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Fantasy managers don't (or at least shouldn't) need help with the obvious choices at receiver each week. Barring the first sign of an apocalypse, players like Tyreek Hill and Amon-Ra St. Brown should be in starting lineups every week.
Decisions get a bit tougher after that, and that's where I hope to help by providing a reason or two why we can trust certain WR3 or WR4 types that usually end up deciding fantasy matchups.
Below are a few receivers who could post fantasy week-winning performances and a few other wideouts who may be considered good starts that could disappoint:
Fantasy Football Week 13 Start'Em Wide Receivers
1) Adam Thielen, Carolina Panthers (@ Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
Thielen is the overall WR12 on the season but has become more of a middling WR2 with a low floor than the WR1 he was before the team's Week 7 bye.
Perhaps his most concerning performance took place last week after the Titans' defense - which has been hammered by wide receivers all season long - limited Thielen to one catch for two yards on three targets.
While it may feel uncomfortable starting any Panthers given the dreadful state of affairs in Carolina, there's a small chance the offense could experience a temporary jolt following the firings of head coach Frank Reich, quarterback coach Josh McCown and running backs coach Duce Staley.
The real reason for this recommendation, though, is a Tampa Bay defense that has been even leakier than Tennessee's and surrendered at least 13.3 PPR fantasy points to 15 receivers.
Our Start/Sit Optimizer is also bullish on Thielen this week, projecting a return of 13.9 points for the Panthers WR.
2) Elijah Moore, Cleveland Browns (@ LA Rams)
In a week with six teams on bye, fantasy managers will likely need to take some leaps of faith in regards to rounding out their starting lineup.
One such case may be trusting Moore, who has started to show signs of life after a dreadful start to his Browns' career. Cleveland may also have done him a favor this week, opting to go with Joe Flacco as the starting quarterback against the Rams after Dorian Thompson-Robinson was unable to clear the league's concussion protocol.
Some of Moore's most avid supporters will remember that he and Flacco played seven games together over the last two seasons with the Jets. The small sample includes Moore's best game in 2 1/2 seasons as a pro (8-141-1 in Week 11 of 2021).
Another good part of their time together is that Flacco targeted Moore at least seven times in five of those outings. One more factor working in Moore's favor is that Amari Cooper (ribs) is less than 100 percent; Cooper was only able to participate in two limited practices all week.
Other potential strong start(s):
Greg Dortch, Arizona Cardinals (In seven career games in which he played at least 75 percent of his team's offensive snaps, Dortch has seen no fewer than eight targets and averaged 6.9 catches for 66 yards.
There's a good chance that he will need to play at least that much this week against the Steelers. Marquise Brown did not practice all week and Michael Wilson was ruled out.)
Fantasy Football Week 13 Sit'Em Wide Receivers
1) Chris Godwin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (vs. Carolina Panthers)
One of Godwin's biggest issues has been a lack of touchdowns (one), which has been a byproduct of one of the worst catch rates in the red zone and inside the 10 among full-time players (35.7 and 22.2, respectively).
Considering Mike Evans suffers from the same problem, Baker Mayfield likely deserves most of the blame for their inefficiency. Godwin's volume also dipped slightly in November, and the big plays disappeared (no catches of more than 21 yards over his last four outings).
This week's matchup against the Panthers is enough of a reason to have second thoughts about playing Godwin, as Carolina ranks as the third-stingiest defense for wide receivers.
Exacerbating matters worse for his fantasy managers is that he likely aggravated a lingering neck injury during practice this week, which left him with a questionable tag on the team's injury report.
2) Christian Watson, Green Bay Packers (vs. Kansas City Chiefs)
Fantasy managers will be tempted to start Watson this week after he enjoyed easily his best game of the season on Thanksgiving Day versus the Lions.
Not only did he show off some of the speed that made him such a revelation last season on his 53-yard catch to open the game, but Green Bay clearly prioritized getting him the ball early and often.
A repeat of his 5-91-1 performance last week is unlikely to happen again versus the Chiefs, who rank as the ninth-stingiest defense for fantasy receivers. The primary reason for their stellar showing thus far is the play of cornerback L'Jarius Sneed, who played a pivotal role in keeping Tyreek Hill and A.J. Brown in check last month.
Sneed often shadows the opponent's top perimeter receiver, and that figures to be Watson this week. Jayden Reed, who has emerged as the Packers' top wideout recently, works out of the slot most of the time and may not play anyway with a chest injury.
Other potential weak start(s):
Drake London, Atlanta Falcons (Despite showing some cracks in their armor over the last two games, the Jets' pass defense is still the stingiest unit in the league - especially against wide receivers.
Atlanta also may be content running the ball 40 times in what will likely be one of the lowest-scoring games of the week. Furthermore, London projects to run most of his routes against Sauce Gardner.)
