Fantasy Tidbits From Last Year

You see these all the time. Big lists of data points from the prior season to make you think and argue around the water cooler. I felt like I would compile a few as well.

I did this piece in preparation for a Fantasy Football event a couple weeks ago. And well, kids’ activities, school starting and work kept me from getting to clacking around the keyboard. Either way, have some fun with it.

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Only 9 players reached the hallowed ground of 1,000 rushing yards in 2018. Nick Chubb was there, but a subsequent loss on a rushing attempt pulled him back to 996 yards.

Workload splits, injuries and suspensions have decimated the opportunity to create “Workhorse” backs, at least as we know the three yards and a cloud of dust crowd. Just 14 running backs amassed more than 200 carries.

Taken further, just 17 running backs earned a high enough yards per game average to extrapolate into a 1,000-yard season (62.5).

The difference between the second-highest scoring QB (Matt Ryan) and QB12 (Kirk Cousins) was 4.5 points per game. NFL.com default scoring

At the running back position, the difference was more stark. RB2 (Christian McCaffrey) produced 9.7 more points per game than RB12 (Nick Chubb). NFL.com Default Scoring

The scoring difference between the back-end RB1 (Chubb) and RB24 (Jones) was 3.7 points per game.

Michael Thomas and Alvin Kamara accounted for 54% of the Saints’ receptions. Ben Watson ranked third on the team with 35 receptions (9.2%). Welcome to the squad, Jared Cook.

Twelve quarterbacks passed for more than 4,000 yards last season. Normal yardage monster Drew Brees wasn’t one of them, narrowly missing the mark with 3,992 yards. Brees’ operational efficiency (32/5 ratio) still led him to a 7th-place fantasy finish.

Dak Prescott ranked 15th last season with 3,885 passing yards. His red zone rushing work (six touchdowns) pushed him to a 10th-place ranking.

Get rid of the ball. Eleven quarterbacks absorbed 40 or more sacks last season. Three of those quarterbacks ranked in the top 10 in fantasy points (Ryan, Rodgers and Prescott).

Lamar Jackson rushed for 695 yards last season despite starting only seven games. That ranked 27th in the NFL, further demonstrating the proliferation of backfield splits and specialization. Coach Harbaugh took heat for his “take the over” comment about Jackson’s rushing totals. He’s looking to win games, and if that requires heavy emphasis on Jackson’s legs in 2019, then that’s the proper plan.

2018 MVP Patrick Mahomes scored fewer than 20 fantasy points just three times last year. He was limited by the Jaguars in Week 5 (15.82), by the Chargers to start the fantasy playoffs (18.02 FP, 8th that week) and Week 17 by the Raiders (17.34 FP, 15th that week).

Even with a skipped week to end the season, Antonio Brown led the league with 15 touchdown receptions and ranked 5th in fantasy points. Brown scored fewer than 15 fantasy points twice last year, producing 8.5 FP against the Raiders in Week 14 and 14.9 FP against New England in Week 15.

Offseason acquisition Adam Humphries will play a big role from the slot for Marcus Mariota this season. Would you believe that he ranked 24th at the WR position last season for the Buccaneers?

Get this. The difference in FP between Travis Kelce and TE6 (Austin Hooper) was 8.2 FP/Game.

With 1,832 total yards and a whopping 21 total touchdowns, Todd Gurley ranked third among fantasy running backs. Gurley was limited to 8.8 FP in Week 14 against Chicago, only to post a huge 34.4 FP performance in the fantasy playoff opener. Unfortunately, he didn’t log a point in championship week and questions remain for 2019.

Opportunities eventually lead to paydirt. Julio Jones was a yardage, target and reception machine as always in 2018. But he didn’t score in the first seven weeks of the year. He took some allergy medication and played in the painted grass eight times thereafter, which tied him for 11th in receiving touchdowns.

There were 18 wide receivers that amassed 1,000 yards in 2018. Three of the seven wide receivers who produced a double-digit touchdown reception total finished with fewer than 1,000 yards. Mike Williams of the Chargers scored on 10 of his 43 receptions.

Two of the top 11 highest-scoring running backs last season yielded bigger yardage numbers in the passing game than as rushers. James White (RB7) and Tarik Cohen (RB11).

Saving it for the best time? Derrick Henry rolled up 94 FP in the fantasy playoffs last season. He scored 107 points during the rest of the season.

Fifteen quarterbacks attempted more than 500 passes last season. That’s more than 31 attempts per game.

Six running backs busted off 10 or more runs of at least 20 yards last season. Saquon Barkley led the way with 16 runs. Add Gurley and Elliott, as you might expect, along with Mixon and Chubb. But how about SF tailback Matt Breida (undervalued this draft season, IMHO) with 10 long distance runs? Oh yeah. Josh Allen of the Bills had eight!

Nine receivers posted at least 20 receptions of 20 yards or more. Tyreek Hill (trade rumors?) led the way with 27. Tight end George Kittle of the 49ers was tied for 8th with 20.

Antonio Callaway is on suspension from the Browns, thereby opening the door for big play threat Rashard Higgins. Higgins posted 11 receptions of at least 20 yards on his 39 receptions last year. He averaged 14.7 yards per catch.

Did I mention Drew Brees’ goal line work? He tied for 5th last season among quarterbacks with four rushing touchdowns, putting him in the company of Allen, Prescott, Jackson, Watson and Newton.

Last year, 37 receivers logged at least 100 targets. Julio Jones averaged 10.6 targets per contest to lead the way. The last one on the list – Michael Crabtree – just joined the fray in Arizona. He caught 54 balls last year for the Ravens. Keep an eye on this one.