NFL wide receiver rankings: Find out who the top pass-catchers are heading into Week 2 of the 2023 season. These rankings can help with your fantasy football and dynasty teams with Week 2 here.
It’s a list that will also be updated throughout the entire 2023 NFL season. Bookmark it. Save. Do your thing.
Ranking NFL’s best wide receivers: Solid No. 2 options
Related: Sportsnaut’s updated NFL Power rankings
20. Zay Flowers, Baltimore Ravens
- Zay Flowers stats (2023): 9 receptions, 78 yards, 0 TD, 90% catch rate, 0% drop rate
Where to start with Flowers? He was exceptional during the preseason and brought that same swagger with him as the rookie acted as Lamar Jackson’s favorite target in Week 1. While Flowers lacked the big play against Houston, those will soon come. What we do know is that he is already a consistent and reliable receiving threat for Jackson. Five of his nine Week 1 catches went for first downs.
19. Calvin Ridley, Jacksonville Jaguars
- Calvin Ridley stats (2023): 8 receptions, 101 yards, 1 TD, 72.7% catch rate, 0% drop rate
What an exceptional return from a year-long suspension for Ridley. He was drawing rave reviews in his first training camp in Duval. That continued in the former Atlanta Falcons’ first-round pick’s debut in Jacksonville. The former 1,000-yard receiver saw Trevor Lawrence boast an otherworldly 131.2 QB rating when targeting him. Ridley also scored a touchdown and made it look easy against Indianapolis.
18. Chris Olave, New Orleans Saints
- Chris Olave stats (2023): 8 receptions, 112 yards, 0 TD, 80% catch rate, 0% drop rate
Garrett Wilson got the most play when it came to rookie wide receivers last season, but Olave was darn solid for the Saints. He caught 72 passes for 1,042 yards while hauling in 61% of his targets. Now with a better quarterback in Derek Carr tossing him the rock, Olave is set to up his game as a sophomore. That was evident in a great Week 1 performance against a solid Titans defense. Olave should ascend our NFL wide receiver rankings throughout the 2023 season.
17. DK Metcalf, Seattle Seahawks
- DK Metcalf stats (2023): 3 receptions, 47 yards, 1 TD, 60% catch rate, 0% drop rate
Metcalf struggled in Week 1, and showed his frustration with an ugly antic in pushing Rams cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon from behind. Heck, the entire Seahawks team struggled in the 30-13 loss. This doesn’t take away from how good the former Ole Miss star has been in his career. From 2019-22, he averaged 77 receptions for 1,055 yards and nine touchdowns. He still belongs in our NFL wide receiver rankings.
Related: Full 2023 NFL schedule
16. Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals
- Tee Higgins stats (2023): 0 receptions, 0 yards, 0 TD, 0% catch rate, 12.5% drop rate
Speaking of struggles, Higgins was a disaster class in Week 1 against the Cleveland Browns. The impending free agent did not catch a pass on eight targets. He also had a drop and an ugly penalty in a blowout loss to the Browns. In no way does one game take away from Higgins’ entire body of work. He’s averaging 72 receptions for north of 1,000 yards with six touchdowns while hauling in 66% of his targets. Joe Burrow also posted an otherworldly 115.6 QB rating with just one interception when targeting him last season.
15. Deebo Samuel, San Francisco 49ers
- Deebo Samuel stats (2023): 5 receptions, 55 yards, 0 TD, 71.4% catch rate, 0% drop rate
Samuel has been replaced by Brandon Aiyuk as the 49ers’ No. 1 receiver after a down 2022 season for the former All-Pro. However, he did perform well in Week 1 by catching 5-of-7 targets from Brock Purdy. San Francisco also continued to utilize Samuel in the running game with two rush attempts for eight yards. He’s not going to have the same opportunities we saw in 2021 (1,770 total yards and 14 TD), but Samuel is still a great offensive weapon in San Francisco.
Related: Updated NFL injury report
14. Michael Pittman Jr., Indianapolis Colts
- Michael Pittman Jr. stats (2023): 8 receptions, 97 yards, 1 TD, 72.7% catch rate, 0% drop rate
Pittman Jr. has not necessarily shown himself to be an explosive receiver since Indianapolis took him in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft (11.1 career average per reception). But he’s been your prototypical possession guy. That came out in Week 1 with Pittman Jr. acting as a consistent receiving threat for rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson.
13. DeVonta Smith, Philadelphia Eagles
- DeVonta Smith stats (2023): 7 receptions, 47 yards, 1 TD, 70% catch rate, 0% drop rate
One figured Smith would take a step back as a sophomore after the Eagles acquired A.J. Brown. About that? He put up 31 more catches and nearly 300 more yards than his rookie season. He was solid in a Week 1 win over the Patriots, too. Unfortunately, putting up 47 receptions on 10 targets is not going to wow anyone.
12. Brandon Aiyuk, San Francisco 49ers
- Brandon Aiyuk stats (2023): 8 receptions, 129 yards, 2 TD, 100% catch rate, 0% drop rate
The reigning NFC Offensive Player of the Week, Aiyuk was just a tremendous all-around performer in San Francisco’s Week 1 blowout win over Pittsburgh. Not only did he catch all eight of his targets, the wide receiver put up a great block on Christian McCaffrey’s game-breaking 65-yard touchdown run to open the third quarter. Simply put, Aiyuk is among the best all-around receivers in the NFL. That’s no longer in question.
Related: Top 100 NFL players of 2023
11. Terry McLaurin, Washington Commanders
- Terry McLaurin stats (2023): 2 receptions, 31 yards, 0 TD, 50% catch rate, 0% drop rate
After putting up a banner year for Washington with less-than-stellar quarterback play (77 receptions, 1,191 yards, 5 TD), McLaurin got off to a slow start in 2023. However, it must be noted that he was limited in Week 1 with a toe injury. We’re not going to hold that against the Commanders’ WR1.
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10. Garrett Wilson, New York Jets
- Garrett Wilson stats (2023): 5 receptions, 34 yards, 1 TD, 100% catch rate, 0% drop rate
There’s a reason why Wilson is the reigning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. What he did last season with less-than-stellar QB play in Jersey was astounding. The Ohio State product averaged 4.6 yards after the catch compared to 8.7 yards before the catch. He opened his sophomore season with one of the best catches you’ll ever see. Unfortunately, the season-ending injury to Aaron Rodgers will end up impacting Wilson’s productivity moving forward.
9. CeeDee Lamb, Dallas Cowboys
- CeeDee Lamb stats (2023): 4 receptions, 77 yards, 0 TD, 100% catch rate, 0% drop rate
Lamb’s third season in the NFL can be defined by two stretches. Over the course of the first eight games, he caught 42 passes with a 57.5% catch rate. In his final nine games, Lamb put up 65 receptions for 803 yards while hauling in 78.3% of his targets. In Sunday night’s win over the New York Giants, Lamb caught all four of his targets from Dak Prescott. Given the weather conditions, that was a darn solid performance.
8. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Detroit Lions
- Amon-Ra St. Brown stats (2023): 6 receptions, 71 yards, 1 TD, 66.7% catch rate, 0% drop rate
St. Brown took his game to a new level as a sophomore with improved quarterback play from Jared Goff. That included Goff tallying a 106.6 QB rating when targeting the former USC standout. St. Brown now ascends our NFL wide receiver rankings after tallying six catches and a touchdown in an upset Week 1 win over the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs. He’s just a darn solid pass-catcher.
Related: 2023 NFL QB rankings
7. A.J. Brown, Philadelphia Eagles
- A.J. Brown stats (2023): 7 receptions, 79 yards, 0 TD, 70% catch rate, 10% drop rate
Former Titans general manager Jon Robinson’s decision to trade Brown during the 2022 NFL Draft pretty much cost him a job. As for the Eagles, they wouldn’t have made it to the Super Bowl without this still-young 26-year-old pass catcher. Brown dropped just five of 145 targets from Jalen Hurts. The quarterback also posted a 112.3 QB rating when targeting his top wide receiver. He opened the 2023 season with a solid seven-catch performance against a good Patriots defense.
6. Jaylen Waddle, Miami Dolphins
- Jaylen Waddle stats (2023): 4 receptions, 78 yards, 0 TD, 80% catch rate, 0% drop rate
Some who saw Waddle dominate at Alabama questioned whether his 5-foot-10 frame could hold up? Fast forward just a couple years, and he’s one of the best NFL wide receivers. Waddle’s sophomore season was absolutely supreme with the youngster averaging a league-high 18.1 yards per target — 6.8 of which came after the catch. Dolphins quarterbacks also put up a 119.5 passer rating when targeting him. Limited to injury in Week 1, Waddle took a back seat to Tyreek Hill as Miami beat the Los Angeles Chargers.
Related: 2023 NFL offense rankings
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5. Ja’Marr Chase, Cincinnati Bengals
- Ja’Marr Chase stats (2022): 5 receptions, 39 yards, 0 TD, 55.6% catch rate, 0% drop rate
Chase takes a step back in our NFL wide receiver rankings after hauling in a mere 5-of-9 targets for 39 yards as his Cincinnati Bengals failed to do anything of substance against Cleveland in Week 1. In no way does this discount Chase’s two-year run to open his career (168 receptions, 2,501 yards, 22 TD).
4. Davante Adams, Las Vegas Raiders
- Davante Adams stats (2023): 6 receptions, 66 yards, 0 TD, 66.7% catch rate, 11.1% drop rate
From a macro perspective, Adams’ first season with the Raiders was a disaster. Individually, he still did his thing. Despite seeing his catch rate drop to 55.6% from 72.8% compared to his final season in Green Bay, Adams remained dynamic. That included 65% of his receptions going for first downs with Derek Carr boasting a near triple-digit quarterback rating when targeting him. He got off to a solid start with Jimmy Garoppolo tossing him the rock against Denver in Week 1.
3. Stefon Diggs, Buffalo Bills
- Stefon Diggs stats (2023): 10 receptions, 102 yards, 1 TD, 76.9% catch rate, 0% drop rate
Drama aside, Diggs’ performance over the past half-decade can’t be ignored. He’s tallied 503 receptions for 6,340 yards and 44 touchdowns during that span. For comparison’s sake, Jerry Rice’s best five-year span saw GOAT put up 524 receptions. Despite Buffalo losing to the Jets in Week 1, Diggs was back to his old tricks. However, Josh Allen matched his interception total from a season ago in targeting Diggs (one) as the QB turned the ball over four times.
2. Tyreek Hill, Miami Dolphins
- Tyreek Hill stats (2023): 11 receptions, 215 yards, 2 TD, 73.3% catch rate, 6.7% drop rate
For a while during his first season in South Beach, Hill was on pace to break the single-season yards mark for a wide receiver. That tapered off some with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa going through an injury-plagued campaign. He might now be ready to actually break that record after a dominating Week 1 outing in a win over the Los Angeles Chargers. Either way, Hill remains No. 2 in our NFL wide receiver rankings heading into Week 2.
1. Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings
- Justin Jefferson stats (2023): 9 receptions, 150 yards, 0 TD, 75% catch rate, 0% drop rate
Jefferson, 24, is off to the best three-year start for NFL wide receivers in league history. During this span, the former LSU star has tallied 324 receptions for 4,825 yards and 25 touchdowns. Last season saw Jefferson lead the league in receptions and yards while dropping just five of 184 targets from Kirk Cousins. He put up a banner Week 1 outing despite Minnesota falling to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Set to take on the Eagles in Week 1, Jefferson will be tested. We’re intrigued to see how he does.
