2012 PPR Fantasy Football Week 8: Wide Receivers (WR) Rankings

Almost two months into the season, I thought it would be a good idea to take a look at a breakdown of targets over the past month. NFL teams tend to scout an upcoming opponent in the four previous games they’ve played before they face them. It’s a good way to track what’s going on, numbers wise, for your potential fantasy options.

Larry Fitzgerald Top Dog In Targets Over Past Month

One would think John Skelton returning to the starting lineup would be a good thing for Larry Fitzgerald, but against the Vikings that wasn’t the case. No receiver has more targets over the past four weeks than Fitzgerald, but most of those targets came before last week. He posted an average of 14 targets in those games, but only seven last week.

The result: Fantasy owners were disappointed with a four-catch, 29-yard effort and he failed to find the end zone.

The last time San Francisco went into Arizona, Skelton led his team to a comeback victory with Fitzgerald posting one of his better performances of the season with seven receptions for 149 yards and a score. Perhaps it would be overly optimistic to expect those numbers with the Cardinals tackles struggling as bad as they are.

Instead I point to Fitzgerald’s numbers against the 49ers in San Francisco a few weeks before that game when he posted three receptions for 41 yards and score in a blowout that was closer to expectations. In the end, he should be somewhere around four to seven receptions for around 75 yards and a trip to the end zone.

Steve Smith Fighting Through Newton’s Struggles

While Smith only has 32 targets in the past four games played, 22 of them have come in the past two games. Smith has turned only half of those targets into catches on those 22 targets and has yet to find the end zone this season.

In fact, if we chart Smith’s last 12 games played, he only has two touchdowns in that time. Clearly, teams have caught up to the fact that Smith still has the skills to be a Pro Bowl receiver in this league. Unless we see other options like Greg Olsen and Brandon LaFell step up, it could mean more struggles for Smith this season.

What we should like from Smith is that he’s still a big part of the Panthers game plan. Before he played against good man coverage corners against the Seahawks and Cowboys, Smith was averaging over 20 yards per catch through the first four games.

Consider him a WR3 to flex play going forward and he should give you a decent return at that value.

1	Victor Cruz	@ Cowboys
2	Brandon Marshall	Panthers
3	Demaryius Thomas	Saints
4	Percy Harvin	Buccaneers
5	Jordy Nelson	Jaguars
6	Eric Decker	Saints
7	Vincent Jackson	@ Vikings
8	Roddy White	@ Eagles
9	Reggie Wayne	@ Titans
10	Wes Welker	@ Rams
11	Julio Jones	@ Eagles
12	Calvin Johnson	Seahawks
13	Larry Fitzgerald	49ers
14	Marques Colston	@ Broncos
15	Mike Wallace	Redskins
16	Randall Cobb	Jaguars
17	Jeremy Maclin	Falcons
18	Antonio Brown	Redskins
19	Miles Austin	Giants
20	Denarius Moore	@ Chiefs
21	Hakeem Nicks	@ Cowboys
22	James Jones	Jaguars
23	Steve Smith	@ Bears
24	DeSean Jackson	Falcons
25	Mike Williams	@ Vikings
26	Kenny Britt	Colts
27	Dwayne Bowe	Raiders
28	Dez Bryant (I)	Giants
29	Jeremy Kerley	Dolphins
30	Josh Gordon	Chargers
31	Sidney Rice	@ Lions
32	Kendall Wright	Colts
33	Brandon Lloyd	@ Rams
34	Santana Moss	@ Steelers
35	Michael Crabtree	@ Cardinals
36	Malcom Floyd	@ Browns
37	Andre Roberts	49ers
38	Ryan Broyles	Seahawks
39	Brian Hartline	@ Jets
40	Devery Henderson	@ Broncos

Week 8 PPR Rankings – RB | WR | Flex | Waivers | Start / Sit |