Fantasy football impact: Kenny Stills to the Houston Texans

Kenny Stills may get the kind of role he seems to have always deserved with the Houston Texans, but the fantasy value of others will naturally be impacted.

The Miami Dolphins and Houston Texans confirmed their positions for the coming season over the weekend, as they came together on a deal that sent offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil and wide receiver Kenny Stills to Houston for a package centered on two future first-round picks.

Stills has been a productive player for the Dolphins, with 21 touchdowns over the last three seasons (at least six in each) and highly efficient per play metrics. But his usage was unpredictable, and frankly sorely lacking, far too often under then-head coach Adam Gase.

In 2018 DeAndre Hopkins accounted for nearly a 33 percent target share for the Texans, while accounting for exactly one-third of the team’s receptions, 37.7 percent of the team’s receiving yards and over 42 percent of the team’s receiving touchdowns. Some of that was driven by injuries around him, as Keke Coutee missed 10 games and Will Fuller missed nine games after a torn ACL to add to his injury history.

Coutee has again battled injury this preseason, and Fuller is a question mark until further notice. Fuller will be the most affected by Stills’ presence, as they profile similarly as a perimeter deep threats with speed to burn and would fill the same role. But Stills seems to have unrealized potential to operate as more than a downfield threat, as 22.6 percent of his snaps last year in Miami came out of the slot. The Texans have lacked a capable all-around receiver opposite Hopkins.

Stills and Fuller may very well form a frustrating split of looks, each capping out as WR4 or WR5 in standard-scoring leagues, with Coutee operating primarily out of the slot to further cloud things among the secondary options for Deshaun Watson. But Stills is more firmly on the fantasy radar, with greater upside then he would have had if he had remained with the Dolphins.

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