This article is a continuation from the previous edition of ‘Players in New Places’ as we look into more of the big trades and free agent signings that happened in the offseason and how they will effect player’s values in fantasy football. It was an exciting offseason in the NFL and will have a lot of effect on how certain players are drafted in leagues this summer.
Brandin Cooks, WR, New England Patriots:
Another offseason, another change in scenery for star wide receiver Brandin Cooks. After playing with the New Orleans Saints for the first three seasons of his career, the speedy receiver was traded to the New England Patriots and was a big piece in helping them reach the Super Bowl. Unfortunately for Cooks, he sustained an injury after taking a massive hit early in the Super Bowl and was knocked out of the rest of the contest. So now after one year in New England, he is being shipped off to sunny Los Angeles to play for the Rams. This is the second year in a row that the former first rounder is being traded for a first-round pick in the draft. Cooks has been one of the more consistent fantasy producers turning in three straight seasons of 1,000 receiving yards and at least seven touchdowns. His numbers tend to make him a solid WR2 in almost any format but there is some concern that some of the consistency will begin tailing off this season. Nothing is wrong with Cooks but it definitely has to be noted that after playing with two different future Hall of Fame quarterbacks in his first four years, he is moving on to young star Jared Goff throwing the ball. Goff made some impressive steps in his second year in the NFL and a lot of the success has to do with the play calling of head coach Sean Mcvay but he is still has some more work to do. The Rams were one of the biggest surprises of last season as they finished the year as the top scoring offense in the league after finishing last in the category during 2016. It was an incredible leap but there is definitely some regression coming for this offense and that could be a problem for the fantasy stock of many of it’s offensive playmakers. The offense looked great with much of the credit going to running back Todd Gurley and Goff, but unfortunately, the team was unable to produce a top-25 wide receiver in standard scoring. Los Angeles is developing into a team that really likes to spread the ball around, because while they did not make anyone a star wide receiver, their three main receivers were all top-35 at the position in fantasy football. It can be argued that the addition of Cooks may change that, but he also only caught 65 passes from Tom Brady last season and that number could even drop slightly with Jared Goff throwing the ball. Last season Sammy Watkins failed as a deep threat for the Rams, and that could be the same destiny for Cooks this season. While there is always the possibility that the Rams’ new weapon makes a run at another top-10 fantasy season, expectations should be tempered as this is probably the worst situation he’s been in so far, even though this is an offense that is still very good.
Michael Crabtree, WR, Baltimore Ravens:
Come draft day, it is going to be very hard to find an owner who is actually excited by anyone on the Baltimore Ravens. This has been an ongoing trend because for the past few seasons, very few usable fantasy players have been seen wearing one of those purple and black jerseys. All of that could change this year though, with veteran wide receiver Michael Crabtree making the move to Maryland as a free agent signing. Currently going as WR27, and 68th overall according to FantasyPros.com average draft position ranking, it seems that owners are down on the 10-year-veteran. I don’t have Crabtree much higher as he places as WR26 for me, but I do move him up 10 spots to 58th in my overall rankings. I am not super confident in the former Oakland Raider all that much, but there could be some nice value to be had here. Known as a possession receiver during his time so far in the league, Crabtree brings little finesse to the game, but what he excels in is finding the endzone. During his three seasons in Oakland, the Texas Tech product had scored 25 touchdowns and received at least 100 targets each year. One thing going in Crabtree’s favor is that there aren’t too many other weapons to throw to in the red zone, making him the prime target when the team is looking to score. Now it should be known that the Ravens offense was terrible last season coming in as the 27th team in terms of offensive yards, but they actually scored 24.7 points per game which was good enough for ninth best in the league. There should also be some optimism surrounding the offense because now with first-round pick Lamar Jackson putting pressure on Joe Flacco for the starting gig, Flacco should be looking for a comeback season. While there is some hope that Crabtree has a solid fantasy season, it should also be known that touchdown dependent wide receivers are very tough to rely on, and he has only had two 1,000 yard seasons in his entire career, meaning much of his value comes from scoring. I would not feel comfortable leaving the draft with Crabtree as my WR1 or WR2 option, but if I can snag him in the sixth of seventh round as a WR3, I’d be rather excited to see what he can do.
Isaiah Crowell, RB, New York Jets:
The biggest move of the offseason for the New York Jets was most certainly taking University of Southern California quarterback Sam Darnold, but they made some free agent signings that could spark interest in the fantasy football community. The biggest of the signings as far as fantasy goes is grabbing former Cleveland Browns running back Isaiah Crowell following the departure of veteran Matt Forte. The signing of a new running back seems all well and good for New York, but it creates another year of issues for the fantasy stock of the Jets’ offense, it is looking to be another running back by committee approach this season. Crowell will be joining long time New York veteran Bilal Powell in what is expected to be one of the worst offenses in the league this season. As it is now, the situation is rather hard to predict, because while it would make sense for the Jets’ coaching staff to give the majority of work to a guy they freshly signed to a three-year contract in Crowell, they have a veteran who has been very productive in a complementary role throughout his career in Powell. The situation seems to be headed towards disaster for fantasy owners, but all hope is not lost. At this point in the preseason, neither of the two backs are being drafted as top-35 running backs, with Crowell at 36th and Powell at 56th. The smart move might be grabbing both on draft day and wait to see if one of them takes over either in the preseason or within the first half of the season. Drafting both will cost little to nothing, and even if they split the time, there could be some touchdown potential to be had in Crowell and some PPR value with pass catching for Powell. The Jets did need to sign another running back this offseason as Powell has never been the lead back for the team, and the signing of Crowell was not a terrible move. The fifth-year veteran could bring some value for how much they are paying him as he is a career 4.2 yard per carry runner and has reached the end zone a total of 22 times in his 64 games played. Crowell should still be there in the double-digit rounds, and there are much worse players out there than the former Cleveland Brown. I currently have him as my RB30 and at 78th overall.
Case Keenum, QB, Denver Broncos:
After having a career year with the Minnesota Vikings last season, Case Keenum was able to cash in with a contract offer from the Denver Broncos. The University of Houston product was mediocre during his first four years in the league with time split between the Houston Texans and the Los Angeles Rams, making him one of the biggest surprises of last year when he passed for 3,547 yards and 22 touchdowns as a 14-game starter for the Vikings. Keenum was able to bring Minnesota into the playoffs and had one of the greatest plays in Vikings’ history with a walk-off touchdown against the New Orleans Saints. Even after being a completely serviceable fantasy quarterback last year and joining a team that still has good weapons in the passing game, Keenum is being completely undervalued going into this season. So far the veteran signal caller is being drafted as the 23rd quarterback off the board behind players like Baker Mayfield who may not even see the field this year, Jameis Winston who struggled last season and is suspended the first three weeks of 2018, and Derek Carr who was mediocre in 2017 and has a new coach who wants to go run-heavy on offense. I am all over taking Keenum as my backup quarterback in any league; he may even go undrafted in some leagues and could be a perfect waiver wire pickup in the beginning of the season. For more detail on why Keenum is a great sleeper candidate check out my previous article on him. I currently have him as my QB20, and that could rise depending on how he looks in training camp.
Kirk Cousins, QB, Minnesota Vikings:
After playing in a so-so situation with the Washington Redskins, free agent Kirk Cousins could not have picked a better place to bring his talents to than the Minnesota Vikings. Not only do the Vikings have one of the best defenses in football, but they secretly have one of the best groups of offensive playmakers in the league. The offense will be featuring the likes of Dalvin Cook at running back, Kyle Rudolph at tight end, as well as Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs as the top two wide receivers. There is not too much I can say about this move because it has only made Cousins’ value skyrocket in my book and in many other peoples’. The soon-to-be 30-year-old had started all 16 games for the Redskins over the past three seasons, and was a lock for 4,000 passing yards and 25 touchdowns, making him an easy top eight quarterback every year. Coming into this season, I think Cousins takes an even bigger leap into becoming one of the league’s premier signal-callers as I have him ranked as my sixth highest quarterback and he falls just within my top-65 overall. All of the ingredients are right for him to throw for around 4,500 yards and he could reach the 30 touchdown plateau for the first time in his career. Draft Cousins with complete confidence this year, but down overdraft him ahead of proven elite commodities such as Russell Wilson and Aaron Rodgers.
