Lions WR Calvin Johnson showed why he is the best wide receiver in the game on Sunday, catching nine of his 15 targets for 155 yards and two touchdowns in the Lions' 27-24 loss to the Bengals. Johnson now has caught 33 of his 63 targets for 492 yards and six touchdowns thus far, eclipsing his touchdown total from 2012 with nine games left to play. He has scored in four of the six games he has played in and has gone over the 100-yard mark in half of those games.
Fantasy football rankings, Week 8: Wide receivers in PPR, standard leagues
With six teams on bye this week, make sure you check out our Week 8 wide receiver rankings before setting your lineups.
Jason Miller
Bucs WR Vincent Jackson continues to be the lone star on a struggling Tampa Bay team, as he caught 10 of his 22 targets for 138 yards and two touchdowns in the Buccaneers' 31-23 loss to the Falcons on Sunday. Jackson now has caught 36 of his 77 targets for 544 yards and four touchdowns this season. He remains a top-10 fantasy wide receiver.
With Julio Jones out for the season, someone in the Falcons' receiving corps was going to benefit, and on Sunday it was Harry Douglas. Douglas caught all seven of his targets for 149 yards and a score in the Falcons' 31-23 win over the Buccaneers.
Packers WR Jarrett Boykin was the recipient of more looks from QB Aaron Rodgers in Week 7 with James Jones and Randall Cobb out with injuries. Boykin caught eight of his 10 targets for 103 yards and a touchdown in the Packers' 31-13 win over the Browns. Boykin stands to benefit with Cobb on IR with a broken leg.
Bengals WR A.J. Green had a big day on Sunday, and he was due; he caught six of his eight targets for 155 yards and a touchdown in the Bengals' 27-24 win over the Lions. Green caught an 82-yard touchdown, and has now gone over the 100-yard mark in each of the last two weeks. On the season, he has caught 43 of 78 targets for 619 yards and five scores.
Target Practice
In Week 7, we saw Bucs WR Vincent Jackson targeted 22 times by QB Mike Glennon, and that has to be the season high for any receiver thus far in 2013. As stated previously, he is a top-10 wide receiver every week.
For me, I thought Cowboys WR Dez Bryant would have had a huge game on Sunday vs the Eagles, but the two offenses didn't show up in the Cowboys' 17-3 win. But that didn't stop QB Tony Romo from targeting Bryant a total of 16 times, and like Jackson, he will be a top-five to top-10 wide receiver going forward.
Broncos WR Eric Decker seems to be getting more and more looks from QB Peyton Manning over the last few weeks, and he is taking advantage of the additional love. Decker caught eight of his 13 targets for 150 yards and a score in the Broncos' 39-33 loss to the Colts on Sunday Night Football.
Here is a look at the rest of the top 15 targeted wide receivers from Week 7:
Rank | Player | Team | Week 7 |
1 | Vincent Jackson | TBB | 22 |
2 | Dez Bryant | DAL | 16 |
3 | Calvin Johnson | DET | 15 |
4 | Eric Decker | DEN | 13 |
5 | BUF | 13 | |
6 | Cecil Shorts | JAC | 13 |
7 | DEN | 12 | |
8 | TEN | 12 | |
9 | PHI | 12 | |
10 | IND | 11 | |
11 | MIA | 11 | |
12 | MIA | 10 | |
13 | TEN | 10 | |
14 | NYG | 10 | |
15 | ARI | 10 |
Here is a look at the team defenses that give up the most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers through Week 7:
A couple guys I think could have breakout games in Week 8 are Calvin Johnson against the Cowboys' porous secondary, Pierre Garcon against the exposed Broncos secondary and Victor Cruz against an Eagles defense that is the league's worst against opposing wide receivers.
Week 8 Rankings
| Standard Leagues | PPR Leagues |
Rank | Player | Player |
1 | Calvin Johnson, DET | Calvin Johnson, DET |
2 | Dez Bryant, DAL | Dez Bryant, DAL |
3 | Demaryius Thomas, DEN | A.J. Green, CIN |
4 | A.J. Green, CIN | Pierre Garcon, WAS |
5 | DeSean Jackson, PHI | Jordy Nelson, GB |
6 | Jordy Nelson, GB | Demaryius Thomas, DEN |
7 | Victor Cruz, NYG | Victor Cruz, NYG |
8 | Pierre Garcon, WAS | Eric Decker, DEN |
9 | Eric Decker, DEN | DeSean Jackson, PHI |
10 | Vincent Jackson, TB | Wes Welker, DEN |
11 | Justin Blackmon, JAC | Vincent Jackson, TB |
12 | Josh Gordon, CLE | Josh Gordon, CLE |
13 | Cecil Shorts, JAC | Larry Fitzgerald, ARI |
14 | Larry Fitzgerald, ARI | Anquan Boldin, SF |
15 | Wes Welker, DEN | Steve Smith, CAR |
16 | Antonio Brown, PIT | Antonio Brown, PIT |
17 | Steve Smith, CAR | Hakeem Nicks, NYG |
18 | Anquan Boldin, SF | Justin Blackmon, JAC |
19 | Terrance Williams, DAL | Marques Colston, NO |
20 | James Jones, GB | Cecil Shorts, JAC |
21 | Mike Wallace, MIA | Steve Johnson, BUF |
22 | Steve Johnson, BUF | James Jones, GB |
23 | Hakeem Nicks, NYG | Terrance Williams, DAL |
24 | Marques Colston, NO | Denarius Moore, OAK |
25 | Harry Douglas, ATL | Harry Douglas, ATL |
26 | Miles Austin, DAL | Greg Jennings, MIN |
27 | Kenbrell Thompkins, NE | |
28 | Denarius Moore, OAK | Dwayne Bowe, KC |
29 | Dwayne Bowe, KC | Miles Austin, DAL |
30 | Jarrett Boykin, GB | Mike Wallace, MIA |
31 | Rueben Randle, NYG | Percy Harvin, SEA |
32 | Kris Durham, DET | Aaron Dobson, NE |
33 | Greg Jennings, MIN | Julian Edelman, NE |
34 | Lance Moore, NO | Lance Moore, NO |
35 | Mike Williams, TB | Mike Williams, TB |
36 | Brandon Gibson, MIA | Golden Tate, SEA |
37 | Aaron Dobson, NE | Brandon LaFell, CAR |
38 | Brandon LaFell, CAR | Kris Durham, DET |
39 | Percy Harvin, SEA | Andre Roberts, ARI |
40 | Jason Avant, PHI | Jason Avant, PHI |
41 | Golden Tate, SEA | Brian Hartline, MIA |
42 | Robert Meachem, NO | Rueben Randle, NYG |
43 | Brian Hartline, MIA | Michael Floyd, ARI |
44 | Rod Streater, OAK | Brandon Gibson, MIA |
45 | Michael Floyd, ARI | Riley Cooper, PHI |
46 | Andre Roberts, ARI | Jeremy Kerley, NYJ |
47 | Jeremy Kerley, NYJ | Sidney Rice, SEA |
48 | Emmanuel Sanders, PIT | Jerome Simpson, MIN |
49 | Julian Edelman, NE | Emmanuel Sanders, PIT |
50 | Riley Cooper, PHI | Robert Meachem, NO |
• Week 8 fantasy football waiver wire: QB | RB | WR | TE | D/ST
