Passing Game Thoughts: Big Ben is coming off a fantastic 2014 where
he posted a career high in yardage, tying Drew Brees for the NFL
lead with 4,952. With the Steelers sporting a very porous looking
defense, they could be throwing early and often. New England had
a very average pass defense in 2014 and that was with Darrelle
Revis. The absence of Le’Veon Bell and the fact that Antonio
Brown is always open (seriously, right now, as you’re reading
this, he’s open), means the Steelers will likely rely more
on Ben’s arm. Not having Martavis Bryant hurts, but Markus
Wheaton is more than capable of filling Bryant’s shoes.
In a game that projects to be a high scoring affair, it should
be all systems go for Ben, AB and the Steelers’ passing
game.
Running Game Thoughts: Bell’s
absence from this contest leaves 32 year-old DeAngelo Williams
to shoulder the load with a little (but likely not enough) Will
Johnson and Dri Archer mixing in. Williams is a sold veteran and
a reliable backup, but he is no Bell and the Steelers’ running
game will suffer. The Patriots had a top 10 run defense in 2014
(104.3 avg. yds allowed) and, again, in a game that projects to
be high scoring, the Steelers are likely to turn to the air in
order to keep up with the Patriots.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Tom Brady 1 – Roger Goodell 0. This
is a game changing decision for this matchup. Not only do the
Steelers and their bottom 5 pass defense have to face Brady, they
have to face Angry Brady (the Brady that goes for it on 4th down
up by three scores in the 4th quarter). Brady’s return is
a boon for Gronk and Edelman, especially considering beyond those
two, nobody knows who Brady is throwing the ball to (Amendola,
I guess?). Regardless, expect Brady to light it up as Belichik
& Co. look to make a statement opening night.
Running Game Thoughts:Before Federal
Judge Richard Berman put the NFL in its place, we were looking
at two significant players from each of these teams sitting out
with suspensions. But even with Brady back, the Patriots are (also)
without their starting running back. Naturally, we all thought
this left Jonas Gray as the replacement to handle the bulk of
the carries…until Jonas Gray got cut on Saturday. The Steelers
allowed 100 yards per game on the ground last season (6th best
in the league), but that really doesn’t matter to the Patriots.
They will do whatever they want to do as they continue to be the
least predictable team in the NFL. Brandon Bolden, Dion Lewis,
and James White should all see work, but I can’t imagine
anyone feels comfortable inserting one of them into a starting
fantasy lineup. My guess is Dion Lewis “starts,” but
that’s all it is – a guess. Steer clear of all Patriots
not named Brady, Gronk, or Edelman Week 1.
Passing
Game Thoughts: The Browns’ passing game was nothing
short of dreadful in 2014, finishing dead last in completion percentage
with Brian Hoyer and Johnny Manziel under center. Enter Josh McCown,
who I have to believe is a certified genius. There’s really
no other explanation I can give as to how he managed to showcase
his brilliant six-game stretch in 2013 with Bears so well as to
have it supersede the rest of his career. I thought his abysmal
showing with the Bucs last season would remind everyone that Josh
Mccown is Josh Mccown, but apparently not, as the Browns signed
him to be their presumptive starter over the largely incompetent
Johnny Manziel. I think Manziel should be starting for no other
reason than Josh Mccown is terrible and maybe, possibly, Manziel
isn’t as terrible as I think he is.
The Jets’ pass defense was average last season, but is
much improved with the reacquisition of the best cornerback in
the league and the drafting of Leonard Williams, who is sure to
cause problems for opposing QBs. With Josh Gordon suspended (again)
for the entire season, the Browns’ passing attack will feature
Andrew Hawkins, Brian Hartline and “has been” Dwayne
Bowe catching passes against what projects to be a top 10 defense.
The 2015 Browns will be deploying a receiver corps as bad as I
can remember. This could get ugly.
Running Game Thoughts: The Browns’ running game isn’t
in a much better state than the passing game. Maybe the team knows
something we don’t. After all, they brilliantly fleeced
the Colts of their first round pick in one of the most lopsided
trades in NFL history…only to use that pick to trade up
for Johnny Manziel…because the Browns are bad at constructing
football teams. Granted all of their current backs are more talented
than Trent Richardson, but that’s not saying much. All we
heard this offseason is how neither Isaiah Crowell nor Terrance
West played like they wanted to take control of the starting RB
job. What’s that you say? They drafted Duke Johnson? Unfortunately
we haven’t seen much of him since he’s spent the majority
of the offseason and preseason injured (hamstring, concussion).
So we have one back the coaching staff doesn’t like, another
back shipped off to the Titans (West), and a rookie that we’ve
seen nothing of. Crowell will start and Duke has been cleared
to play following his preseason concussion, but I don’t
like the chances of any of these guys having success against the
Jets’ top 5 rush defense.
Passing
Game Thoughts: It doesn’t say much for an organization’s
choice in QBs when for the second time in three seasons, fans
were ecstatic to see the presumptive starter go down with an injury
in the preseason (in 2013 Mark Sanchez tore his labrum because
coach Rex Ryan left him in late in a meaningless preseason game
playing behind third string lineman). Ryan Fitzpatrick has proven
to be a capable NFL starter in the past and he has no shortage
of weapons between Brandon Marshall, Eric Decker, and Chris Ivory.
Despite the Browns’ general anemic performances as a team,
they actually had an excellent pass defense in 2014, allowing
a league low 74.1 QB rating to opposing teams. Elite CB Joe Haden
is expected to shadow Brandon Marshall, which could lead to more
targets for Decker. However, I wouldn’t expect much from
the Jets’ passing game in this one as the ground game and
defense should render the pass moot for much of the contest.
Running Game Thoughts: I think the discussion of Ivory being
a three-down back are a bit overblown. Bilal Powell is going to
see the field in passing situations and I expect Zac Stacy to
get a few carries. However, don’t let this dissuade you
from deploying Chris Ivory with confidence on Sunday. The Jets
have historically been one of the most run heavy teams in the
NFL. In 2014, they finished third in the league in total rushing
yards and ran the ball on 48.2% of plays, which is a very high
number in the pass happy NFL. On the other side of the coin, the
Browns led the league in rushing yards allowed in 2014. The stars
could not be more aligned for Ivory to explode out of the gate
in 2015. Combine that with the fact that the Jets will look to
get ahead early and control the clock and we could be looking
at a sizable workload for Ivory.
Passing
Game Thoughts: It was only a matter of time before Andrew
Luck made “the leap” everyone was expecting. That
happened in 2014 and he enters 2015 as a consensus top 2 fantasy
option. We all know how good the Colts’ passing attack is.
What remains to be seen is how good this Bills defense actually
is. Building off a top 5 pass defense from 2014, head coach Rex
Ryan believes the Bills can have the best defense in the league
this year. He is a defensive minded coach and will install his
3-4 scheme this season with the hopes that a truly elite defense
can mask his team’s offensive deficiencies. This is a tough
opening salvo for Luck, T.Y., and Dre. This is a game where I
would temper my expectations a bit. You’re never benching
Andrew Luck, but if you’re looking for one of those 35-plus
point performances, I don’t see that happening in Buffalo.
Running Game Thoughts: 2014 was an interesting year for the Colts’
rushing attack. Somehow Trent Richardson managed to be even worse
than he was in 2013. That trade was the equivalent of lighting
a first round pick on fire. Ahmad Bradshaw was quite the revelation
and was off to a nice start in 2014 until his season was derailed
by injury and placed on IR following Week 10. Finally, there was
Boom Herron, who closed out the 2014 season and performed relatively
well, averaging 4.5 ypc. The Colts’ front office, wanting
no part of the headache that was the 2014 running game, signed
32 year-old Frank Gore to be the feature back. I am always weary
of old players, but Gore certainly didn’t look to be “done”
in 2014. He has never played on an offense this prolific. Additionally,
the Colts cut Herron, which despite Herron’s injury, I interpret
as a vote of confidence in Gore (or perhaps Josh Robinson).
The Bills were an average rushing defense in 2014, but project
to be much better this year. They will not be able to completely
shut down the Colts’ offense and Gore has proven in the
past that he is a savvy veteran who can get the tough yards. Reports
surfaced on Wednesday that Gore is on a “pitch count”
this weekend in an effort to try and keep him healthy throughout
the season. While that is reason for concern, it is not like Gore
is going to be seeing carries in the single digits. Even with
15 touches, he can still put up RB2 numbers.
Passing
Game Thoughts: My fondest memories of Tyrod Taylor are
watching him play at VA Tech. Mentioning a guy’s college
days heading into his 5th season may seem strange, but we haven’t
exactly seen much of Tyrod since then as he was trapped behind
Joe Flacco in Baltimore. We think he can run. We’re not
sure how well he can pass. But we know for certain that he is
not EJ Manuel or Matt Cassel, and that is good news for the Bills’
offense. The Colts were a below average pass defense in 2014 and
didn’t do much to improve upon that. They seem content with
relying on Luck to outscore the other team. I wouldn’t expect
Taylor to be the second coming of his fellow VA Tech alumnus,
Michael Vick, but his ability to gain yards on the ground could
make him a useful commodity in the fantasy game. Taylor is probably
not the long term solution for the Bills, but he wouldn’t
be the first poor passer to use his legs as a catapult towards
fantasy relevance. It wasn’t too long ago (2011 to be exact)
that a polarizing figure out of Florida with some of the worst
passing mechanics you’ll ever see found himself squarely
on the fantasy radar due to his rushing prowess. It would not
shock me if Tyrod’s rushing numbers helped propel him close
to QB1 value.
Running Game Thoughts: The Colts also had a below average rushing
defense in 2014. Rex Ryan’s game plan, which is no secret,
is run to setup the run. And if that doesn’t work, to run
some more. Assuming the Bills use him correctly, Taylor’s
mobility should help mask offensive line deficiencies. Using the
read option will force defenses to freeze for a moment and that
could be all LeSean McCoy needs to turn the corner for a nice
gain. As of this writing, it appears as if McCoy will play. Assuming
he does, it’s a great matchup and could be an excellent
start to his Bills career, but it is highly unlikely he will be
at 100%, so expectations must be lowered a bit. If he can’t
go or doesn’t make it through the game, your guess is as
good as mine regarding whether Karlos Williams, Bryce Brown, or
Boobie Dixon will be the most effective Bills runner. If you’re
a Shady owner, be sure to stay on top of injury updates and adjust
accordingly.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Ryan Tannehill surprised many last year
when he burst onto the scene as a viable QB1. Coming out of A&M
as a converted WR, I had no faith in Tannehill to make any noise
on the professional level. I have no shame in admitting when I
am wrong – I was wrong about Ryan Tannehill. The guy is
a legitimate NFL caliber quarterback and worthy of being on your
fake team’s starter. The increased use of the read option
by the Dolphins helped contribute to his success in the form of
311 rushing yards, which was 5th among QBs and more than Andrew
Luck.
Last season, the Redskins gave up the 9th most passing yards
to opposing QBs. More telling perhaps is the fact that opposing
QBs collectively had a 108.3 passer rating against them –
worst in the league by a relatively large margin. Kenny Stills
and Devante Parker will sap each other’s value until Devante
Parker gets fully acclimated to the NFL and takes that No.2 job
for himself. However, Tannehill and his favorite target, Jarvis
Landry, should have their way with this defense. My only concern
is how long this will actually be a game, as volume of passes
could be a concern.
Running Game Thoughts: Lamar Miller is a very good running back.
He is a lot better than the fantasy community and his coaches
give him credit for. The guy has never received 20 carries in
a game…in his career. I know the NFL is a pass happy league,
but that’s pretty incredible. The Redskins’ run defense
was not great last year, but it wasn’t terrible either –
the point being that Lamar is capable of running effectively against
it. Working in Miller’s favor is the fact that the Dolphins
may not need to throw much in this game. However, it remains to
be seen if the coaching staff is willing to hand the ball off
enough to make him a truly elite RB1. Miller won’t need
volume in this one to be effective, but if he gets it, we could
be looking at one of the week’s top performers.
Passing
Game Thoughts: What a mess. I could probably leave it at
that and it would be sufficient to describe the calamity that
is the Washington Redskins organization. Has a team ever mishandled
a single player worse than the Redskins with Robert Griffin? The
guy went from being the team’s savior, to scapegoat, to
redemption story, to benched, to sort of starter, to benched,
to thrust back into the lineup, to benched, to clear cut starter
for 2015, to benched for the entire season (for now). I apologize
for that last “sentence.” Its complete lack of coherence
is a perfect parallel to RG3’s career. Enter Kirk Cousins
– your Redskins starting QB for the 2015 season, at least
until he either gets hurt or the coaching staff remembers he’s
really not that good. Cousins showed very well in a three-game
sample in 2012 in relief of an injured RG3 and he’s managed
to parlay that incredibly small sample size into the starting
job in 2015. Apparently his abysmal five-game stretch in 2013
and subpar six-game tenure in 2014 mean nothing. Regardless, Cousins
deserves to start because the Redskins’ front office is
so clearly done with Griffin and Colt McCoy has been around long
enough for them to realize he’s not the answer. This team
is going to be bad. They might as well see what they have in Cousins…but
it’s shaping up to be a rough start to the Cousins era.
Playing behind an offensive line that could contend for worst
in the NFL and facing the Dolphins’ top 10 pass defense,
the Captain may find himself wishing he was back on the Enterprise.
Running Game Thoughts: It doesn’t seem to matter how good
or bad the Redskins are, Alfred Morris just plods away. He doesn’t
catch passes so unless he gets in the endzone, his performance
probably won’t look very good. The Dolphins were vulnerable
on the ground in 2014, but that was before they signed Ndamukong
Suh. His presence alone immediately makes the entire defense better.
He should have his way with whichever poor soul the Redskins task
with blocking him (likely multiple players) and make life miserable
for Morris. If Morris struggles early, we could get an extended
look at buzzy rookie Matt Jones. Morris was the cornerstone of
the Mike Shanahan rushing attack and is in the final year of his
contract. Meanwhile, Shanahan is gone and the Gruden regime drafted
Jones in the third round. I don’t expect Jones to come in
and immediately take the job from Morris, but Gruden is going
to get him touches and in a game where the Redskins may find themselves
struggling to move the ball on the ground, we could be seeing
more of Jones than Morris owners care to believe we will.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Full disclosure – I am a Cowboys fan
living in New York. Suffice it to say there is no love lost between
the Giants and me. The Giants’ passing attack is on the
heels of a very strange season, one that saw Eli finish as a QB1
despite throwing 14 picks and playing for what was all in all,
not a very good team. Eli finished 6th in passing yards and 9th
in TDs while completing 63.1% of his passes; a better season than
many realized at the time. That was partially entirely due to
the unprecedented rookie performance of Odell Beckham. The 2015
version of the New York Giants returns with a very poor offensive
line and added Shane Vereen (signed from the Patriots) to the
passing attack. This addition is good news for Eli, but perhaps
not as much for Beckham Jr. as he likely won’t be force
fed targets as much as he was last season. Victor Cruz seems close
to recovered from his gruesome torn patellar tendon, but is expected
to miss at least the first three weeks with a calf injury. This
is good news for Beckham Jr. (and presumably Rueben Randle). Despite
Rashad Jennings’ role as the starter, I expect a lot of
Vereen in a game likely to be a shootout.
In 2014, the Cowboys’ pass defense allowed the 7th most
yards in the league and although they improved their pass rush
with the addition of Randy Gregory, they recently lost top CB
Orlando Scandrick as he became the 25th member of the “one
functional ACL” club this offseason. Eli may not always
be able to beat the Cowboys on the scoreboard, but he has proven
quite proficient at lighting them up on the stat sheet. Expect
an aerial assault from the Giants in this one.
Running Game Thoughts: The Cowboys’ rushing defense was
in fact better than its pass defense – they only gave up
the 8th most rushing yards in the league last season (conclusion:
the Cowboys’ defense wasn’t very good last year).
I am not a believer in Rashad Jennings by any means and although
I expect an improved run stopping performance from the Cowboys
this year, it won’t be by much. The Giants should be able
to move the ball on the ground, but I envision a heavier pass-run
ratio than the Giants typically use. The last time the Cowboys
and Giants combined for fewer than 41 points was their second
meeting in 2008 and since then, nine of their contests have gone
over 50 points. If your fantasy team is heavily invested in this
game, you won’t be disappointed.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Last year Tony Romo threw for 247 yards
per game, his lowest average since he became the Cowboys’
full time starter. He also posted his highest career and the league
highest completion percentage at 69.9% and led the league in QB
Rating. He was remarkably efficient as the Cowboys leaned heavily
on Demarco Murray. Murray has Benedict Arnolded himself over to
Philly, which places the offense squarely on the right arm of
Romo. Dez Bryant is fresh off a season where he led all WRs with
16 TDs. Yes, TDs are largely inconsistent from year to year, but
Dez has posted double digit TDs each of the last three seasons,
making him one of the very few players you can reasonably rely
on to score. He and Romo should have a field day against the Giants’
pass defense that is decidedly average, at best.
Running Game Thoughts: I don’t want to talk about Demarco
Murray leaving because it upsets me greatly (see above). There
is no denying that losing Murray is going to be a problem for
the Cowboys’ rushing attack. Despite the fact that the Cowboys
sport the best offensive line in football and contrary to the
belief of many, not just anyone can run behind the line. Joseph
Randle looked great spelling Murray last year but he is nothing
more than an average talent thrust into a full time role. Darren
McFadden is certainly not what he used to be, but as of now, it
appears as though he’s passed Randle on the depth chart…?
It was reported on Wednesday that he is expected to start. The
recently acquired Christine Michael is not relevant…for
now. For the entirety of fantasy draft season, Randle was drafted
far ahead of DMC, but it’s looking more and more like that
was a mistake. There has been little information on how exactly
Jason Garrett plans to split the carries between McFadden and
Randle, but I expect a full blown committee here with some Lance
Dunbar sprinkled in as well. The Cowboys’ run game will
still be very good and collectively will produce fantasy RB1 numbers,
but as you know, you cannot start “Cowboys RB.” Therefore,
the lack of a clear lead back renders this situation a fantasy
headache. If you drafted Randle, you probably need to start him,
at least this week until we have some more clarity on the matter.
The back I’d feel most comfortable starting, if I had to,
is Darren McFadden.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Last season’s NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers
(4,381-38-5) leads the Packers into Soldier Field for one more
chapter in the NFL’s longest running rivalry. As most should
know, Rodgers lost his most trusted weapon, Jordy Nelson, to a
preseason ACL tear. The loss of Nelson leaves 98 receptions, 1,519
yards and 13 TDs on the table for the rest of the receiving corps
to gobble up. Randall Cobb could see an increase in his 91-1,287-12
stat-line, but it will be up to youngsters Davante Adams, Ty Montgomery
and Richard Rodgers to be “the next man up”. The team
did add former Packer veteran James Jones after he was released
by the New York Giants to help make up for the loss of Nelson.
Jones once grabbed 14 touchdown receptions from Aaron Rodgers
(2012), but despite being only 31 years old, his glory days seem
very far removed. Second year player Davante Adams is the most
logical candidate to see an increase in targets as he can challenge
a defense on the outside thus opening up the middle for Cobb.
Like most great quarterbacks, Rodgers has made the most of the
weapons that have been provided to him, and while there’s
no denying Nelson’s loss will have an impact, no one should
expect the Green Bay passing game not to be near the top of the
leader board when all is said and done.
The Bears’ defense should provide a nice soft landing spot
for the unproven receivers in Green Bay to fall into. The Bears
finished the 2014 season as the league’s 30th ranked pass
defense and have done little to improve their lot during the offseason.
Safety Antrell Rolle was added to the secondary, which should
provide a veteran presence, and while the team lost Chris Conte
and Charles Tillman in free agency, perhaps some new blood won’t
be a bad thing in this instance. Defense Coordinator Vic Fangio
comes over form San Francisco, where he had much success (but
also a lot of talent to work with) and will switch to a 3-4 defense.
The Bears defense should be a work in progress over to course
of the season, and we should all expect some massive growing pains
in Week 1.
Running Game Thoughts: Eddie Lacy
caused a bit of a panic last season for his fantasy owners when
he got off to a slow start during the season’s first three
weeks. Of course he faced three top 5 ranked run defenses during
those games, and once the sledding got a little easier, he more
than made up for it. He finished the season with 1,139 rushing
yards and 9 rushing touchdowns and was surprisingly effective
in the passing game adding another 427 yards and 4 touchdowns
with his 42 receptions. Lacy arguably presents the highest floor
of any of the top running backs in fantasy football this season,
as he’s still young, he has a track record of success and
plays in a high powered offense that uses him as a three-down
back. The Packers wisely limited his carries in the preseason
as they will rely heavily on him in their pursuit of their fifth
straight NFC North title and hopefully a Super Bowl appearance.
He’s a no nonsense North-South runner but possess quick
feet and athleticism that belie his 234 pound frame. The Packers
offensive line is a little banged up but returns all five starters
from last season and is expected to be improved. If you have Lacy
on your roster, congratulations.
Unlike last season where the Packers opened against the stout
Seattle Seahawks’ defense, Lacy gets to go against a below
average run defense in Week 1. The Bears allowed 112.7 rushing
yards per game and 12 rushing touchdowns on the season. While
those overall numbers don’t seem poor, bear in mind that
teams were able to pass at will against this defense therefore
limiting the raw rushing totals. The team allowed 4.3 yards per
attempt, which dropped them into the bottom 10 rushing defenses
in the league in 2014 on a per carry basis.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Head Coach John Fox and offensive coordinator
Adam Gase both formerly of the Broncos, are the latest duo looking
to salvage what was once the promising career of quarterback Jay
Cutler. The pair will likely be in for a bit of culture shock
going from the ultimate control freak Peyton Manning to the nonchalant
Cutler. Cutler turned the ball over 24 times in 15 games last
season and was benched for journeyman Jimmy Clausen late by then
coach Marc Trestman. Only a Clausen injury earned Cutler his job
back. Cutler has the arm talent that coaches dream about but his
carelessness with the football will eventually cause them nightmares.
Alshon Jeffrey, who is coming off two highly productive seasons,
gets to see what he can do as “the man” in the passing
game as the malcontent but talented Brandon Marshall was sent
packing to New York. The Bears have been tight lipped about the
calf injury that has kept Jeffrey out for almost all of training
camp, but he has practiced this week and is expected to play.
Jeffrey has the size and speed combination of the “prototypes”
like Calvin and Demaryius and has quietly nearly matched them
production-wise the last two seasons with 2,554 yards and 17 TDs
during that time period. He will now be asked to draw the coverage
of opposing team’s top cornerback and if he’s not
up to that task the Bears will be in some trouble. Martellus Bennett,
the hulking tight end, will likely get the second looks from his
quarterback but it could be his former teammate from Denver, Eddie
Royal, that becomes Cutler’s security blanket. Royal had
a fantastic rookie season in 2008 where he caught over 90 balls
but has only managed spurts of production since, and has completely
disappeared at times. The Bears are counting on him in 2015 however,
and he should see heavy targets most weeks as defenses double
up on Jeffrey.
The Packers’ pass defense allowed only 226.4 ypg in 2014
which was good enough for a top 10 finish, but did allow 26 passing
touchdowns. The team lost one of their best cover corners in Davon
House, but should be able to survive. The unit will always be
tested, as opposing offenses need to keep up with Aaron Rodgers
and the Pack offense. Unfortunately for the Packers, a big part
of their pass rush was lost when the team was forced to move Clay
Matthews to middle linebacker, and so far it looks like he’s
there to stay. Julius Peppers managed 11 sacks last season, and
was a real find for the team after it looked like his career was
fading quickly. The Packers will look to pressure Cutler this
week and hope his zero interception preseason was as meaningless
as the preseason game results.
Running Game Thoughts: Matt Forte
will turn 30 years old during the course of the 2015 season, but
is coming off of one of the best seasons of his career where he
caught 102 passes out of the backfield. That number should decrease
dramatically in 2015, but he’s always been one of the more
productive running backs in the passing game. In a John Fox conservative
offense, Forte could see his carries climb and hopefully behind
an improving young offensive line, his 3.9 ypc rate will increase
well. Behind Forte is veteran Jacquizz Rodgers who never met expectations
in Atlanta and rookie Jeremy Langford who was unheralded coming
out of Michigan State, but looked very good during the preseason
and could provide a boost should Forte hit a wall.
The Packers were a below average run defense in 2014, allowing
119.9 yards per game and 11 rushing touchdowns. The Bears would
be wise to game-plan around keeping the ball out of the hands
of both Aaron Rodgers and Jay Cutler by using a heavy dose of
the running game. If they fall behind quickly, that may be easier
said than done however.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Alex Smith is undoubtedly sick of being
described as a “game manager.” It’s gotten to
the point where he is now the poster boy for that term. Still,
it’s a hard one to get away from when you go a whole season
without throwing a single touchdown to a wide receiver, as Smith
did last year. That should change in a hurry this year with Jeremy
Maclin on board. Smith also has tight end Travis Kelce to throw
to, though they have a tough match-up against what should be a
solid Houston defense.
The Texans were 21st in the league in pass defense last season
and tied for 22nd in passing scores allowed while ranking 18th
in fantasy points given up to quarterbacks. They also allowed
the fourth-fewest fantasy points to opposing tight ends, but tied
for third-most points given up to wideouts. They did add Vince
Wilfork in the offseason, and Jadeveon Clowney should be ready
to go, so it’s easy to see them improving.
Running Game Thoughts: Jamaal Charles
is a supreme talent, but one that got just above 200 carries a
season ago, which is why his rushing total was barely over 1,000
yards. He’s still a threat to score every time he touches
the ball and should be in fantasy lineups every week, even against
a tough Texans run defense. Houston was 10th in the NFL in rushing
defense in 2014, allowed the 12th-fewest fantasy points to running
backs, and only their opponents this week, the Chiefs, gave up
fewer rushing scores.
Passing
Game Thoughts: The Houston passing game should be interesting,
to say the least. Brian Hoyer will be the team’s starter,
but it would be a mild upset if he retains the job all season
and Ryan Mallett doesn’t see the field. Hoyer has little
fantasy value, but the same can’t be side of wideout DeAndre
Hopkins. He led Houston with over 1,200 receiving yards and six
scores last season and will be the go-to guy for Hoyer, though
a difficult match-up against the Chiefs is ahead.
Kansas City was the league’s No.2 pass defense in 2014 and
tied for sixth-fewest passing touchdowns given up. They tied with
Buffalo for second-fewest fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks,
permitted the ninth-fewest points to wide receivers and tied for
ninth-fewest points surrendered to tight ends.
Running Game Thoughts: Arian Foster
will not be ready to start the season, so the running game will
be in the hands of Albert Blue. The second-year back was okay
at times a season ago, but ran for just 3.1 YPC and had a few
hideous stat lines along the way. Things will be made easier for
Blue if Dontari Poe doesn’t play, but he still shouldn’t
be anything more than a flex play in deep leagues.
The Chiefs had the NFL’s fifth-worst run defense last year,
but somehow managed to give up just four rushing scores, which
was the fewest in the league. Their ability to keep runners out
of the end zone was why they allowed the 11th-fewest fantasy points
to running backs.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Cam Newton is annually one of the most intriguing
players in fantasy football because of his dual-threat capabilities,
but his prospects took a hit before the season even started when
receiver Kelvin Benjamin was lost for the year. Last year as a
rookie, Benjamin grabbed nine touchdowns and amassed over 1,000
receiving yards, so it was expected he’d take another step
forward this season, and Newton would benefit. But the team’s
only true receiving threat now is tight end Greg Olsen, unless
there are any fantasy owners out there who think Ted Ginn Jr.
can finally start producing. Newton and Olsen should both be in
fantasy lineups as they take on the Jaguars, but leave other Panthers
pass-catchers out.
Jacksonville was 22nd in the league in pass defense in 2014 but
tied for 12th-fewest passing touchdowns surrendered. They were
also the definition of average in terms of fantasy points allowed
to opposing pass offense. The Jags were 16th in fantasy points
allowed to quarterbacks, 17th in points allowed to wide receivers,
and 15th in points given up to tight ends.
Running Game Thoughts: Jonathan
Stewart is out of a timeshare in the Carolina backfield and can
finally be relied upon by fantasy owners, which is something many
have been hoping for ever since he came into the league. If he
can stay healthy (a big ask, to be sure), Stewart can be a very
productive piece of a fantasy owner’s roster, and that should
start this week against Jacksonville.
The Jaguars owned the NFL’s sixth-worst run defense last
season and tied for seventh-most rushing scores allowed. Naturally,
this meant fantasy points aplenty for opposing running backs,
as Jacksonville allowed more points to players at that position
than all but four other teams.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Any hopes of a return by Justin Blackmon
should be wiped out of fantasy owners’ minds – he
isn’t coming in to rescue Blake Bortles. Instead, the second-year
quarterback will have to rely on what he has, specifically Allen
Robinson, Allen Hurns and Marqise Lee. The team also signed tight
end Julius Thomas (finger), but he’s out with an injury
this week, so the receivers will be the ones handling the load
against Carolina.
The Panthers were 11th in the league in pass defense a year ago,
and tied for 15th in passing scores permitted. They were 15th
in fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks, 13th in points given
up to wideouts, and 20th in points allowed to tight ends.
Running Game Thoughts: Rookie T.J.
Yeldon will be the team’s starting back this week, but he’ll
split carries with Denard Robinson, Toby Gerhart and Bernard Pierce,
so Yeldon’s fantasy prospects are cloudy until the timeshare
becomes more obvious. In the meantime, it’s hard to recommend
him for much other than an iffy flex play against Carolina.
The Panthers were 16th in the 32-team NFL in rush defense in 2014
and tied for 21st in rushing touchdowns allowed. They were also
literally in the middle of the pack in terms of fantasy points
allowed to running backs, ranking 16th.
Passing
Game Thoughts: There were plenty of pundits who thought
Marcus Mariota should have been the top pick in the NFL draft,
though he had to settle for being taken second behind his opponent
this week, Jameis Winston. Mariota offers plenty of fantasy potential,
and even has some decent weapons in tight end Delanie Walker and
wideout Kendall Wright. The best option for fantasy owners this
week is Wright against what could be a very pliable Buccaneers
pass defense.
Tampa Bay had the league’s fifth-worst pass defense last
season and tied for 22nd in passing touchdowns surrendered. They
allowed the 12th-most fantasy points in the NFL to opposing quarterbacks,
were 18th in points given up to tight ends, but just two teams
permitted more points to wide receivers.
Running Game Thoughts: Bishop Sankey
did very little to inspire fantasy owners in his rookie season
of 2014, running for 569 yards and two scores with a middling
YPC average of 3.7. He’s the team’s top back at the
moment, but it’s possible the newly acquired Terrance West
will get some looks against Tampa.
Despite holding runners to 3.9 YPC, the Buccaneers were 19th in
run defense in 2014 and tied for seventh-most rushing scores allowed.
They gave up plenty of fantasy points as well, surrendering the
ninth-most in the league to running backs.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Top overall pick Jameis Winston has been
handed the keys to the Tampa franchise, but hopefully not many
fantasy franchises. The tools are there for him to be a successful
fantasy contributor – eventually. For now, the one player
fantasy owners should be relying on is second-year wideout Mike
Evans. Unfortunately, he’s nursing a hamstring injury and
could very well be out this week. If he is, Vincent Jackson should
be in consideration for a WR2 or flex spot against Tennessee.
The Titans were 15th in the league in pass defense in 2014 while
ending in a tie for 22nd in passing touchdowns allowed. They permitted
the 12th-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks and 13th-fewest
to wideouts, but just seven teams gave up more points to opposing
tight ends.
Running Game Thoughts: Doug Martin
has been pretty much a disaster his last two seasons, but has
done enough this preseason for some to predict he could return
to the form he showed as a rookie. That’s a bit much to
swallow, but even a marginally better Martin is a decent play
against the Titans, who struggled defending the run in 2014 –
to say the least.
Tennessee was a mess against the run last season, ranking second-to-last
in rush defense and tying for third-most rushing scores surrendered.
They were the only team in the NFL to allow over 2,000 rushing
yards to opposing running backs and only the Raiders gave up more
fantasy points to players at that position.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Chip Kelly made a bold move this offseason,
trading Nick Foles for Sam Bradford. There is no doubt anywhere
that Bradford has better quarterbacking tools than Foles, but
a lengthy injury history follows the former top pick to Philly.
If healthy, he could be one of the best fantasy quarterbacks of
the year, and that starts this week against a Falcons team that
shouldn’t be able to match up with the Eagles’ weapons.
Atlanta gave up more passing yards last season than any other
team in the league, but they allowed the fifth-fewest touchdown
throws. Still, they gave up the ninth-most fantasy points to quarterbacks
and sixth-most points to wide receivers while holding tight ends
to the seventh-fewest points.
Running Game Thoughts: LeSean McCoy
is in Buffalo now, having been replaced by DeMarco Murray. Last
season, Murray had nearly 400 carries, a number that should put
fear in the minds of fantasy owners over the long haul. For Week
1 though, he’s a must-start versus an Atlanta team that
stopped nobody near the goal-line last year.
The Falcons were 21st in the NFL in run defense in 2014, and gave
up a league-high 21 touchdowns to opposing ball carriers. Running
backs feasted on Atlanta, who allowed the third-most fantasy points
in the league to opposing backs.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Little has changed for the Falcons, and
thus, fantasy owners, in the team’s passing attack. Matt
Ryan threw for nearly 4,700 yards with 28 touchdowns last season,
Julio Jones had over 100 catches for almost 1,600 yards and six
touchdowns, while Roddy White had 80 receptions for more than
900 yards and seven scores. Each player should be on fantasy squads,
with Ryan and Jones no-doubt weekly starters and White a WR2 or
WR3 based on match-up. And his match-up doesn’t get much
better than this week against Philadelphia.
The Eagles were second-to-last in pass defense a season ago and
only three teams surrendered more touchdown throws than they did.
Philly surrendered the third-most fantasy points in the league
to opposing quarterbacks and the most to wideouts. This meant
there was little left over for tight ends, as the Eagles allowed
the third-fewest points to players at that position.
Running Game Thoughts: Rookie Tevin
Coleman has officially won the team’s starting running back
job, but that may not mean a whole lot right now. Teammate Devonta
Freeman will be in on passing downs, and the Falcons’ offensive
line is suspect. Coleman is certainly worth owning in fantasy
leagues, but starting him this week against the Eagles seems like
asking a bit too much.
Philadelphia was 15th in the NFL in run defense last season and
was tied for 22nd in rushing scores permitted. They also allowed
a league-high eight touchdown receptions to running backs and
allowed the seventh-most fantasy points in the league to opposing
backs.
Passing
Game Thoughts: After finishing the season just one play
shy of winning back-to-back Super Bowls, one can safely assume
that Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson will be playing with a
chip in his shoulder throughout the 2015 season. Wilson, who finished
as the No. 3 quarterback in 2014, threw for a career high in yardage
(3,475) and a career low in interceptions (7) this past season,
but it was his rushing totals that truly made him a fantasy superstar.
Wilson became just the fifth quarterback in league history to
rush for over 800 yards in a season and he also added six scores
on the ground, making him the best dual-threat QBs in the game
today. Although his passing totals were a bit disappointing from
a fantasy standpoint, Seattle made a major move during the offseason
to help rectify that problem by adding one of the league’s
most difficult-to-defend players, Jimmy Graham, via trade. Graham
adds a unique skillset that will certainly give Wilson a safety
blanket, particularly in the red zone. Graham has scored 51 touchdowns
through his five years in New Orleans and is certainly the most
likely player to lead Seattle in receiving scores this season.
Other additions to the Seattle offense include rookie wide receiver
Tyler Lockett, who has made a name for himself on special teams
this preseason with his dazzling kick return skills. It’s
not just his return abilities that have coaches raving, however.
Seahawks coaches have also called out Lockett as being “light
years” ahead of where they thought he’d be as a NFL
receiver. Doug Baldwin, who set career highs and led the team
in receptions and receiving yards in 2014, will return for his
fifth season with the Seahawks and can be relied on as a low-end
WR3 in most formats.
Wilson and the Seahawks will have their work cut out for them,
however, as they head to St. Louis to face a defense that held
them in check in Week 17 of 2014 when Wilson threw for 239 yards
and an interception while failing to throw a touchdown pass. Although
St. Louis has done a good job of shutting down this aerial attack
in the past, it is worth noting that Wilson did light them up
for his biggest fantasy day of 2014 when the teams played in Week
7. In that game, Wilson threw for 313 yards and two touchdowns
while adding an impressive 106 rushing yards and an additional
score. In that game, Baldwin caught seven passes for 123 yards
and a touchdown. This passing attack won’t likely be in
midseason form to start the season, but the addition of Graham
should offer a nice potential for Wilson to have a quality game
even against a good St. Louis defense.
Running Game Thoughts: Seattle’s Marshawn Lynch has been
one of the most consistently productive running backs in the league
since he first joined the team back in 2010. In each full season
that he has been in Seattle, Lynch has eclipsed the 1,200 rushing
yard mark while rushing for at least 12 touchdowns. From a fantasy
standpoint, 2014 was one of Lynch’s finest seasons yet as
the 29 year old rushed for 1,306 yards and 13 touchdowns while
he also added a career high with 367 yards receiving and four
more touchdowns. His 17 total touchdowns were the most among all
non-quarterbacks in the league. Still, there are concerns for
Lynch heading into 2015. He dealt with a nagging back injury through
the majority of 2014, the loss of center Max Unger and the addition
of Graham himself – who could “steal” some would
be touchdowns for Lynch – are all considered by most to
be reasons to expect a bit of regression from “Beast Mode”
this season. In addition, the team will be without 2014 backup
tailbacks Christine Michael who was traded to Dallas and Robert
Turbin who was released, but they did add a high-caliber backup
in Fred Jackson. Jackson is expected to primarily get passing
down work, but could get more than a handful of touches out of
the backfield if the Seahawks hope to keep Lynch healthy for another
playoff run.
Lynch and Jackson do have a tough matchup in Week 1 as they will
be running against a St. Louis defense that gave up the sixth-fewest
fantasy points to opposing running backs in 2014. Lynch himself
was held in check by the Rams as he rushed for just 113 yards
and one total touchdown in the two games he played against them
last season. While Seattle will certainly still give Lynch the
touches to be a fantasy must-start, his upside might be limited
in this contest. Jackson could be a sneaky low-end PPR play, especially
if Lynch is having a tough day on the ground and the team opts
to lean more heavily on the passing game.
Passing
Game Thoughts: When former No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick
Sam Bradford went down with (another) torn ACL before Week 1,
it became very evident that St. Louis needed to address the quarterback
position. The Rams dealt with some of the worst quarterbacking
from the 2014 season from the likes of Austin Davis and Shaun
Hill and finished 6-10, their eighth straight season below the
.500 mark. This offseason, the franchise finally opted to make
a move when they traded away Bradford to Philadelphia in exchange
for former second round pick Nick Foles. Foles, who threw for
a whopping 27 touchdowns with only two interceptions back in 2013,
is expected to bring some stability to the most important position
on the field which should mean some brighter outlooks for the
Rams pass catchers as well. There is some concern with Foles,
however, as we head into the 2015 season. First, he is leaving
one of the most unique, quarterback-friendly offenses in the league
for a much more traditional offense which he has not yet proven
he can operate within. But perhaps more concerning is the regression
that Foles saw in 2014 even in the Philadelphia offense. While
his 2014 passing yardage totals were roughly in line with what
he was doing on a per-game basis in 2013, Foles saw his touchdowns
shrink substantially down to just 13 scores in his eight starts.
He also threw a surprising 10 interceptions. In a less pass-happy
offense with less-than-spectacular targets to throw to, Foles
becomes a low-end QB2 option at best heading into the 2015 season.
However, the potential upside of receivers like Brian Quick and
Kenny Britt could be increased now that a more competent quarterback
is at the helm.
Of course, Foles will likely need time to acclimate himself to
the system in St. Louis and there will almost certainly be some
growing pains as he gets his timing down with his receivers. Unfortunately
it’s going to be tough for them to find much against arguably
the best secondary in the NFL, the Seattle Seahawks. The “Legion
of Boom” has been incredible at slowing down opposing passing
games over the past few seasons, including a 2014 season wherein
opposing quarterbacks averaged just 10.4 fantasy points per game
against them – best in the league by a full point per game.
Needless to say, it might not be wise to trust your Rams passing
options in Week 1. If there is a glimmer of hope, however, it
comes in the form of Seattle safety Kam Chancellor’s holdout.
Chancellor has not practiced with the team and has already been
ruled out by head coach Pete Carroll. Chancellor is a world-class
player who will certainly leave a void in the defense. One player
who could see a bit of an upgrade because of this would be tight
end Jared Cook. Cook was held to just six receptions against the
Seahawks over two games in 2014, but could find some more space
if he doesn’t have to deal with Chancellor. Cook may be
worth a look as a deep TE sleeper here in Week 1.
Running Game Thoughts: Heading into the 2014 season, it was Zac
Stacy who appeared to have a hold on the Rams starting running
back job. A lack of production led the Rams to try out other players,
however, and they eventually settled on rookie Tre Mason. Mason
was fairly productive in what was ultimately a bad offense, leading
most to believe that his job was relatively safe heading into
2015. Then came the 2015 NFL Draft when the Rams selected Todd
Gurley in the first round. While Gurley isn’t expected to
be ready until a month or so into the season, Mason’s hold
on the job appears to be slipping away. Worst yet, it won’t
be any easier for him to keep the starting running back position
with his current injury situation. Mason (hamstring) is currently
listed as questionable for Sunday’s game and he hasn’t
practiced this week as of Thursday. Whether Mason plays or not,
it appears likely that Benny Cunningham will shoulder the brunt
of the running back touches for St. Louis here in Week 1. Cunningham
is a dual threat player who doesn’t possess a ton of raw
talent but who caught 45 passes in limited work during the 2014
season.
Cunningham’s upside is very limited in this very tough
matchup against Seattle, but he could bring some Flex position
interest in PPR formats should Mason end up sitting out the game.
In two games against the Seahawks in 2014, Cunningham caught a
total of 12 passes for 103 yards and a touchdown – and that
came in part-time work. His 3.7 yards per carry from 2014 are
nothing worth getting overly excited about, however, so temper
your expectations, but the PPR potential is here for Cunningham
to have at least a solid day. The Seahawks were excellent against
opposing running backs this past season as they held opposing
teams’ backs to an average of just 12.3 fantasy points per
game (standard scoring). In fact, Cunningham’s score as
a receiver in Week 7 was the only receiving touchdown that the
Seahawks gave up to an opposing running back all year long.
Passing
Game Thoughts: It’s funny to think that 4,952 yards
and 33 touchdowns could be considered a “down” year
for a player, but that’s what happens when you’re
Drew Brees and you’ve become known as the guy who eclipsed
5,000 yards in each of the previous three straight seasons while
averaging 43 touchdowns over those years. With the huge years
from Aaron Rodgers and Andrew Luck in 2014, Brees has become almost
an afterthought among fantasy quarterbacks, but there’s
absolutely no question that the potential for monster production
is still there. Sure, he lost his top target, Jimmy Graham, and
sure, he lost a deep threat in Kenny Stills, but this is Drew
Brees that we’re talking about. This is the New Orleans
Saints offense that has been putting up monster numbers long before
Graham and Stills were even in the league. Second-year wideout
Brandin Cooks appears to be in line for a huge season if he can
stay healthy and veteran Marques Colston figures to still be in
the mix. Other players like rookie wideout Brandon Coleman and
tight ends Benjamin Watson and Josh Hill have generated some fantasy
buzz, but it will be tough to predict their usage until we see
it on game day. Thus Brees, Cooks and Colston appear to be the
Saints’ players most worth fantasy consideration in Week
1.
This high-powered unit will have its first test of the season
as it heads to Arizona. The Cardinals were an underrated defense
as a whole in 2014, but their secondary definitely struggled at
times. They forced an impressive 18 interceptions from opposing
quarterbacks, but that risk/reward play style cost them at times
as they conceded nearly 4,400 passing yards on the year, among
the most in the league. Brees seems like a good bet to have a
big day through the air here, but exactly who those passes will
be completed to is really anyone’s guess at this point.
Some reports seem to indicate that Pro Bowl cornerback Patrick
Peterson will be manned-up against Cooks throughout this game
which could limit his upside, but it’s worth considering
that Peterson conceded nearly three catches per game and a total
of eight touchdowns on the year to the player he was covering
in 2014. Cooks is not yet an elite-level receiver but the Saints
view him as their top target and with Brees throwing the ball,
it’d be hard to imagine a scenario where he isn’t
peppered with targets. Cooks and Brees are definitely worth starting
while only those in deep leagues should consider taking a chance
on the other players in this passing game.
Running Game Thoughts: With all the success that Drew Brees has
had since coming to New Orleans, it’s not surprising that
the Saints aren’t known for being a great between-the-tackles
running team. That doesn’t mean that they aren’t going
to make an effort to add that to their arsenal in 2015, though.
With Mark Ingram finally coming into his own in 2014, the clouds
in the Saints backfield appears to be finally clearing up a bit.
Free agency acquisition C.J. Spiller is dealing with a knee injury
and is unlikely to play this weekend, which makes things better
for Ingram owners. Khiry Robinson, who had been listed on the
injury report as of earlier this week, is now off the injury report
and is expected to play, but he will almost certainly only be
used as a complement to Ingram who should get the vast majority
of the touches and makes for a strong play, particularly in standard
scoring formats where his limited pass catching skills are a bit
more hidden.
Ingram’s situation in general looks good and he might be
considered one of the top options in the league this week if it
wasn’t for the matchup. The Saints will be up against a
Cardinals defense that conceded the fourth-fewest fantasy points
to opposing running backs in 2014. Only four times all season
did an opposing team rush for over 100 yards against the Cardinals.
If you’re looking for a positive, however, consider that
all four of those games came over the final five weeks of the
regular season. It’ll be tough for Ingram to hit the century
mark in this one, but his overall usage combined with his high
touchdown potential makes him a must-start for most fantasy owners
here in Week 1.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Like their NFC West division rivals in St.
Louis, Arizona struggled its way through the 2014 season with
some downright bad quarterback play once starter Carson Palmer
went down with an injury. Palmer, who had led the team to an undefeated
record prior to his season-ending ACL injury, was on pace for
his best season in recent years and one of the best seasons of
his entire career. With weapons like veteran Larry Fitzgerald,
Michael Floyd and now second-year receiver John Brown to throw
to, it’s not surprising that Palmer is being looked at by
many as a potential sleeper in 2015. Fitzgerald and Floyd were
both disappointments from a fantasy standpoint in 2014, but it’s
hard to blame them too much as they were dealing with some truly
ugly quarterback play. The quarterbacks replacing Palmer through
just 10 touchdowns in the 10 games they played in. With Palmer
now back and healthy, look for an aging Fitzgerald and Floyd to
get back to fantasy relevance, but the player to watch, particularly
early this year, could be Brown. Brown put up four of his five
touchdowns on the year during the six games where Palmer was the
quarterback and there’s very little reason to believe that
he won’t be trusted by Palmer again at the start of the
season.
From a fantasy standpoint, the matchups for Palmer is a good
one. The New Orleans Saints defense conceded the fourth-most fantasy
points to opposing quarterbacks in 2014. The Saints gave up over
4,200 yards through the air with 26 touchdowns. New Orleans has
long struggled in their secondary despite repeated attempts to
improve and it seems likely that those struggles will again continue
here in 2015. Injury concerns are certainly a long-term concern
for Palmer owners, but there’s a good chance that Palmer
finishes as a QB1 here in Week 1, so fantasy owners might as well
hop on board the ride while he’s healthy, particularly in
this great matchup.
Running Game Thoughts: After years of being a pass-first offense,
the Cardinals appeared committed to letting their running backs
shoulder a bigger portion of the workload in 2014. In just 12
games, Andre Ellington touched the ball nearly 250 times –
a number which seemingly was too much for the undersized tailback
as he sustained a number of injuries and was fairly ineffective
(3.3 yards per carry) with the carries he got. With that in mind,
the team addressed the running back position this offseason by
drafting rookie David Johnson. Johnson failed to impress in camp,
however, which then led to the Cardinals adding former 2000-yard
rusher Chris Johnson to the roster. Ellington’s case might
be a unique one in that with Chris and David Johnson in the mix,
he may be given fewer total touches, which could actually give
him better value as his body won’t sustain quite as much
damage throughout the season. Perhaps then we will see a return
closer to the 5.5 yards per carry average that Ellington had as
a rookie.
The Saints were awful against the pass in 2014, but they were
equally as bad against opposing running backs as they conceded
the fourth-most fantasy points per game to the position on the
year. The 2,681 total yards that they gave up to opposing running
backs were the most in the league by quite a margin and the 16
touchdowns they gave up weren’t much better. New Orleans
also led the league in receiving yardage (868) given up to opposing
running backs, which seems to bode well for Ellington’s
chances to have a nice game here in Week 1. While there are long
term durability concerns for Ellington, he’s healthy right
now and he’ll likely be given a solid workload against the
Saints. Plug him in as an RB2, particularly in PPR formats where
he could give some nice additional value.
Passing
Game Thoughts: It’s easy to look at Matt Stafford’s
2014 season and think “disappointing” – and
it was – but the underlying factors behind why Stafford
was struggled are worth considering. Particularly, the ongoing
injuries that have hampered all-world wide receiver Calvin Johnson
throughout his career continued in 2014 as the receiver missed
three full games and was very limited in others. One positive
that came from Johnson’s injuries, however, is that the
Lions discovered that they had another receiver that they could
count on while Johnson was away as Golden Tate led the team with
99 catches for 1,331 yards on the season. Much of Tate’s
production did come in games where Johnson was limited or out,
however, so there is some concern from a fantasy standpoint that
a healthy Megatron could mean a downtick in production for Tate.
Still, this 1-2 punch is among the best in the league and gives
Stafford a higher floor than many of the other quarterbacks being
selected around where he went in fantasy drafts heading into this
season. Second year tight end Eric Ebron is also being looked
at as a player who could potentially breakout this season and
provide a third target in the passing game, but we’ve yet
to see much from him and he’ll need to prove it on the field
before fantasy owners should be trusting him in their lineups.
The Lions do have a decent matchup here in Week 1 as they head
to San Diego to face a Chargers defense that gave up 24 passing
touchdowns while forcing just seven interceptions throughout the
2014 season. Interceptions are often more of a matter of dumb
luck and convenient bounces than they are actual skill from a
secondary, but seven is very, very low for an entire season. That
bodes well for Stafford, whose “gunslinger” mentality
has led to a higher-than-normal number of interceptions throughout
his career. It will also help that the Chargers lack much of a
pass rush as they sacked opposing quarterbacks the fourth-fewest
number of times during the 2014 season. If Stafford has time to
sit in the pocket and dissect a defense, he can be as good as
any passer in the league. That could very well happen this week
and that’s why he should be considered for a start in 12-team
or larger leagues.
Running Game Thoughts: One of the hottest training camp and preseason
battles to watch this season has been between veteran Joique Bell
and rookie Ameer Abdullah. Abdullah burst onto the scene with
one of the most impressive runs of the entire preseason, a beautiful
45-yard touchdown, which immediately drew the attention of the
fantasy community. Abdullah seems to possess the rare traits needed
to be a high-quality NFL running back and in an offense with weapons
like Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate out wide, the running lanes
could be there for a one-cut runner like Abdullah to do some damage
in 2015. Still, the Lions like what they have in Bell and have
listed him atop the depth chart heading into Week 1. He will get
the start barring any further setbacks to the leg injuries that
have limited him in practice. The Detroit coaching staff seems
to have rave reviews for Abdullah every time they speak, however,
so it would not be surprising to see Abdullah on the field quite
regularly even as early as this Week 1 contest against the Chargers.
The San Diego defense was middle-of-the-pack against opposing
running backs in 2014, but still conceded enough to make both
Bell and Abdullah worth considering for fantasy purposes. Bell
is likely going to touch the ball most which should make him a
decent RB2/Flex option while Abdullah is expected to get some
passing down work, meaning that he could draw some interest for
those looking for options in PPR formats. There have also been
rumblings of the Lions using Abdullah in the return game, which
could give him some additional value if you’re in a league
that gives points for that kind of thing. Abdullah does seem to
possess more raw, physical ability than Bell, but that doesn’t
always translate into immediate touches, so be careful in this
one. The Chargers did give up an average of 133 total yards per
game to opposing teams’ running backs, but with both Bell
and Abdullah likely to touch the ball, both of their upsides might
be limited for the time being.
Passing
Game Thoughts: After criticisms of deterioration due to
age started to hit the media in 2011 and 2012, San Diego quarterback
Philip Rivers seemingly decided to prove everyone wrong over the
past two seasons by throwing for a total of 8,764 yards and 63
touchdowns. While he wasn’t drafted as a high-end fantasy
selection in most leagues heading into this season, Rivers represents
the kind of consistency at the quarterback position that is rare
to find. He has been without a true top wide receiver for three
seasons now and the running games around him have been lackluster
at best, but Rivers seems to still find a way to put up excellent
numbers. His interceptions (29 over the past two seasons) remain
a bit high to make him an elite fantasy option, but if the reports
that Keenan Allen is looking like his 2013 form are true, there
is a real chance that Rivers could repeat or even eclipse the
numbers that he put up in 2013 and 2014. Unfortunately, he’ll
be without his favorite red zone target, tight end Antonio Gates,
for the first four weeks of the season as Gates will be serving
a four game suspension for violating the league’s substance
abuse policy. With Gates out, the Chargers were set to give an
opportunity to Ladarius Green. Green, who teased fantasy owners
with some big plays down the stretch in 2013, failed to live up
to expectations in 2014 and has reportedly suffered a concussion
in practice this week. We continue to wait for Green’s breakout…
The Chargers’ first challenge of the 2015 season will come
at home as they host the Detroit Lions. Detroit’s defense
was excellent at slowing down opposing passing games last year
as they allowed the sixth-fewest fantasy points per game to opposing
quarterbacks. Perhaps most impressive is the fact that they never
gave up more than two passing touchdowns in any one game, even
holding NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers to just three passing scores in
the two contests they played against him. Rivers is a high quality
quarterback, but he is prone to making mistakes, especially when
he is pressured, which could play right into the Detroit defense
as they forced an impressive 20 interception in 2014 – third
most in the NFL – while finishing eighth with 42 sacks on
the year.
Running Game Thoughts: Rookie running back Melvin Gordon will
get his first regular season action in Week 1 and there is a lot
of excitement in San Diego about what he can potentially add to
an already good Chargers offense. Like most young tailbacks, though,
Gordon will likely have to concede some snaps to both Danny Woodhead
and Branden Oliver whose skill sets might be needed to complement
what Gordon can do. Gordon was very limited as a pass catcher
in college. Of course, there is also the worry of pass protection,
which most rookies do not pick up on right away. This potential
three-headed-monster will likely cause fantasy owners some headaches,
particularly early in the season while Gordon is still getting
acclimated with the offense, so expecting huge games out of any
of these players might be asking a bit too much.
The Lions were excellent against the pass in 2014, but they were
even better against the run. Detroit was the only team in the
league to allow fewer than 1,000 rushing yards to opposing running
backs on the year and they conceded just seven rushing touchdowns.
The one key component that will be missing from the Detroit defense,
however, is defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh who left for Miami
in free agency. While the Lions did add another quality defensive
tackle in Haloti Ngata, there is no question that Suh was the
leader on this defense and will be tough to replace. Another thing
to consider is that while the Lions were great against the run
this past year, they did concede the third-highest number of receptions
(93) to opposing running backs. If the Chargers are struggling
to run the ball, don’t be surprised if you see a heavy dose
of Woodhead and Oliver who could each make some plays as pass
catchers.
Passing
Game Thoughts: He’s one of the media’s favorite
targets to criticize, but Cincinnati’s Andy Dalton is only
a year removed from being a top five fantasy quarterback. Sure,
he was awful in 2014 when he threw for 3,398 yards, 19 touchdowns
and 17 interceptions, but injuries to top receivers, A.J. Green
and Marvin Jones, along with young tight end Tyler Eifert, left
Dalton in a world of hurt. Dalton won’t likely again compete
to be a top five fantasy QB, but with all three of the aforementioned
targets back and at full strength, it would be hard to imagine
a scenario where Dalton doesn’t improve on what he did a
season ago. Despite the injuries that kept him to just 13 starts
and limited him in others, A.J. Green remained an elite fantasy
producer on a per-game basis. His 16-game pace would’ve
put him at 85 catches for nearly 1,300 receiving yards and seven
touchdowns...and he did that while injured. Green isn’t
often being mentioned as a top wide receiver right now with the
likes of Odell Beckham Jr. and Antonio Brown putting up the numbers
that they did in 2014, but a healthy Green could very well contend
again as a top three producer at the position.
It has almost become a no-brainer over the past decade to “start
everyone against the Raiders” in fantasy and while the unit
is certainly trying to improve, the truth still remains that they
are a bottom-end defense that is likely to concede a lot of fantasy
points. The Raiders conceded the eighth-most fantasy points to
opposing quarterbacks in 2014 as they gave up 29 touchdowns through
the air while forcing just nine interceptions. Dalton is prone
to making mistakes, but this is a matchup even he can exploit
and potentially escape without a pick. A.J. Green is obviously
a must-start in this one, but even players like Marvin Jones and
Tyler Eifert bare consideration for a spot in your Week 1 lineup.
The Raiders did concede 10 receiving touchdowns to opposing tight
ends in 2014 and while Eifert is coming off of a full season missed
due to injury, the Bengals saw enough potential in him to allow
Jermaine Gresham to walk this offseason. Eifert is an athletic
tight end who has a high ceiling if he can stay healthy and it
wouldn’t be all that surprising to see him sneak into the
endzone in Week 1.
Running Game Thoughts: While the rookie wide receivers stole
the show from a fantasy standpoint in 2014, it might be Cincinnati
running back Jeremy Hill who possesses the best value among all
second-year players as we head into the 2015 season. Hill, who
split carries with Giovani Bernard as a rookie, is expected to
take on a heavier workload while the Bengals will use Bernard
as more of a change-of-pace back. Hill averaged a whopping 5.1
yards per carry as a rookie while scoring nine touchdowns. He
was limited to 27 receptions, but again, he conceded quite a lot
of snaps to Bernard, particularly in the first half of the season.
The Bengals offensive line is one of the best run blocking units
in the league and they should open up plenty of holes for whoever
is touching the ball.
The Bengals running game has arguably the best matchup in all
of fantasy football this week as they head to Oakland to face
a Raiders defense that conceded more fantasy points to opposing
running backs than any other team in 2014. Oakland gave up well
over 2,400 total yards to the position and a ridiculous 22 touchdowns.
In fact, they gave up double-digit fantasy points to opposing
running backs in all but one game and conceded 100 or more rushing
yards in all but six of their contests. Needless to say, Jeremy
Hill needs to be in all fantasy lineups this week as he represents
potential massive production. If the Bengals get ahead in this
one, as is expected, 25 touches for Hill would not be out of the
question. Even Bernard could be fantasy relevant in this one,
but his PPR value might be limited if the Bengals do get ahead.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Oakland made a commitment to Derek Carr
in 2014 that should pay off for them in the long run when they
allowed him to stay on the field and learn from his mistakes even
in games where he was performing poorly. Carr’s production
of 3,270 yards and 21 touchdowns with 12 interceptions wasn’t
bad for a rookie. It’s certainly enough to give Oakland
the confidence to make him their starter again in 2015, but they’ll
be hoping that he can improve upon a laughably low 5.5 yards per
completion that sounds more like a running back’s numbers
than it does a quarterback’s. In his defense, Carr didn’t
have much for targets as a rookie, but the team made a conscious
effort to address that this offseason when they signed former
first round draft pick Michael Crabtree and selected the highly-touted
Amari Cooper in the first round of April’s NFL Draft. Crabtree,
who spent the first six years of his career playing across the
Bay in San Francisco, would have been the best receiver that Carr
has worked with thus far in his career if it weren’t for
Cooper now joining the team. Cooper is widely considered to be
the best receiver prospect in the 2015 class and may be among
the most ready-to-go rookie receivers that we’ve seen in
years. All this means a much higher ceiling for Carr who, while
still considered QB2, has the potential to finish in the top-15
at the position if things fall the right way.
If he wants to make a push to be considered among the top half
of NFL quarterbacks, Carr will have to overcome adversity early
in the year as he and the Raiders go up against a Cincinnati secondary
that conceded the third-fewest amount of fantasy points to opposing
quarterbacks throughout the 2014 season. The Bengals were one
of only two teams (Bills) who forced more interceptions (19) than
they gave up passing touchdowns (18). Shockingly, they did that
despite forcing the fewest sacks in the entire NFL (20). Even
without a great pass rush, this is not a good matchup for Carr
or his new receivers. Cooper will likely have to be relied on
in a lot of leagues given his ADP, but don’t get too discouraged
if he is held in check in Week 1.
Running Game Thoughts: With veterans Maurice Jones-Drew and Darren
McFadden now out of the way, the path has been cleared for third-year
running back Latavius Murray to become the bell cow in Oakland.
Murray showed flashes of explosiveness this past season in an
offense that was one of the worst in the league, giving hope to
Raiders fans that they may have finally found a playmaking running
back to complement their young quarterback. Murray’s unique
combination of size and speed makes him built to shoulder a heavy
workload and produce quality numbers with that workload, but he
does have a long history of injuries which could make him a potential
bust this season. With Roy Helu Jr. being recently demoted to
third string running back behind converted former-cornerback Taiwan
Jones, the job appears to be even more in Murray’s hands
if he can just stay healthy. The overall lack of talent in the
Oakland offense does limit Murray’s upside, particularly
for touchdowns, but the addition of Crabtree and Cooper in the
passing game should help keep defenders from crowding the box
and fully committing on Murray.
We might get our first glimpse of what Murray can really do in
this newly-improved offense in Week 1 when he has the opportunity
to run against a Cincinnati defense that conceded the fifth-most
fantasy points to opposing running backs in 2015. The Bengals
gave up over 2,400 total yards to the position including 17 touchdowns.
This included four games where they gave up over 160 yards on
the ground. If the Raiders can just keep this game close, Murray
could approach 20 touches and that should be plenty to make him
a quality start against this defense. The injury concerns may
worry us down the road, but he’s healthy right now so get
Murray into your lineup while you can.
Passing
Game Thoughts: Joe Flacco has long been considered one
of the best playoff quarterbacks in the league, but that means
almost nothing to fantasy owners who have seen him stick around
as a middle-of-the-pack fantasy QB throughout his career. That
changed a bit this past season, though, when Flacco set career
highs in both yards (3,986) and touchdowns (27) while still limiting
his interceptions to an acceptable 12 on the year. As good as
those numbers were, they might actually get better in 2015 as
he will be the quarterback in new Ravens offensive coordinator
Marc Trestman’s offense. Trestman, who spent the previous
two years as the head coach of the Chicago Bears, brings his system
to Baltimore, one which produced 60 total passing touchdowns out
of the likes of Jay Cutler and Josh McCown in 2013 and 2014. While
the receiving options in Baltimore are certainly a step down from
the Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery duo that highlighted the
Chicago passing game, Steve Smith Sr. seems primed to end his
career on a high note and Breshad Perriman is a highly talented
rookie who could do great things when he finally gets onto the
field. Unfortunately Perriman is not going to be on the field
Week 1 and the team’s leading touchdown scorer from a season
ago, Torrey Smith, left during free agency. This means that Smith
and others will have to step up their games in order to give Flacco
a real opportunity to improve upon his 2014 numbers.
Denver is coming off of a disappointing end to the season and
the hangover could very well carry over into 2015. The Broncos
do have one of the best cornerback duos in the league with Chris
Harris Jr. and Aqib Talib, but their own fast-paced offense often
leads opposing teams to pass the ball early and often against
them to keep up, which contributed to the Broncos finishing 24th
in points conceded to opposing quarterbacks during the 2014 season.
Denver conceded at least one passing touchdown in all but one
game and multiple touchdowns in 10 of their 16 contests. Flacco
and his receivers won’t have it easy, especially if Harris
is locked up on Smith throughout the day, but the pure number
of pass attempts that will likely happen in this game makes Flacco
an interesting streaming option.
Running Game Thoughts: It seems like just about every NFL season
there is one player who breaks out of nowhere, after spending
years in irrelevance, and wins fantasy championships for his owners.
In 2015, that player was Baltimore running back Justin Forsett.
Forsett, who had never exceeded 600 rushing yards in his previous
six seasons, crushed opposing defenses to the tune of 1,266 yards
and eight touchdowns. He also added 44 receptions for 263 yards
as a receiver. With the starting running back job fully in Forsett’s
hands, there’s little reason not to expect another nice
season from the 29-year-old tailback. While the Trestman offense
should help the offense as a whole, perhaps no player will benefit
more than Forsett, who now takes over in the role that saw Matt
Forte catch 102 passes a season ago. Certainly it’d be tough
to expect Forsett to repeat what Forte did, but an improvement
on Forsett’s already impressive 44 receptions from a season
ago seems very likely. If he can even come close to matching his
rushing totals, Forsett could again be a difference maker that
helps win fantasy championships, particularly in PPR formats.
Forsett’s first challenge will come in the form of a Denver
defense that finished eighth in fantasy points allowed to opposing
running backs in 2014. With the Denver offense as good as it has
been, the Broncos don’t often face teams that are trying
to run the clock out near the end of the game, which limits the
upside of most opposing tailbacks. Not surprisingly, they faced
the fewest number of opposing rush attempts on the season (293)
and held opposing backs to the second-fewest total rushing yards.
As you might expect, where Denver did struggle was in holding
opposing running backs in check in the passing game. The 99 receptions
that opposing running backs made on the year were most in the
league and opposing backs were targeted 139 times on the year
– 13 more than the next-closest defense (New England). This,
of course, plays right into what the Ravens will likely try to
do here in Week 1. With the Broncos secondary being as good as
it is, it would make sense for Flacco to target Forsett and other
short-yardage receivers early and often in this contest. Look
for Forsett to make at least five catches in this one and don’t
be surprised if he approaches 10 if the Broncos get up early.
Passing
Game Thoughts: A “down” season for Peyton Manning
is a career year for the vast majority of NFL quarterbacks. Manning
proved that in 2014 when he “disappointed” fantasy
owners by throwing for 4,727 yards and 39 touchdowns with 15 interceptions.
While it’s truth that Manning’s production tailed
off substantially in the second half of the season, it’s
also worth considering that Manning was dealing with a calf injury
during that same time. He’s not being considered as a tier-one
quarterback this season which means that Manning comes at a great
discount from what he was at a season ago, but there’s no
question that he still has the skill to be a tier-one producer.
One major concern, of course, is that the Broncos are transitioning
from a John Fox coaching regime that practically allowed Manning
to throw the ball as often as he desired to a Gary Kubiak regime
which is expected to be much more run-heavy. Even though his total
passing attempts may go down, however, one should not expect that
the Broncos are suddenly going to be a run-first offense. This
is still Peyton Manning that we’re talking about and the
team is still heavily invested in receivers Demaryius Thomas and
Emmanuel Sanders.
Manning’s first chance to prove the doubters wrong will
come against the Ravens. Baltimore finished dead in the middle-of-the-pack
in fantasy points given up to opposing quarterbacks in 2014, but
they had some very up-and-down performances. They gave up six
touchdowns in one game to Ben Roethlisberger in Week 9, only to
end the season on a streak of three straight games where they
didn’t allow a single passing touchdown. The rollercoaster-like
performances don’t exactly play well for Baltimore as they
are going up against a healthy Denver offense that is more than
capable of lighting up the scoreboard if they get the opportunity.
The last time these two teams played was back in Week 1 of the
2013 season when Manning absolutely humiliated the then-defending
Super Bowl champions to the tune of 462 yards and seven touchdowns
with no interceptions. Certainly that seems to be out of the question,
but there will be opportunities for Thomas and Sanders –
and even possibly some for tight end Owen Daniels and second-year
wideout Cody Latimer in Week 1.
Running Game Thoughts: The new Gary Kubiak scheme seems likely
to benefit C.J. Anderson most in the Denver offense. Kubiak’s
history of producing big numbers out of his running backs includes
monster fantasy seasons from Terrell Davis, Arian Foster and most
recently Justin Forsett in Baltimore. While all of those players
have proven to be valuable fantasy assets, much like Anderson,
none of them were considered to be high quality players prior
to playing for Kubiak. If Anderson can follow in the footsteps
of those players before him in this offense, he could push to
be a top five running back this season and could even be one of
the league leaders in rushing touchdowns. Manning has spoken highly
of Anderson’s improvements as a pass protector, so it would
not be surprising to see him on the field for more third downs
this season as well. Backup running back Ronnie Hillman may see
some snaps, but his fantasy value really hinges on the health
of Anderson. As long as Anderson is healthy, don’t expect
to see enough of Hillman to make him worth putting in your lineup.
Anderson will be tested very quickly in the season as he will
be running against the team that allowed the fewest fantasy points
to opposing running backs in 2014. Baltimore held opposing teams’
running backs to single digit fantasy point totals (standard scoring)
in half of their games a season ago and allowed just one game
of 20-or-more fantasy points to the position. While the loss of
Haloti Ngata will certainly be something that this unit has to
overcome, the overall scheme and players in the system should
make for another good run defense and a tough matchup for Anderson
and the Broncos in Week 1.
Vikings @ 49ers
- (Caron) Passing
Game Thoughts: Selected third among quarterbacks in the
2014 NFL Draft, it’d be hard to argue that Teddy Bridgewater
wasn’t the best of the bunch as a rookie. Bridgewater took
over a Vikings team that was without its star running back but
still made them a respectable offense as he threw for over 2,900
yards in his 13 games as the starter. While it was Greg Jennings
and Jarius Wright who were the top two receivers for the team
a season ago, it was second-year receiver Charles Johnson who
grabbed attention in the second half of the season. Johnson had
415 yards receiving in the Vikings’ final seven games while
showing some serious playmaking skills. Johnson is expected to
get the majority of the snaps for the Vikings while he plays opposite
free agency acquisition Mike Wallace who joins the team from Miami.
Wallace was rather disappointing for the Dolphins in 2014 as he
had just 862 yards receiving, but he did make 10 touchdown receptions
– the second double-digit touchdown season of his career.
With the Vikings expected to run the ball quite a bit this season,
it would be surprising to see either Wallace or Johnson approach
10 touchdowns, but both players look like quality options and
they certainly will boost Bridgewater’s value.
The 49ers defense is going to look quite different than it did
in 2014. Linebackers Patrick Willis and Chris Borland as well
as defensive end Justin Smith retired this offseason while cornerbacks
Perrish Cox and Chris Culliver left in free agency. They ranked
sixth in the league in points allowed to opposing quarterbacks
a season ago, but the changes may be too much for them to overcome.
We’ll find out fairly quickly as the Vikings offense looks
vastly improved from what it was a season ago.
Running Game Thoughts: The return of Adrian Peterson means as
much to the Vikings as it does to fantasy owners. Peterson has
been one of the most productive running backs in the history of
the league and his fantasy production speaks for itself. Prior
to the 2014 season which he missed due to a suspension, Peterson
had rushed for an average of 1,445 yards and 12 rushing touchdowns
per season. After spending a season away from the game, there
are plenty of questions and speculation regarding what he could
do here in 2015. Some believe that he will need to kick off some
rust from spending a year away from the game while others expect
that a healthy Peterson whose body had a full year of non-contact
will be even more prepared to punish opposing defenses. Either
way, Peterson figures to be one of the most important fantasy
stories of 2015.
San Francisco allowed the seventh-fewest amount of fantasy points
to opposing running backs in 2014, but the changes to their defense
could mean a drastically different approach in 2015. The unit
will be getting NaVorro Bowman back but he hasn’t seen an
NFL field since 2013 and could need some time to get back into
the swing of things. The unit will need to gel quickly, however,
if they hope to hold Peterson in check. The Vikings figure to
run the ball quite regularly and if reports out of Vikings training
camp are true, Peterson could pick up right where he left off
prior to his suspension as an elite NFL running back.
Passing
Game Thoughts: It was another disappointing season for
49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick who failed to throw for even
3,500 yards for the second straight season. His 19 touchdowns
and 10 interceptions were also both a step in the wrong direction
for the young signal-caller. While he did rush for an impressive
639 yards on the season, it wasn’t enough to draw much interest
for fantasy owners. A new coaching staff could be the change that
this team needed, but a new offense isn’t often an easy
thing for quarterbacks to learn, especially one like Kaepernick
who tends to rely more on his athleticism than he does his reads.
The 49ers did lose Michael Crabtree during the offseason, but
they gained Torrey Smith who has been more productive than Crabtree
throughout his career. They will also have Anquan Boldin back
for another season, who led the team for the second straight season
in 2014 with 83 catches for 1,062 yards.
The 49ers’ new passing game will be tested by a Vikings
secondary that is among the most underrated in the league. Led
by safety Harrison Smith, the Vikings allowed the 12th-fewest
fantasy points per game to opposing quarterback despite playing
in a division with three high-powered passing games in Green Bay,
Detroit and Chicago. Kaepernick and his receivers aren’t
particularly exciting this week given their new offense and the
Vikings’ defense. For those considering Vernon Davis this
week, one note to consider is that the Vikings conceded just four
touchdowns to opposing tight ends in 2014 and Davis himself caught
just two throughout the year. The chances of those numbers coming
together in the form of a Davis touchdown are slim.
Running Game Thoughts: The 49ers let their franchise’s
all-time leading rusher walk this offseason as Frank Gore headed
to Indianapolis, but that didn’t leave the team without
a quality option at running back. A second-round pick in the 2014
NFL Draft, Carlos Hyde will now take over the lead running back
duties in San Francisco and without much competition expected,
Hyde should be in line to get plenty of touches in his second
season as a pro. Hyde wasn’t particularly exciting as a
rookie as he averaged just 4.0 yards per carry on the year, but
the 49ers obviously saw enough in him to trust him. One major
concern for the 49ers is that their Pro Bowl guard, Mike Iupati,
left in the offseason. Iupati was widely considered to be one
of the absolute best run blockers in all of football, so this
doesn’t exactly instill confidence for fantasy owners in
this already questionable running game.
Thankfully for Hyde and the 49ers, they’ll have what should
be a light matchup against the Vikings run defense in Week 1.
Minnesota finished 26th in fantasy points allowed to opposing
running backs in 2014, conceding 11 or more points to the position
(standard scoring) in all but three games. They were particularly
poor against pass-catching backs, which Hyde is not one of, but
it could mean some opportunities for free agency acquisition Reggie
Bush who is expected to see a lot of playing time on passing downs.
The Vikings also conceded more than 100 rushing yards in 10 games,
which certainly bodes well for Hyde’s chances. This isn’t
likely to be a blowout either way, so 15-plus touches for Hyde
seems fairly likely, meaning that he should be in your lineup
as an RB2 this week.
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
Passing
Game Thoughts:
