
Fantasy Football 2018: Nitty-Gritty NFC Numbers
Two exhilaratingĀ Fantasy Football weeks are in the rear view mirror.Ā The usual suspectsĀ have lived up to, and even exceeded expectations in some cases.Ā Quarterbacks like Pat Mahomes and Ryan Fitzpatrick have played lights out.Ā Michael Thomas and Christian McCaffrey are on pace 224 and 160 catches respectively.Ā Deshaun Jackson looks like heās 25 again.Ā Matt Breida and Phillip Lindsay sandwich Joe Mixon as the RB1 and RB3, which Iām sure is exactly what you expected 3 weeks ago. Khalil Mack has provided a spark for the Bears defense that harkens back to the days when the team was built around defense.Ā Speaking of defense, no one can score on the Rams.Ā Fantasy-wise itās been fun.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, thereās the New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys, ArizonaĀ Cardinals, and Buffalo Bills among others who havenāt provided much for a fan-to-see.
Without further ado letās geek out on some NFC team and player numbers that shed light on this young season.
Follow me on Twitter @DynastyJaco so you donāt miss future articles like AFCās Nitty-Gritty Numbers & Fantasy Football Debates.
Arizona Cardinals:
- The Cards have run theĀ lowest amount of total rushing plays ā 30 for the season.
- Through 2 games Arizonaās pass to run ratio is 2:1ā 61 passes / 30 runs.
- This is obviously not what David Johnson owners were expecting when they spent early 1st round capital on him.Ā Johnson has 22 of the 30 runs and their lone rushing TD ā his sub 9 points per game average isĀ well below expectation.
- Larry Fitzgerald (10), and rookie Christian Kirk (5) account for all 15 CardinalĀ WR receptions.
- Sam Bradford is the only remaining starter yet to throw a TD.
Atlanta Falcons:Ā
- Tevin Coleman ran for 107 yards week 2 ā his 2nd career 100+ yard rushing game.Ā Ā His 1st was week 9 of 2015.
- Julio Jones leads the team in targets (28), receptions (15), and yards 233.Ā His propensity for not scoring continues through 2 weeks of the 2018 season.
- Like fellow rookie DJ Moore, WR Calvin Ridley caught his 1st TD week 2.
- Ridley is 3rd on the team in targets (7), just 1 behind Mohamed Sanu (8).
- In Devonta Freemanās absence rookie RB, Ito Smith saw his snap count rise from zero week 1 to 18 week 2.
- Smith ran 9 times for 46 yards in his 1st game ā a very respectable 5.1 yards per carry.
Carolina Panthers:
- Christian McCaffrey leads all RBās in targets (24) and receptions (20).
- Despite leading in both categories CMC has less receiving yards (147) than Alvin Kamara (165) and Chris Thompson (155).
- Cam Newton leads the team in rushing yards (100).
- Newton and McCaffrey are tied for the team lead in rushing attempts with 18.
- Rookie DJ MooreĀ has 1 career catch ā Moore made the most of the opportunity, scoring on the play from 51 yards out.
- Other than offensive linemen and Cam Newton, Devin Funchess has played the highest percentage of offensive snaps (92%).
- Funchess is 2nd on the team in targets (14) and catches (10).
Chicago Bears:
- Khalil Mack has supercharged the entire Defense.Ā The Bears are the only team with double-digitĀ sacks (10).
- Chicagoās also the only team with more than 1 defensive score (2).
- Jordan Howard has twice as many catches (8) asĀ Tarik Cohen (4) ā maybe Jordan Howard being involved in the passing game wasnāt just coach speak this summer.
- Mitchell Trubisky has the 2nd lowest yards passing (371) out of all QBās with at least 60 attempts.
- Allen Robinson is clearly Trubiskyās go-to WR.Ā Robinson is a member of the distinguished 10+ target per game club with 21 total targets through week 2.
Dallas Cowboys:
- Ezekiel Elliot and Geoff Swaim are the only Cowboy, non-QB, skill players averaging >90% of the teamās offensive snaps.
- Cole Beasley is next closest with 62% of snaps.
- Beasley saw the most disproportionate snap countĀ drop-off among Cowboy WRās from week 1 to week 2.
- All Cowboy WRās saw their snap count decrease proportionately due to game flow in week 2 except Michael Gallup,Ā Beasleyās decreased by 10%, Hurnsā by 8%, and Thompsonās by 4%.Ā Gallupās snap countĀ increasedĀ by 2%.Ā Gallop saw more snaps than Deonte Thompson who out-snapped Gallup week 1.
- Ezekiel Elliot hasĀ 32 of the 33 (97%), Cowboy RB rushing attempts in 2018.Ā No other back in the league has a carry share that high.
Detroit Lions:
- The Lionās have passed on 76% of their offensive plays ā they are the only team in the league running the ball on less than 30% of their offensive plays.
- 70 ā the amount of gameās since Detroitās last 100 yard rusher.
- Despite passing aĀ tremendously disproportionate amount of the time the Lions offensive line ranks #2 overall in pass protection according to Football Outsiders.
- Matthew Stafford is 1 of 2 QBās that has targeted more than one WR 10+ times per game.Ā Big Ben is the other.
- Golden Tate (14) and Kenny Golladay (10.5) are the only teammates being targeted on average 10+ times per game in the NFC.

Fantasy Football 2018: Nitty-Gritty NFC Numbers
Green Bay Packers:
- RBās Ty Montgomery and Jamaal Williams have 6 catches combined.Ā Only Tampa Bayās RBās have less catches (5).
- After being drafted as the TE4, Jimmy Graham is the TE16.
- Graham is tied for 6th among TEās in targets (12) and catches (8) ā he has zero TDās.
- Davante Adams has 2 TDās through 2 weeks.Ā Since 2016 no WR has more TDāsĀ (26) than Adams.
- WRās Davante Adams (WR10), Randall Cobb (WR21) & Geronimo Allison (WR27) are the leagueās only trio of WRās ranked in the top 30.
- The group has combined for 37 receptions, 457 yards & 4 TDās.
- Randall Cobb has the same amount of catches as Davante Adams ā Cobb has 20 more receiving yards, Adams has 1 more TD.
Los Angeles Rams:Ā
- PFF.com ranks the Ramsā offensive line #3 overall and #1 against the pass.
- Cooper Kupp and Brandin Cooks have been on the field for 98.5% of the teamās offensive snaps through 2 weeks.
- Robert Woods comes in a close 3rd ā Woods has been on the field for 97% of offensive snaps.
- Despite lining up in 3 receiver sets more than any other team, L.A. is 5th in the league in run play percentage with 46.5% of their offensive plays staying on the ground.
- Todd GurleyĀ ledĀ the team in receptions last year with 87.Ā Heās 4th on the team in 2018 withĀ 8 ā Cooks (12), Kupp (11) & Woods (9).
- The Rams defense has given up the least amount of points per game (6.5).Ā They rank 3rd in the league in total yards allowed (266).
Minnesota Vikings:
- WR Adam ThielenĀ is tied for 2nd in the league in receptions (18) with Steelersā Antonio Brown & JuJu Smith-Schuster.
- WR Stefon Diggs is tied for 2nd among WRās with 3 TDās.Ā AJ Green leads the league with 4.
- Diggs is the fantasyās WR5, Theilen is the WR8.
- The duo has combined for 30 catches, 404 yards and 4 TDās.
- Dalvin Cook is averaging just 3 yards per carry (26 rushes for 78 yards) ā his 107 receiving yards off 9 catches has masked his poor rushing performances through 2 weeks.
- Free agent acquisition Kirk Cousins is the QB5.Ā Heās thrown for the 5th most yards (669) and is tied for 3rd in TD passes (6).
New Orleans Saints:Ā
- New Orleans is the only team in the NFC giving up 30+ points per game (32.7)
- According to PFF.com the Saints have the leagueās #1 overall offensive line.
- Despite having the leagueās highest-rated o-line, the Saints are dead last in rushing yards (52.5 yards per game).
- Alvin Kamara (15) and Michael Thomas (28) have 43 combined receptions that account for 66% of all Saints receptions ā the highest % in the league by a teammate combination.
- Michael Thomasā 28 receptions are 10 higher than the next closest WRās (Thielen, Brown, & Smith-Schuster ā 18) and 8 higher than McCaffrey (20).
New York Giants:
- Rookie RB Saquon Barkley is the RB5 ā thanks for the most part to his 16 catches off 22 targets.
- Barkley is averaging 22.5 touches per game (14.5 rushes & 8 receptions)
- The Giantsā offensive line continues to grade out among the worst in the league.
- Lone brightspot, C Jon Halipio will miss the rest of the season with a broken ankle.
- Eli Manning is the QB28 ā Manning is 1 of 4 QBās with 2 starts to not have thrown at least 2 TD passes.
- Like Manning, Odell Beckham JR. is ranked 28th at his position. Ā OBJ has caught just 63% of balls thrown his direction (15 receptions/ 24 targets).
- Evan Engram, like Jimmy Graham, has 8 receptions off 12 targets. Ā Unlike Graham, Engram has 1 TD ā Eliās lone TD pass.
- 71% of Manningās throws have been toĀ Barkley, Beckham JR or Engram. Ā The trio has caught 70% of those passes.
Philadelphia Eagles:
- According to NFL Next Gen Stats, Nick Foles has on average 3 seconds to throw per pass attempt ā best in the NFC.
- Despite the extra time, Foles ranks 3rd last in the league in yards per pass thrown according to teamrankings.com.
- Nelson Agholor has been targetedĀ nearly four times more (22) than Phillyās next closestĀ Ā WR ā Kamar Aiken has 6 targets.
- TE Zach Ertz leads the team in targets (23) and is tied with Agholor in catches with 16.
- Ertzās 23 targets are the most among TEās, the next closest, Jared Cook has 16.
- The Eaglesā RB touches (carries + catches) break down like this:
- Jay Ajayi ā 23
- Corey Clement ā 16
- Darren Sproles ā 9
- Wendell Smallwood ā 8

Fantasy Football 2018: Nitty-Gritty NFC Numbers
San Francisco 49ers:
Morris has out-snapped Breida by 4 then 5 snaps week1 & 2.
Morris out-snapped Breida in the red zone 5-0 week 1.Ā Week 2, Breida out-snapped Morris in the red zone 5-2.
TE
George Kittleleads the team in targets (13) and catches (7).
More from FanSided
- 2 Braves trade rumors we hope are true, 1 we hope doesnāt happen
- Did Marcus Stroman tank his trade value to force a stay in Chicago?
- Wyndham Championship picks 2023: Expert picks, best bets for PGA Tour golf this week
- MLB rumors: Justin Verlander wild card destinations, Pirates buzz, more
- MLB rumors: Orioles have leg up over Dodgers, Astros that could help land Verlander
Seattle Seahawks:Ā
- Russell Wilson (12) has been sacked more than any other NFC QB ā Tyrod Taylor led the league through 2 games with 13.
- Wilson is currently the QB23 ā heās completing less than 60% of his passes ā heās also yet to rush for a TD.
- Rookie 1st round pick, Rashaad Penny leads Seattle RBās in carries (17) and catches (4).
- Despite less carries (13) and catches (3), preseaon darling Chris Carson has more total yards on offense (103) than Penny (73).
- Will Dissly is the leagueās TE1.Ā Dissly has 147 receiving yards and 2 TDās.
- The Seahawk defense is a shell of itās former self ranking 21st in yards given up per game ā giving up 371 per contest.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers:
- Deshaun Jackson has a 3:1 catch to touchdown ratio to start 2018. 9 grabs/ 3 scores.
- D-Jacās 75 yard touchdown week 2 was his 23rd career receiving TD of 60+ yards, tieing him with Jerry Rice for most all-time.
- Peyton Barber is one of 6 RBās In the NFL with 35+ carries.
- Despite the 6th most carries in the league, Barber (91 yards) is 26th overall in rushing ā QBāsĀ Tyrod Taylor (103) & Cam Newton (100) have more through 2 weeks.
- Tampaās offensive line has the highest percentage of runs stuffed (no gain) in the NFL ā 34% of the Bucās runs either lose yards or go no where.
- Ryan Fitzpatrickās start (82.5 points) is the greatest fantasy football start for a QB in the modern era.
Washington Redskins:
- The Redskinsā defense has allowed the fewest yards per game on average in theĀ Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā league (247)
- RB Chris Thompsonās 19 receptions rank 2nd among RBās and 3rd overall in the league.
- Jordan Reed is the teamās 2nd leading pass catcher with 10 grabs.
- Paul RichardsonĀ (8),Ā Josh Doctson (5) & Jamison Crowder (5), are the only Washington WRās with receptions ā combined (18) they have fewer catches than Chris Thompson (19).
- Alex SmithĀ is 2 of 3 for 61 yards on passes that traveled in the air more than 20 yards.
- Smith is just 4 of 12 for 79 yards on passes that travel in the air more than 10 but less than 20 yards.
- Adrian Peterson is 5th in the league in carries with 37.Ā He has 116 rushing yards and a TD.
Thanks for reading.Ā Be on the lookout the Nitty-Gritty AFC Numbers coming soon.