Fantasy Football 2017 Team Preview: Detroit Lions
This is the 2017 fantasy preview of the Detroit Lions. In this preview I will provide the Must-Own players, Sleepers, and Longshot players with upside very deep in drafts.
Must-own players are those who should be owned by someone in any league. Handcuff RBs can qualify, as they are often very important to a fantasy team over the full schedule. Sleepers are secondary players that you may find on the waiver wire at some point in the year, or may go undrafted in shallower auction-style leagues. The Longshots are players with microscopic ADP, who are being drafted at the very end of drafts, or more likely not drafted at all.
All ADP data is courtesy of FantasyPros.com.
**I will list all kickers, but I cannot give analysis on them. Sorry :-/
MUST OWNS
Golden Tate, WR (ADP: 59): Tate is a PPR machine, and a WR1 in that format. He plays a ton in the slot, but he’s the favorite target of Matthew Stafford in a very potent offense. Tate is very good. Tate is NOT, however, a WR1 in standard or half-PPR formats. Luckily, that’s not how he’s being drafted. Touchdowns are never going to be a strong suit for Tate, so as long as he’s a WR2 this ADP is okay.
Ameer Abdullah, RB (ADP: 72): I’m starting to like Abdullah irrationally, even though I don’t have much of a statistical case. He rushed for 597 yards and two touchdowns as the more talented half of a timeshare as a rookie in 2015, and then made it through one full game (18 carries) in 2016. We know he is talented, however, and we know he can catch the football, making him valuable in any format. We also know that the Detroit backfield situation is not much of a minefield for Abdullah to navigate. Theo Riddick is no threat to his early-down status, and Zach Zenner is a plodder. Abdullah isn’t a typical back who automatically gives way to the “third-down back” in passing situations. Provided he stays healthy, Abdullah might shoulder a surprising workload.
Theo Riddick, RB (ADP: 99): Riddick was a highly valuable player based on his ADP last season, but this year, despite his talent, I believe he is being overdrafted. In 2016 Riddickdropped from 99 receptions in 2015 to 67 in 2016, and he had an injury to thank for that. He’s an elite pass-catcher out of the backfield, and he will be useful to Detroit this season, but Abdullah is an excellent receiver too. Riddick’s pass-catching role is bound to shrink, and since he is not a source of touchdowns, he will be more frustrating than helpful to your fantasy team. This hurts, because I like Riddick, but I think it’s unwise to draft him here.
SLEEPERS
Matthew Stafford, QB (ADP: 108): Stafford is in the sleeper category because he’s currently the 14th QB off the board, but I find it hard to imagine him finishing outside the Top 12. He has become a lock for 4,200 yards and he possesses a ceiling of 5,000+ yards through the air. In 2016 he threw only 24 touchdowns, but he injured his thumb midway through the season and his play suffered. Prior to that, he had thrown three or more touchdowns in four of Detroit’s first six games. Stafford is a beast, and he runs more than you think.
Eric Ebron, TE (ADP: 129): Ebron is a hot sleeper among fantasy experts, but I, a non-expert, am not feeling it. Ebron has scored one touchdown twice in his first three seasons, and has topped out at five. He’s expected to see more targets this year, but Tate is still the top option, and Abdullah will make this offense more run-heavy if he stays on the field. Just losing Anquan Boldin as a red zone threat doesn’t convince me Ebron is the immediate benefactor. I don’t think he’s much of a steal.
Marvin Jones, WR (ADP: 159): Jones started 2016 incredibly hot, and completely fell off, going the final 12 weeks of the year without a single touchdown. Jones isn’t that bad, but he’s not a WR1 for fantasy or real life purposes. Treat Jones like a FLEX in deep leagues, with very high upside in any given week, but a floor of almost zero in any game as well.
Kenny Golladay, WR (ADP: 189): Golladay is a very large rookie receiver out of Northern Illinois who has turned heads in training camp and the preseason. If Jones becomes completely irrelevant this year, Golladay will be the reason why. I don’t love trusting rookie pass-catchers, and I do not expect Golladay to become a breakout monster. I do, however, think he could sink Jones’ value and be the player whom Stafford replaces Boldin’s red zone targets with. Golladay is a must-draft guy, and I see him producing more than both Jones and Ebron in 2017.
LONGSHOTS
Zach Zenner, RB (ADP: 229): There is a timeline in which Zenner has a season like Matt Asiata put up in 2016, in which he rushed for only 402 yards but scored six touchdowns. Coincidentally, Asiata is now Zenner’s teammate, but Zenner would be first in line for that kind of work. With Abdullah’s injury risk and Riddick’s limitations, Zenner is a player to pick up if the Lions’ injury report starts filling up with RBs.
KICKER
Matt Prater.