2017 Fantasy Football: Philadelphia Eagles outlook
The Eagles have already added offensive weapons around their young star quarterback this offseason. Which players will be the ones to own in fantasy football in 2017?
Carson Wentz
While Wentz didn’t offer much of a ceiling in 2016 and finished the season with mediocre numbers, he only had one single-digit dud all year. With a receiving core which was the laughing stock of the league, he’ll be overjoyed with the additions of Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith, and stands to benefit hugely moving forward. He should be drafted as a QB2 on your rosters, but will offer some upside, especially with addition of more weapons in the draft.
Ryan Mathews and Darren Sproles
Mathews remains one of the most unlucky but talented backs in the league, but you simply can’t rely on him to remain healthy. Sproles amazingly had a career-high 94 carries at the age of 33 last year, but the team won’t want him to come near to that number again. The reason I’ve grouped them together is because they are both relevant if the Eagles don’t come away from the draft with a new back, but likely irrelevant as the team should target one early. They are best avoided.
Alshon Jeffery
Philadelphia secured the prize free agent with a one-year, $14 million deal and have their most dominant and physical receiver since Terrell Owens. After two outstanding seasons in 2013 and 2014, he’s struggled to stay on the field and the numbers have dropped. That said, he’s moving to a young quarterback who is in desperate need of an alpha on the outside, and will be targeted heavily. He should be in consideration in the third and fourth rounds.
Jordan Matthews
Matthews gets some stick from fantasy football fans. He’s never fully taken off as an outside receiver, and hasn’t achieved the “WR1” status his owners crave. The truth is – he’s simply a good, but not great player. But that’s okay! Don’t draft him as number one, or even a starter, but he’s a good bye-week or injury fill-in. He lines up primarily in the slot and has played his best football with a strong receiver on the outside, so the addition of Jeffery is more blessing than curse. Add him as your fourth or fifth receiver and you won’t be disappointed.
Zach Ertz
For three straight years, Ertz has had huge games right at the end of the season. Unfortunately, it has the effect of boosting his end-of-year totals quite significantly, and leaving a pleasant taste in owner’s mouths when it may have been bitter throughout the year. In 2016, he scored over 20 per cent of his points in a week 17 outing against Dallas. Prior to that game, he’d only scored two touchdowns in the 13 other games he played. With more mouths to feed, Ertz could miss out and shouldn’t be relied on as a TE1.
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The Best of the Rest
The team has managed to acquire capable veterans behind Wentz with Nick Foles and Matt McGloin, both of whom could put up decent scores if he went down. Wendell Smallwood is a long shot to earn carries, but worth keeping an eye on. In Torrey Smith, Nelson Agholor and Dorial Green-Beckham, the Eagles have a mish-mash of contributors, but none worth targeting. In fact, it’s not even certain all three will be on the roster come September, as I’m sure Philadelphia will add more talent outside.