Week 14 Fantasy Football Rankings: Ranking the Riskiest WR Plays

A bad matchup can make a stud fantasy wide receiver into a low-scoring liability, but sometimes, they manage to make something out of nothing and defy the odds, helping your team along to victory.

While risk is a necessary element of fantasy football, it's never all that desirable to give a start to a player who you suspect could produce just a handful of points, nor is it fun to see that a receiver you pegged to struggle rack up points on your bench.

Here, I detail three wide receivers who are risky starts for Week 14. While they might not be worth benching, keep in mind that because of a variety of reasons, they have boom-or-bust written all over them.

A.J. Green, Cincinnati Bengals (vs. Houston Texans)

Rookie wideout A.J. Green has elevated the entire Cincinnati Bengals offense this season, and is generally the only reliable target for quarterback Andy Dalton on a weekly basis. He was targeted 11 times in the team's loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers last week and managed to catch six of them for 87 yards and a touchdown.

On the year, Green has 50 catches for 832 yards and seven scores and is easily not just the best receiver on the Bengals offense—he has quickly emerged as one of the most talented in the league. Though he had little trouble getting open against the venerable Steelers secondary last week, he faces an even stiffer test this Sunday against the third-ranked Houston Texans pass defense.

The Texans are giving up just 183.4 passing yards per game this year and need to maintain that pace while the team attempts its first playoff run in franchise history, considering the number of significant injuries to befall their offense this year.

Obviously, Green will find ways to get open, and he should have at least four receptions. However, it's what he does with him that will affect your fantasy team this week. If he's not open in the end zone, he may not see a touchdown this week. Keep that in mind when you start him.

Eric Decker, Denver Broncos (vs. Chicago Bears)

Boom or bust isn't just a descriptor for Denver Broncos wide receiver Eric Decker—it's the No. 1 phrase that describes the entire team's passing offense.

With quarterback Tim Tebow under center, it's often more likely that he will struggle passing the ball than he will consistently notch completions. However, even in his most dismal aerial performances, he manages to connect on a deep pass with one of his receivers, especially Decker.

When that happens, Decker goes from a frustrating starter to a high-scoring success, but it's just so hard to predict when or if it will occur. For example, Decker had three catches for 65 yards and a touchdown in Week 12, but caught just two passes for 25 yards the following Sunday.

Further harming his value is the fact that Tebow rarely throws more than 15 passes a game. Whoever he targets most has the best chance to make plays, and when that doesn't end up being Decker, he produces numbers like he did last week.

Add into that a strong Chicago Bears defense that will need to play harder than ever in order to compensate for their serious problems on offense, and it's a huge risk to give Decker (or fellow receiver Demaryius Thomas) a start this week.

David Nelson, Buffalo Bills (at San Diego Chargers)

At one time, shootout wins were the Buffalo Bills' specialty, but much has changed in the later part of this season. Specifically, Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick's early-season success has morphed into inaccuracy in recent weeks, costing the team their last five games in a row.

That means that slot receiver David Nelson, once a waiver wire steal and reliable every-week starter, has seen his numbers dip in turn. In the first half of the season, Nelson was regularly notching 60 to 80 receiving yards and a touchdown week after week. Now, his yards are stuck in the 40s, and his only fantasy value seems to be the inevitable garbage-time touchdown he manages in most weeks.

Though this week's game against the Chargers could easily be a shootout, boding well for Nelson's chances to get seven or more targets, if Fitzpatrick is still his unreliable self, then it won't do much for Nelson's production nor your fantasy team's bottom line.