Fantasy Football Break Out Wide Receivers

Daves Pick: Brandin Cooks New Orleans Saints

Cooks comes into this season as the top dog at receiver for the New Orleans Saints now that Jimmy Graham and Kenny Stills were shipped off to Seattle and Miami. He is on the smaller side, so durability may become an issue down the road, but this kid is flat out talented. He is fast, quick, and can catch a football. I look for Cooks to be Bree's top target, and although Bree's game is on the decline, he is still a top 10 QB in the NFL. A very talented WR receiving majority of the passes from a HOF QB could mean for a breakout season from Cooks. Draft Rounds: 4-6

Parkers Pick: Martavis Bryant, Pittsburgh Steelers

Everybody in Pittsburgh eats this year! Bryant only was active for ten games and started in just three starts but was able to give the Steelers eight touchdowns. That is a great rate, and extrapolated over a 16 game season would put him tied with his teammate Antonio Brown, and Jordy Nelson for 2nd in the league in receiving touchdowns. Bryant averaged 21.4 yards per catch and is a burner, but what needs to be mentioned is his 6’4” size. He is the red zone target that Ben Roethlisberger hasn’t had since his rookie season, when the team had Plaxico Burress. A lot of people tend to look at his fourth round draft status, and belive his late season tear was an anomaly, but this is real, and Martavis has major league talent. There comes a time where draft status doesn’t matter, and its all what you do with your NFL tape. I believe he is physically there and while his route tree is raw, he is a touch down maker nonetheless. Touchdownsa re what I am striving for in fantasy, and with Bryant it may just take one ctach to get 80 yards and a touchdown, and that can win your week. You can point to the fact that he is a third, fourth, maybe fifth option, but I think after this season he is the clear cut third in an all time great trio of skill players, and Bryant is able to give you top 12 talent at wide receiver in fantasy.

Logans Pick: DeAndre Hopkins, Houston Texans

The first reason why Hopkins will succeed this year is because his team likely will not. With the Texans likely to be behind on the scoreboard a lot, expect to see them throwing the ball a lot, especially in the second half. With the departure of Andre Johnson, Hopkins will be featured on a larger stage with a bigger role. He’s already established himself as a weapon with 76 receptions and 1,210 yards last season, and his targets went up from 93 in 2013 to 127 in 2014. Clearly the Texans’ quarterbacks are searching for him whenever they drop back into the pocket. Expect his targets to go up even more with Brian Hoyer and/or Ryan Mallett throwing to him this season.

Arian Foster’s injury also boosts Hopkin’s stock. Without a stand-out running back, the Texans won’t be able to run as much as they usually do. As of right now, Alfred Blue is probably the best replacement for Foster, but the best solution may be to air it out more. Cecil Shorts was successful on a bad Jacksonville team last season and Damaris Johnson can cause problems for defenders with the deep ball or the wide receiver screen because of his speed and quickness. Above all though, the Texans’ lack of proven weapons will bring Hopkins to the forefront. Expect big numbers, especially early on.

The Texans play in the AFC South, which means two games against the Jaguars and two games against the Titans. Those four weeks should be automatic for owners of Hopkins. Not only do the Texans have a fairly easy schedule, but their defense is good enough to even keep games against the top tier of the league close. A strong defense means more time for the Texans on offense, more possessions in general, and more tired defenders trying to cover DeAndre Hopkins.