Fantasy Football: Bold Predictions For Each NFC Team

NFC North

Chicago Bears

Mitch Trubisky will be a Top 8 Fantasy Quarterback This Season

To some, the idea of Trubisky being a top 10 is so far fetched, they would think I’m crazy. To others, this is very possible. The Mitch Trubisky outlook is so divided. Some might say he is a trash quarterback and is one of the worst starters in the league. Some say he can develop into a great franchise quarterback. By those standards, I call this bold. He currently is ranked as the 19th quarterback by Expert Consensus Rankings (ECR) on FantasyPros.

Minnesota Vikings

The Vikings Don’t Support Any Top 15 Wide Receiver

I love Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen. Both of them are outstanding route runners who have great hands. Diggs is so hard to cover it’s actually crazy. The problem here is the situation they are in. I see this rushing offense exploding with the talent of Dalvin Cook and the direction the Offensive Coordinator wants to take the offense. He wants to become a rushing offense. Because of this, I see these two talented wide receivers fighting for catches. In the end, I see both Thielen and Diggs disappoint at their current ECR of 13th and 14th ranked wide receivers.

Green Bay Packers

Geronimo Allison Finishes as a Top 20 Wide Receiver

The Packers have supported multiple fantasy-relevant fantasy receivers before. In 2014 and 2016 the Packers even supported two top 10 wide receivers. This season, most see it as a toss-up between Allison and Marques Valdes-Scantling as the true second option to Aaron Rodgers, but I see Allison becoming this. Allison was spectacular last season until he got hurt, and I see him picking up right where he left off. ECR currently has him ranked as the 42nd wide receiver in fantasy, and I see him exploding from that value.

Detroit Lions

Marvin Jones outperforms Kenny Golladay When Both Are on the Field

Kenny Golladay is a very good receiver, but I see Marvin Jones being trusted more from Stafford. Marvin Jones was ridiculous just two years ago when he was a top-five fantasy receiver, and people seem to just forget that. Marvin Jones is a great touchdown threat and a very good wide receiver. He was outplaying Golladay until week nine (got hurt week 10). Marvin Jones is ranked about 16 spots below Golladay according to ECR.

NFC East

Dallas Cowboys

Ezekiel Elliot Finishes Outside of the Top Five

Ezekiel Elliot has been a force in fantasy football ever since he entered the league. He has gotten so many carries and touches that it’s almost impossible to not be a top-five runningback year after year, but I see that changing this season. The Cowboys drafted Tony Pollard to be a Tarik Cohen sort of “Joker” in this offense. Having Pollard on the field already will steal carries from Zeke. I could see the runningbacks around him will improve or stay the same to butt Zeke outside of the top five.

Philadelphia Eagles

Carson Wentz Finishes as a Top Five Quarterback

Carson Wentz has had some injury problems in the past, but when Wentz plays, he lights up the field. Wentz tore it up in 2017 as an MVP candidate until he tore his ACL in week 14. He then destroyed his back in the 2018 season and had to be sidelined. Now, Wentz is healthy and has a great army of players to target this season; probably some of the best he’s ever had. It isn’t outside the realm of possibilities that he finishes as a top-five quarterback this season.

Washington Redskins

Jordan Reed Finishes as a Top 10 Tight End

Along with Wentz, Jordan Reed has really struggled with injuries. Reed has never played a 16 game season in his career. Same with Wentz, Reed lights up the field when he plays. Reed consistently puts up great fantasy stats when he touches the field (healthy). Last season, he struggled to develop a connection with quarterback Alex Smith and failed to get the ball very much. Now with Case Keenum or Dwayne Haskins at quarterback, he has the opportunity to catch a lot of balls with the receiving core being sub-par.

New York Giants

Evan Engram Finishes as a Top Three Tight End

Evan Engram has always had to play in the shadow of Odell Beckham. Once Beckham went down last season, Engram exploded as the second-best tight end in fantasy over a four-week span. It is a small sample size, but it is relevant to see. Engram saw his highest reception total during those four games. Now with Odell gone, a lot of targets are up for grabs.

NFC South

New Orleans Saints

Latavius Murray Finishes as a Top 20 Runningback

Latavius Murray has now slid into the Mark Ingram role in New Orleans that has been very relevant the past two seasons alongside Alvin Kamara. He is in a great situation to continue the role just as good, if not better than Ingram did in the previous two years. Currently, ECR has him as the 30th best runningback.

Atlanta Falcons

Devonta Freeman Finishes as a Top 12 Runningback

Devonta Freeman performs at a very high level when he is on the field. Now healthy and with Tevin Coleman out of the picture, Freeman should see an increased role in the Falcons high-flying offense that will put up a lot of points in the many domes they are playing in this season. Barring injury, this is very possible for him.

Carolina Panthers

Cam Newton Finishes Outside the Top 10

To some people, this doesn’t sound very bold, but Cam has always been a top fantasy performer when healthy. He may not possess great accuracy, but he puts up a lot of fantasy points on the ground as well as in the air. He’s always been a top 10 quarterback when healthy, but this season, I think he doesn’t run the ball like he used to causing him to regress.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Ronald Jones Finishes as a Top 25 Runningback

Last season, Ronald Jones failed to live up to his hype. He lost the job to inefficient Peyton Barber and couldn’t ever win the job due to his poor hands and pass blocking. Now, I see Bruce Arians turning him into the talent he was drafted to be and winning the starting job. Arians always supports a great fantasy runningback, and I believe that will be Ronald Jones.

NFC West

Los Angeles Rams

Todd Gurley Finishes as a Top Five Runningback

So many people are against Gurley this season. They believe his knee issue will cause him to regress quite a bit. I see the Rams limiting his touches, but even so, he is so efficient with his touches that he still can finish as a top fantasy runningback. He’s in arguably one of the best offenses in the NFL, and his supposed “star backup” is struggling to get the zone scheme down. Don’t sell Todd Gurley yet.

Seattle Seahawks

Chris Carson Finishes as a Top 12 Runningback

Chris Carson was great last season in Seattle. He is a great downhill runner that had a very efficient yards per carry. He finished as the 14th best runningback in fantasy last season while playing alongside Mike Davis and Rashaad Penny and missing two games. If Carson plays all 16 games, he could easily explode to a top runningback option, especially since the Seahawks offensive coordinator said he wanted to get Carson the ball more.

San Francisco 49ers

Deebo Samuel Finishes as the Teams Main Wide Receiver

It’s fairly rare a rookie with some decent competition finishes as the main target for a team. Deebo Samuel can be that guy. Dante Pettis still struggles with getting the down and Marquise Goodwin isn’t a true target guy. I see Deebo stepping into the role with Pettis struggling. Deebo is a great talent and looked awesome in the first preseason game. Expect him to have a big role regardless because of his playmaking ability.

Arizona Cardinals

Larry Fitzgerald Finishes as a Top 24 Wide Receiver

Fitzgerald has always been reliable. He’s great out of the slot even this late in his career. I love Christian Kirk, but Fitzgerald is going to suck up a lot of short throws in the slot due to the poor offensive line play from the Cardinals. It’s also very easy to throw to a guy that rarely ever drops the ball. Kyler Murray will love throwing to a guy that will catch it every time he puts it on the money.

To help with your drafting process check out my sleepers, breakouts, and busts heading into the 2019 season! Be sure also to check out the Forums Page on Overtime Heroics for great discussion. Lastly, follow me on twitter @FF_JoeH for more great fantasy content and advice.