50 Shades of Fantasy Football, Vol. V: The knee-jerk reaction
By Mike Randle
13) Through the first five games of 2015, Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Michael Floyd had a total of eight catches for 104 yards.
14) Patriots star cornerback Malcolm Butler guarded Michael Floyd one on one throughout the entire game on Sunday. He ended with three catches for 61 yards.
15) Over his career, when fellow wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald has 80 yards or more receiving at home, Floyd averages 6.75 points in PPR scoring. When Fitzgerald has less than 80 yards receiving at home, Floyd averages 11.4 points in PPR scoring. In Week One, Fitzgerald notched 81 receiving yards.
16) Floyd had over 100 yards receiving in five of his last eight games last season. That includes a seven catch, 113 yards, and two touchdown performance at Seattle in November.
17) From Week 9 on, Floyd averaged eight targets per game. Prior to Week 9, he averaged 4.5 targets per game.
18) From Week 9 on, Fitzgerald averaged 7.4 fantasy points in PPR leagues. Prior to Week 9, he averaged 14.1 fantasy points in PPR leagues.
Prediction: Michael Floyd will start to return to his end of season form at home versus Tampa Bay. As the season progresses, the 33-year-old Fitzgerald will again see decreased production. Floyd, playing in a contract year, will finish strong and be a valuable fantasy playoff asset.
19) Cleveland Browns tight end Gary Barnidge had zero catches for zero yards on zero targets in Sunday’s 29-10 loss to Philadelphia.
20) In the first game of last season, Barnidge had three receptions on four targets for 38 yards. In the second game, Barnidge had one reception on one target for 17 yards.
21) In 2015, Barnidge was the second best fantasy tight end finishing with 158 points in standard scoring leagues. Barnidge had 79 receptions on 124 targets for 1,043 yards and nine touchdowns.
22) In the eight games last year that quarterback Josh McCown did not play, Barnidge averaged: 4.1 receptions, 50.2 yards, and 0.38 touchdowns per game.
23) In the eight games last year that quarterback McCown did play, Barnidge averaged: 5.8 receptions, 80.2 yards, 0.8 touchdowns per game.
24) If you project Barnidge’s stats out for a full season, he would have finished with 92 receptions for 1,282 yards and 12 touchdowns. That equates to 200 fantasy points in standard scoring leagues, which would’ve ranked him first among all tight ends — 17 points higher than New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski.
25) Starting Browns quarterback Robert Griffin III was placed on the injured reserve with a fractured bone in his left shoulder. Josh McCown has been named the Browns starter for Sunday’s home opener against Baltimore.
Prediction: Gary Barnidge will calm the nerves of impatient fantasy owners at home against Baltimore. With McCown under center, expect something on the order of last season’s six-reception, 80-yard average.
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