Finding a Week 3 wide receiver streamers and sleepers is more important than ever. It’s a crucial week as your fantasy football team is probably hurting right now. We have seen plenty of injuries across the wide receiver position. We have also seen some disappointing numbers from the players who were once stalwarts of the position. Suffering a second or third loss in three weeks puts you on the outside looking in for the fantasy playoffs. We are here again to give you three wide receiver streamers and three wide receiver sleepers for Week 3.
Wide receiver streamers
Rashid Shaheed, New Orleans Saints
The Saints are rolling right now. Well, all except their punter who has yet to actually see the field. This boded well for Rashid Shaheed. While he plays second fiddle to Chris Olave, Shaheed is still getting work. On top of scoring in both games this season Shaheed is the big play receiver. His two touchdowns have come on plays of 59 and 70 yards. While he might not be seeing volume He is seeing massive yardage. It’s a scheme that is currently working for the Saints and making Shaheed a viable Week 3 wide receiver streamer.
The matchup isn’t the greatest. They will face the Philadelphia Eagles who have a good young corner in Quinyon Mitchell who projects to be covering Shaheed. The other concern is safety Reed Blankenship. He is a top five cover safety according to PFF.com. He could help bracket cover Shaheed. To ease those fears I like that Shaheed had three carries in the week 3 game against the Dallas Cowboys.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seattle Seahawks
I may be stretching the streamer category here. I think after the Week 2 game that J.S.N had he should be locked into your lineup. He posted a whopping 16 targets for 12 receptions and 117 yards. It was a massive game that put the sophomore wide receiver on everyone’s radar. We all expected him to eventually take over for Tyler Lockett but it has come faster than most expected.
Week 3 brings the Miami Dolphins. They are a team in flux at quarterback. There is potential that it’s not a high-scoring game which could limit the opportunities for Smith-Njigba but I like that he was involved in the game early and often last week. With the run game for Seattle struggling without Ken Walker, the passing game needs to step up. J.S.N. gives them a boost that is needed to keep defenses honest.
Khalil Shakir, Buffalo Bills
Don’t look now but the Buffalo Bills are 2-0. The fear that the receiving corp for quarterback Josh Allen would be less than desirable has turned out to not be true. It looks as if a leading man has emerged and that is third-year man Khalil Shakir. He is leading the team in targets and has caught all of them. He is lining up 76% of the time in the slot which has proven to be beneficial for Shakir as a weekly wide receiver streamer,
This week he will draw coverage from the Jacksonville Jaguars. While teams haven’t been able to score a ton of points against them their slot cover corner is Jarrian Jones who PFF.com rates as the 79th out of 98 corners in the NFL. That is a great matchup for Shakir who will shine. He’s the perfect Week 3 wide receiver streamer.
Wide receiver Sleepers
Tutu Atwell, Los Angeles Rams
It’s been rough for the Los Angeles Rams. On top of starting the season 0-2, they have now lost both Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp. In a season that could be quarterback Matthew Stafford’s last dance, there was hope of a deep run. With both of those wide receivers on the shelf, someone has to step up. What we saw in Week 2 against the Arizona Cardinals was Tutu Atwell be that guy. He finished tied with Demarcus Robinson with four targets and Atwell had 48 yards.
They play their divisional rivals the San Francisco 49ers in Week 3. With Robinson and probably Tyler Johnson both already on teams after last week’s waiver run finding a wide receiver sleeper for Week 3 isn’t that easy. What’s nice about Atwell is he plays a very specific role on the outside. It will come down to coverage for Atwell. If he can get off Charvarius Ward and Deommodre Lenoir then Atwell can be the perfect wide receiver sleeper for Week 3.
Alec Pierce, Indianapolis Colts
Last week I wrote that Adonia Mitchell was the Colts wide receiver to have. I was wrong. It’s still Alec Pierce. What Anthony Richardson misses in experience and some of the finer points of being an NFL quarterback he makes up for in arm strength. That plays right into the strengths of Alec Pierce and so far this season it has paid off. Pierce has a touchdown in each game. He is second on the team in targets trailing Michael Pittman by three but is tied with him in routes run.
What I believe gives Pierce the edge is that he is lining up in the slot 30% of the time. It adds an extra wrinkle to the offense and gives Pierce a chance to find better matchups. He should be able to do that against the Chicago Bears in Week 3 and be a wide receiver sleeper for your fantasy football team.
Allen Lazard, New York Jets
If the New York Jets hope to make a Super Bowl run they will need quarterback Aaron Rodgers to be his former league MVP self. If Rodgers is going to do that he will support more than one fantasy-relevant wide receiver. The Jets and the fantasy football community seemed to think that person was going to be Mike Williams who signed with them after years with the Los Angeles Chargers. What has happened so far? After two games is Rodgers’s former Green Bay Packers teammate Allen Lazard has been the other option opposite Garrett Wilson.
The matchup isn’t the greatest. Going against the New England Patriots. They have three good corners in Christian Gonzalez, who will probably be on Wilson, Jonathan Jones on the outside, and Marcus Jones in the slot. While Lazard is almost evenly splitting his time between outside and the slot he has a tough matchup wherever he goes. I still think Lazard and Rodgers have a great connection and will be able to find openings to get Lazard the ball. When we are looking for a wide receiver sleeper for Week 3, I want a player who is favored by his quarterback and a top-two target on his team. Allen Lazard gives you all of that.
Make sure to check out all of our Week 2 Fantasy Football Rankings and Analysis!