Home Fantasy Advice Fantasy Football 2018 Potential Boom/Bust

Fantasy Football 2018 Potential Boom/Bust

by Chris Nicolaou

Players who are destined to boom, or bust, is difficult to project without doing the research. A boom-player is a player who is likely to outperform where that said player was drafted.  A bust-player is a player who is likely to under perform where that said player was drafted. I’ve outlined potential boom and bust players for the 2018 fantasy football season here:

Potential Boom Players

Quarterback

Deshaun Watson – As we all know, Watson was a beast for the limited time he was a starter. While there is risk with his health, and a shoddy offensive line, Watson can definitely duplicate his performance from 2017 and converge it into a top three-QB 2018 campaign. Coupling his added value as a runner with DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller finally healthy, the sky is the limit.

Andrew Luck – In his last two full seasons, Luck was a top four quarterback in fantasy. Luck has TY Hilton, Jack Doyle, three receiving running backs, and a decent offensive line. At his current draft status, QB10, he could be a huge steal.

Drew Brees – Brees is always good, but his supporting cast and his own accomplishments are extremely positive. In 2017, Brees set an NFL record by completing 72% of his passes. With Michael Thomas, big play Ted Ginn, Alvin Kamara and the addition of Cameron Meredith, Brees could be a huge steal and can be coupled with one of his target for an extra boost.

Jimmy Garoppolo – Only starting the final five games of the season in 2017, Garoppolo finished QB8 in that time span. Thats pretty impressive for not going through a training camp with a team, or full knowledge of a playbook, coupled with a lack of chemistry with the coaches nor receivers. The 49ers supporting cast is one to like alot as well. Jerrick McKinnon is a PPR monster, along with talented receivers in Marquise Goodwin and Pierre Garcon. George Kittle is also a sleeper to break out this year. Although he plays the damning Rams defense twice, expect big things from Jimmy G in 2018.

Running Back

Royce Freeman – Freeman has been outperforming Devontae Booker all offseason and is slated to win the running back job.

Alex Collins -Collins only started 13 games last season with a moderate workload and still managed to hit 1,000 yards. He averaged 4.6 yards per carry in that timeframe. With a full workload as the starter, and an entire offseason with Baltimore under his belt, Collins is a sneaky good RB2 play in standard leagues.

Tevin Coleman – Probably the most underrated running back in the league, Coleman is slated for increased usage in 2018. Last year as a backup, Coleman still managed to be the 20th best running back in fantasy football. Freeman has had concussion issues and that may open up a few starts for Coleman. Even as a backup, he is a good FLEX play with RB2 upside.

Wide Receiver

Corey Davis – Last year injuries hindered Davis’ ability to show off his talent. After a healthy offseason, all signs point to Davis being a focal point of the Titan’s offense. He should eclipse 1,000 yards. A WR2 with a FLEX floor in both standard and PPR leagues

Cameron Meredith – This is a risky one, but Meredith has a 70%+ catch rate and has been productive even with bad quarterback play. Meredith has signed with Drew Brees and the Saints and can be the number two in that offense over Ted Ginn. He is a WR3 right now, but can increase as the season goes on and he is getting more targets.

Mike Williams – Williams barely played in 2017 and is slated to have a good 2018 season. All reports are extremely high on Williams, especially in the red zone. He could be the last player on your roster, but has the ability and expectedly the target share to be a WR3 with WR2/FLEX upside. A late round flyer who can end up a gem.

Keelan Cole – Cole exploded onto the scene late in 2017 and was a hot commodity on the waiver wire. According to ESPN, Cole posted a 23-475-3 line and the fifth-most fantasy points among wide receivers from Week 13 on. With Allen Robinson now in Chicago and Marquise Lee out for the season, Cole is now the number one receiver in Jacksonville. Even though the Jaguars are a run-first offense, Cole will still get his targets and perform well as a deep threat and a WR3 with WR2/FLEX upside.

Tight End

Trey Burton -Burton signed a hefty deal to be in Chicago. With only Allen Robinson slighted ahead of Burton in terms of expected target share, Burton should put up close to TE1 numbers. A great find if you don’t want to draft a TE early.

Jimmy Graham – Many fantasy experts love Graham, and many are staying far away. As for me, I think Graham is in the same boat as Burton with only one receiver (Adams) ahead of Graham in expected target share. The Packers will be a pass-heavy offense and Graham is a big red zone target. Along with yards, he should reel in TE1-like touchdowns.

Potential Bust Players

Evan Engram – Finished TE5 in 2017. OBJ missed 12 games. Engram in games with OBJ averaged: 3.75 rec 39 yds 0.25 TDs 9.15 PPR PPG. Engram in games without OBJ averaged: 4.45 rec 51 yds 0.45 TDs 12.45 PPR PPG.

Lamar Miller – Was benched in week 14 for Alfred Blue after underperforming, only scoring twice all season. With arguably the worst offensive line in the league, I expect another regression year for Miller. He is not a RB1 or RB2, I would only draft him for FLEX duties.

Dak Prescott – As QB11 last year, Prescott was a decent spot-starter in fantasy football. In 2018, he is experiencing offensive line issues, paired with the retirement of his hall of fame tight end and the loss of Dez Bryant (was it really a loss?). The lack of weapons and regression in production has me staying away from Prescott in 2018.

Eagles/Patriots running backs – The running back by committee approach worked for these Super Bowl teams in 2017, but in terms of fantasy football, you always want the starter. I don’t trust any running back in either of these backfields.

**DISCLAIMER: Neither the author of this article or Steel City Blitz are responsible for the advice taken from this article. This is just an opinion based article and should be handled as a baseline tool. 

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