As the 2024 NFL season approaches its crucial phase, pinpointing advantageous wide receiver vs. cornerback matchups can give fantasy football managers a significant advantage. Week 13 presents a mix of exciting prospects and tough challenges, with wide receiver performances set to be crucial for playoff aspirations. 

 

 

 

Whether you're optimizing your lineup for a postseason surge or hunting for high-reward options, grasping these individual confrontations is vital. This week’s analysis will steer you toward the prime matchups to capitalize on and those that warrant a more cautious approach.

2024 Fantasy Football WR vs. CB Matchup Report For Week 13

WR CB Matchup Report
      
Left WR vs Right CB
Wide ReceiverTeamDK / FD $CornerbackOppMatchup
DJ MooreCHI$5500 / $6700Terrion ArnoldDETNeutral
Last week DJ Moore had his 1st big game under the new offensive coordinator regime, tallying 7 catches for 106 yards and a score, but this one looks a little different from his spike performances earlier in the year. Caleb Williams getting the ball out faster is allowing DJ Moore the opportunity to do what he does best, create yards after the catch. His matchup this week, Terrion Arnold, missed the Lions’ last game due to injury but had previously established a pattern of alternating good games and bad over the last month. I’d still expect Moore to have an advantage over the rookie, but Arnold is a “Neutral” matchup in a vacuum
Brandin CooksDAL$4500 / $5000Deonte BanksNYGUpgrade
Reporting out of Dallas suggests that Brandin Cooks will make his return from an IR stint for their Thanksgiving bout with the New York Giants, where he’ll likely be shadowed by Deonte Banks. Banks was up to his old tricks last week, allowing 8 catches for 99 yards and tacking on a PI penalty for good measure. He is near the top of the list in both yardage and receiving touchdowns allowed this year and Cooks couldn’t ask for a better spot to make his return.
Jameson WilliamsDET$6000 / $5700Jaylon JohnsonCHIDowngrade
In a boom-or-bust season for Jameson Williams, it's actually somewhat encouraging to see the type of performance he posted in Week 12; logging 5 catches for 64 yards and showing a nice midpoint that had largely been missing from his portfolio. A similar performance this week would be considered a win, as he’s set to face off against Jaylon Johnson of the Bears. Johnson was on the hook for a score last week but otherwise kept his assignment quiet, allowing just 2 catches for 25 yards. Williams can get behind just about anyone in the league but the odds are not in his favor this week.
Christian WatsonGB$5200 / $6000Storm DuckMIANeutral
We’ve had the prototypical Christian Watson experience over the last couple weeks, whiplashing from 150 yards in Week 11 to a goose egg last week against the 49ers. He did have a walk-in touchdown pass slip through his fingers, and ricochet off his facemask, that would have changed the sentiment of his week but close doesn’t count in fantasy. This week he’ll run into the coverage of Storm Duck, a platoon corner for the Dolphins who has strung together some nice performances when called upon. Duck has been starting for the last 2 weeks and has totalled just 31 yards receiving while showing a knack for limiting yards after the catch. The sample is still too small to move out of the middle ground but Duck has been a nice find for the Dolphins so far.
DeAndre HopkinsKC$5400 / $6600Decamerion RichardsonLVUpgrade
We’re starting to get a more accurate sense of where De’Andre Hopkins falls in the Kansas City pecking order when they’re at full strength and it might not be as high as his fantasy managers would hope. He’ll have a good look at reaching his upside this week, running against Decamerion Richardson of the Raiders. Called into starting action for the last 2 games, Richardson quickly showed why he was a reserve player when the Raiders were at full health. Over that span he’s given up 8 catches for 117 yards and a touchdown and is being targeted 17 yards downfield on average. Hopkins has a clear advantage here.
Tre TuckerLV$4000 / $5300Nazeeh JohnsonKCNeutral
Tre Tucker popped back up on the fantasy radar last week, posting 7 catches for 82 yards, while his teammate Jakobi Meyers was tied up in the coverage of Patrick Surtain. These good games will pop up from time to time but Tucker is largely an afterthought in the Raiders offense in most weeks. He’ll have a so-so matchup this week against Nazeeh Johnson, who couldn’t be more average if he tried.
Jaylen WaddleMIA$5300 / $6300Carrington ValentineGBNeutral
Week 12 brought us the Jaylen Waddle week that fantasy managers have so desperately waited for this year, where he posted 8 catches for 144 yards and a touchdown against New England. He’ll look to keep the ball rolling this week against Carrington Valentine, a platoon corner who’s been called into action recently for the Packers. Valentine is near the midpoint in most regards but a 75% catch rate and 15 yards per catch are more below average than anything. If Waddle gets the requisite amount of looks, he can have another nice game here.
Darius SlaytonNYG$4600 / $5400Trevon DiggsDALDowngrade
I sure hope you’re not in a position where you’re depending on production from the 4th option in the backup-led Giants offense. Making matters worse for Darius Slayton is a presumed matchup with Trevon Diggs of the Cowboys. This week will mark the 1st time in almost 2 years that DeRon Bland and Trevon Diggs will be available for the Cowboys so we have to project their alignment a bit but no matter how they settle in; it’s hard to imagine a world where Slayton can produce against this premier perimeter pairing.
      
Right WR vs Left CB
Wide ReceiverTeamDraftKings/FanDuelCornerbackOppMatchup
Rome OdunzeCHI$4800 / $5500Carlton Davis IIIDETNeutral
Rome Odunze is starting to look like the type of player worthy of a top-10 pick recently but this week’s matchup will serve as a nice test for the rookie. He’ll run in the coverage of Carlton Davis, whose counting stats tell a different story than his on-field performance of late. Over his last 7 games Davis is allowing about 21 receiving yards on average and he hasn’t surrendered a touchdown since Week 3 of the season. It will be interesting to see if the Bears try to use Odunze’s size advantage for some chunk plays in what sets up to be a prize fight on the outside.
Jalen TolbertDAL$4100 / $5200Cor'Dale FlottNYGUpgrade
It’s presumed that the return of Brandin Cooks will relegate Jalen Tolbert to the realm of the afterthought this week. He’ll match up with Cor'Dale Flott again this week, after posting 3 catches for 24 yards when these two tied off in Week 4. Flott hasn’t been playing particularly well this year but is getting bailed out by the horrendous play of teammate Deonte Banks, steering much of the pass volume away from his coverage. He’s technically an upgrade but in context I wouldn’t deem it likely that Tolbert sees much work this week.
Tim PatrickDET$3400 / $5100Tyrique StevensonCHINeutral
Tim Patrick did his thing last week, seeing the field a lot and drawing 2-4 targets. A deeper catch had him flirting with double-digit fantasy production but he is largely a non-factor in most weeks. He will draw the better of the two Bears matchups this week, running in the coverage of Tyrique Stevenson. After a rough start to the year, Stevenson has settled in to allow just 65 yards over the course of his last 4 games and is perfectly capable of slowing Patrick here.
Dontayvion WicksGB$4300 / $5400Jalen RamseyMIADowngrade
Opening a short week of practices with back to back DNPs all but assures that Romeo Doubs will miss this week’s game on Thanksgiving. This moves Dontayvion Wicks into the starting lineup and into the coverage of Jalen Ramsey. Ramsey isn’t the lock-down corner he once was but is still doing well to hold opponents to just 26 receiving yards on just 2.7 catches per game. As usual, he’s allowing a fair number of his limited targets to be caught, 71.4% to be exact, but holds receivers to an impressive 9.3 yards on each catch.
Xavier WorthyKC$5000 / $6500Jack JonesLVNeutral
Xavier Worthy’s 2024 campaign has largely been relegated to deep shots and gadget plays, making him hard to depend on but an interesting DFS dart nearly every week. In Week 12 he’ll be the primary assignment of Jack Jones, the Raiders’ corner who has started to come off the tracks recently. He’s allowed 40 or more receiving yards in 3 of his last 4 games and his 5 touchdowns allowed certainly put a spike week on the range of outcomes. Overall this looks like a fair fight but the 1st-round speedster can blow past anyone and that puts him in the DFS player pool.
Jakobi MeyersLV$5100 / $6400Trent McDuffieKCNeutral
Jakobi Meyers did well to overcome a very difficult matchup against Patrick Surtain last week, posting 10 catches for 121 yards against the all-pro. He’s got another tough spot this week, albeit not nearly the caliber of Surtain, running against Trent McDuffie. The Chiefs left corner is holding opponents below average nearly every time out this year but has started allowing touchdowns to go up, surrendering 3 scores in the last 4 weeks.
Tyreek HillMIA$7200 / $7800Keisean NixonGBNeutral
The boom and bust ends of Tyreek Hill’s range have been more frequently on display this year and unfortunately last week was downswing for the speedster. He’ll look to turn the page toward the positive this week as he’s set to face off with Keisean Nixon of the Packers. Nixon has actually played a bit better than expected this year, holding opponents to just 9.1 yards per catch, but certainly isn’t the caliber of corner that can limit a player like Tyreek Hill. I wouldn’t put the top of Hill’s range in play this week but I think we’ll see a nice rebound in this spot.
Malik NabersNYG$7400 / $8000DaRon BlandDALNeutral
Malik Nabers is no longer on the white-hot run he started his career with but is still one of the consistently good receiving options in the game. Nabers has surpassed double-digit scoring in all but 1 game this season but will have his work cut out for him in this matchup against DaRon Bland of the Cowboys. Bland took the field for the 1st time this year last week against the Commanders and, while holding his assignment to just 28 yards, allowed all 4 of his targets to be hauled in. Bland’s ball-hawking nature has left him exposed at times but on the whole he put together one of the most impressive seasons in recent memory last year and should not be taken lightly.
      
Slot WR vs Slot CB (UPGRADES)
Wide ReceiverTeamDraftKings/FanDuelCornerbackOppMatchup
Jayden ReedGB$5900 / $6900Kader KohouMIAUpgrade
In addition to the absence of Romeo Doubs leaving one less mouth to feed in Green Bay, Jayden Reed also gets the benefit of a juicy matchup in Week 13. He’ll face one of our favorite punching bags this year, the Dolphins’ Kader Kohou. Kohou missed some time so his counting stats don’t jump off the page but since returning in Week 10 he’s allowed a catch on 14 of 17 targets and missed a tackle on over 45% of his attempts. The short-area quickness of a player like Reed should serve him well in this spot.
Juju Smith-SchusterKC$4300 / $5000Darnay HolmesLVUpgrade
With the Chiefs receiving corps at full-strength we get to see Juju Smith-Schuster fulfill the role that suits him best, running out of the slot. This week that pairs him up with Raiders corner Darnay Holmes, a platooner who joined this offseason from the Giants. Holmes has been called into action due to a rash of injuries in the Raiders’ secondary and has struggled mightily to slow down his assignment. As a starter he’s allowed an 80% catch rate and nearly 90% of his yards allowed have come after the catch. The Chiefs can scheme Juju into space and let him do the rest this week.
Odell Beckham.MIA$3300 / $4600Javon BullardGBUpgrade
Odell Beckham has largely been out of the mix for the Dolphins since joining this off-season, often ranking as the 5th option in a 3-man progression. He does find himself in a nice spot this week, running against converted safety Javon Bullard of the Packers. Bullard is allowing a catch on 78% of his targets this year and lets the YAC pile up every week. Its hard to project meaningful involvement for OBJ in any week but maybe his matchup gets him an extra look or two in Week 13.