2011 NFL Fantasy Football Week 9: Wide Receivers (WR) Rankings / Projections

Victor Cruz @ Patriots 

While the Giants' offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride limited Victor Cruz’s snap count in the team's victory over the Bills, because of his up and down play in previous weeks, this young receiver needs to stay on the field.

This shifty playmaker seems to be one of Eli Manning's favorite targets when the game is on the line. Cruz scored a go-ahead 25-yard touchdown last week against the Dolphins.

With Hakeem Nicks suffering a hamstring injury, Cruz could receive the nod as a starter for the second time this year.

The amount of snaps Cruz gets will determine whether he can be a potential weekly WR-2 play in fantasy leagues. As of Monday, we are still waiting to find out the test results from Nicks'  MRI, but I’ve failed to list him as a starter.

Even if Nicks plays, Cruz is a must start WR-3 at the lowest this week, as the Giants will face off against a Patriots secondary that has yet to stop the passing game when tested. Look for New York to do just that, and if Nicks is out, I feel confident that Cruz can perform as the low-end WR-1 player I have him listed as early in the week.

Darrius Heyward-Bey vs Broncos 

Not much went right for the Raiders in their last game against the Chiefs, except for the play of Darrius Heyward-Bey. Quickly becoming the teams go-to top receiver, Heyward-Bey has been playing at a level above his fellow receivers for a month now.

It doesn’t seem to matter if the Raiders have Jason Campbell, Kyle Boller or Carson Palmer off the street, because they all use Heyward-Bey as their main target. This kid is finally figuring out how to play at this level.

Talent has never been a problem for Heyward-Bey, and that was a big reason why the Raiders selected him as high as they did a few years back. Heading into the draft, NFL analysts graded DHB as a late first-round pick because he was a raw talent who would take a few years to develop.

With a matchup against the Broncos, DHB is a respectable WR-2 play this week, even if Palmer is still picking up the offense.

Stevie Johnson vs Jets 

Ryan Fitzpatrick is playing well for the Bills, but he still has a weak arm and is struggling to get the football down the field to Steve Johnson. Without a vertical threat in Johnson’s game, he’s failing to live up to the production of WR-2-type talent.

This week the Bills will take on the Jets and Darrelle Revis, so if you have other respectable options to start, this would be a good week to go with them.

More WK 9 Rankings – QB | RB | WR | TE | Flex | K/D | Waivers | Start / Sit |

1	Dwayne Bowe	Dolphins
2	Wes Welker	Giants
3	Mike Wallace	Ravens
4	Greg Jennings	@ Chargers
5	A.J. Green	@ Titans
6	Jeremy Maclin	Bears
7	Marques Colston	Buccaneers
8	Roddy White	@ Colts
9	Dez Bryant	Seahawks
10	Victor Cruz	@ Patriots
11	Anquan Boldin	@ Steelers
12	DeSean Jackson	Bears
13	Larry Fitzgerald	Rams
14	Vincent Jackson (I)	Packers
15	Miles Austin	Seahawks
16	Darrius Heyward-Bey	Broncos
17	Brandon Lloyd	@ Cardinals
18	Mario Manningham	@ Patriots
19	Santonio Holmes	@ Bills
20	Brandon Marshall	@ Chiefs
21	Nate Washington	Bengals
22	Antonio Brown	Ravens
23	Sidney Rice	@ Cowboys
24	Torrey Smith	@ Steelers
25	Reggie Wayne	Falcons
26	Steve Johnson	Jets
27	Mike Williams (TB)	@ Saints
28	Jordy Nelson	@ Chargers
29	Steve Breaston	Dolphins
30	Michael Crabtree	@ Redskins
31	Greg Little	@ Texans
32	Greg Salas	@ Cardinals
33	Jabar Gaffney	49ers
34	Ben Obamanu	@ Cowboys
35	Eric Decker	@ Raiders
36	Pierre Garcon	Falcons
37	James Jones	@ Chargers
38	Emmanuel Sanders	Ravens
39	Arrelious Benn	@ Saints
40	David Nelson	Jets
41	Devin Hester (I)	@ Eagles
42	Harry Douglas	@ Colts
43	Demaryius Thomas	@ Raiders
44	Early Doucet	Rams