Identifying advantageous and disadvantageous cornerback matchups is a critical facet of fantasy football’s lineup-setting process. This article details six wide receivers’ positive and negative environmental factors, with particular attention paid to their primary coverage foe, resulting in three recommended matchups to target and three to avoid for Week 1
WR/CB matchups to target
WREmeka Egbuka,TampaBay Buccaneers vs. CBBilly Bowman Jr.,Atlanta Falcons
Tampa Bay Buccaneers first-round rookie wide receiver Emeka Egbuka is WR2-viable in Week 1, operating as an inside-outside starter against the Atlanta Falcons’ undermanned cornerback corps. Egbuka's 75.7 PFF receiving grade in preseason play ranks 22nd among 253 NFL preseason wide receivers with at least 15 receiving snaps.
Egbuka will function as a perimeter starter in two-wide receiver sets and kick inside to the slot in three-wide receiver sets, due to both his own exceptional talents and Tampa Bay’s pass-catcher injuries.
In his 2024 Ohio State season, Egbuka efficiently averaged 2.93 yards per route run (YPRR) and a 31.3% target rate lined up out wide, and 2.41 YPRR and a 24.2% target rate from the slot.
Tampa Bay pass catcher health:
As detailed in “Fantasy Football 2025: Fantasy-friendly offenses report for Week 1,” the game profiles as a back-and-forth shootout. PFF's scores and schedule lists it with a 47.5-point over/under, trying for the second-highest Week 1 game total.
Falcons safety Billy Bowman Jr. won Atlanta’s preseason competition for the open slot defensive back role by allowing two receptions and four receiving yards on two targets while earning just a 68.3 PFF slot-coverage grade. The underwhelming performance narrowly bested incumbent slot cornerback Dee Alford’s showing. Alford earned a 62.5 PFF slot-coverage grade for his preseason efforts, one year after yielding the second-highest targets (92), receptions (69) and receiving yards (652) sums among 33 NFL slot defensive backs with at least 200 slot-coverage snaps. His 1.57 yards allowed per coverage snap rank seventh-most, his seven touchdowns allowed were the most, and his 54.2 PFF slot-coverage grade ranks fifth-worst. Should Atlanta sub Alford in if Bowman falters, it would be a lateral move at best.
Falcons No. 2 perimeter cornerback Mike Hughes will likely serve as Egbuka’s perimeter opponent. He earned a 71.4 PFF coverage grade last season, clearing 60.0 for just the third time in his seven-year career while tying his third-highest receptions allowed sum (39). His presence should not dissuade fantasy managers from targeting this matchup.
Egbuka is a WR2 in Week 1.
WRTee Higgins,CincinnatiBengals vs. CBGreg Newsome II,ClevelandBrowns
Cincinnati Bengals No. 2 wide receiver Tee Higgins is a low-end WR1 for his Week 1 game against the ClevelandBrowns thanks to exploitable defensive matchups and both teams’ high-end offensive play volume. Higgins will primarily face Browns fill-in No. 2 cornerback Greg Newsome II on the outside, though snaps against fill-in slot cornerback Cameron Mitchell are also expected. Higgins’ 88.6 PFF offense grade ranks fourth among 69 NFL wide receivers with at least 635 offensive snaps in 2024.
Cleveland’s true No. 2 perimeter cornerback, Martin Emerson Jr., suffered a late-July Achilles tendon rupture, pushing Newsome from slot-coverage to the perimeter. Mitchell steps in to fill Newsome’s vacated interior role. Among 96 NFL cornerbacks with at least 130 perimeter-coverage snaps in 2024, Newsome ranks 80th in catch rate (68.8%), 89th in forced incompletion rate (6.3%), 87th in explosive pass plays allowed rate (3.8%) and ties for 92nd in yards allowed per coverage snap. His 52.3 PFF perimeter-coverage grade ranks 12th worst. Among 51 NFL defensive backs with at least 125 slot-coverage snaps in 2024, Mitchell’s 60.7 PFF slot-coverage grade ranks 31st. Among 64 NFL cornerbacks with at least 420 coverage snaps, Emerson’s 48.4 PFF coverage grade ranks fourth-worst.
Higgins will largely take snaps out wide against Newsome, though he has maintained an 18.3% pre-snap alignment slot rate over the last two seasons, allowing him access to Mitchell.
Higgins’ receiving data among 64 NFL wide receivers with at least 65 targets in 2024:
2024 NFL WR Receiving Tee Higgins
PFF Receiving Grade 88.3 (No. 7)
Target Rate 23.4% (No. 21)
Yards Per Route Run 2.05 (No. 19)
Missed Tackles Forced Receiving 16 (No. 11)
As detailed in “Fantasy Football 2025: Fantasy-friendly offenses report for Week 1,” this game “can clear its 47.5-point over/under, which ties for the second-highest among Week 1 games and should be considered a candidate to produce Week 1’s highest combined offensive snap sum.”
This is a matchup to target for Higgins.
WRMarvin Mims Jr.,DenverBroncos vs. CBJarvisBrownlee Jr.,TennesseeTitans
Denver Broncos wide receiver Marvin Mims Jr. enters his third NFL season in the No. 2 wide receiver role, ostensibly having gained access to both two- and three-wide receiver sets. He profiles as a high-upside flex option against the Tennessee Titans’ subpar secondary. Titans No. 2 cornerback JarvisBrownlee Jr. will serve as his primary coverage foe, though Mims will take meaningful repetitions against all three starters.
As detailed in the fantasy-friendly offense and defense partner pieces for Week 1, Denver’s “elite offensive line” can hold its own against Tennessee’s lone defensive strength: the defensive line. A run-heavy game script for Denver is possible, though head coach Sean Payton encouragingly employed the eighth-highest neutral game pass play rate (60.1%) among NFL teams in 2024.
Rotational usage hindered Mims’ productivity through two NFL seasons, yet he remained elite on a per-route basis and plied his exceptional ball-in-hands traits as a game-changing returner, earning 2023 second-team All-Pro, 2023 PFWA All-Rookie Team, 2023 Pro Bowl, 2024 first-team All-Pro and 2024 Pro Bowl honors. Among 31 NFL players with at least 35 returns from 2023-2024, Mims’ 74.7 PFF kick return grade ranks fourth. Return touchdowns are possible, if only via a low-probability outcome.
Among 88 NFL wide receivers with at least 50 targets in 2024, Mims’ 24.9% target rate ranks 13th, his 2.37 YPRR and 75.9% catch rate rank ninth and his 11.8 yards after the catch per reception rank first. He is the only qualifying player to average more than 8.3 in the latter category and his
The table below ranks in parentheses:
Brownlee’s coverage data among 64 NFL cornerbacks with at least 420 coverage snaps:
2024 NFL CB Coverage JarvisBrownlee Jr.
PFF Coverage Grade 55.9 (T-No. 58)
Targeted Rate 16.9% (No. 50)
Catch Rate Allowed 67.9% (No. 47)
Open-Target Rate 50.6% (No. 43)
1st-Down &/Or TD Conversion Rate Allowed 38.3% (T-No. 43)
Yards Allowed Per Coverage Snap 1.38 (T-No. 56)
Mims’ 31.6% preseason pre-snap alignment wide-left rate gives him access to Titans No. 1 perimeter cornerback L’Jarius Sneed. Sneed earned a career-worst 36.8 PFF coverage grade last season and spent July 22nd-August 28th on the active/physically unable to perform list after undergoing a cleanup procedure on his chronically ailing knee.
Mims is a high-upside flex against Tennessee.
WR/CB matchups to avoid
WRD.K. Metcalf,SeattleSeahawks vs. CBSauce Gardner,New York Jets
Fantasy managers should break WR3/flex start-sit decisions away from Pittsburgh Steelers No. 1 wide receiver D.K. Metcalf, who faces potential shadow coverage from New York Jets No. 1 cornerback Sauce Gardner in a likely fantasy-unfriendly environment. Metcalf possesses the talent and speed to return WR3 value on one play, so an outright benching is not suggested; this is simply a matchup to avoid where possible. Metcalf’s 73.9 PFF receiving grade ranks 29th among 69 NFL wide receivers with at least 635 offensive snaps in 2024. Gardner’s 70.2 PFF defense grade ranks 16th among 38 NFL cornerbacks with at least 875 defensive snaps in 2024.
The matchup dynamics could change drastically if Gardner (calf) is said to be playing at less than full health on game day.
As detailed in the fantasy-friendly offense and defense partner pieces for Week 1, offensive play volume, skewed toward the run, and a Week 1-low 38.5-point over/under are concerns. New Jets head coach Aaron Glenn intends to “rely heavily on [the] man-to-man coverage” tactics he employed while serving as the Detroit Lions’ defensive coordinator, which will allow Gardner to shadow with opposing No. 1 wide receivers at the line of scrimmage. Gardner’s stated 2025 goal is “to intercept more passes,” which is likewise easier in man coverage than zone. Glenn also intends to allow Gardner to blitz more often, which could free up Metcalf on a handful of plays, though if the blitz is successful, this is a non-issue.
Metcalf averaged a career-worst 1.81 YPRR last season, and his 19.7% target rate is the lowest since his 2019 rookie season.
Gardner’s coverage data among 64 NFL cornerbacks with at least 420 coverage snaps:
2024 NFL CB Coverage Sauce Gardner
PFF Coverage Grade 73.1 (No. 17)
Targeted Rate 10.6% (No. 5)
Catch Rate Allowed 52.3% (No. 5)
Forced Incompletion Rate 25.5% (No. 1)
Yards Allowed Per Coverage Snap 0.88 (No. 14)
This is a matchup to avoid in WR3/flex start-sit decisions.
WRTutu Atwell,Los Angeles Rams vs. SJalen Pitre,HoustonTexans
Los Angeles Rams slot receiver Tutu Atwell has a matchup to avoid against Houston Texans safety Jalen Pitre. Atwell’s 73.9 PFF receiving grade ranks 38th among 88 NFL wide receivers with at least 50 targets in 2024. Pitre’s 74.0 PFF defense grade ranks 32nd among 137 NFL cornerbacks and safeties with at least 660 defensive snaps in 2024.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford’s back injury is expected to remain an issue “throughout the entire season,” and although he has been cleared to play in Week 1, Rams coaches must keep Stafford upright for a playoff run. Houston’s vaunted pass rush routinely generates pressures via minimal blitzing, as detailed in “Fantasy Football 2025: Fantasy-friendly defenses report for Week 1.” Testing the unit by trusting recently-cleared left tackle Alaric Jackson (blood clots) to hold up during the long-developing downfield plays that Atwell thrives on is antithetical to this goal.
Stafford earned a 73.3 PFF passing grade in 2024, while Jackson earned a 79.2 PFF pass-blocking grade.
Atwell is also likely limited to operating only three-receiver sets, which further reduces his opportunity to score. Atwell’s downfield (12.2-yard average depth of target (aDot)) catch-and-fall (2.9 yards after the catch per reception) is ill-suited for this setup.
Pitre, meanwhile, enters his prime at age 26 and is coming off a career-best 70.2 PFF slot-coverage grade in 2024. Among 33 NFL slot defensive backs with at least 200 slot-coverage snaps, Pitre ranks ninth in targeted rate (15.7%) and eighth in forced incompletion rate (9.5%).
Atwell’s Week 1 matchup should be avoided.
WRWan’DaleRobinson,New York Giants vs. CBMike Sainristil,WashingtonCommanders
New York Giants slot receiver Wan’DaleRobinson faces the Washington Commanders’ best coverage defender, slot cornerback Mike Sainristil, in Week 1. Robinson’s 64.6 PFF receiving grade ranks 58th among 64 NFL wide receivers with at least 65 targets in 2024. Sainristil’s 64.5 PFF defense grade ranks 38th among 64 NFL cornerbacks with at least 420 coverage snaps,
Sainristil played on the perimeter and in the slot in his 2024 rookie season. He should switch to a full-time slot role with veteran cornerback Marshon Lattimore and second-round rookie cornerback Trey Amos manning the perimeter. Lattimore is coming off the fourth-lowest PFF coverage grade (68.8 PFF coverage grade) among his eight NFL seasons. Amos earned a 76.3 PFF coverage grade in preseason play but will likely be targeted frequently in his NFL debut.
Giants quarterback Russell Wilson’s extreme downfield focus yielded the 14th-deepest aDot among 33 NFL quarterbacks with at least 299 dropbacks in 2024, tying for 13th-longest average time to throw (2.84) and the 13th-most sacks (37) despite Wilson starting just 12 games for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Wilson’s 77.5 PFF passing grade ties for 12th. He is likely to target New York’s speedy perimeter wide receivers, given both his playing style and Washington’s struggling veteran and potentially vulnerable rookie.
Among Washington cornerbacks with at least 100 coverage snaps last year, Sainristil’s 64.5 PFF coverage grade, 62.1% catch rate allowed and 14 forced incompletions rank first.
Robinson’s unique short-area, high-target, low-yadage prowess will be relevant in more accommodating matchups. Among 64 NFL wide receivers with at least 65 targets in 2024, Robinson ranks 14th in targets (132), 12th in receptions (93), 45th in receiving yards (699), ties for 49th in touchdowns (three) and ranks 55th in YPRR (1.21)
Avoid Robinson’s matchup this week.