Welcome to the next round of analyzing our 2016 fantasy football rankings here at RotoBaller, as our best and brightest have put their minds (and numbers) together to drop some serious knowledge on the world. The rankings come from Nathan Powell, Zach Wilkens, Nick Mariano, Frankie Soler and myself, Bill Dubiel.

This will be an in-depth look at the wide receiver PPR rankings, where we’ll analyze some tiers and check in on some polarizing names and trends as draft season descends upon us. More in-depth breakdowns by position will follow for both standard and PPR formats, so don’t touch that dial after this episode ends!

First order of business - for those that want to play along, you can also click here to access our rankings assistant page (for all types of formats). I've pasted the entire table in this article below, but it's a long list. Our handy rankings tool shows you all of our staff rankings, player news, ADPs, tiers, target rounds and more. You can easily filter, sort, and export all sorts of ranks – standard, half-PPR and PPR leagues, tiers, rookies, dynasty formats, keeper values and more. It's all in one place, and all free.

 

2016 Wide Receiver PPR Rankings Analysis (August)

Tier One

There isn't a ton to say about the guys in the top tier--they're the unquestioned best at the position, and in a PPR format they're all as safe as you can get with a first-round pick.

DeAndre Hopkins is the newest face to this tier (from previous years), but he's certainly earned the promotion. He turned a whopping 111 catches into 1,521 yards and a studly 11 touchdowns with a cavalcade of crap quarterbacks throwing him the ball. Brock Osweiler is unproven, sure, but he can't possibly be worse than Brian Hoyer, Ryan Mallet, T.J. Yates...I think they had a Jugs machine out there spitting balls into the air for one game. The 11 touchdowns might be a bit ambitious for 2016, but the volume will be there for NukDaBomb come hell or high water.

Tier Two

Just about everybody in this tier has the potential to break into the top 10. I love A.J. Green this year again, as he should see Nuk-type volume in the Bengals offense. Andy Dalton took a big step forward last year, and if he and Green get 16 games together he should push for the top five.

I likely won't end up with Alshon Jeffery in any leagues this year, simply because of his injury history. He's a stud receiver, but with so many soft tissue injuries in the ledger I'm looking for a safer pick in round two. Speaking of, Jordy Nelson should bounce right back as a hands-down top-10 receiver a full year removed from ACL surgery.

Tier Three

These guys all have big ceilings, but each one carries some inherent risk. I actually think Brandin Cooks is the safest bet in this bunch, with Drew Brees as his quarterback and a near-guarantee for 9-10 targets per game. After a slow start he finished 2016 with a WR1 line of 84-1,138-9, and I think that's right around where his floor is in 2016. He's just 22, so there is plenty of room for growth as well.

I can't get over the lack of a quarterback for Demaryius Thomas, and I won't be drafting him at all this year. He suffered from bad quarterback play last year and still turned in a 105-1,304-6 stat line. DT is truly a great receiver, but with Mark Sanchez as the best-case scenario I just don't want to risk a second-or third-round pick on him. I'm all about safety, and I just don't see it this year.

Tier Four

Just like Jordy, Randall Cobb should bounce back in 2016--he can't be much worse than he was in a primary role last year. The reason he ranks this low has to do with the candidates for the WR3 role. Davante Adams, Jared Abbrederis and Jeff Janis all could see targets at different points in the year, and it will be Cobb who loses them.

I want Kelvin Benjamin higher on this list really, really badly. However, my colleagues seem to disagree. I have Benjamin as a locked-in to-20 wide receiver this year, as I believe the situation is simply too good for him not to succeed. In his rookie season he put up 1,008 yards and nine touchdowns on 73 receptions, and that was in a year in which Cam Newton had the lowest yardage totals of his career. Newton also played with one ailment or another in most of the games that he did play in as well, so who knows how high Benjamin's ceiling truly is. I'll tell you who--come January, WE will.

Tier Five

I thought Doug Baldwin would end up higher in these ranks, but apparently my colleagues agree with me. I need to see the production a bit more before I invest a higher draft pick on Baldwin. If he picks up where he left off in 2015, then you can Tweet me @Roto_Dubs and let me hear it. I'm placing his ceiling at around 1,000 yards with five or six touchdowns, which barely justifies his current fourth-round ADP (FantasyPros.com has him at #47 overall).

On the other side of that coin, I think DeVante Parker has a sky-high ceiling. Actually, sky-high might be a bit generous--his ceiling will depend largely on whether or not the Dolphins give Ryan Tannehill enough time to get the ball downfield. For an in-depth look, check out my breakdown of Parker here.

Tier Six

I believe John Brown is the heir-apparent to Larry Fitzgerald's seat atop the Cardinals WR depth chart. My colleagues have Michael Floyd ranked higher, but I think Brown is the one you want at his current ADP (FantasyPros.com has him at #64 overall). Floyd has struggled with drops in his career, and while he's definitely the bigger touchdown threat at 6'3" I'd rather have Brown's (likely) higher volume.

Allen Hurns is an interesting flex play in 2016 as the number two WR in the Jacksonville offense. Blake Bortles improved in leaps and bounds last year, and while the volume will likely decrease with the Jaguars defense being better (meaning fewer shootouts) Hurns is still a premier deep ball threat. Bortles isn't afraid to uncork it, and Hurns may still approach double-digit touchdowns if he can stay healthy.

Tier Seven

This tier is made up mostly of guys with a bunch of potential who are either poised for a breakout or have the skills to do so. Kevin White has been blowing people away at Bears camp so far, and I envision him having a year similar to Alshon Jeffery's breakout 2013 campaign. While I don't see him matching Jeffery's 1,421 yards, White could definitely rake Jeffery's role as the dynamic young complement to Jeffery's dominant veteran. Assuming his health, I think his floor is 900 yards and five or six touchdowns in a Bears offense that will be without Matt Forte carrying the run game.

Sterling Shepard is currently working as the starter opposite Odell Beckham, Jr. even though Victor Cruz is apparently healthy enough to participate in camp, and I think that's no mistake. Shepherd is light on his feet and has incredible hands, and should carve out at least 75 catches in the slot for Ben McAdoo.

Tier Eight and Beyond

Just some quick notes on the lover-level guys:

--Can you just get healthy, Breshad Perriman? There is literally nobody challenging you for the WR1 job in Baltimore besides the corpse of Steve Smith.

--I'm all-in on Sammie Coates this year. I think he's going to beat out Markus Wheaton for the starting spot opposite Antonio Brown, and in that role he should catch 70 balls and approach 900 yards.

--Chris Hogan will likely be the main beneficiary of a Julian Edelman injury, and as such I plan on snagging him with a late-round pick. He'll put up a few flex-worthy weeks as the second or third wide receiver anyway.

--Brandon LaFell might have a low-end fantasy role as the second option in the Bengals new-found passing offense, but you can definitely wait to get him on the waiver wire.

 

Tiered Wide Receiver PPR Rankings

Tier	Player	Overall
1	Antonio Brown	1
1	Odell Beckham Jr.	2
1	Julio Jones	4
1	DeAndre Hopkins	5
2	A.J. Green	7
2	Dez Bryant	10
2	Allen Robinson	12
2	Jordy Nelson	16
2	Alshon Jeffery	18
2	Brandon Marshall	19
3	Mike Evans	20
3	Keenan Allen	21
3	Demaryius Thomas	22
3	Brandin Cooks	25
3	Amari Cooper	27
3	Julian Edelman	29
3	Sammy Watkins	31
4	Randall Cobb	32
4	T.Y. Hilton	33
4	Golden Tate	34
4	Jarvis Landry	35
4	Kelvin Benjamin	39
4	Jeremy Maclin	43
5	Jordan Matthews	47
5	Eric Decker	50
5	Doug Baldwin	51
5	Larry Fitzgerald	52
5	Emmanuel Sanders	55
5	Michael Floyd	56
5	Devante Parker	60
5	Donte Moncrief	64
6	John Brown	67
6	Allen Hurns	68
6	Michael Crabtree	73
6	DeSean Jackson	76
6	Marvin Jones	82
6	Tyler Lockett	83
7	Kevin White	85
7	Josh Gordon	86
7	Corey Coleman	88
7	Dorial Green-Beckham	94
7	Laquon Treadwell	98
7	Markus Wheaton	103
7	Stefon Diggs	104
7	Steve Smith	105
7	Willie Snead	106
7	Tavon Austin	108
7	Torrey Smith	109
7	Sterling Shepard	112
7	Travis Benjamin	115
7	Josh Doctson	116
7	Vincent Jackson	119
8	Michael Thomas	123
8	Devin Funchess	125
8	Kendall Wright	136
8	Mohamed Sanu	138
8	Nelson Agholor	144
8	Kamar Aiken	146
8	Breshad Perriman	147
8	Terrance Williams	149
8	Pierre Garcon	151
8	Rishard Matthews	153
8	Phillip Dorsett	156
8	Sammie Coates	166
8	Will Fuller	169
8	Ted Ginn	170
9	Rueben Randle	174
9	Mike Wallace	177
9	Jeff Janis	179
9	Victor Cruz	182
9	Tyler Boyd	186
9	Chris Hogan	194
9	Davante Adams	196
9	Danny Amendola	198
9	Justin Hardy	199
9	Steve Johnson	200
9	Jamison Crowder	207
9	Kenny Britt	211
9	Jaelen Strong	214
9	Brandon LaFell	219
10	Anquan Boldin	223
10	Seth Roberts	227
10	Brandon Coleman	230
10	Robert Woods	231
10	Jermaine Kearse	240
10	DeAndre Smelter	243
10	Brian Quick	244
10	Eddie Royal	247
10	Cole Beasley	250
10	Ty Montgomery	252
10	Pharoh Cooper	254
10	Leonte Carroo	256
10	Nate Washington	257
10	Philly Brown	280
10	Brian Hartline	288
10	Braxton Miller	289
10	Marques Colston	293
10	Marqise Lee	296
10	Cody Latimer	303
10	Albert Wilson	307
10	Chris Conley	308
10	Cecil Shorts	311
10	Kenny Stills	316

 

NFL & Fantasy Football Chat Room

Check out all of RotoBaller's fantasy football rankings. Staff rankings are updated regularly for all positions and include standard formats, PPR scoring, tiered rankings and dynasty leagues.