Fantasy Football 2017: Los Angeles Chargers outlook
The Chargers find themselves in a new city after moving on from San Diego this offseason. Will they provide the electrifying entertainment Los Angeles expects, and which players will lead your fantasy teams to success?
Philip Rivers
He’s thrown at least 26 touchdowns in the last nine seasons, and over 4,000 yards in eight of them. Despite reaching the end of his NFL career, Rivers keeps racking up the fantasy points and last year he did it after losing two of his top options early in the season in Keenan Allen and Danny Woodhead. With Allen back, look for him to continue with solid fantasy numbers. You can gladly pick him up in the mid rounds and start him all year.
Melvin Gordon
After a rookie season that had many labelling him a “bust,” Gordon broke out in a huge way in 2016 with 1,416 total yards and 12 touchdowns. He answered questions about his catching ability by hauling in 41 passes, including a stretch of six straight games with at least four receptions before suffering a Week 14 injury that meant his season was lost. He’s one of the few backs in the league who will likely have an offense run through him, so he’ll be a great pick in the early rounds.
Keenan Allen
Another Charger returning from injury, Allen has missed the majority of the last two seasons after a hot start to his career. To me, he’s one of the hottest buys this season – someone who’s displayed elite talent when on the field but will come at a slightly cheaper price. The last time he was fully healthy, he put up 67 catches and 725 yards in just eight games in the first half of 2015. I believe he’ll be back to his best, and is a top option in the third round and beyond.
Tyrell Williams
In the absence of Allen, Williams broke out as a sophomore by topping the 1,000 yard mark and establishing himself as Rivers’ favorite outside target. We have to question if he’ll be able to repeat it when the superstar receiver returns, but he’s a tall, fast and athletic receiver who now has production under his belt. The offense is more than capable of housing two fantasy-relevant receivers, and Williams is a good WR3/4 option.
Antonio Gates
The Hall of Famer has been doing it forever, but in 2016 had his second-worst yardage total in the last 13 years with 548. The targets were there (93) as were the touchdowns (seven), but he hasn’t had a 100-yard game in the last three years and is slowing down on the field. He might be past the point of value.
Hunter Henry
Part of the reason for Gates’ lack of production was the emergence of the rookie Henry, who had a good season for a first-year player. Where he really won for fantasy owners was in the end zone, as he scored eight touchdowns. While he’s garnering a lot of hype, he did rely on the scores as he only had 36 catches (on 53 targets) and 482 yards on the year. I’m not taking him above more savvy veterans with proven production.
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The Best of the Rest
Kenneth Farrow, Andre Williams and Kenjon Barner are NFL backups. Travis Benjamin and Dontrelle Inman are capable of having their big games, but we’ll never be able to predict when they are. No one outside of the players listed above is worth wasting a roster spot on.