Could Courtland Sutton be the man to rely on in 2019 and beyond?

Next to running backs, wide receivers are vital to a fantasy football team’s bloodline. The wide receivers, like Courtland Sutton, are typically a much deeper talent pool of players to choose from making it a little less stressful to get a top-end point producer unlike with running backs.

Courtland Sutton is a name that has been bouncing around often this offseason as a potential breakout candidate. Here are some reasons why that is.

Sutton has been impressing the Bronco’s organization this offseason with his size and sheer athletic ability on the field. Denver is in desperate need for some firepower on the outside now that Emmanuel Sanders is aging and still dealing with an Achilles injury he suffered back in early December last season.

The second-year wideout is a huge red zone target checking in at six-foot-three, and 218 lbs. That’s a great asset for any quarterback to have on their side once they get within 20 yards of the goal line.

Last year in 2018, Sutton had the eighth-most end zone target shares among any wide receivers, averaging 11 targets per game. With Courtland Sutton projected to be the main guy in Denver’s wide receiver corps in 2019, expect those targets to see a slight uptick for this upcoming season.

The Broncos intend on developing Sutton into a top wideout for years to come. The team has not had a top-five wide receiver since the days when Demaryius Thomas was terrorizing cornerbacks from 2012-2016. While Thomas was still on Denver’s roster in 2017 and 2018, his production declined drastically.

Between 2012-2016, Thomas was averaging about 157 targets per season, along with somewhere around 1,374 receiving yards per year as well. The Broncos were an exciting offense to watch during those days when Thomas was one of the most dominant receivers in the game. Sadly, those times are long gone, but there is hope with Sutton.

He brings a sense of belief around both the organization and fan-base that a big threat on the outside can once again be in their artillery.

Evidence that the Broncos are ready to unleash the beast in Sutton for 2019 was shown in 2018 where he was involved in at least 70.0% or more of their snap shares in all but two games.

This indicates that Denver was not just letting Courtland Sutton sit on the bench for most of the game. During his rookie season, he was highly involved in their offense which is a great sign for a big step forward in the following season.

Volume is key in fantasy football, and if a player is spending most of their time sitting on the bench during game time, then they are not doing anyone any favors. The more opportunities a receiver gets, the better their chances are for a high level of production every week.

Besides volume, Courtland Sutton also possesses the skills and talent to produce significant numbers as a receiver. Combine these two assets and you have a fantasy point machine on your hands.

Another factor to keep in mind is the upgrade in quarterback quality from 2018 to 2019. In 2018, Denver’s starting quarterback was Case Keenum who had a mediocre season at best. That magical 2017 season was long forgotten as Keenum came crashing back down to earth in style by only throwing for 3,890 yards (14th-most) and 18 touchdowns (23rd-most).

While you may turn your nose at Keenum’s replacement Joe Flacco, keep in mind that for the majority of his career he never really had a strong supporting cast of receivers helping him out during his time in Baltimore.

Even though Flacco has never thrown for over 3,900 yards in a single season of his career, he does like to provide a lot of opportunities to his receivers.

Let’s take a look at Flacco’s 2017 numbers since 2018 was a season overrun by rookie sensation Lamar Jackson. In 2017 Flacco had the seventh-most passing attempts (34.3/gm), sixth-most red zone attempts (4.7/gm), and the twelfth-most clutch throws (14) for the Ravens.

Now let’s quickly compare Case Keenum’s 2017 numbers. Keep in mind this was during his time in Minnesota when he had the best season of his career. In 2017 Keenum ranked 17th in passing attempts (32.1/gm), 19th in red zone attempts (3.5/gm), and eighth in clutch throws.

Despite ranking higher than Flacco in clutch throws during the 2017 campaign, Keenum’s numbers are lower in both average total passing and red zone attempts.

As previously stated in this article, volume is the key to success for many players in fantasy. Flacco’s ability to give opportunities to receivers can only benefit Sutton’s productivity for this year.

Lastly, we need to remember that Courtland Sutton was only a rookie last season with no professional football experience. Now that he has one year under his belt while playing in the NFL, he may be a little more comfortable than he was last season.

Wide receivers take slightly more time to develop at their position than say a running back when they come out of college. It’s not as instantaneous. That’s just the nature of the sport. Some receivers take a couple of years before they find their identities, but with the right players and coaching staff, it is possible.

Take for example Demaryius Thomas or Antonio Brown. Both of these guys started their careers without big numbers in their rookie seasons. Brown didn’t really get going until 2013 (his fourth season) when he had almost 1,500 yards and eight touchdowns. From that point on he has been dominating the league while never having under 1,200 yards in a single season.

The same could be said about Thomas who struggled his first two seasons in Denver, but in 2012 he finally hit his stride. Between 2012-2016 he was one of the most intimidating receivers for any corner to go up against.

So Courtland Sutton’s career could very well be heading down a similar path. Other guys like Davante Adams and DeAndre Hopkins were all not immediate 1,000-yard receivers during their rookie seasons as well. It took a little more time before they fully developed.

Give Courtland Sutton a chance and eventually, we could be saying the same thing about him. He took his lumps in 2018. Now as the clearcut number one target heading into 2019, Sutton’s chances of taking that big leap forward are looking pretty good.

Currently, Sutton is being drafted somewhere in the ninth round for the majority of fantasy drafts this year. With that being said, if he does pan out like some are anticipating, selecting him at this position would be an absolute steal. Keep Sutton’s name in mind once you are approaching this stage of your drafts if you haven’t done so already.