
Kyle's favorite WR vs. CB matchups to exploit for Week 3 of 2025 - DFS wide receivers to target on DraftKings and FanDuel. These WR/CB matchups are GPP and cash game opportunities.
Welcome to the Wide Receiver Matchups to Target column for Week 3 of the 2025 NFL season. We're now working with a small two-game sample size in 2025, so we'll factor that in while giving more weight to other factors like implied totals, projected pace, and Vegas lines. This column hit big on Ja'Marr Chase and CeeDee Lamb in Week 2, while the Chris Olave and Kayshon Boutte picks just barely missed going 3x their DraftKings salary. Ricky Pearsall was the only selection that truly missed the mark, but the process was there as Mac Jones finished with 279 passing yards and three scores.
To identify the best plays, we’ll use Pro Football Focus (PFF) WR/CB matchup grades to highlight receivers in favorable spots, with an eye toward those most likely to hit the 3x DraftKings multiplier that’s crucial in DFS cash and tournament contests.
Below are my top five WR vs. CB matchups for this week’s DFS main slate. Use these insights to fine-tune season-long lineups, player props, and DFS builds. Let’s get to it already!
Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:- 2025 fantasy football rankings
- Running back (RB) fantasy football rankings
- Wide receiver (WR) fantasy football rankings
- Tight end (TE) fantasy football rankings
- Quarterback (QB) fantasy football rankings
- FLEX fantasy football rankings
- Defense (D/ST) fantasy football rankings
- Kicker (K) fantasy football rankings
- Dynasty fantasy football rankings
Ja'Marr Chase, Cincinnati Bengals
- $8.1k on DraftKings, $9.6k on FanDuel
- Vs. Byron Murphy Jr., Dwight McGlothern, Isaiah Rodgers (Minnesota)
We're sticking with Chase at the top this week as he has another glorious matchup to attack. Chase went ballistic against the overmatched Jaguars secondary in Week 2, catching 14-of-16 targets for 165 yards and a touchdown (39.5 DK points). A lot of that production came with backup Jake Browning at the helm, who put up a 241/2/3 line in 32 attempts after coming in for Joe Burrow.
Browning will be slinging the rock for the foreseeable future, and he'll get his first start in 2025 against a Minnesota secondary that has been vulnerable through two games (Bears, Falcons). The Vikings rank dead last in PFF's defense metric and 30th in coverage, and Vegas is saying this game will shoot out as it holds the second-highest implied total on the main slate at 47.5 points.
#Bengals WR Ja'Marr Chase went for 14 receptions, 165 yards and 1 TD on Sunday.
On his IG story, he shared highlights of his teammates — not his own. Pretty cool and shows how unselfish he is. pic.twitter.com/uEhj676Akv
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) September 15, 2025
Minnesota rolls out Byron Murphy Jr. (91st of 101 CBs), Dwight McGlothern (unranked), and Isaiah Rodgers (78th of 101 CBs) at cornerback. None of those guys can cover Chase, and while the Brian Flores defense deserves respect for the pressure it can bring, talent will win out in this showdown. Chase is a prime candidate to lead the slate in fantasy points again and provide value, even at his steep salary.
Nico Collins, Houston Texans
- $7.3k on DraftKings, $7.8k on FanDuel
- Vs. Jarrian Jones, Tyson Campbell, Jourdan Lewis, Travis Hunter (Jacksonville)
Collins has been disappointing through two weeks, catching just 6-of-14 targets for 77 yards and a touchdown while averaging 9.8 DK points per game. It feels like the public has soured on him and the mediocre Texans' offense, but that's the exact time we need to continue to buy in, as he doesn't figure to be a popular pick in DFS contests. He's the fifth-highest priced wide receiver on the DraftKings slate (sixth-highest on FanDuel), but he easily has the best matchup out of any of the top seven at the position in Week 3.
THIS TD CATCH FROM NICO COLLINS WAS INSANE 😱 pic.twitter.com/5E1D3ZtPtl
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 15, 2025
He'll be facing the Jaguars, who roll out an underwhelming secondary that has allowed the eighth-most fantasy points per game to WRs so far this season. Collins will see a lot of the poorly-ranked Jarrian Jones (95th of 101 CBs) and Tyson Campbell (60th of 101 CBs) on the perimeter, who just allowed Ja'Marr Chase to hang a 14/165/1 (39.5 DK points) line on them last week. Neither of those guys can cover Collins, so as long as C.J. Stroud and the offense can get their act together, Collins should be in line for his first ceiling game of the year.
Drake London, Atlanta Falcons
- $6k on DraftKings, $7.3k on FanDuel
- Vs. Chau Smith-Wade, Jaycee Horn, Mike Jackson (Carolina)
London's season has gotten off to an underwhelming start, as he has hauled in 11-of-19 targets for 104 yards and one fumble lost through two games. The underlying metrics are there, though, as he ranks 13th in target share (29.7%), 15th in air yards (99 yards per game), and 1st in first read targets (13 per game) among qualified receivers.
Atlanta should be able to finally get the offense going in this one, too, as Carolina ranks 28th in PFF's defense grading while both teams rank in the top eight in plays per game.
However, the most appealing part of all of this might be the cornerback matchups London will face. Jaycee Horn (17th of 101 CBs) has played well, while Mike Jackson (30th of 101 CBs) is also solid, but he projects to see a lot of Chau Smith-Wade (62nd of 101 CBs) in coverage. The receivers they faced in their first two matchups (Jaguars, Cardinals) didn't make much noise, but neither of those teams has a true alpha wide receiver like London. I expect him to break out of his slump and crush value this week at his discounted price tag.
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Jakobi Meyers, Las Vegas Raiders
- $5.6k on DraftKings, $6.2k on FanDuel
- Vs. Mike Sainristil, Marshon Lattimore, Trey Amos (Washington)
It's hard to have any faith in the Raiders' offense after that eye-bleeding performance on Monday Night Football, as Geno Smith finished with just 180 passing yards with no touchdowns and three interceptions. However, Meyers has persevered through the adversity as the de facto WR1, scoring 17.1 (Week 1) and 12.8 (Week 2) DK points through two games. He's getting peppered with targets (11 per game) and is still getting a lot of snaps out of the slot (62.1%, #2 among qualified WRs), so he's bound to pop for a ceiling game sooner or later.
Jakobi Meyers pulled in another huge (37%) first-read target rate in Week 2.
(Source: @FantasyPtsData)
Through two weeks:
- WR12 in first-read target rate
- WR11 in expected Fantasy points
- WR20 in Fantasy points (PPR) pic.twitter.com/QsEaNMlBqw— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) September 16, 2025
That could come this week on the road against the Commanders. Washington gave up 292 yards and two scores through the air in Week 2 against Green Bay, and while Tucker Kraft did almost all of the damage, the Commanders' cornerback room is ranking very poorly through two weeks.
Meyers will see a lot of Mike Sainristil (94th of 101 CBs), with some Marshon Lattimore (87th of 101 CBs) and Trey Amos (42nd of 101 CBs) mixed in. Those are certainly matchups he can win, and with the Raiders likely having to throw the ball as 3.5-point underdogs, he'll have plenty of chances to break loose.
Calvin Ridley, Tennessee Titans
- $5.1k on DraftKings, $5.5k on FanDuel
- Vs. Xavien Howard, Mekhi Blackmon, Kenny Moore II
Ridley is a mid-range piece to consider strongly on this Week 3 slate. He's priced in a better spot on FanDuel relative to the rest of the receivers, but he's a good bet to provide value on both sites. He has caught just 7-of-14 targets for 84 scoreless yards and 7.7 DK PPG, but he ranks 11th in target separation (2.21 yards) and 26th in expected fantasy points per game (13.7) among qualified WRs. He also leads the Titans in target share at 25%, just ahead of rookie Elic Ayomanor (23.2%).
Ridley could see a lot of snaps against Xavien Howard (98th of 101 CBs) this week, a former star cornerback who has dropped off tremendously over the last three years. He has allowed an 80% catch rate and two touchdowns in his coverage this season, which becomes even more glaring when considering he has only seen 10 targets thrown his way. Howard could match up against Ayomanor frequently as well, so make sure to take some shots on him in this favorable matchup.
Thanks for reading, and good luck with your DFS contests!
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