A couple weeks ago, I identified those quarterbacks,
running backs, and wide
receivers I believe are most likely to tumble from the ranks
of the top 10 this coming season. Now it’s time to discuss
the guys who I think are capable of replacing them in 2014.
Note: All rankings are based on FFToday’s default
standard scoring.
A quick reminder of the Top 10 fantasy WRs from last season…
Wide Receivers Most Likely to Rise in
2014:
Jordy Nelson finished as the No. 11 wideout
in 2013.
Jordy
Nelson or Randall
Cobb, GB: I struck out completely at this position last
year, going 0-for-3 with Larry Fitzgerald, James Jones, and
Tavon Austin. So as to prevent a repeat performance, I thought I’d
make at least one safe selection this preseason. Make that two for
the price of one, rather. Aaron Rodgers’ top two targets seem about
as safe as one can possibly get at the position, right? There’s
little doubt one of these guys is going to be a top 10 WR at the
end of the season, so the only question left for us to answer is…which
one?
The Pack’s powers-that-be just spent $39M on Rodgers’
favorite target, rewarding him for being precisely where his QB
expects him to be at all times and catching everything thrown his
way. Deceptively large, deceptively strong, and deceptively fast,
Jordy Nelson has developed into one of the most reliable pass-catching
options in the entire league. Lest you think he’s riding Rodgers’
coattails, moreover, he managed to attain the #11 overall ranking
at the position despite playing catch with the likes of Seneca Wallace,
Scott Tolzien, and then Matt Flynn while Rodgers recuperated for
almost half the 2013 campaign.
Of course, one could argue Nelson was both victim and benefactor
of the Pack’s widespread injury bug last year, becoming the
undisputed main man at WR once his co-star, Cobb, succumbed to a
broken leg in Week 6. The dangerous slot man is back for the 2014
season and eager to prove that he too deserves a raise in this,
the final year of his rookie contract. He absolutely does but it’s
unclear whether Green Bay will be the team paying him. If he outperforms
Nelson, something he did as recently as 2012, the Pack may not even
be able to afford him. If I could only have one on my fantasy roster,
it would be Nelson, but only by the slimmest of margins.
Cordarrelle
Patterson, MIN: From safe to potentially sorry in a few
short sentences? Brimming with confidence after a couple years of
solid forecasts, I tabbed the aforementioned Austin, St. Louis’
prized rookie wideout, as a surprise top 10 guy in this piece last
August. Whoops. He didn’t even crack the FF Today front page for
WRs (aka, the top 50). Though I’m tempted to double down with my
favorite rookie this year, Brandin Cooks, I’m gonna go with the
slightly safer Patterson, Minnesota’s supremely talented soph who
ended up ranking 38th at WR despite earning regular snaps only halfway
through the season.
Patterson’s on everyone’s fantasy radar this year after
a thrilling finish to the 2013 season (14.7 PPG from Week 13 on),
so I’m not exactly blazing any trails here. Still, he’s
only ranked as the 19th WR in terms of ADP heading into 2014. Despite
the uncommon ability, it seems, most of you are worried an underwhelming
QB sitch (either Matt Cassel or the rookie Teddy Bridgewater) is
going to hold him back. That’s a valid apprehension, as is
the fact Minnesota lacks great complementary weapons at wideout.
Here’s the thing, though: Patterson may end up being so much
more than a wide receiver, especially in the hands of new OC Norv
Turner.
However you feel about Turner as a coach, there’s no denying he
gets everything out of his most talented offensive players. Remember
the devastating duo of Michael Irvin and Alvin Harper in the early
nineties? How ‘bout Vincent Jackson for Turner’s San Diego teams?
Hey, did you even know Turner was Cleveland’s OC last season when
Josh Gordon set the league ablaze with consecutive 200-yard games?
Patterson is just as freakishly talented and way more versatile,
as his three rushing TDs in 2013 can attest. I’m betting Coach Turner
has spent most of his time on the job in Minny thinking up creative
ways to get the unusually skilled Patterson lots of looks.
Jeremy
Maclin, PHI: I left you hanging a
couple weeks back when I cryptically suggested DeSean Jackson
would be worse off in the short term but better off in the long-term
now that he’s moved on to D.C. Jeremy Maclin is part of the
answer to that riddle. See, Jackson was going to be worse off in
the short term no matter what, whether he stayed in Philly or left
for a new opportunity. If he stayed, he’d be competing with
Maclin and others for about the same number of targets in the Eagles’
passing game. If he left…well, he wouldn’t be playing
in the prolific Philly offense any longer. Heads, you lose. Tails,
you lose.
Is Maclin really capable of filling the vacuum Jackson’s surprise
ouster created, though? Chip Kelly seems to think so and that’s
good enough for me. The Mizzou product is actually quite a bit bigger
and thicker than the wispy speed demon he replaced (175 lbs. my
foot) and he isn’t a whole lot slower (comparable 40 time).
Maclin was also considered one of the most dynamic playmakers coming
out of the combine in 2009. It remains to be seen whether last year’s
season-killing ACL injury has robbed him of that explosiveness,
but he was always a more complete receiver than Jackson and he’s
actually two years younger. Throw in a high football IQ, a team-first
attitude (as opposed to Jackson’s me-first attitude), and
you can maybe understand why Kelly et al. finally decided to cut
bait with their most dangerous offensive weapon.
Now, Maclin’s injury history is certainly cause for alarm
and I can’t hardly blame the more risk-averse amongst you
for being skeptical. If you’re in that camp, however, don’t
completely miss out on Chipper’s gravy train. Sit back, play
it cool, and snap up…oops, outta time. Guess you’ll
hafta tune in two weeks hence when I go mining for some 2014 diamonds
in the rough, including a soon-to-be Philly stud.
Next: Quarterbacks
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