Shuffle Up: Fantasy receiver values and what to do with Chris Hogan

Shuffle Up Season is here. The goal is to figure out where the players are headed. Everything that’s already happened is merely an audition. If you want the points-scored leaderboard, that’s a different exercise. If you merely want Week 6 rankings, click over here.

Today’s assignment is wideouts. We did running backs last week, and we’ll do the quarterbacks and tight ends in Week 7.

Assume a half-point PPR scoring system, with everything else standard. Players at the same price are considered even. I reserve the right to tweak this list within the first 24 hours of release. I welcome all reasonable, respectful disagreement, but bring a reason. And remember the golden rule: no one gains or loses value simply because you roster (or don’t roster) that player.

Commentary will be added in the overnight. I’m putting up the prices to help you get a leg up on pickups and trades as you get ready for Week 6.

I have no magic answer on Amari Cooper. If you do, please share it with the class.

Hit me up on @scott_pianowski, let’s hear what you have to say. Game on.

$45 Antonio Brown
$44 DeAndre Hopkins
$43 A.J. Green
$42 Julio Jones
$41 Mike Evans
$40 Jordy Nelson
$38 Dez Bryant
$37 Michael Thomas
$36 Davante Adams
$35 T.Y. Hilton
$34 Doug Baldwin
$32 Brandin Cooks
$30 Keenan Allen
$29 Tyreek Hill
$28 Chris Hogan

Hogan’s reinvented himself in 2017, and it’s pushed him squarely in to the Circle of Trust. A deep threat last year — a league-best 17.9 YPC — Hogan is now a red-zone monster. The Patriots passing tree isn’t as wide as some might think; remember, Brandin Cooks doesn’t have any red-zone targets yet (compared to nine for Hogan), and Danny Amendola isn’t a touchdown guy (18 scores in 100 pro games). Hogan’s floor is absurdly high in this offense, and it’s going to be an offense that needs to score most weeks, offsetting what the leaky defense gives back on the other end.

Not everyone wants to give Baldwin the benefit of the doubt after a poor opening third, but Seattle has a history of starting slowly, and Baldwin, despite some physical nicks, is still inside the Top 30 at the position. The Week 6 bye comes at a good time. I’m still a full believer in Russell Wilson (who has starred in spite of poor offensive lines in the past), and the Seahawks don’t have the personnel to be a run-dominant team. This offense will have to score through the air, and Baldwin remains their most consistent target. Trust the resume.

Jacoby Brissett is competent enough, and poised enough, to keep Hilton in a lofty area. This price assumes Andrew Luck is still several weeks away, and no guarantee to play at all . . . For all the just love for the final Aaron Rodgers drive at Dallas, Davante Adams was the other star, making some dynamite back-shoulder plays on the boundary. There’s no way to defend that. Adams has 16 touchdowns in his last 20 games.

$26 Demaryius Thomas
$25 Michael Crabtree
$25 Stefon Diggs
$24 Golden Tate
$24 Alshon Jeffery
$23 Kelvin Benjamin
$23 Emmanuel Sanders
$21 Adam Thielen
$21 Larry Fitzgerald
$20 Amari Cooper
$18 Jarvis Landry
$18 Randall Cobb
$18 Pierre Garcon
$17 Rishard Matthews
$17 Devin Funchess
$17 Will Fuller
$16 Terrelle Pryor
$16 Sammy Watkins
$14 DeVante Parker
$13 DeSean Jackson
$12 Martavis Bryant
$12 Jamison Crowder

If Bryant posts a big game at some point in October, I’d jump on the opportunity to sell. I recognize he’s been open for some big plays in recent weeks, but Ben Roethlisberger hasn’t been on the mark. This is unlikely to be a consistent offense. Bryant is obviously behind Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell in the pecking order, and even rookie JuJu Smith-Schuster has outsnapped Bryant the last three weeks . . . If Matt Moore ever gets a chance to start in Miami, I’ll go a little higher on Landry and Parker. The narrowness of the tree helps them, but Jay Cutler is killing them, softly. At least the bye is out of the way, though you also wonder what kind of fatigue this team might be facing at the end of the year, playing four straight months . . . There’s only so low we can go on Pryor, but we have to consider he’s an inexperienced receiver who changed teams. His first game after the bye, Sunday against San Francisco (a terrific matchup), should tell us a lot. This price could easily be too high — or $10 too low.

$11 Tyrell Williams
$10 Marvin Jones
$10 Willie Snead
$9 Sterling Shepard
$9 Cooper Kupp
$8 Danny Amendola
$6 Nelson Agholor
$5 Mohamed Sanu
$5 JuJu Smith-Schuster
$5 Robert Woods
$5 Marqise Lee
$5 Jermaine Kearse
$5 John Brown

I like Snead for what he is, a reliable slot guy who keeps the offense on schedule, a bass player. But he also has seven touchdowns in two New Orleans seasons, with a high of four. He’s coming off a hamstring injury as well. His floor should be reasonable as your WR3, and he’ll probably be someone you use a lot in bye-week season, but on a league-contending roster, I’d want to do better, shoot higher. Also remember the Saints throw to their backs a lot, and that could be increased now that Adrian Peterson is out of town (Alvin Kamara’s talent is begging for more playing time) . . . Shepard is at worst the No. 2 passing option with the Giants, depending on how you feel about TE Evan Engram. Granted, Eli Manning hasn’t been sharp for two years, and it’s possible this entire offense falls apart without Odell Beckham . . . Agholor is the perfect bye-week plug-in, tied to a bankable offense and capable of making a big play at any time. But we also have to consider this offense has several pieces in front of him; he’s received just 15 targets in his last four games. The ball is always going to be forced to Zach Ertz and Alshon Jeffery, justly, and Torrey Smith also has a dedicated role, though he’s not as versatile as Agholor . . . The Jaguars obviously want to play hide-the-quarterback with Blake Bortles, so Lee and Allen Hurns have extremely-modest ceilings. Lee has just 14 targets in his last three games, and doesn’t have a touchdown yet.

$4 Allen Hurns
$4 Kendall Wright
$4 Mike Wallace
$3 Donte Moncrief
$3 Jeremy Maclin
$3 Robby Anderson
$3 Taylor Gabriel
$3 Corey Davis
$3 Travis Benjamin
$3 Torrey Smith
$3 Eric Decker
$3 Brandon Coleman
$2 Josh Doctson
$2 Marquise Goodwin
$2 Jaron Brown
$2 Paul Richardson
$2 Kenny Stills
$2 Roger Lewis
$2 Tyler Lockett
$2 Adam Humphries
$2 Ricardo Louis
$2 Cole Beasley
$1 Ted Ginn
$1 Bennie Fowler
$1 Terrance Williams
$1 Corey Coleman
$1 J.J. Nelson
$1 Albert Wilson
$1 Ryan Grant
$1 Brice Butler
$1 Zay Jones
$0 Jordan Matthews
$0 Jeremy Kerley
$0 Kenny Golladay
$0 Tavon Austin