This article will go game by game for the Week 9 slate looking at the top wide receivers from an offense and, based on the inside/outside and left/right splits of those receivers, identify the WR vs. CB matchups likely to occur.
Receivers rarely see the same corner every play, be it due to formation quirks or zone coverage calls by the defense, so a receiver's fortunes depend on much more than just the quality of the corner they're likely to see the most in a given game. Even against a bad corner, a good receiver can be denied the opportunity if the pass rush or something else outside his control complicates things. But it's part of the puzzle, and it's worth keeping track of.
Receivers are left with an Upgrade, Downgrade, or Even verdict based on their projected wide receiver vs. cornerback matchup. This shouldn't be read as 'good' or 'bad' but rather a measured tweak from the receiver's baseline projection.
Cincinnati Bengals vs. Chicago Bears
BENGALS WIDE RECEIVERS
Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins both get the benefit of the doubt against corners like Tyriqe Stevenson and especially Nahshon Wright. What's less clear is whether the Bengals duo will get viable targets to work with as they catch passes from either an injured Joe Flacco (shoulder) or Jake Browning, who struggled horrifically before the Flacco trade.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Ja'Marr Chase (Upgrade if not for quarterback concerns), Tee Higgins (see Chase)
BEARS WIDE RECEIVERS
This article will go game by game for the Week 9 slate looking at the top wide receivers from an offense and, based on the inside/outside and left/right splits of those receivers, identify the WR vs. CB matchups likely to occur.
Receivers rarely see the same corner every play, be it due to formation quirks or zone coverage calls by the defense, so a receiver's fortunes depend on much more than just the quality of the corner they're likely to see the most in a given game. Even against a bad corner, a good receiver can be denied the opportunity if the pass rush or something else outside his control complicates things. But it's part of the puzzle, and it's worth keeping track of.
Receivers are left with an Upgrade, Downgrade, or Even verdict based on their projected wide receiver vs. cornerback matchup. This shouldn't be read as 'good' or 'bad' but rather a measured tweak from the receiver's baseline projection.
Cincinnati Bengals vs. Chicago Bears
BENGALS WIDE RECEIVERS
Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins both get the benefit of the doubt against corners like Tyriqe Stevenson and especially Nahshon Wright. What's less clear is whether the Bengals duo will get viable targets to work with as they catch passes from either an injured Joe Flacco (shoulder) or Jake Browning, who struggled horrifically before the Flacco trade.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Ja'Marr Chase (Upgrade if not for quarterback concerns), Tee Higgins (see Chase)
BEARS WIDE RECEIVERS
DJ Turner is definitely a tough boundary corner at one rep, and in the slot Dax Hill is about equally as challenging. The remaining boundary rep, Josh Newton, is probably the one you want to target.
The Bears are playing injured, with Rome Odunze (heel), DJ Moore (hip/groin) and Olamide Zaccheaus (knee) all might be less than 100 percent. Although the Bengals corners are definitely fallible, the Bears have been clunky enough themselves that we don't need any even minor injuries pressing their margins further. Caleb Williams is really struggling.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Rome Odunze, DJ Moore, Olamide Zaccheaus
Detroit Lions vs. Minnesota Vikings
LIONS WIDE RECEIVERS
Amon-Ra St. Brown projects well either way – he had 14 catches for 189 yards and a touchdown on 15 targets in two games against Minnesota last year – but it would be a little more reassuring if Byron Murphy stayed out of the slot so St. Brown can run against safety tweener Josh Metellus instead. The Vikings would probably prefer to see Metellus cover Sam LaPorta in the slot than St. Brown.
Jameson Williams doesn't have an obvious angle here, and to this point the Lions have forced too many of his routes far downfield, where Jared Goff is not nearly as effective as the underneath and intermediate. Murphy can't run with Wiliams downfield but can probably hassle him before the 20-yard mark or so, while Isaiah Rodgers is one of the few corners who can match Williams' stride.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Amon-Ra St. Brown (the less Murphy the better), Jameson Williams, Isaac TeSlaa
VIKINGS WIDE RECEIVERS
I can't call it an Upgrade matchup when J.J. McCarthy is at quarterback. Just can't. With that said, Terrion Arnold and Amik Robertson also categorically cannot cover Justin Jefferson or Jordan Addison.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Justin Jefferson (upgrade if not for quarterback), Jordan Addison (see Jefferson)
Green Bay Packers vs. Carolina Panthers
PACKERS WIDE RECEIVERS
Christian Watson certainly justified his playing time (35 snaps) in Week 8, which occurred on the outside versus the slot at about a 2:1 ratio. With Romeo Doubs on the boundary the vast majority of the time, that leaves something like 20 to 30 slot snaps per week for Matthew Golden, with another 20 or so for Golden on the boundary.
As long as Malik Heath is playing around 20 snaps per week, it might be difficult for Golden to push for much more than 40. That puts a lot of pressure on Golden's per-play efficiency, and to this point he hasn't drawn targets all that rapidly. It's hard to see how Watson's return and Tucker Kraft's ongoing ascent could possibly be good for Golden's already modest usage.
With that said, Golden and Watson are plenty dangerous to Chau Smith-Wade in the slot, and probably against Mike Jackson on the boundary. Jaycee Horn is the only Carolina corner who looks like a clear starter, but he's not a huge problem and it's not clear if he'll follow anyone in particular.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Romeo Doubs, Matthew Golden (arguable Upgrade if Horn shadows Doubs), Christian Watson (see Golden)
PANTHERS WIDE RECEIVERS
Tetairoa McMillan will probably face some form of challenge against a Green Bay pass defense allowing just 5.9 yards per pass in 2025. Carrington Valentine seems to be an upgrade over the somehow benched Nate Hobbs – the Packers appear to have given Hobbs a contract that will amount to a one-year, $17.98 million deal. Keisean Nixon isn't great on the other side or anything, but Jeff Hafley's coverage schemes can take some decoding and can be challenging to the timing between a receiver and quarterback. McMillan has earned substantial benefit of the doubt at this point – he looks like the real deal – but if he keeps rolling in this setting it would probably warrant moving McMillan even higher in the rankings.
Jalen Coker has to be a better bet to produce against Javon Bullard in the slot than Xavier Legette is against Valentine and Nixon.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Tetairoa McMillan, Jalen Coker, Xavier Legette
Houston Texans vs. Denver Broncos
TEXANS WIDE RECEIVERS
The loss of Patrick Surtain is devastating for the Broncos, who might have even more trouble hiding Riley Moss at this point. Moss isn't bad, but Surtain clamps down so much of the field normally that it's only natural that the stress level would go up on the remaining defenders.
Kris Abrams-Draine seems to be the primary Surtain replacement. Abrams-Draine probably has some skill and can run pretty well (4.44 40), but he's under 180 pounds and has short arms for a corner. Moss also has notably short arms. Nico Collins should be an enormous challenge to these two. Xavier Hutchinson might be able to do something as well, but Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel would be more threatening yet. The problem for Higgins and Noel is that Christian Kirk might be back. Kirk warrants no benefit of the doubt against Ja'Quan McMillian in the slot, so this mostly looks like it's setting up as a big game for Collins.
Upgrade: Nico Collins
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Christian Kirk, Xavier Hutchinson
BRONCOS WIDE RECEIVERS
Courtland Sutton had a touchdown called back on a penalty last week and then dropped what would have been a touchdown on the next snap. That sequence normally won't occur, so Sutton has been more productive the last two weeks than his numbers might look at a glance, but it's still not that easy to bet on positive regression as he takes on the Houston secondary. Kamari Lassiter has limited reach and speed, so he's the one Sutton would prefer to target rather than Derek Stingley.
If Stingley shadows Sutton it still probably isn't grounds to bench Sutton in many cases. It's preferable to get open, but Sutton makes plenty of big-time catches while covered, too. A player like Troy Franklin is more dependent on separation – Franklin is liable to drop the ball if someone hits him – but underneath it probably won't be easy for Franklin to get away from Lassiter or slot defender Jalen Pitre, both of whom are built to crash downward. Franklin has the raw speed to get behind Lassiter and Pitre fairly easily, on the other hand, so perhaps Denver can get Franklin loose downfield a bit. It's not as easy to see Pat Bryant making a downfield impact, on the other hand.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Courtland Sutton, Troy Franklin, Marvin Mims, Pat Bryant
New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons
PATRIOTS WIDE RECEIVERS
Stefon Diggs seems like a candidate to see an assignment from AJ Terrell, but that's more a problem for Terrell if so. Mike Hughes might be more beatable yet, and if he's on Kayshon Boutte the Falcons might need to devote consistent safety help over Hughes. Dee Alford in the slot should be easier for Diggs to beat than Terrell when on the boundary.
The extent to which the Falcons pass defense has thrived this year likely has more to do with the pass rush than the coverage personnel. If Drake Maye struggles it likely won't be due to Terrell or Hughes slowing Diggs or Boutte.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Stefon Diggs, Kayshon Boutte, Mack Hollins
FALCONS WIDE RECEIVERS
The Patriots finally moved around Christian Gonzalez last week after previously only lining him up on the right side, which could foreshadow an intention of shadowing Drake London with Gonzalez this week. Perhaps London is good enough to beat Gonzalez anyway – great corners get beat sometimes, and sometimes even by receivers much worse than London – but it would be far preferable for London to get looks at corners like Carlton Davis on the boundary or Marcus Jones in the slot.
Darnell Mooney should have done more last week and the fact that he didn't raises serious concerns about any matchup, given how weak the Dolphins are. With that said, receivers like Mooney can really be trouble or heavier, slower corners like Davis.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Drake London (arguable Downgrade if shadowed by Gonzalez), Darnell Mooney (arguable Upgrade if Gonzalez shadows London)
New York Giants vs. San Francisco 49ers
GIANTS WIDE RECEIVERS
Wan'Dale Robinson is running more outside and downfield than any previous years in the NFL, but he's still the primary slot receiver for the Giants, too. That means he should rookie slot corner Upton Stout a little more than Deommodore Lenoir and Renardo Green on the boundary. The 49ers defense is well-coached and you probably won't find any pushovers, but none of these corners is concerning for Robinson, in my opinion.
Darius Slayton is always a low-floor play but is due to cause some damage soon here. Lenoir and Green have limited reach and probably don't want to run with Slayton for more than 15 yards or so.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Wan'Dale Robinson, Darius Slayton
49ERS WIDE RECEIVERS
Kendrick Bourne and Jauan Jennings are your primary wideouts, with WR3 Demarcus Robinson mostly playing on the boundary in three-wide sets, which might not happen as often as two-TE sets where George Kittle takes the slot rep and Luke Farrell takes the inline rep.
From the boundary Bourne and Jennings should see a relatively even split of whoever lines up there, presumably Deonte Banks and Korie Black. It's doubtful any defense will trot out worse boundary corners than the Giants this week.
Upgrade: Kendrick Bourne, Jauan Jennings
Downgrade: N/A
Even: N/A
Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Indianapolis Colts
STEELERS WIDE RECEIVERS
DK Metcalf grades well above the quality of the corners covering him here. The Colts are struggling without Charvarius Ward and Jaylon Jones on the boundary, so they're left with Mekhi Blackmon and an incoherent rotation of Cameron Mitchell and Johnathan Edwards on the boundary.
Calvin Austin probably warrants the benefit of the doubt against lesser corners like these, too. Austin might need to worry about Roman Wilson stealing some reps if Wilson's recent momentum persists.
Upgrade: DK Metcalf
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Calvin Austin, Roman Wilson
COLTS WIDE RECEIVERS
This Pittsburgh pass defense has proven a mess – over-aged in the case of Darius Slay and Jalen Ramsey, while Joey Porter just seems like penalty machine to this point. If the pass rush doesn't carry them then this trio seems inadequate in 2025.
Michael Pittman is all but matchup-proof, and there could be a little extra slack for him and Josh Downs here if Alec Pierce is blocked out by the Pittsburgh pass rush forcing release before Pierce reaches his 21.3-yard ADOT.
Upgrade: Michael Pittman
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Josh Downs, Alec Pierce
Tennessee Titans vs. Los Angeles Chargers
TITANS WIDE RECEIVERS
Chimere Dike has proven a revelation in the slot for Tennessee the last two weeks, and they could certainly use him here, too. The code of the Chargers' zone coverages is not easily cracked, but if you can't decipher the zone openings then the next best option is running right past the zone. The Chargers will be without CB1 and slot defender Tarheeb Still (knee), so Dike against backup slot defender Ja'Sir Taylor might be Tennessee's best matchup.
Elic Ayomanor and Van Jefferson might have more working against them. Donte Jackson and Cam Hart fit well in the Chargers' scheme, and there isn't any trait-wise angle for the Titans to utilize otherwise.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: Elic Ayomanor, Van Jefferson
Even: Chimere Dike
CHARGERS WIDE RECEIVERS
Keenan Allen presumably only played 18 snaps last week because the Vikings were neutralized so early in the game. We might guess that Allen is at risk of another half-day here against a Titans team that's just awful, but Allen's per-snap production should be viable at least.
The Titans corners are bad. Jalyn Armour-Davis and Darrell Baker on the boundary are probably the only duo that can rival the weakness of the Giants' backups who will start this week. Allen, Quentin Johnston and probably even Tre' Harris can probably beat these two. Ladd McConkey gets a mystery defender in the slot after the Titans traded Roger McCreary – their only good corner previously.
Upgrade: Ladd McConkey, Keenan Allen, Quentin Johnston, Tre' Harris
Downgrade: N/A
Even: N/A
Los Angeles Rams vs. New Orleans Saints
RAMS WIDE RECEIVERS
Puka Nacua and Davante Adams are both far overqualified to be running against the likes of Alontae Taylor, Kool Aid McKinstry and Quincy Riley.
Upgrade: Puka Nacua, Davante Adams
Downgrade: N/A
Even: N/A
SAINTS WIDE RECEIVERS
The Rams use a zone-heavy approach so that they can play Moneyball in the secondary, and it mostly works. It doesn't therefore mean that much to note that players like Darious Williams and Cobie Durant probably can't cover Chris Olave or Rashid Shaheed, especially when you factor in the Rams pass rush and the first career start for Tyler Shough.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed
Las Vegas Raiders vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
RAIDERS WIDE RECEIVERS
The Jakobi Meyers trade/injury standoff makes it difficult to guess how coherently the Raiders fit Meyers into the game plan. Meyers would normally warrant WR1 functions, often from the slot, but it's just about impossible to tell if we need to worry about the Raiders tinkering with his snap count right before the trade deadline. If Meyers is in, he and Tre Tucker should be your two-wide starters with rookies Dont'e Thornton and Jack Bech fighting over the meager, fetid scraps.
The slot is probably where Jacksonville's coverage is toughest, and so Jourdan Lewis could be a challenging matchup for Meyers. On the boundary Montaric Brown is a better fit for Jacksonville's zone-heavy scheme than a man-coverage scheme, and the Jaguars will need to give Brown cushions against speed like Tucker and Thornton. Greg Newsome can run a lot better than Brown or Lewis, but it's not clear how locked into the Jaguars' zone-heavy scheme Newsome might be after two weeks.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Jakobi Meyers, Tre Tucker (the more Brown the better), Dont'e Thornton (see Tucker)
JAGUARS WIDE RECEIVERS
Brian Thomas can easily outrun corners like Eric Stokes and especially Kyu Blu Kelly, but with his shoulder injury Thomas might be fragile and/or vulnerable to the jam-heavy approach of the long-arm Raiders corners. The Raiders corners aren't even ostensibly supposed to cover all that well – their approach banks on throttling the receiver at the line of scrimmage to mess up the offense's timing. Thomas needs to fight through that jam before he can break into the open field. Dyami Brown faces a similar challenge with his own injured shoulder. Parker Washington or whoever runs from the slot gets a favorable matchup against Darnay Holmes.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Brian Thomas, Parker Washington, Dyami Brown
Buffalo Bills vs. Kansas City Chiefs
BILLS WIDE RECEIVERS
Keon Coleman has been quiet enough lately that he might avoid the Trent McDuffie shadow assignment, but then again, if it's the likes of Elijah Moore and Tyrell Shavers lining up on the other side it might be a waste for Kansas City to leave McDuffie against either of them. Then yet again, Jaylen Watson is a solid corner in his own right and his build it more of a trait match to Coleman than McDuffie.
The Chiefs could even consider assigning McDuffie to Khalil Shakir in the slot, given Shakir's central significance to the Buffalo offense, but then they'd probably need to bench Chamarri Conner or one of the safeties if McDuffie is taking Conner's slot rep. If the Chiefs don't put McDuffie into the slot then they need to prepare for Shakir to get the better of Conner, regularly.
Upgrade: Khalil Shakir (lower to Even if shadowed by McDuffie)
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Keon Coleman, Elijah Moore, Tyrell Shavers
CHIEFS WIDE RECEIVERS
Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy are the two constants from this point, with the leftovers splitting on a fluctuating basis between mostly Hollywood Brown and JuJu Smith-Schuster. Given how much the Chiefs use two-TE formations, we might as well think of Brown and Smith-Schuster as co-WR3s along with Gray... which doesn't leave much predictable usage for any of them most of the time.
Rice and Worthy, though, are locked in to the game plan to the point that the Chiefs have cause for concern if the production lags in either case. It's reassuring for Kansas City, then, that Rice and Worthy probably have the upper hand against the players covering them. Worthy's speed especially is something the Bills need to game plan around, because any non-Maxwell Hairston boundary corner on the Bills roster specifically lacks speed. Hairston boasts speed specifically, so it will be interesting to see if the Bills try to shadow Worthy with Hairston. They probably won't move Hairston into the slot if the Chiefs send Worthy into the slot, though.
Upgrade: Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy
Downgrade: N/A
Even: N/A
Washington Commanders vs. Seattle Seahawks
COMMANDERS WIDE RECEIVERS
Deebo Samuel has struggled to produce from the slot in recent weeks, and it's hard to see how a collision with Devon Witherspoon could help break the slump. Witherspoon is a rugged slot corner who thrives specifically in the YAC-dependent parts of the field where Samuel runs the most.
With Terry McLaurin out again the Commanders will employ an uncertain wideout group consisting of Chris Moore, Luke McCaffrey and Jaylin Lane. Lane's speed and open-field running ability make him a decoy/gadget type, while McCaffrey is the one most likely to take flanker/slot reps and Moore seemingly specializes in boundary, downfield functions. Moore might be the one who most directly replaces McLaurin.
Promising as all of Moore, McCaffrey and Lane might be in different ways, they don't have any immediately obvious angles against the boundary duo of Riq Woolen and Josh Jobe.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Deebo Samuel, Chris Moore, Luke McCaffrey, Jaylin Lane
SEAHAWKS WIDE RECEIVERS
Jaxon Smith-Njigba is matchup-proof to the point that it's almost ill advised to try to declare any week better or worse than another. Marshon Lattimore lacks the suddenness to mirror JSN's movements, and rookie Trey Amos on the other side has probably never faced a receiver quite on JSN's general level. Lattimore and Amos ought to be able to hang with Tory Horton, on the other hand, promising as Horton otherwise appears.
Cooper Kupp in the slot versus Mike Sainristil is an interesting matchup. Sainristil was good enough on the boundary as a rookie that it's reasonable to assume he will improve with time, but to this point in 2025 he has mostly struggled upon getting moved to the slot. If Sainristil is decent it's probably enough to thwart Kupp, but if Sainristil plays like a rookie then even a slowed-down Kupp could land a few punches.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Cooper Kupp, Tory Horton
Dallas Cowboys vs. Arizona Cardinals
COWBOYS WIDE RECEIVERS
While the Cardinals have a promising prospect duo in Max Melton and Will Johnson, it's almost certainly safe to say Melton and Johnson will be better in a year or two than they are right now. In the meantime, you worry for even the best prospects against receivers like CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens.
The easiest target at corner is probably in the slot, where the Cardinals tend to use safety Jalen Thompson. To me this seems like a no-brainer – Dallas needs to get Lamb against Thompson in the slot. As much as Thompson is the past of least resistance, though, Lamb and Pickens probably deserve the benefit of the doubt against Melton and Johnson on the boundary, too.
Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: CeeDee Lamb (the more slot reps the better), George Pickens
CARDINALS WIDE RECEIVERS
I always complain about how the Cardinals are using Marvin Harrison the wrong way, but against a Dallas secondary this weak it might not matter how poorly designed Drew Petzing's offense might be. Kaiir Elam and Trikweze Bridges are severely overmatched against Harrison and maybe even, somehow, Zay Jones (knee).
Michael Wilson gets the toughest matchup, seeing Bland in the slot, but Wilson might get enough looks at Elam and Bridges to do some damage, too. If Jones is out then the Cardinals might need to move Wilson out of the slot with Greg Dortch replacing Wilson in the slot, and that would probably constitute a big upgrade for Wilson given that Elam/Bridges are significantly worse than Bland.
Upgrade: Marvin Harrison, Zay Jones
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Michael Wilson (raise to Upgrade if Jones is out)
