NFL 2018: Top 12 0.5 PPR NFL Fantasy Wide Receivers

Wide Receivers are vital in PPR leagues for obvious reasons. Their catching! If you didn't know, PPR stands for 'Point per Reception'. Here I take a look at my top 12 ranked receivers for the coming season.

#12. TY Hilton - Indianapolis Colts - 2017 total = 147.1

Now this pick could easily change, the closer we get to the NFL season. It all depends on Andrew Lucks' health and if he will be ready to play football at the beginning of the season. Last season, was a down season for Hilton. His 966 receiving yards were the fewest he's had in a season since his rookie year, and way down on the previous seasons total of 1448 yards, which led the league.

Hilton only caught 57 passes, which ranked at 36th among all WR's. That's not exactly the type of productivity you are expecting from the usually reliable Hilton. This was mainly due to Hilton's rapport with Jacoby Brissett being nowhere near as good as when he's paired with Luck. When he last played with Luck in the 2016 season he set a career high in receiving yards and receptions. I fully expect him to set those sorts of figures again if Andrew Luck returns.

#11 Adam Thielen – Minnesota Viking’s – 2017 total = 194.2

2017 was a breakout year for Thielen, setting career highs in receiving yards and receptions. He overtook Stefon Diggs as the ‘go to’ receiver on the team and showed great rapport with Case Keenum. He caught 91 passes, for 1276 yards and 4 touchdowns as Keenum played the best football of his career.

This year, it’s Kirk Cousins at the helm, which is an instant upgrade for the Minnesota offense. Will he have the same rapport with Thielen as Keenum did? I think he will. He’s a franchise Quarterback who can get it done week in week out. It will be interesting to see how long it takes that connection to flourish.

#10 Michael Thomas – New Orleans Saints – 2017 total = 203.5

Thomas quietly had a very strong 2017 season. In his sophomore year, he caught 104 passes, which was the third most in the league. It was a productive season for the wideout, despite the Saints going with a run-heavy approach to help relieve some pressure on the aging Drew Brees.

That being said, the Saints re-signed Brees on a 2-year deal this offseason, showing their confidence in him to take them to a Super Bowl. Thomas is the undoubted WR1 in the offense, and he will continue to receive high volume whenever Brees looks down the field.

#9 Mike Evans – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – 2017 total = 167.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers v Carolina Panthers

Evans has all the talent in the world to be an elite receiver in this league for many years. He was a part of the famous WR group in the 2014 draft, where he was drafted with the 7th overall pick, ahead of Odell Beckham Jr. However, 2017 marked career lows for Evans in receptions and yards.

This was largely down to his QB, Jameis Winston, not progressing like everyone had expected. That being said, Evans is always Winston’s first look, so hopefully, he can get back to his 2016 season form, where he caught 96 passes for 1321 yards and 12 touchdowns.

#8 AJ Green – Cincinnati Bengals – 2017 total = 189.3

AJ Green truly is one of the best receivers in the NFL. He has put up 1000+ yard seasons in 6 out of the 7 years he has been in the league. That includes 2017, where he caught 75 passes for 1078 yards and 8 touchdowns, despite being on a poor Bengals team with some lackluster performances from Andy Dalton.

The offense should be helped by the return of a healthy Tyler Eifert at Tight End and 2017 draft sensation, John Ross, getting more playing time. I see this creating more space for Green as he will face less double teams from opposing CBs. I project him having over 85 catches this coming season.

#7 Larry Fitzgerald – Arizona Cardinals – 2017 total = 206.9

The aging legend, Larry Fitzgerald, had yet another stellar season for the Arizona Cardinals. He has been such a valuable weapon for Carson Palmer over the years, and maybe none more so than this past season. Fitz caught a massive 109 passes, which was second most in the league, with only Jarvis Landry catching more.

Amazingly, Jaron Brown, who had the second most receptions at WR, was miles behind with just 31 catches on the year. This shows that despite being 34 years of age, Fitzgerald is still the main cog in the Cardinals passing game. This new season will see a change of Quarterback in Arizona, with Sam Bradford being signed as a free agent, and Josh Rosen being acquired in the draft with the number 10 overall pick.

Whoever is under center come game week 1, Fitzgerald with seeing his usual high volume, as he chases down Terrell Owens for number 2 on the all-time list for receiving yards.

#6 Davante Adams – Green Bay Packers – 2017 total = 185.5

Adams has been fantastic for the Packers over this past couple of seasons, and this year he gets the chance to be the undoubted WR1 in the Green Bay offense. With Jordy Nelson leaving for Oakland Raiders and no veteran brought in to replace him, there will be a lot more targets up for grabs. Adams showed last year that he could get the job done even when Aaron Rodgers went down with a broken collarbone.

This year, Rodgers will be back to full health and is likely to hyper-target Adams, especially in the red zone. He has 22 touchdowns over the past two seasons, which is more than all of the players who have ranked ahead of him on this list. I see a big season ahead for the 25-year-old, former second-round pick out of Fresno State.

#5 Keenan Allen – Los Angeles Chargers – 2017 total = 234.2

Allen had a slow start to the 2017 season, but he ended up tallying the most receptions and receiving yards of his career. He showed that when he can stay healthy, he is easily a WR1 in this league. Coming off a lacerated kidney in 2015, and a torn ACL in 2016, Allen had become known as injury prone, and many had their doubts about him coming into the 2017 season.

The Chargers even drafted Mike Williams with the 7th overall pick to bolster their WR corps. Allen showed all those doubters wrong as he caught 102 passes and racked up 1393 receiving yards. I fully expect more of the same this year, as the Chargers look to be serious contenders to go far in the playoffs.

#4 Julio Jones – Atlanta Falcons – 2017 total = 207.9

NFC Championship - Green Bay Packers v Atlanta Falcons

Julio Jones is a freak athlete, with size, strength and great hands. However, last year seemed to be a bit of a disappointment for fantasy owners who had drafted him in the first round. Don’t get me wrong, Jones still caught 88 passes for 1444 yards, so it was far from a poor season. His main issue was in the touchdown column.

He only caught 3 passes in the end zone, compared to totals of 8 and 10 in years gone by. This was mainly down to Matt Ryan’s inaccuracy in the RedZone. I see him improving on last years totals, with the addition of Calvin Ridley really helping. Ridley will take some of the attention away from Julio, freeing him up for more receptions and more touchdowns.

#3 DeAndre Hopkins – Houston Texans – 2017 total = 261.8

Hopkins had a fantastic 2017 season for the Texans, catching 13 touchdowns in 15 games, leading to First-team All-Pro honors. He had double-digit targets in the majority of games, regardless of the coverage assigned to him. He showed he could produce big numbers no matter who the team had at Quarterback.

Hopkins also struck up a great rapport with rookie QB Deshaun Watson before he got injured. This will give Texans fans and fantasy owners great hope going into the 2018 season. If Watson can get back to the superb form he displayed in his rookie year, I wouldn’t be surprised if Hopkins ends up as the WR1 at the end of the season.

#2 Odell Beckham Jr – New York Giants – 2017 total = 61.5

2017 was a bit of a write off for OBJ, as he missed the first game with an ankle injury and then suffered a fractured ankle in the week 5 match against the Chargers. In those 3 and a half games, he managed 25 catches for 302 yards and 3 touchdowns, which is a great return.

This offseason has been dominated by bad press, trade rumors, and talk of Beckham Jr wanting to be the highest paid player in the NFL. The Giants would be crazy to trade Odell away as he is on course to be one of the best receivers the league has ever seen. In his 47 career games, Beckham has 38 touchdowns and 4424 receiving yards to his name. If he carries on at that pace he will surpass some of the all-time greats and break numerous records.

This season will be an interesting one for the Giants offense. The acquisition of Saquon Barkley will relieve the pressure on Eli Manning and is likely to free up more space for the receivers to take full advantage. I see another huge season for Odell, as long as he can stay out of trouble.

#1 Antonio Brown – Pittsburgh Steelers – 2017 total = 259.8

Indianapolis Colts v Pittsburgh Steelers

What a season it was for the Antonio Brown, as he cemented his place as the best wide receiver in the league. Brown caught 101 passes for a league-leading 1533 yards, and 9 touchdowns. He is so crucial to the Steelers offense, getting separation from defender’s time and time again.

Given his relatively diminutive size, Brown has proved that you don’t need to be over 6 feet tall to be a success in the NFL. He has made every team that passed on him in the 2010 Draft pay, as he continues to put up big numbers year after year. The former 6th round and 195th overall pick will be a top 6-7 pick in all Fantasy drafts this coming year.