Week 13 Notable WR/CB Matchups

Attempting to predict outcomes in the NFL can seem fairly easy when looking at it from a macro view. Anyone who follows the league can point out that one team may have a good offense and their opponent may have a bad defense, but if that's all there was to it, the exhilaration we feel from watching football every Sunday would cease to exist. When you zoom in on any game you’ll see the individual battles taking place all over the field. These are often where the real story is told, so let's dive into some of the Pro Football Focus data on matchups between Wide Receivers and Defensive Backs that could really tip the scales in Week Thirteen.

Golden Opportunity WR of the Week

CeeDee Lamb vs Indianapolis Colts

Coming off his highest single game PFF grade of the season (91.5 vs NYG), CeeDee Lamb has a shot to put up another great game and help move Dallas to a commanding 9-3 record. Many Cowboys fans want to see Lamb playing more on the outside but he has been very effective playing 59% of snaps in the slot. Lamb’s PFF receiving grade of 86.5 is the best of his career thus far. Not to mention he is projected to run 20 routes against Colts cornerback Kenny Moore II who plays almost exclusively in the slot, and is sporting a not so exciting 46.3 PFF coverage grade. Lamb will have no problem getting open and his five inch height advantage on Moore should allow for several receptions on routes where Moore manages to stick with him. Moore is giving up a catch 76% of the time he is targeted this year. Fire up the grill, it is Lamb week.

‘Better Luck Next Time’ WR of the Week

Tyler Boyd vs Kansas City Chiefs  

Unfortunately, not every slot-exclusive matchup is beneficial for the offense. In this AFC Championship Game rematch, Bengals slot WR Tyler Boyd is in a position to struggle. While the Chiefs defense does not compare to their powerhouse offense, a few players still stand out on the defensive side. Slot Corner L’Jarius Sneed’s elite 89.1 PFF makes him the 2nd highest graded corner in the league this season and is 17 points higher than Boyd’s 72.0 receiving grade. Snead has five pass break-ups and one interception over the last five games and has only allowed two touchdowns in his coverage since Week 2. Sneed is playing great, he is more athletic than Boyd, and he is projected to cover him for 35 snaps (tied for most of any individual matchup of week 13).

Dogfight of the Week

Justin Jefferson vs Sauce Gardner 

Sports Illustrated

There has not been a more obvious matchup to highlight this year for this segment than Justin Jefferson and Sauce Gardner here in Week 13. Two teams with postseason aspirations and two players with strong cases that they are the best in the NFL at their respective positions. So far, in his rookie season, Sauce is PFF’s highest graded overall defender and the highest graded player in coverage. In 53 passes to his coverage he has allowed a catch just 43% of the time and has allowed one touchdown while having two interceptions and eleven pass break-ups. Now he will face his biggest test yet going on the road to face off against Justin Jefferson and his elite 90.0 receiving grade that has almost single handedly carried Minnesota to their 9-2 record. Unfortunately for us fans, this will not be an all game affair. Jefferson moves around in the Vikings offense often while Sauce is lined up at left cornerback 82% of the time. Still, the Vikings have to choose to trust Jefferson to beat Sauce or allow for an easier NYJ game-plan by keeping Jefferson on one side of the field. PFF projects these two will be going at it for at least one-third of this game where it is undoubtedly an unstoppable force meets an immovable object. Minnesota has a measly 5 point differential this season so one of these key stars getting the best of the other, even in limited opportunity, could very easily be the difference.

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By Taren Caravella