Why isn’t Emmanuel Sanders a more valued commodity in fantasy?
By John Buhler
Shouldn’t Emmanuel Sanders be more valued in fantasy football leagues?
Emmanuel Sanders has had three 1,000-yard seasons and played in the Super Bowl with three different teams. He is a two-time Pro Bowler and won a Super Bowl with the Denver Broncos back in 2015. While he goes into a great situation with the New Orleans Saints in 2020, why is he not getting the love he probably should as a fantasy football player?
The Fantasy Footballers don’t even have Sanders as a serious candidate to be a top-40 fantasy performer at his position group. That range is significant because it means he’s not even good enough in their eyes to be WR3 or start for you in the flex in most fantasy leagues. What gives on Sanders not being the fantasy commodity we’d largely think he’d be?
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The upside for Sanders is he’ll inherit the best quarterback he’s had since Peyton Manning in Drew Brees. Both are future Pro Football Hall of Famers and put up gaudy passing numbers in their illustrious careers. Sanders had largely been in quarterbacking Siberia upon Manning’s retirement after Super Bowl 50 to cap off the 2015 NFL season.
Will Drew Brees throw the ball more in Emmanuel Sanders’ direction?
While Brees could throw the ball more in Sanders’ direction, he might not even be the No. 3 receiving option for Brees this year. We know his No. 1 option is Pro Bowl wide receiver Michael Thomas, who has made a killing with all those short-yardage passes he’s come down with in the last several years. If Brees sees Thomas is open, he’s going to throw him the ball, period.
His No. 2 receiving option is Pro Bowl running back Alvin Kamara out of the backfield. Kamara is a good runner of the football, but his receiving skills as a back are what have him among the best players at his position group in the league. After that, Sanders might be the Saints’ No. 3 receiving option, but keep in mind they also have a strong, albeit inconsistent tight end in Jared Cook.
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Overall, Sanders’ addition to the Saints receiving corps is huge because he’ll give them 70-something catches for 800 or so yards and around five touchdowns. That will all play a part in the Saints possibly winning the NFC South for the fourth consecutive season. However, those numbers won’t have Sanders be a fantasy football darling in any league this season.