Week 8 at New England Patriots
Jarvis Landry had one of his worst games of the season before Cleveland's bye, tying a season-low in receptions (3) with his second-fewest receiving yards (36) while seeing a season-low in targets (5). Expect another tough outing for Landry this week as he faces a Patriots defense allowing the fewest fantasy points to opposing receivers. Owners should view Landry as a WR3/WR4 in Week 8 against New England.
Week 6 vs. Seattle Seahawks
Jarvis Landry led the Browns in receiving last week, finishing 4-75. He caught half of Baker Mayfield's completions while tying Odell Beckham for the most targets (6). Landry now has at least 60 yards in every game but one this season, which is impressive considering how much Mayfield has struggled. He gets a decent matchup against the Seahawks this week, so we can likely expect around the same type of production he's had so far, which is about 4-5 receptions for 60-70 yards. He's a solid WR2 play in Week 6.
Week 5 at San Francisco 49ers
Jarvis Landry had a breakout game in Week 4 finishing 8-167 on 10 targets. He's now 10th in the league in receiving yards so far despite not having many receptions in his first three games. But he's averaging over 80 yards and has at least seven targets in every game. He should continue to produce this week in a decent matchup against the 49ers. We like Landry as a solid WR2 where you can expect around 4-5 receptions for ~80 yards.
Week 4 at Baltimore Ravens
Once again, Jarvis Landry saw a lot of targets (9), but finished with few receptions (3). He did lead his team in receiving yards in Week 3 (62), but he's caught less than half of his targets in 2019 (10-of-23). The yards have been there, though, as he's averaging 57 scrimmage yards per game. He also gets a favorable matchup against the Ravens this week as Baltimore is allowing the 10th-most fantasy points to WRs. Landry can be viewed as a WR3 or WR4 in Week 4.
Week 3 vs. Los Angeles Rams
Jarvis Landry is falling victim to what plagued him a year ago. He's getting plenty of looks, earning seven targets in back-to-back weeks, but has just seven receptions off of those 14 targets. He had just 32 yards last week, highlighted by a 25-yard reception. He finished as the team's fifth-leading receiver.
If Landry can convert more of those targets into actual catches, he'll be much more productive for fantasy owners. He gets a tough matchup this week against the Rams, but we still like him as a solid WR3 option.
Week 2 at New York Jets
Along with Baker Mayfield and Odell Beckham, Jarvis Landry played every single offensive snap for the Browns in Week 1. Unfortunately, he reverted to his 2018 ways where he saw a lot of targets (7), but didn't finish with many receptions (4). His 67 yards weren't terrible, but Landry made a name for himself by catching a lot of balls. He'll need to be able to turn more of those targets into catches to be viewed as a better option.
He should be able to have a solid game this week against the Jets. New York allowed the second-most fantasy points to opposing wideouts in 2018, and didn't look overly intimidating in Week 1, allowing John Brown to pop off for 123 yards. We like Landry as a solid WR3 play this week.
Week 1 vs. Tennessee Titans
Jarvis Landry didn't have a great first season with the Browns. He set a career low in receptions (81), tied his career-low in touchdowns (4) and had his second-lowest yardage output (976) in his five-year career. And with Odell Beckham Jr. in town, it's hard to see those numbers going much higher. But Landry should be more efficient than last year when he saw 149 targets.
He gets what should be a favorable matchup against the Titans and can be viewed as a low-end WR2 or high-end WR3 option.
Fantasy Upside
Jarvis Landry is one of the safer options in fantasy because he’s really consistent. He had eight games with 5+ receptions and 50+ yards, which accounts for half the season. And while some may view Odell Beckham’s arrival as a bad thing, it can also be viewed in a positive light because it takes focus away from Landry being the main option. Since Landry is more of a possession receiver, he can haul in several passes per game while OBJ sees special coverage.
Fantasy Downside
Landry saw 149 targets last season, but finished with 81 receptions and the 27th-most points per game. His usage also dropped when Freddie Kitchens took over. Landry went from averaging nearly 12 targets per game to averaging 6.8. With Kitchens now being full-time and Cleveland having Beckham, Antonio Callaway and David Njoku in the mix, it seems logical that Landry’s usage won’t be nearly what it was in 2018.
2019 Bottom Line
Overall, it seems Landry should be able to do more with less. He was clearly not effective last season converting 149 targets into 81 receptions. It’s fine if Landry sees fewer targets, because he wasn’t doing anything with the majority of his targets in 2018. But his value does take a bit of a hit as he was viewed as a WR2 heading into 2018. As we enter 2019, Landry is more of a WR3 option in fantasy and should be drafted as such.
Week 17 at Baltimore Ravens
Jarvis Landry went 4-47 on eight targets last week. He now has nine games with 50 yards or less this season and he's only scored in three outings. He's not completely useless in fantasy, but he hasn't exactly met expectations set for him at the beginning of the year. He gets a tough matchup against Baltimore this week, which gives him even more risk. He's a lower-end WR2 option against Baltimore.
Week 16 vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Jarvis Landry caught three of his eight targets for 37 yards last week as Baker Mayfield struggled. After two consecutive 100-yard games for Landry, it was disappointing to see his numbers drop so much, but it's understandable considering the game as a whole. He should be able to bounce back this week in a favorable matchup against the Bengals. Although he didn't play well against them earlier in the year (3-30), Mayfield did, and Landry's success is often tied to whether Mayfield has a good game. We still like Landry as a WR2.
