San Diego Chargers Week 15 Fantasy Analysis

Week 15 – vs Denver – L 10-22

QB: Rivers very average numbers as he just couldn’t hit a big play down field.  Lots of short stuff around the line or inside of 10 yards.

RB: Matthews DNP.  Oliver an okay game with receiving but shutdown by tough run D.  Runs too violently for his size.  Brown an okay game with receiving as well.  Still not that great.

WR: Allen injured and done.  Floyd couldn’t convert anything long.  Numbers weren’t good because of that.  Royal was fine in space but wasn’t getting enough looks.

TE: Gates a good game getting another TD.  Still looks a little slow and surprised Green never overtook him this season.

OL: Couldn’t open up holes against great run D.  Kept QB clean all game and was great in pass protection, especially considering opponent.

Def: Average game all-around.  Contained the run.  Got beat on some pass plays by elite WR.  Gave up good games to RB and #1 WR.  Held rest in check.

San Diego Chargers Week 14 Fantasy Analysis

Week 14 – vs NE – L 14-23

QB: Rivers a bad game due to break downs in protection on blitzes.  Had guys come unblocked at him far too many times.

RB: Mathews looked good but not enough carries.  Got hurt for a bit but came back.  Will still be good when healthy.  Brown a decent game receiving.

WR:  Allen held to nearly nothing.  Barely looked at.  Floyd a good game with the TD.  Continues to win a jump ball or two nearly every game.

TE: Gates an average game but just didn’t catch a big one.  Was getting the targets, however.

OL: Solid run blocking on limited carries.  Pass protection kept breaking down badly on blitzes.

Def: Run D was strong despite looking shaky early.  Couldn’t stop the stars in the passing game.  No pass rush.  Gave up big games to QB, TE, and #2 WR.

San Diego Chargers Week 9 Fantasy Analysis

Week 9 – @ Miami – L 0-37

QB: Rivers was awful.  Got good blocking and just made terrible throws.  Missed open receivers all game.

RB: Oliver was stuffed again as blocking was terrible against good D.  Never had a hole to run through at any point.  Brown still clearly worse and added a bad drop in this one.

WR: Floyd and Allen decent games but Rivers’ play hurt bad.  Looked fine and still good options right now.

TE: Gates okay but same story as WRs.  Still looking like the Gates of old.

OL: Awful run blocking.  Better than average pass blocking.  Gave up some sacks but was still better than game indicates.  Bad QB play did everyone in.

Def: Torched through the air by QB to WRs and TE.  Was getting run on as well but numbers were contained surprisingly.  Were tiring out toward the end as TOP was dominated by opposing O.

San Diego Chargers Week 5 Fantasy Analysis

Week 5 – @ SD – W 31-0

QB: Rivers continues to be great.  As long as he gets time, he’s pretty much match up-proof.

RB: Brown got injured and wasn’t doing much before he went down.  Oliver dominated both running and receiving.  Had monster game and looks like he could definitely take the Woodhead role and be very good.  Draughn no threat.

WR: Floyd was decent getting a long grab to help his totals.  Allen and Royal both did little.  The big lead led to a ton of runs.  Not to worried about their production in this one.

TE: Gates 2 TDs and a huge game.  Should be noted: 1 TD came after a very nice Green TD grab was called back on a penalty.  Green still not forgotten.

OL: Excellent game considering D-line.  Run blocking wasn’t as good as numbers indicate if you take away one big run by Oliver.  Still decent considering opponent.

Def: Completely shutdown everything with the help of terrible QB play.  Has been almost dominant at home so far.

San Diego Chargers Week 4 Fantasy Analysis

Week 4 – vs Jacksonville – W 33-14

QB: Rivers a monster game, as expected.  Got hit a little more than expected but didn’t matter.

RB: Running game did little, even with big lead.  Line hurt.  Brown was pretty bad and actually did slightly worse than the previous week’s 2 YPC.  Oliver looked like Woodhead but slightly bulkier.  Have to believe he’ll get more touches.

WR: Allen had a huge game against a weaker D.  Royal had a monster getting 2 TDs.  Floyd didn’t get a lot but made a nice, long TD grab.  All will be ignored at times by Rivers but all capable of being used.

TE: Gates did little and Green didn’t catch a ball.  Hard to trust these guys unless you are confident of the game plan.

OL: Couldn’t get anything going on the ground despite the D.  Pass blocking was great but did get QB hit a few times.  Starting to question whether this team is going to bother running.

Def: Okay against the run here but a weak opponent.  Still believe this team can be run on a ton.  Pass D was average.  Gave up good game to TE and decent games to WRs.  Pass rush decent.

San Diego Chargers Week 3 Fantasy Analysis

Week 3 – @ Buffalo – W 22-10

QB: Rivers solid in the windy conditions.  Even hit a couple deep balls.  Very accurate considering situation.  Was rushed a bit and handled it.

RB: Woodhead injured and on IR.  Brown averaged 2 yards a carry.  Made good catches.  Oliver may get a closer look.  Looks like he has some ability but need to see more.

WR: Allen held in check.  Wasn’t getting open.  Floyd grabbed 2 long passes.  Royal got 2 TDs but still the 3rd WR and a huge gamble.

TE: Green had a good game getting a lot of throws.  Gates strangely only 1 catch.  Wasn’t getting looked at in favor of Green.

OL: Average against pass rush.  Terrible run blocking.  Rarely opened anything and let RB get hit in backfield a ton.

Def: Pass rush was pretty good.  Got picked apart on short/check-down throws.  Covered WRs pretty well but QB throws in wind made it easy.  Run D was average, at best.

San Diego Chargers Week 2 Fantasy Analysis

Week 2 – vs Seattle – W 30-21

QB: Rivers played an incredible game.  Stepped up in the pocket, avoided the rush, made great throws, and only took one sack.  Looks like a top 5 QB when he plays like this.

RB: Mathews looked good but is hurt and out a while.  Woodhead and Brown were both okay.  Brown doesn’t have Mathews’ burst.  Should be good with blocking they are getting right now.

WR: Allen a decent game, even catching some balls with Sherman covering.  Floyd disappeared.  Royal got a ton of screens with excellent blocking and led WRs.

TE: Gates was incredible.  Caught all three of Rivers’ TDs.  Looks like Green will have to wait for an injury or another season.

OL: Did a great job being very physical.  A ton of big hits, especially on outside plays.  Dealt really well with pressure up the middle, letting Rivers step up in the pocket all game.  Run blocking was strong.

Def: Early lead kept ball out of Lynch’s hands.  Didn’t really stop the run when Seattle did run.  Pressured Wilson a ton.  Didn’t cover RBs on pass plays.  Good coverage on WRs.

Fantasy Football Factors to Watch for Week 1: AFC West

Time to dig-in to the AFC West for week 1.

Denver Broncos

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What to make of WR corps?

With the departure of Eric Decker and the surprise suspension of Wes Welker, we now have to wonder how the WR corps will play out.  Obviously, Manning needs guys to catch the ball and a big reason why this offense was so explosive last season was the crazy talent he had to throw to.  Now, let’s imagine Demaryius Thomas goes down with an injury in game one.  What are we looking at then?  We’ll have to see who steps up early and how good Emmanuel Sanders, Andre Caldwell, and 2nd-round pick, Cody Latimer, really are.  Some may say that it’s Peyton Manning and it doesn’t matter who his receivers are.  I would warn that people were probably saying the same about Tom Brady last season and look how that turned out.

Kansas City Chiefs

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How will the O-Line look?

A lot has been made about this revamped and probably downgraded O-line so it will be interesting to see how they look in game 1.  If they can look as good as last season, everything should be fine for fantasy purposes.  If they are as bad as some believe they will be, Jamaal Charles could end up being a huge bust.  There is little reason to believe teams will respect this passing attack so Charles should see plenty of stacked lines this season.  Hopefully, he is just too good for that to be a worry.  Week one will tell us how much we should be sweating that problem.

Do the WRs matter for fantasy?

I’m pretty sure no veteran of fantasy football drafted Dwayne Bowe this year and thought, “Score!!”  He was a big disappointment two years ago and was worse than that last season.  There is little reason to believe that will change much this season.  The only hope is since this is year two of these players in Andy Reid’s offense, maybe they come out a little better in the long run.  I can’t help but highly doubt that.  And after Bowe, there is little to be excited about at this point.  With Bowe out for game one, we’ll see if anyone steps up and has any fantasy relevance.

Oakland Raiders

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Do these WRs matter?

Much like in KC, the WR corps leaves a lot to be desired fantasy-wise.  But unlike KC, there seems to be a lot more talent.  Streater showed he could be a decent PPR guy last season and Andre Holmes flashed some talent when given the opportunity as well.  Both guys could emerge as, at worst, bye-week replacements when the match-up is right.  And with rookie QB Carr taking over, this might be an interesting group to watch.  With the Jets having a weak secondary, let’s see how these guys can do against a questionable pass defense.

San Diego Chargers

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Will Donald Brown take a lot away from Mathews and Woodhead?

SD might be one of the most intriguing and frustrating teams in fantasy this season.  Mathews and Woodhead were probably drafted in most drafts with the expectation they would repeat their last season’s output, if not more.  But Donald Brown could make this backfield a headache if he starts taking touches away from either player.  It’s just hard to believe that, after Brown’s season in Indy last year, any team would sign him to sit the bench as injury insurance.  We’ll see how he is used in game one at Arizona.

What about Ladarius Green and Malcom Floyd?

There is little question Green is one of the most talented (maybe the most talented) TE in football that isn’t the exclusive starter on his team.  He is going to outplay Gates at some point, it’s just a matter of when.  We’ll have to see how the season progresses.  Then there is the forgotten Floyd.  His size makes him a red zone target, for sure, but his injury history makes his unappealing.  If he stays healthy, there is a chance he emerges as a very good option in fantasy.  But with so many mouths to feed in SD, someone has to come up short in the realm of fantasy points.  Week one will tell us more about how healthy Floyd really is.

10 Fantasy Players Not Drafted But Might Be Needed Later

As is the case every fantasy football season, there are plenty of players that go undrafted on draft day that will make impacts later in the season.  Here’s 10 I think you will need to keep in mind as the season progresses.

Ryan Fitzpatrick, QB, Houston Texans

Had some very nice fantasy games last season in Tennessee and will have an upgraded receiving corps to throw to this season in Houston.  He’s a good bye-week player when the match-up is right and, with an easy-looking schedule to begin the season, he might be getting some fantasy attention very early.

Ryan Nassib, QB, New York Giants

A bit of a leap here since Eli Manning has been incredibly durable during his career but still worth noting.  The Giants offensive line was simply terrible last season and it doesn’t appear that will change much.  Couple that with some brutal pass rushers Manning will see in the first few weeks and an injury becomes a little more plausible.  Nassib has looked good in the preseason so he might become a hot pickup if Eli were to go down.

Donald Brown, RB, San Diego Chargers

Brown looked very good at times last season splitting time in the Indy backfield with Trent Richardson and he will likely see the field even if no injuries occur in SD.  But if either Danny Woodhead or Ryan Mathews go down, he would be probably the number 1 pickup on the waiver wire that week.  If you drafted one of those guys and can spare the roster space, it might be a good idea to grab him now.

Benny Cunningham, RB, St. Louis Rams

Already a lot of buzz around him since he got the start in game 3 of the preseason and he showed plenty of talent last season when he got carries.  The problem with Cunningham is Coach Jeff Fisher typically sticks with one back so he likely won’t see the field unless Zac Stacy suffers an injury.  In my opinion, however, Stacy’s running style is very bruising and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he does suffer the injury needed for Cunningham to become the starter.

Joseph Randle, RB, Dallas Cowboys

While a lot of people like Lance Dunbar as the backup to Demarco Murray, I prefer Randle.  Dunbar is a bit too small to handle being the full-time guy which would give Randle the opportunity to shine in a potent offense (and possibly goal line touches).  While he won’t put up Murray-type numbers because of Dunbar’s presence, he will still be pretty good especially when the match-ups are right.

Jarrett Boykin, WR, Green Bay Packers

Most fantasy players are already well aware of what Boykin can do after he got the chance to play because of injuries last season.  With the injury histories of the two guys in front of him, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him get that chance again.  And don’t forget, a lot of his good games came when Aaron Rodgers was sitting out with an injury.  If he can do it without Rodgers, he can definitely do it with a healthy star QB.

Marvin Jones, WR, Cincinnati Bengals

Jones will be the #2 in Cincy when he returns from injury as he greatly outplayed Sanu for the spot last season and I would expect that to continue this season.  Jones has a ton of talent and his 10 TDs last season came despite some injuries and starting the season as the #3 WR.  He is big, fast, and has good hands and it wouldn’t surprise me a bit if he actually repeated the double-digit TDs.  If you have an IR spot in your league, go ahead and stash him now.

Miles Austin, WR, Cleveland Browns

With the news today that Josh Gordon is done for the season, Austin will probably be one of the first players picked up this year off the waiver wire in a lot of leagues.  The talent was always there and with the addition of better RBs in Cleveland, Browns WRs (not named Gordon) might be improved this season as defenses will have to show more respect for the running game.  Austin looks to be the beneficiary of all of these factors.

Garrett Graham, TE, Houston Texans

I’ve already mentioned Graham as a sleeper and I think he’ll become a solid player as the season progresses.  With a ton of receiving talent at TE in the NFL these days, it’s hard to justify giving him a roster spot on draft day over so many.  But injuries will happen and, as long as Graham isn’t one of those injuries, he’ll get some love later on.

Tyler Eifert, TE, Cincinnati Bengals

The talent is there and I think he’ll get more chances this season as he enters year 2 of his career.  There are a lot of mouths to feed in Cincy so don’t expect explosive numbers.  But going from 39 catches and 2 TDs last season to 65 and 4 this season doesn’t seem like much of a stretch.  And if that were to happen, those numbers would put him on the brink of top 10 PPR numbers according to last season’s scoring.