Because wide receiver is such a volatile position, it’s tough to really define rankings tiers. It’s obviously very subjective, and once the season starts, so much is going to come down to weekly matchups. Still, that’s not going to stop us from trying to figure out where the drop-offs occur. Often, “risk” is the main reason a player with big upside might be discounted, but let’s face it – who isn’t risky? After DeAndre Hopkins’ collapse last year, we know anything can happen.

You might disagree with some of our “risk assessments”, but the general idea of getting at least one stud receiver early and looking for value throughout the draft remains the same. Just how aggressive you want to be usually comes down to how strongly you feel about a certain player – or how apathetic you feel about players at other positions.

2017 FANTASY FOOTBALL RANKINGS:  Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker | Top 200

2017 Fantasy Football Tiers: Top Wide Receivers

You could make a case that Antonio Brown, Julio Jones, and Odell Beckham Jr. are slightly above the rest, but considering Mike Evans and Jordy Nelson actually finished last year as Nos. 1 and 2 in standard leagues, we’re confident grouping all of them in Tier 1. All six of these receivers could/should go in the first round. 

  1. Antonio Brown, Steelers 2. Julio Jones, Falcons 3. Odell Beckham Jr., Giants 4. A.J. Green, Bengals 5. Mike Evans, Buccaneers 6. Jordy Nelson, Packers

The Tier 2 receivers are all capable WR1s, but there’s just something about them – injury concerns (Alshon Jeffery), new roles (Brandin Cooks, Michael Thomas), lack of TDs (T.Y. Hilton, Amari Cooper), disappointing 2016’s (DeAndre Hopkins, Allen Robinson), shaky QBs (Demaryius Thomas) – that knocks them down a slight peg. There’s a good chance at least a couple of these guys will slip to the third round, which means someone in your league is going to get great value on their WR1 or have a solid 1-2 punch with their first two receivers. Either route is fine.

  1. Dez Bryant, Cowboys 8. Amari Cooper, Raiders 9. Michael Thomas, Saints 10. Demaryius Thomas, Broncos 11. Doug Baldwin, Seahawks 12. DeAndre Hopkins, Texans 13. Brandin Cooks, Patriots 14. T.Y. Hilton, Colts 15. Alshon Jeffery, Eagles 16. Kelvin Benjamin, Panthers 17. Allen Robinson, Jaguars

DOMINATE YOUR DRAFT: Ultimate 2017 fantasy football cheat sheet

2017 Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Rankings: Tier 3

And here is where wide receiver gets weird. Our Tier 3 features potential breakouts (Tyreek Hill, Martavis Bryant, DeVante Parker), dependable vets with limited ceilings (Emmanuel Sanders, Larry Fitzgerald), and guys who are better in PPR leagues (Julian Edelman, Jarvis Landry). Most people would feel comfortable with at least the top half of this group as his or her WR2, but you’d obviously prefer these guys to be your WR3. Even someone coming off a big year like Davante Adams is still a bit of a question mark.

Which guys you pick really depends on the makeup of your team to that point. If you’re looking for a WR2 from this group, you’ll probably opt for the higher ceiling first since you’ll ultimately be targeting two of these guys anyway. If you’re looking for a WR3, you might go for someone you know is going to get catches and yards. Really, though, you can go either way, because there are plenty of upside picks who will be available later on, too. These guys will probably start coming off the board in the fourth round, and some will last into the seventh, so if you want to grab RBs and a TE early, you can still land three good WRs.

  1. Tyreek Hill, Chiefs 19. Terrelle Pryor, Redskins 20. Davante Adams, Packers 21. Sammy Watkins, Rams 22. Michael Crabtree, Raiders 23. Larry Fitzgerald, Cardinals 24. DeVante Parker, Dolphins 25. Martavis Bryant, Steelers 26. Keenan Allen, Chargers 27. Emmanuel Sanders, Broncos 28. Golden Tate, Lions 29. DeSean Jackson, Buccaneers 30. Jeremy Maclin, Ravens 31. Jamison Crowder, Redskins 32. Jordan Matthews, Bills 33. Jarvis Landry, Dolphins 34. Donte Moncrief, Colts

SLEEPERS: 5 QBs | 14 RBs | 8 TEs | 11 WRs | 5 D/STs | One from each team

2017 Fantasy Football Draft Strategy: Wide receiver sleepers

Chances are, there are receivers in our Tier 4 that you think our better than guys in Tier 3. You might be right, but for most in this group, there are even more question marks. Some are WR3s on their own teams (Sterling Shepard, Randall Cobb); some have barely produced half a good season (Taylor Gabriel, Adam Thielen); and some have let people down in the past (Marvin Jones Jr., Mike Wallace). When starting to fill out your WR depth, you can go for home runs (Corey Coleman, Gabriel) or go for guys who seem more dependable because they should get consistent targets (Eric Decker, Pierre Garcon). 

Again, either strategy works as long as you’re not reaching too far for players. This is often the part of the draft where you feel it’s too early for a QB and TE, and all the RBs are “backups”, so a receiver looks best. That might be the case, but it’s never a bad idea to keep adding depth at RB or potentially scoop up a value at QB. If you feel comfortable with Jamison Crowder or Stefon Diggs as your WR3, then don’t reach a round or two too early for DeSean Jackson or Jeremy Maclin (or vice/versa). The outlook for these guys isn’t that much different in standard leagues, so let the picks come to you.

  1. Brandon Marshall, Giants 36. Corey Coleman, Browns 37. Stefon Diggs, Vikings 38. Rishard Matthews, Titans 39. Eric Decker, Titans 40. Tyrell Williams, Chargers 41. Chris Hogan, Patriots 42. Marvin Jones Jr., Lions 43. Adam Thielen, Vikings 44. Randall Cobb, Packers 45. Taylor Gabriel, Falcons 46. Pierre Garcon, 49ers 47. Mike Wallace, Ravens 48. Zay Jones, Bills 49. Sterling Shepard, Giants

2017 FANTASY FOOTBALL RANKINGS:  Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker | Top 200

Fantasy Football 2017: WR deep sleepers

Tier 5 is yet another weird receiver group. You have some of last year’s sleepers who didn’t pan out (Tyler Lockett, John Brown), guys who actually performed well (Kenny Britt, Kenny Stills), rookies (Kenny Golladay, Corey Davis), and everything in between.This is where we get into the “all-or-nothing” portion of the draft, and you really shouldn’t be “counting” on these receivers to help you on a week-to-week basis. Someone will probably emerge as a starter, but these are just bench guys with varying degrees of upside.

  1. Willie Snead, Saints 51. Ted Ginn Jr., Saints 52. Danny Amendola, Patriots 53. Allen Hurns, Jaguars 54. Torrey Smith, Eagles 55. Tyler Lockett, Seahawks 56. Tavon Austin, Rams 57. Kenny Stills, Dolphins 58. John Brown, Cardinals 59. J.J. Nelson, Cardinals 60. Kenny Britt, Browns 61. Kenny Golladay, Lions 62. Marqise Lee, Jaguars 63. Robby Anderson, Jets 64. Kevin White, Bears 65. Corey Davis, Titans 66. Cole Beasley, Cowboys

Tier 6 is full of fliers who might not even be worth drafting but are certainly worth watching. This group could really be expanded by about 50 guys, but we’re just highlighting notable rookies and under-the-radar veterans who could see bigger roles.

  1. Kendall Wright, Bears 68. Jaron Brown, Cardinals 69. Brandon LaFell, Bengals 70. Cooper Kupp, Rams 71. Braxton Miller, Texans 72. Mike Williams, Chargers 73. Jaelen Strong, Texans 74. Chris Conley, Chiefs 75. Curtis Samuel, Panthers 76. Eli Rogers, Steelers 77. Josh Doctson, Redskins 78. Breshad Perriman, Ravens