Emeka Egbuka, Ricky Pearsall, And 6 More Week 1 Wide Receivers To Start In Fantasy

Week 1 is upon us, and it's time to set our lineups. We drafted the guys we wanted, and now it's time to reap the benefits of our research. These are the wide receivers you need to get into your starting lineups in Week 1.

Xavier Worthy, Kansas City Chiefs

With Rashee Rice suspended for the first six games of the season, it's wheels up for Worthy. If you drafted Worthy, this is the time you drafted him for. Once Week 7 hits, we don't know what his role is going to be. Nevertheless, we know he's going to be the WR1 until then, so use him while you've got him.

Tetairoa McMillan, Carolina Panthers

Tet McMilla — Carolina Panthers wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan (4) during the first quarter against the Cleveland Browns at Bank of America Stadium. | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

McMillan has legitimate WR1 upside this season, and it will start in Week 1. Over the past week, the team traded Adam Thielen and placed Jalen Coker on injured reserve. There are going to be a ton of targets for McMillan early in the season, and he's never going to look back.

Jerry Jeudy, Cleveland Browns

Generally, we don't get too caught up in matchups in Week 1 because things change quickly in the NFL, and we have no sample size of any team's current defense. However, there are always exceptions to the rules. The Cincinnati Bengals' defense is one of those exceptions. They are going to be atrocious this year. Historically bad. With Joe Flacco being named the starter for the Cleveland Browns, Jeudy is an easy start in this one.

Jaylen Waddle, Miami Dolphins

People are down on the Dolphins, and as a whole, that's fair. However, let's not forget how good this offense has consistently been over the first few months of the season when Tua Tagovailoa is healthy. This is going to be a passing of the torch season for Tyreek Hill and Waddle. Waddle is going to light up a mediocre Colts' secondary.

Jameson Williams, Detroit Lions

Williams is set to have a breakout season, and in Week 1, he takes on a secondary that was so thin at cornerback that they were trying out wide receivers and undrafted free agents at the position after moving on from Jaire Alexander this offseason. Get Williams in your lineup.

Emeka Egbuka, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Everything has fallen perfectly into place for Egbuka to start his rookie season. When he was drafted, he landed in an elite passing offense, but there were a lot of mouths to feed. The keyword there is "were". Chris Godwin is now out until at least October, Jalen McMillan will likely miss more than half the season, and Cade Otton is questionable for Week 1. Egbuka is going to thrive in a high-volume role next to Mike Evans.

Ricky Pearsall, San Francisco 49ers

We liked Pearsall heading into the offseason, but now we love him. He's essentially been defaulted into the WR1 role. Since we last saw the 49ers, the team traded Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk is going to be out for an extended period to start the season, and Jauan Jennings just returned to practice after missing just about all of August due to a contract dispute and calf injury. Pearsall is locked in as the WR1 in Week 1.

Matthew Golden, Green Bay Packers

It looks like Jayden Reed will, at best, be limited in Week 1. The fear about the Green Bay offense when it comes to pass-catchers is that they spread the ball around too much. Golden is going to be the WR1 even when Reed is healthy, but with him sidelined or limited, Golden should see WR1 targets as well. He's a great start in the opener.