August 29th 2017
Tuesday Night Late Edition
Fantasy Watch List
Well the third week (or technically the
4th week if you count the Hall of fame game) of the preseason, also known as
the dress-rehearsal has completed and what have we learned? Plenty!
There was a lot to see and plenty of notes
to take, so let’s get started.
The Niners have a new head coach this
season, former Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan and many believe his
presence could have a lot of influence on his new quarterback Brian Hoyer (aka
Billy Ho). Hoyer is a carry-over from Cleveland when Shanahan was the OC there
back in 2014; Hoyer started 13 games. Last season before going down in week 7,
Hoyer had passed for over 300 yards in 4 straight games. Hoyer also scored
double digits in four straight starts (week 3 thru 6) and had more than 18 fantasy
points in three straight weeks (weeks 3 thru 5). Hoyer is not a big name, nor
does he have a big arm, but he’s in a familiar system and a capable arm that
you should be able to stream throughout the season.
One of the reasons I like Billy Ho in
Frisco, he’ll be throwing to wide receiver Pierre Garcon who is also familiar
with Shanahan’s system. Garcon is expected to be the Niners number one receiver
this year and back in 2013 under OC Shanahan when the two were together in
Washington he posted career numbers in receptions (113) and yards receiving (1,346 yards); he also had a league high 182 targets. Garcon
is a little older now, but could be much wiser and a very nice value with a
current ADP of 8.06 (the 37th WR going off the board). Garcon could have high
level WR2 value and he’s being drafted as a borderline WR3/WR4.
The Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen is
going even later around the 11th round; he’s going off the board as the 48th
fantasy receiver. Thielen has worked himself into a starting role in Minnesota
and last season finished as the No. 29 fantasy receiver, so he is going way too
late. Last season Thielen has a huge week 16 performance scoring over 44
fantasy points, a big reason why he finished in the top 30. But even without the
huge game in week 16, in weeks 5 thru 14 last season Thielen was the league’s
No. 26 fantasy receiver. He’s great value going as late as he is.
Some of the big news coming out of this
past weekend was injuries and the fantasy implications. The Patriots lost wide
receiver Julian Edelman on Saturday (we’re hoping Edelman a speedy recovery)
and his absence will surely open up opportunities for others in the passing
game this season. Last season Edelman finished with 159 targets, so it is
natural to expect many of those to go somewhere this season. Two beneficiaries
we’d expect to see are wide receivers Chris Hogan and Danny Amendola. Sure
there will be a carry over to the
running backs (James White could absorb the majority of those), but the
Patriots aerial attack has an aggressive look this season with so many weapons,
players like Hogan and Amendola will surely now get a lot more usage than they
would have. Their value won’t likely spike enough for consideration in re-draft
leagues (their best fit is undoubtedly Best Ball Drafts), but you should be
able to stream them throughout the season; just look for the favorable
matchups.
These are just a few of the fantasy
players I’ll be watching this season.
That’s My Take
~David Ortega
