Fantasy Football 2012 Week 5 Rankings: Top 50 Wide Receivers

How do the injuries to Hakeem Nicks and Greg Jennings impact the rankings?  It obviously has an effect, but there are some top options with great matchups this week.  Let’s take a look at how everything stacks up, including a surprise at the top:

1. A.J. Green – Cincinnati Bengals – vs. Miami
2. Roddy White – Atlanta Falcons – at Washington
3. Percy Harvin – Minnesota Vikings – vs. Tennessee
4. Victor Cruz – New York Giants – vs. Cleveland
5. Julio Jones – Atlanta Falcons – at Washington
6. Brandon Marshall – Chicago Bears – at Jacksonville
7. Wes Welker – New England Patriots – vs. Denver
8. Dwayne Bowe – Kansas City Chiefs – vs. Baltimore
9. Torrey Smith – Baltimore Ravens – at Kansas City
10. Demaryius Thomas – Denver Broncos – at New England
11. Larry Fitzgerald – Arizona Cardinals – at St. Louis
12. Andre Johnson – Houston Texans – at New York Jets
13. Jordy Nelson – Green Bay Packers – at Indianapolis
14. Mike Wallace – Pittsburgh Steelers – vs. Philadelphia
15. Brandon Lloyd – New England Patriots – vs. Denver
16. Eric Decker – Denver Broncos – at New England
17. Marques Colston – New Orleans Saints – vs. San Diego
18. Reggie Wayne – Indianapolis Colts – vs. Green Bay
19. Antonio Brown – Pittsburgh Steelers – vs. Philadelphia
20. Malcolm Floyd – San Diego Chargers – at New Orleans
21. Steve Smith – Carolina Panthers – vs. Seattle
22. Danny Amendola – St. Louis Cardinals – vs. Arizona
23. Brian Hartline – Miami Dolphins – at Cincinnati
24. DeSean Jackson – Philadelphia Eagles – at Pittsburgh
25. Steve Johnson – Buffalo Bills – at San Francisco
26. James Jones – Green Bay Packers – at Indianapolis
27. Anquan Boldin – Baltimore Ravens – at Kansas City
28. Lance Moore – New Orleans Saints – vs. San Diego
29. Andrew Hawkins – Cincinnati Bengals – vs. Miami
30. Jeremy Maclin – Philadelphia Eagles – at Pittsburgh
31. Pierre Garcon – Washington Redskins – vs. Atlanta
32. Domenik Hixon – New York Giants – vs. Cleveland
33. Michael Crabtree – San Francisco 49ers – vs. Buffalo
34. Nate Washington – Tennessee Titans – at Minnesota
35. Jerome Simpson – Minnesota Vikings – vs. Tennessee
36. Sidney Rice – Seattle Seahawks – at Carolina
37. Greg Little – Cleveland Browns – at New York Giants
38. Andre Roberts – Arizona Cardinals – at St. Louis
39. Randall Cobb – Green Bay Packers – at Indianapolis
40. Mario Manningham – San Francisco 49ers – vs. Buffalo
41. Robert Meachem – San Diego Chargers – at New Orleans
42. Kendall Wright – Tennessee Titans – at Minnesota
43. Kenny Britt – Tennessee Titans – at Minnesota
44. Stephen Hill – New York Jets – vs. Houston
45. Alshon Jeffery – Chicago Bears – at Jacksonville
46. Davone Bess – Miami Dolphins – at Cincinnati
47. Leonard Hankerson – Washington Redskins – vs. Atlanta
48. Donald Jones – Buffalo Bills – at San Francisco
49. Brandon LaFell – Carolina Panthers – vs. Seattle
50. T.Y. Hilton – Indianapolis Colts – vs. Green Bay

Thoughts:

• If Roddy White and/or Julio Jones were taking on the Washington Redskins without the other one in the lineup, they would likely be the top option.  While there could be enough balls to go around, they will likely split the opportunities (whereas A.J. Green is the clear cut top option).  That alone is the tipping point between White and Green, who are both performing at a high level and have favorable matchups this week.
• Will Hakeem Nicks play this week?  Time will tell, but if he does he has the potential to have a monster week against the Browns.  While Victor Cruz is going to be a WR1 regardless, Domenik Hixon should have the opportunity to post good numbers if Nicks is out.  We are leaving Nicks off, for now, but if he dresses consider him a WR1 and drop Hixon to more of a WR4.
• Wes Welker is starting to look like the player of old, isn’t he?  He now has 25 receptions for 380 yards (including back-to-back games with at least 129 yards).  The one thing he hasn’t been doing is finding the end zone.  Do we expect that to continue?  Sooner or later you have to expect him to break one, so don’t downgrade him because of that.
• Yes, Andre Johnson has not performed as expected (16 receptions for 268 yards and 2 TDs).  Yes, the Texans could easily go with a run-first attack, led by Arian Foster.  However, with Darrelle Revis out for the season, Johnson should be in position to perform.  This could be his breakout performance of the season, so consider him a low-end WR1.
• Would it surprise anyone to see Peyton Manning and Tom Brady get into a shootout?  Demaryius Thomas would have the potential to be a major benefactor, as he already has 21 receptions for 325 yards and 2 TDs.  It could be another big day.
• It’s been a decent year for Malcolm Floyd, with 15 catches for 250 yards and 1 TD, but we all know there is the potential for significantly more production.  He has a favorable matchup against the Saints, who have allowed seven passing TDs and 276.5 passing yards per game over the first four weeks.  View him as a solid WR2.
• While I wouldn’t expect a repeat performance from Brian Hartline, he is the go-to receiver for the Dolphins at this point and has a more favorable matchup than guys like DeSean Jackson or Stevie Johnson.  That being said, he’s still a borderline WR2 and I wouldn’t blame anyone for not trusting him quite yet.
• The Giants’ secondary is banged up, which is the only reason why Greg Little (who is completely unpredictable as it is) is still a consideration as a WR3.  However, with just 11 catches for 151 yards and 1 TD, I would leave him for the desperate for now.
• Does anyone want to trust Kenny Britt at this point?  He’s going to remain on the rankings, because it appears likely he will play, but until he stays healthy and produces he is untrustworthy.

Make sure to check out all the rest of our Week 5 rankings:

• Top 25 Quarterbacks
• Top 40 Running Backs
• Top 25 Tight Ends
• Top 15 Defenses