Fantasy football rankings by position: Top 10 wide receivers

Receivers aren’t simply more important to fantasy owners than ever before—they’re also more reliable.

It was a banner year for receivers in 2015, with six scoring more than 200 points in standard-scoring fantasy leagues for the second straight season. It was the first time in the history of the fantasy game that there were more 200-point receivers than running backs, signaling the official end of the RB position’s dominance over the fantasy game. It didn’t stop at the top of the overall scoring leaderboard, either. You could draw a line at 175 points or 150 points or 100 points, and you would find more receivers than backs north of all of those lines. Receivers have flipped the script and are now every bit as indispensable to fantasy owners as running backs.

Receivers aren’t simply more important in today’s NFL, with strategic innovations and rule changes making passing games more effective than ever. They’re also more reliable. Everyone expected Antonio Brown, Julio Jones, Odell Beckham Jr. and DeAndre Hopkins to be among the fantasy leaders at the position, and they were, accounting for four of the six 200-point totals in 2015. The other two, Brandon Marshall and Allen Robinson, were both popular selections, as well. 

This year for the first time in fantasy history, the top three picks by average draft position might all be receivers. If you want the elite at the position, you better hope you have an early pick or be ready to spend top dollar in your auction. The good news is the position has become deeper up and down the rankings, something we’ll dive into later in the summer. For now, let’s focus on the top 10.