Steelers second-year WR Markus Wheaton had a disappointing rookie campaign plagued with injuries and a late start (he missed OTAs in 2013 thanks to archaic rules about Oregon State’s quarters academic schedule). He finished the year with a measly 6 catches and 64 yards. In Week 1 of the 2014 season, though, Wheaton matched his 2013 total season numbers for catches and had an outstanding 97 yards.

If there are any NFL general managers out there listening (we know of at least one former GM who reads RosterWatch) …remember if you have a third-round pick in the 2015 Draft and you need a wide receiver, just get Pittsburgh Steelers GM Kevin Colbert to do it for you.

The guy has a great track record over the last few years. Mike Wallace in 2009, Emmanuel Sanders in 2010 and now Markus Wheaton from the 2013 draft class. There were a number of questions regarding Wheaton as he stepped in to fill the void left by free agent departures Emmanuel Sanders and Jerricho Cotchery (these two combined for 113 receptions, 1,342 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2013.)

If Wheaton kept up his pace from Week 1 all season, he would be slated for 96 catches and 1,552 yards. Oh, and zero touchdowns, technically. In reality, Wheaton won’t post those kinds of numbers week-to-week, but he is a special talent. The best part is (looking at you Trashman) he’s available in 70% of fantasy leagues!

How much can Wheaton help your fantasy team Week 2 versus the Ravens? Let’s take a look at the positives and negative of this matchup:

Positives

– The Quarterback: Ben Roethlisberger’s football intelligence and ability to elevate the play of his receivers is highly underrated because he plays a much different style than Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. Roethlisberger’s pre-snap read ability has progressed nicely in the later stages of his career and he’s kept his signature Big Ben escapability in the pocket to extend plays that seem all but busted. Mike Wallace, Antonio Brown, Manny Sanders and Wheaton have all benefited greatly from Roethlisberger’s tutelage and play. He has the arm to still throw it deep as displayed by his bomb to Wheaton in Week 1.

– Route running/body control: Wheaton is a step or two slower than Mike Wallace was (he doesn’t take the top off the coverage like Wallace) but he is a far superior route runner compared to the former Steelers burner. Wheaton can run fly routes, and he has told RosterWatch the nine-route is his favorite, but he can also run every other route on the tree. It’s a facet of his game many draft analysts worried about that seems to have come along nicely.

Rookie CB Justin Gilbert looked like hot garbage in Week 1, but Wheaton’s double-moves and speed coming out of his breaks made Gilbert look more like silly hot garbage. He has outstanding body control and was able to position himself for some excellent sideline catches. Wheaton had the awareness and tracking ability to know where he was on the field and made sure to drag both feet before going out.

– Hands: Wheaton has freak hands. No, literally, his right pinkie finger is completely mangled.

He broke his finger last year and failed to rehab it properly so now he’s got a disgusting mutant hand like Brian Baldinger’s always pointing around on NFL Network. A lot of people were concerned that he would have trouble catching the ball due to his gnarly finger, but he proved against the Browns that would not be an issue. Wheaton was targeted seven times and caught six of the balls thrown his way. Wheaton showed that he has better hands than both (body catcher) Mike Wallace and (Wittle Dropsy Baby) Manny Sanders. He attacked the ball and put it away quickly before getting upfield.

Negatives

– The Ravens pass rush: The Ravens don’t have the best pass rush in the NFL but Terrell Suggs, Elvis Dumervil and Haloti Ngata can do some damage (as you can see from Big Ben’s nose after Ngata rearranged it). Rookie defensive lineman Timmy Jernigan has some promise as a disruptive interior pass rusher although he was overhyped as a 2014 NFL draft prospect. If Ben is running for his life like he was in the second half of the Browns game, he’s going to have a hard time getting the ball downfield (or at all) to Wheaton.

– The Ravens secondary: The secondary could be another problem for Wheaton. There’s a good chance cornerback Jimmy Smith will be covering Antonio Brown and Lardarius Webb will be on Wheaton who is superior to Justin Gilbert. Webb has been injured, however, and missed Week 1. He was a full participant in practice this week but he was a full participant in week 1 as well. If Webb can’t go, it’ll be the very underwhelming Chykie Brown (who got smoked by A.J. Green for a 77-yard touchdown in Week 1) getting the start. Watch for the final injury reports early Thursday because if Brown gets the start Wheaton is going to eat!

– Hhheeeattthhhhh: There’s a good chance that Lance Moore will sit again this week with the quick turnaround from Sunday to Thursday. Wheaton is going to get the start on the outside regardless and Justin Brown looked good Sunday but is not going to steal significant targets from Wheaton. However, one guy that may be getting some of the targets that fantasy owners want Wheaton to get is 97-year-old tight end Heath Miller. Miller had a pedestrian week 1 with 3 catches and 26 yards (though one of his catches was clutch on a desperately needed third-down conversion). If the pass rush starts getting to Ben and coverage is good on Brown and Wheaton, Ben is going to start opting for quick outs to Heath Miller and dumpoffs to Le’Veon Bell.

DECLASSIFIED: Markus Wheaton’s Week 2 Fantasy Outlook

Markus Wheaton is a solid WR3/4 play this week. By midseason he might be a regular WR2 play, so you should pick him up now while he’s widely available. If you own Wheaton, hold onto him.

All factors considered, I would expect Wheaton to get 5 receptions and between 80-85 yards. I think he’ll be held without a touchdown again in his second week as a starter.

Feel good starting Markus Wheaton as a WR3 or flex this week in standard-size leagues, and possibly even a WR2 in deeper ones.

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