not sold on Hill as an option to trust in the starting lineup for fantasy leagues. Let’s see how he does against the Steelers this week.

- Beat-writers in San Francisco talked about Randy Moss playing in a rotation and that was certainly the case in Green Bay. Expect Moss to continue to have a similar role, but he should be fresh and effective when on the field.

The Packers corners were scared of Moss’ deep speed, giving him a lot of respect and playing off the line of scrimmage. Expect this to continue as they must believe he still has an explosive burst on tape.

Sean’s Watch List For Week 2

- Kevin Ogletree has a firm grip on the No.3 job in Dallas’s receiving corps. Let’s see how Austin does in practice, because I’m anticipating a larger workload from him with eleven days to get ready for the Seahawks. This will be a difficult matchup for the Cowboys in Seattle, so let’s keep Ogletree on the bench, unless you’re in leagues deeper than twelve teams.

- Lance Moore should benefit from all the banged up players in the Saints offense. Six catches for 120 yards shouldn’t be considered a fluke and he should have another productive game against the Panthers this week.

- The Buccaneers played a great game last week against the Panthers in Tampa Bay. Because the Buccaneers could run the football, Jackson’s opportunities were limited, but expect things to be different this week as they go to New York and face the Giants.

1	Julio Jones	Broncos
2	Andre Johnson	@ Jaguars
3	Calvin Johnson	@ 49ers
4	Brandon Marshall	@ Packers
5	Jordy Nelson	Bears
6	A.J. Green	Browns
7	Demaryius Thomas	@ Falcons
8	Steve Smith	Saints
9	Percy Harvin	@ Colts
10	Roddy White	Broncos
11	Reggie Wayne	Vikings
12	Pierre Garcon (I)	@ Rams
13	Larry Fitzgerald	@ Patriots
14	Eric Decker	@ Falcons
15	Dwayne Bowe	@ Bills
16	Vincent Jackson	@Giants
17	Greg Jennings	Bears
18	Brandon Lloyd	Cardinals
19	Victor Cruz	Bucs
20	Hakeem Nicks	Bucs
21	Lance Moore	@ Panthers
22	Antonio Brown	Jets
23	Dez Bryant	@ Seahawks
24	Wes Welker	Cardinals
25	DeSean Jackson	Ravens
26	Marques Colston (I)	@ Panthers
27	Jeremy Maclin (I)	Ravens
28	Nate Washington	@ Chargers
29	Torrey Smith	@ Eagles
30	Miles Austin (I)	@ Seahawks
31	Michael Crabtree	Lions
32	Mike Wallace	Jets
33	Malcom Floyd	Titans
34	Randall Cobb	Bears
35	Mike Williams	@ Giants
36	Stevie Johnson (I)	Chiefs
37	Sidney Rice	Cowboys
38	Darrius Heyward-Bey	@ Dolphins
39	Alshon Jeffery	@ Packers
40	Randy Moss	Lions

Week 2 Rankings – QB | RB | Flex | Waiver Wire | Start – Sit |