Fantasy Football Grading: Brandin Cooks To The Texans And Other Players Changing Teams In 2020
The 2020 season is right around the corner (hopefully) and one of my favorite things to do this time of year is evaluate players on new teams. With the COVID-19 pandemic providing hurdles for preseason workouts, players will have to adapt quickly to new playbooks and teammates. While some players fit perfectly into new schemes, there’s also a few that look flat-out awful. Here is a look at a few players I’ve graded based on how well they fit their new team and expectations for the season.
The Good
Brandin Cooks, Texans
Grade: A
Cooks comes to Houston looking to fill the role left by DeAndre Hopkins. With Hopkins’ departure, approximately 150 targets are up for grabs. At 26 years old, Cooks is entering his prime and will fit nicely into a Houston offense that will look to throw the ball more. His four seasons of 1,000+ receiving yards feels like an eternity ago. In Los Angeles, production was inconsistent, and Cooks struggled to fit into the Sean McVay system.
Why I’m Buying Brandin Cooks In All Of My Leagues (And You Should Too)
Cooks will benefit from having Deshaun Watson, who ranked sixth last year in completion percentage. With Will Fuller opposite, Cooks can work deep routes and cut across the middle of the field. Since 2015, Cooks has only missed two games, both to concussions. Only four receivers have played more games than him in that span. Despite two concussions last year, he has been a consistent workhorse throughout his career. Brandin Cooks has been going under the radar in drafts (6.05 ADP), but looks to get back on track as a fantasy football producer with the Texans.
See How The Trade To The Texans Impacts The Fantasy Football Value Of Brandin Cooks In Our Dynasty Rankings
Eric Ebron, Steelers
Grade: B-
After a terrible second season in Indy, Ebron was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Limited by injuries and inconsistent play, Ebron had the fewest receptions since his rookie year. Ebron looks to get back to the 2018 version of himself, which saw him haul in 66 receptions for 750 yards and 13 touchdowns. At 6-4, Ebron will be a viable red zone target for Ben Roethlisberger. The volume will be there as Pittsburgh will get back to a more pass heavy offense with Big Ben back. According to steelersdepot.com, Roethlisberger has the highest amount of pass attempts in the red zone over the last five seasons. Ebron will be targeted often down there if he can beat out Vance McDonald as the primary TE. At his current ADP of TE19, Ebron will be a steal in most fantasy leagues.
The Average
Stefon Diggs, Bills
Grade: C
Diggs will no longer have to battle Adam Thielen for targets and should be the clear cut WR1 in Buffalo. What concerns me is the downgrade from Kirk Cousins to Josh Allen. If you look at passer rating on deep balls last year, Cousins had a 119.7, while Allen had a 64.4. Part of the reason Diggs was such a deep ball threat was Cousins’ ability to give him catchable balls. Two quarterbacks had at least six completions of 50+ yards last year—Kirk Cousins and Kyler Murray. One last concern is Diggs moving from a dome to a snowy outdoor stadium in Buffalo. Most of Diggs’ touchdowns last year came at home and it will be an adjustment for him especially with an erratic thrower like Allen battling the Buffalo winter weather.
Stefon Diggs Traded to Bills: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
The Bad
Melvin Gordon, Broncos
Grade: D+
Gordon will join a crowded backfield and split touches with Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman. He should get the nod as starter but I’m skeptical on his production and how he will fit into the Broncos scheme. In 2018 he rushed for 5.06 yards per carry. That number dropped to 3.78 in 2019. We also saw Gordon have the second most fumbles of his career despite only playing 12 games. He was brought to Denver for his pass catching abilities even though Lindsay fits perfectly in that role. In his first two seasons, Lindsay already has more 1,000-yard rushing seasons than Gordon. Having to rush behind a subpar offensive line won’t help his case either. I’m not saying he isn’t talented, but I don’t know how much of a role he will have in Denver this year.
SEASONAL RANKINGS |QB| RB| WR | TE
DYNASTY RANKINGS | QB | RB | WR | TE | 1QB ROOKIES | SF ROOKIES
