NFL free agency fallout: Early impressions for fantasy
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – JANUARY 14: Drew Brees No. 9 of the New Orleans Saints looks to pass against the Minnesota Vikings during the first half of the NFC Divisional Playoff game at U.S. Bank Stadium on January 14, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
NFC South
Atlanta Falcons – Atlanta was one of the teams that decided to sit out the first wave of free agency. The offense remains the same and provided Steve Sarkisian is still the offensive coordinator, there’s risk involved. Receiver Julio Jones has his explosion games and the is silent for three weeks or so. Running backs Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman both saw their roles go backwards from 2016 to 2017. Does anyone know if that changes in 2018? Quarterback Matt Ryan is just a guy as far as fantasy goes. The ceiling is pretty low as it stands.
Carolina Panthers – Carolina has made no additions to t the offense via free agency, just a minor trade to bring veteran receiver Torrey Smith over from Philadelphia. They did let go of running back Jonathan Stewart, which should mean bigger things for Christian McCaffrey. That was until Ron Rivera started talking about using Cameron Artis-Payne more:
"I think you want to see a guy like CAP get the ball you know, 12, 15, 18 times and see how it goes. Because running backs like that want the ball. Downhill runners want the ball and get better with carries."
It really doesn’t make sense to take CMC with the eighth overall pick and then talk about a career backup getting 18 carries a game. Carolina’s offense will be hard to get right on a weekly basis, with tight end Greg Olsen being the safest option other than McCaffrey in PPR leagues.
New Orleans Saints – They Brough back quarterback Drew Brees to the shock of absolutely nobody. That’s still great news for the fantasy outlook of the Saints as they didn’t want to break in a new quarterback. Running backs Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram are both top 8-12 options with Kamara potentially having a slight edge due to his prowess in the passing game. Receiver Michael Thomas is a safe high end option at receiver but probably lacks the ceiling others in his range do. That’s an important factor to remember. The Saints became more of a run-based team. Brees is a better real life option than he is a fantasy one.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Quarterback James Winston is great for fantasy if you can stomach the turnovers. They still have a glaring hole at the running back spot that needs to be handled. The Bucs re-signed tight end Cameron Brate, which honestly hurts the fantasy production of a lot of other players. Fellow tight end O.J. Howard takes a dive, as does receivers DeSean Jackson. Look for a rebound year from receiver Mike Evans, who is fresh off a massive contract extension. He could come at a slight discount this draft season.