Fantasy Football 21-40: Ski/Not Ski

Ski

T.Y. Hilton

WR – Indianapolis Colts
Current Position: 23
My Position: 18

Ok look, I understand that Andrew Luck has a few more targets to throw to this year, and, finally, a half decent running back.  But when I look at the Colts offensive core, I still see Hilton and Luck as the two main cogs in this dynamic offense. Actually, the fact that they now have a few more options to go to may actually be beneficial to Hilton - as he there may be a few times where this season he won’t be in double coverage whereas in last season he would’ve been covered like a hawk.  Currently sitting right around the likes of Julio Jones, A.J. Green and Randall Cobb, Hilton is by far the better and safer option of all of them. Draft him as such.

Brandon Cooks

WR – New Orleans Saints
Current Position: 36
My Position: 29

When you’re officially the only receiving option on a team like the Saints, and your top running back is Mark Ingram, you’ve got a lot of things going for you.  Seriously, who else is Drew Brees going to throw to? Tits McGhee? Oh, ya, and Cooks is actually a really skilled (skied) receiver in his own right.  Wouldn’t be surprised to see Brandon “Too Many” Cooks in the Top 10, maybe even Top 5 (assuming he can stay healthy), WRs at the end of the season.  Draft him as a WR2, borderline WR1 with confidence.

Jimmy Graham

TE – Seattle Seahawks
Current Position: 33
My Position: 28

Jimmy Graham is very good at football.  More specifically, he’s very good at catching Touchdowns.  Which, coincidentally, is very good when it comes to fantasy football.  Listen, I know the guy didn’t have exactly a stealer season last year with the Saints.  No receiver on that team really did.  But still, there’s a reason why he was a Top 10 pick last year, he has that kind of potential.  And now, he’s on the Seahawks who, despite being known as a defense first team (and they are) now suddenly have a pretty scary offense.  Wilson has always done the best with what he was given, and now, finally, he’s given one of the best red zone targets in the NFL.  It’s going to be interesting to see what he can do with someone like Graham.  Sure, there’s plenty of risk with this pick, especially considering that the tight end position is a black hole where usually nothing can escape from unless you drafted Gronk, but I think all things considered that the positives of picking Graham far outweigh the negatives. 

Julian Edelman

WR – New England Patriots
Current Position: 42
My Position: 35

Wide receivers from New England always seem to do well.   I’m not sure why, maybe it has something to do with the guy throwing them the ball.  And the most consistent of all of that guy’s targets, that would be Mr. Julian Edelman.  I know Brady won’t be around for the first few games, but do you really think that’s going to matter at the end of the season? Probably not.  The Pats will still be one of the best teams in the league and Edelman will have his fair share of their TDs.  As a WR2, he’s hard to beat.  Draft him with confidence, even without Brady.

Not Ski

Alshon Jeffery 

WR – Chicago Bears
Current Position: 21
My Position: 25

Alshon Jeffery is pretty good.  Jay Cutlers is not.  Doesn’t matter how good you are at catching footballs, if they’re thrown to the opposing team or 50 miles out of bounds than you’re probably going to have a bad time.  

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DeAndre Hopkins

WR – Houston Texans
Current Position: 32
My Position: 37

I honestly can’t even think of who is going to be the starting QB for Houston this year.  Which does not bode well for Mr. Hopkins as, despite his obvious talent, his fantasy potential will always be limited because of serious lack of QB skill the Texans have on their roster.  Pretty cut and dry with this one, Hopkins has obvious talent some upside but, when it comes down to it, there are plenty other safer WR2s for you to choose from, one’s that are not on teams with Brian Hoyer as their presumable starting QB.

Carlos Hyde

RB – San Francisco 49s
Current Position: 34
My Position: 39

Despite what some would believe, Frank Gore didn’t have a horrible season last year as the starting RB for the 49s.  Was he as good as he could’ve been or was in the past…no not even close.  And I don’t fault him for that.  It’s hard to perform when your offense is headed by the steaming pile of garbage that is Colin Kaepernick.  So I don’t fault Gore for underperforming.  And I won’t fault Hyde when he underperforms this coming season either.  I’m sure he’ll put up his share of points, just like Gore did last season, but it won’t be the kind of numbers you’d expect from a Top 40 pick.  As a flex, I actually like Hyde, but not as a RB2.  Just too much risk her for that kind of expectation out of him.