Thomas Campbell – US Presswire
In your fantasy football playoff challenges taking place this weekend, it’s important to find at least one stud to carry your team to victory.
For the upcoming Divisional Round matchups, there are plenty of big name candidates to select. From Tom Brady to Aaron Rodgers and Ray Rice to Marshawn Lynch, plenty of star players will take the field this weekend. At the wide receiver position, the man you will want leading your squad is wide receiver Andre Johnson.
A lot of times, top players can let a fantasy team down, but owners should not fret about Johnson Sunday night. One of the best wide receivers in football, he finished the regular season second among wide receivers with 1,598 receiving yards. His main issue this season was a lack of scoring, as the veteran could find the end zone just four times. Despite this, he still finished in the top 10 in standard scoring leagues for receivers and was ranked even higher in PPR leagues thanks to his 112 receptions.
Sure, there are some concerns about Johnson heading into the matchup against the New England Patriots. First off, the Houston Texans‘ offense has been pretty dreadful the past few games. They squeaked by the Cincinnati Bengals last weekend with 19 points and scored 22 total points in their final two regular season games. Johnson himself didn’t have a huge game last weekend either, with 62 yards on four catches.
All of these issues, however, should be put aside in order to grab the The Natural. Johnson will battle against a Patriots secondary that gave up 4,342 yards this year; good for fourth worst in the league. Johnson himself already had success against them when he gained 95 yards on eight catches as the only bright spot for the Texans in their Week 14 matchup. He’s been Matt Schaub’s top-targeted receiver by far with 164 targets during the regular season. Tight end Owen Daniels was the only other Texans receiver to have more than 100 targets (103) and Kevin Walter was second among wide receivers with 68.
If the Texans get out to a lead, there’s a good chance it was because their stud receiver. On the other hand, if they fall behind early, then they will look to Johnson and the air attack to turn things around. Among wide receivers to choose from this weekend, Johnson is a sure thing.
