Before I begin, I would like to thank James Koh for reminding me that Le'Veon Bell plays Monday night this week. Because if there is one thing NFL fans are clamoring for, it's more Steelers in primetime/national TV games. Seriously.
More importantly, I'm going up against Bell when I take on Akbar for the NFL Fantasy Live title this season. I'm going to be tilting hard because not only is it Le'Veon Freaking Bell, but I lost Antonio Brown. I wouldn't have even shrugged if I still had Brown going for me this week. He's been the fantasy MVP. I almost wanted to just forfeit after I lost Brown. Because now, I'm not sure what the hell I'm going to do. Other than spend some time with the fam. Actually, I feel like I'm going to not watch the game until Tuesday morning just to make sure my Christmas is still good. Because I'm that person who will be up 70 with just one guy left (being Bell in this case), but still stress over it.
The converse for me is true in that if I'm down a point with guys like Bell, Zeke and Todd Gurley left to play and will convince myself that it's not happening.
But let's not talk about that too much. What I would like to devote today's column to is finding viable replacements for Antonio Brown this week. It's not going to be easy. But here are a few things to remember. First, you don't necessarily have to start a Steelers receiver. I'm sure JuJu Smith-Schuster is not available in your league. Martavis Bryant likely is. And he's not a terrible option. The Steelers need to keep winning. The Texans have allowed the fourth-most points to receivers this season. Third-most over the last two. And I'm going to give you some real talk here. I'm kind of into playing Bryant because I want to have a little hope going up against Bell in the final draw.
All right, so enough about my dilemma. I do appreciate you all giving me the opportunity to vent a little bit. I know Akbar really wants to win this title, but I just can't let him have it without a fight. So let's talk about some more replacements.
Martavis Bryant, WR, Steelers: I just talked about him. He had six targets on Sunday, that was the most on the team. And he made some big plays, including a one-handed touchdown catch.
Robert Woods, WR, Rams: He's had five receptions in the last four games he's played. He needed no time getting back into the swing for the Rams. I was worried a bit about him last week, but those worries were severely unfounded.
Keelan Cole, WR, Jaguars: He's had a receiving touchdown in three consecutive games. His receiving yards have increased in four consecutive games. And Blake Bortles has become a thing, and I love his matchup against the 49ers.
DeVante Parker, WR, Dolphins: Now we are starting to get a bit riskier with the picks. I'd be worried about this one here. But his targets have increased in his last three games. Kansas City has allowed the fourth-most points to receivers this year.
Paul Richardson, WR, Seahawks: He's averaged 6.6 targets since Week 11 (which leads the team). The Cowboys have allowed 19 receiving touchdowns to receivers this season. So that's good for Richardson's outlook.
Damiere Byrd, WR, Panthers: He had a pair of scores last week, and it really seems like you would be chasing the fantasy points for sure. But he's got a great matchup against the Buccaneers. Damn, are the Panthers at home again? This is amazing.
Kendall Wright, WR, Bears: He faces the Browns this week. I like that the Bears have given Mitch Trubisky the chance to throw the rock a little bit down the stretch. Wright did have seven receptions for 81 yards against the Lions last week.
And I know there are only seven options. But in honor of the release of the "Ocean's 8" trailer this week, I find it fitting that we go with just seven. But it looks like we're going to need one more this week so I'll say the Bears D/ST would be a pretty good stream against the Browns.
-- Follow Adam Rank on Twitter @adamrank
