The 2016 Receiver Wrap-Up

Eric Hardter Posted On August 14, 2016

Quite possibly the most consequential paradigm shift over the past five years as it relates to dynasty fantasy football is the emergence of the wide receiver position. Sensibly enough, there are a multitude of reasons for this, including but not limited to the following:

They tend to last longer, and as such they tend to put up numbers for longer – If you search through the early portions of the monthly DLF ADP, you won’t find (m)any 27+ running backs amongst the ranks. The fact is, ball carriers simply aren’t expected to play into their late 20s or early 30s, and if they do, the examples are few and far between for those who continue to post elite numbers. Transcendent receivers, however, are a different breed – just this past year alone, the 30+ trio of Brandon Marshall, Calvin Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald all finished as PPR WR1 performers. Given the respective periods of expected longevity between the two positions, it’s not surprising pass catchers are viewed as dynasty foundation pieces.
There’s no such thing as “receiver by committee” – Only 15 running backs exceeded 200 carries last year, and not surprisingly, only seven ball carriers were able to surpass the 1,000-yard barrier. This is down from 13 in 2013/2014, 16 in 2012, and 15 in 2011. As the league gradually devalues the bell cow back, the fantasy points are soon to follow. Speaking of…
The point disparity between receivers and running backs is now a chasm – In 2015, 26 receivers scored at least 200 PPR points, with six of those surpassing the triple century mark. The average point total for the PPR Top-12 receivers last season was 306.7 PPG. As for the running backs? Those numbers stood at 12, one, and 232.9, respectively. Be it due to relative skill levels, or perhaps more importantly the prevalence of the PPR scoring system, receivers are bringing home the bacon.
Value, value, value – If you look at just about any monthly ADP list there’s a good chance it’ll be dominated by receivers. In an average startup draft it’s not unexpected to see 10 of the first 12 picks used on wide-outs, and 75-80% of the first two stanzas slanted towards receivers. Circling back to the bullet points above, it makes sense – they play longer, they score more points, and they don’t typically have to worry about positional competition. For these reasons, the receiver position is now viewed as the most valuable of all.

Given that, it’s prudent to dive more deeply into what makes these guys tick. As such, I chose to dig into the 2015 PPR Top-50 receivers with the vigor of a sand crab trying to escape a shovel-wielding child at the beach. Included within is a metrical look at just about every aspect of each receiver’s fantasy scoring, his efficiency, his weekly reliability, and even a foray into his real-life NFL value. Some of these methodologies may appeal to you, and others may not, but at the end of the day I wanted to craft as complete a look at each player as I possibly could.

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So without further adieu, I’ll wrap this up and get to The 2016 Receiver Wrap-Up! Make sure you also check out the Player Scores and Weekly Finishes Document as well.

Download the 2016 Receiver Wrap-Up

Download Player Scores and Weekly Finishes

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Eric Hardter

Contributor at Dynasty League Football

Eric is a Boston College chemistry grad school survivor with a minor in dynasty football. He prefers to utilize both statistics and sarcasm whenever possible, believes in process over results and thinks "Hot Takes" are the scourge of the fantasy landscape.