Matchups are everything in the NFL, especially at the receiver position.

For fantasy purposes, being able to identify which receivers have advantageous (or disadvantageous) matchups is a sharp way to get a leg up on your opponent.

Each Friday this piece lists the best wide receiver-cornerback matchups for the upcoming week. It doesn't take a genius to tell you to start CeeDee Lamb, but there will be weeks when some WR1s have better matchups and other weeks when typical WR2 or WR3s have matchups that bump them up in our weekly rankings.

numberFire's player matchups chart helps to identify advantageous matchups for specific positions. Then, Pro Football Focus' (PFF) Player Grades and their WR/CB Matchup chart are great starting points for identifying which specific matchups we want to target.

Projections and rankings come from our NFL projections, which are powered by numberFire. All statistics via NFL Next Gen Stats and Pro Football Focus unless otherwise stated. NFL odds come from FanDuel Sportsbook and may change after this article is published.

Week 8 Wide Receiver-Cornerback Matchups

George Pickens (PIT) vs. Deonte Banks (NYG)

numberFire Projection: 11.5 fantasy points (WR16)

• 69 Yards
• 4.9 Receptions (7.9 Targets)

FanDuel Props:

• O/U 58.5 Yards
• O/U 4.5 Receptions
• +200 Any Time Touchdown Scorer

It's safe to say George Pickens enjoyed the Pittsburgh Steelers switching to Russell Wilson at quarterback. Although Pickens' target share with Wilson (33.3%) wasn't dramatically different than it was in six games with Justin Fields (28.9%), he racked up his second-best yardage total (111), averaged his most yards per reception (22.2), and scored his first touchdown of the season with Russ.

We saw Pickens operate as a pseudo league-winner in last year's fantasy playoffs, so the upside is there. And considering how productive he was against a stout New York Jets secondary last week, he's someone I'm looking to target across the fantasy and betting landscape in a softer matchup this week.

Pickens and the Steelers will take on the New York Giants on Monday Night Football, during which he figures to draw perimeter corner Deonte Banks. Banks has shadowed several wideouts for the Giants' No. 10 schedule-adjusted pass defense, but he's not exactly the kind of lockdown corner we need to shy away from. Per Razzball, 72% of New York's fantasy points allowed to receivers have come to the perimeter -- the highest rate in football.

Banks has a lackluster 57.1 PFF coverage grade this season, and he's responsible for the fourth-most receiving yards in the league. Opposing quarterbacks have a staggering 131.5 passer rating when targeting Banks, the second-highest passer rating among corners who have been targeted at least 20 times.

He's also been privy to the big play, too, giving up 14.3 yards per reception and a 10.4-yard average depth of target (aDOT). That's culminated in Banks allowing the league's most fantasy points per route run, according to Fantasy Points.

That sets up Pickens for another productive afternoon, and I don't think the market has reacted strongly enough to Wilson's potential impact on Pickens' production. Consequently, I'm interested in his props across the board, specifically the over on his 58.5 receiving yards line. He's cleared that mark three times in seven games, narrowly missing out twice via 57- and 53-yard outings. Our NFL player projections have Pickens going for 69 yards.

This is also a spot I'd consider laddering his yards prop with some alt lines. George Pickens 80+ yards has +192 odds while 100+ yards is +390.

Ladd McConkey (GB) vs. Alontae Taylor (NO)

numberFire Projection: 9.9 points (WR28)

• 55 Yards
• 4.6 Receptions (7.6 Targets)

Ladd McConkey didn't put up gaudy numbers despite a plus matchup last week, but his utilization remained strong. Though his 18.9% target share last week was actually his lowest in a single game all season, it still ranked second on the Los Angeles Chargers. He finished with 5 receptions for 46 yards while running a route on a season-high 88.6% of dropbacks.

For the season, Ladd leads LA with a 24.7% target share and 80.2% route participation. He's put up a rock-solid 1.77 yards per route run (YPRR) despite the Chargers sitting in the bottom 10 for passing yards per game. But the team has quietly posted a +1% pass rate over expected (PROE) in two games since the bye after an uninspiring -10.4% PROE prior to the off week. That uptick in passing bodes well for McConkey going forward, and it sets him up to produce in another advantageous matchup this week.

With the Chargers set to take on the New Orleans Saints, Ladd figures to see plenty of Alontae Taylor in the slot. New Orleans has allowed the sixth-most fantasy points to the slot (per Razzball) as teams have targeted Taylor early and often.

Taylor has been targeted at the fifth-highest rate in football, according to PFF, and he has PFF's fifth-lowest coverage grade among qualified corners. He's struggled to defend the slot, in particular, permitting the second-most receptions (29), second-most yards after the catch (142), and a 104.3 passer rating when targeted.

In general, this isn't a Saints secondary we should shy away from. While New Orleans is 11th in schedule-adjusted pass defense, they're slightly below average in target rate and YPRR allowed to opposing wide receivers. Marcus Lattimore figures to lock down the perimeter yet again, but Taylor is someone McConkey should be able to feast against in the slot.

Jerry Jeudy (CLE) vs. Nate Wiggins (BAL)

numberFire Projection: 8.9 points (WR35)

• 55 Yards
• 3.8 Receptions (6.5 Targets)

FanDuel Props:

• O/U 44.5 Yards
• O/U 3.5 Receptions
• +300 Any Time Touchdown Scorer

There's a lot of uncertainty in the Cleveland Browns' passing game entering Week 8. Jameis Winston will make his first start of the season with Deshaun Watson done for the year, and Cleveland will be playing in just their second game without their former top wideout, Amari Cooper.

While Jerry Jeudy recorded just one reception and finished fourth on the team in target share (10.8%) last week, the bulk of that game came with Watson or Dorian Thompson-Robinson under center. But on the lone drive Winston was at the helm, Jeudy saw 4 targets -- good for a 36% target share. That's obviously a small sample, and things could change after a full week of practice with Jameis under center. But overall, Jeudy leads the team in routes run, downfield targets, and red zone target share (27.3%), so I'm confident in him being a priority within Kevin Stefanski's offense.

That could lead to a productive outing on Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens. Baltimore has been a heavy pass-funnel D this season, ranking 3rd in adjusted run defense but 29th in pass defense. They've permitted the most pass attempts and yards this season while tying for the highest completion percentage over expectation (CPOE) allowed, per Next Gen Stats. They've allowed a league-high 11 touchdowns to opposing wide receivers.

Just from a pure volume perspective, this looks like a smash spot for Jeudy. The Browns are 8.5-point home underdogs in a game showing a 44.5-point total, so there's a strong possibility we see Cleveland chasing points through the air.

The Browns have moved Jeudy inside and out thus far, though his perimeter-heavy role should pit him against Nate Wiggins more often than not. Wiggins has been targeted at the highest rate among Baltimore's primary defensive backs, and he's permitted the fourth-most yards per reception among all qualified corners.

We project Jeudy for 55 receiving yards on Sunday, pointing to some value in his 44.5 yardage prop. But considering how pass-heavy Cleveland could be, I'm more interested in the over on Jeudy's 3.5 receptions prop. He cleared this line in three of four games to start the year before a recent quiet stretch, but he's well-positioned to get back on track after how often Winston looked his way in Week 7.

I think we can look at some alt lines in this market, too. Jeudy has +182 odds to record 5+ receptions while 7+ receptions is +550. His season-high for receptions is six, and he's cracked five receptions twice -- both with Cooper active.

Rome Odunze (CHI) vs. Benjamin St-Juste (WAS)

numberFire Projection: 7.3 points (WR47)

• 42 Yards
• 3.1 Receptions (5.1 Targets)

FanDuel Props:

• O/U 31.5 Yards
• O/U 2.5 Receptions

Considering how well Caleb Williams played in the weeks leading up to the Chicago Bears' Week 7 bye, this is a passing attack I want to buy into in the second half of the season. It can be difficult to pinpoint exactly which of their primary pass catchers will show out on a week-to-week basis, though it's at least somewhat helpful that the Bears have funneled almost all of their targets to their main guys over the last few weeks.

Even so, we could see multiple Chicago receivers eat in a mouthwatering date with the Washington Commanders.

Washington enters Week 8 with numberFire's 27th-ranked pass defense, and they've been a WR matchup to target for the second consecutive year. Against wide receivers, the Commanders have permitted the ninth-highest target rate, second-most YPRR, and most fantasy points per target. They've allowed the second-most WR touchdowns to this point.

A good deal of that production has come at the expensive of perimeter corner Benjamin St-Juste. We've targeted St-Juste almost weekly to this point -- and for good reason. Even after a strong showing against a feeble Carolina Panthers offense last week, St-Juste still has only a 57.5 PFF coverage grade. He's been targeted at the 11th-highest clip among qualified corners, permitting 12.9 yards per reception and a 111.4 passer rating when targeted. PFF has attributed St-Juste has the primary defender on three touchdowns this season.

That sets up both D.J. Moore and Rome Odunze for a nice showing on the outside. I'm primarily interested in the rookie. Odunze's exceeded two receptions in only one game where Keenan Allen was active, but he's gone for at least 40 receiving yards in consecutive games and continues to sport strong utilization. Odunze is second on the team in route participation (85.3%) and is averaging 2.8 downfield targets per game.

We sometimes see rookie wide receivers take off following their bye, so I'm optimistic the No. 9 pick's role may expand over the second half of the year.

That role expansion could come as early as this week. This is a spot I'm primarily interested in the over for Odunze's receiving yards prop, which is currently set at 31.5 on FanDuel Sportsbook. But considering how touchdown-friendly the Commanders defense has been to opposing receivers, I'll take a long look at his touchdowns odds when those hit the market.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.