Our Bold Predictions For 2020 Fantasy Football
The Yards Per Fantasy analyst team sat down to come up with our hottest bold predictions for the 2020 fantasy football season. This is what we came up with. Enjoy.
D.J. Moore Will Finish As The WR1 – Alex Johnson
What Moore has done is really impressive. And he’s doing it at a historic level. Moore made history by becoming the 17th player to reach 1,100 receiving yards in a single season before his 23rd birthday. That’s right, he’s only 23 years old and will be for the entire 2020 season. Only four other wide receivers have ever had a season of at least 87 receptions and 1,175 receiving yards in their age 21-22 season. That’s JuJu Smith-Schuster in 2018, Odell Beckham Jr. in 2014), Josh Gordon in 2013, and Larry Fitzgerald in 2005. That’s quite the list.
See Where DJ Moore Lands In Our 2020 Fantasy Draft Rankings
And let’s not forget, Moore did that despite some of the worst quarterback play in the league. Now he gets a QB upgrade with Teddy Bridgewater who is one of the most accurate quarterbacks in the NFL. There may not be a QB-WR combo in the league that is a more perfect skill-set match. Their strengths compliment each other perfectly. Moore is a short/intermediate target hog, YAC machine. Bridgewater is a low target depth, pinpoint accurate quarterback that gets the ball out quick and let his guy get to work.
In relief of Drew Brees for a stretch in 2019, Bridgewater’s 6.0 Pass Attempt Distance Per Attempt ranked dead last out of 35 qualified quarterbacks. And he finished with a 76.4-percent True Completion Percentage which was the fourth best in the league. So players that operate in the short and intermediate areas of the field, like Moore and Christian McCaffrey, will dominate.
Among Moore, Curtis Samuel, and new addition Robby Anderson, Moore is the most likely to be deployed in the slot in this Panthers offense. He only played 12% from the slot last year and 25% as a rookie. With More opportunities for free releases in the slot and in the middle of the field, Moore will skyrocket into the undeniable elite tier of wide receivers. He could have a Michael Thomas-like season in 2020. It’s the perfect situation. A target hog, playing in the slot, with a get-the-ball-out-quick quarterback, in a fast-paced offense that throws the ball at a high rate. It’s the perfect storm for elite fantasy production. And the Panthers have the Second-most favorable passing game schedule in 2020.
Read My Full Case For DJ Moore: Could DJ Moore Produce A Michael Thomas-Like Season In 2020?
Justin Jefferson will outscore all rookie WRs and finish top 24 at the position – Jake Brouillette
In 2018 the Vikings split over 300 targets between their top two targets, Thielen and Diggs. In his last two years of coaching, new Vikings offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak orchestrated an average of 136 targets for his number two receiver. Kubiak will bring an efficient passing offense that Kirk Cousins will excel in. A ton of fantasy analysts are in love with Adam Thielen. However, there is plenty volume in this offense for Justin Jefferson to jump into the Stefon Diggs role and thrive.
Michael Pittman will outscore TY Hilton in all formats – Andrew Zamzow
On paper, it may not seem that bold until you look at their ADP’s. Hilton is being drafted as the WR27 and Pittman is the WR57 according to FantsyPros. The fantasy community has been swooning over the Colts selecting Jonathan Taylor, but let’s not forget they bypassed JT once and selected Pittman at 34 overall. The former USC star steps into a Colts receiver corps that was led in yardage by Zac Pascal in 2019.
Related | Player Preview: Michael Pittman Jr.
Pittman profiles as an “X” receiver with his big frame and elite ball skills. He can do it all as a WR. Pittman led the PAC-12 in deep catches of 20+ yards in 2019. Philip Rivers will target Pittman much like he did Vincent Jackson during his time with the Chargers. Hilton has struggled his whole career to find the end zone, Pittman will not have that issue at 6’4. Even if Hilton plays 16 games, he won’t be the fantasy WR1 in Indy. Snag Pittman late in drafts and reap the benefits!
Cam Newton will outscore Kyler Murray in 2020 – Matt Flowers
This take comes in two parts. It has Cam Newton exceeding expectations AND it needs Kyler Murray to underperform.
Firstly, my expectation is that Cam is fully fit and is the starting QB for the Patriots all season. I also expect him to throw more than he’s ever thrown before. The Patriots have thrown 620 and 574 times in the last two years and I fully expect them to keep throwing at a high rate. We know that a rushing floor for a Quarterback makes a huge difference and Newton absolutely has that, so an increase in passing volume can be enough to really propel Cam in to the top ten.
Now Kyler. Again, this is a QB with a rushing floor that we’ve already seen and expect to improve in 2020. However, my biggest issue with Kyler is the touchdowns. They were 29th in red zone percentage last year and scored 20 passing touchdowns on the season. It’s a second year head coach with a second year Quarterback so you’d expect some improvement but they found their magic touch down the stretch last year and that was Kenyan Drake on the ground. If we learnt nothing else from Baker Mayfield last year (steady, I’m not saying Kyler is the same), it’s that you can’t just anoint the second year guys as a top tier option.
Yes, top 5 is in Murray’s range of outcomes but without an increase in touchdowns then he could easily drop to the back-end of the top 10. That’s where Cam ‘Superman’ Newton and his touchdown leaps are going to get him over the top of Murray (which incidentally would be pretty easy for Cam to do given Murray’s height…).
Raheem Mostert ends the season as a top-15 RB – Alan Parker
Amongst RBs with 160-plus carries he had the highest percentage of 10-yard-plus runs and lowest percentage of runs shorter than 2 yards. He’s explosive and fits the Niners scheme perfectly.
Boston Scott Will Outproduce Tarik Cohen – Zareh Kantzabedian
Philadelphia Eagles’ Boston Scott’s utilization in 2020 is primed to mirror that of one time Philly running back Darren Sproles. During Sproles’ only fully healthy season in 2016, he put up 865 scrimmage yards in 15 games. He ran the ball 94 times for 438 yards while catching 52-of-71 passes for 427 yards. Unfortunately, Sproles was not able to replicate that production because of injuries he suffered each season thereafter.
Last year Scott flashed in a limited four-week window, producing 350 scrimmage yards and four touchdowns. Most of that production occurred during week 17 (19 carries and four receptions for 138 yards and three touchdowns) when Miles Sanders left the game due to an injury. However, during that game he fully earned the coaching staffs trust helping them earn a Wildcard spot.
Related | Boston Scott 2020 Fantasy Football Preview: A Late-Round Steal?
Sanders injured himself in the final week of the 2019 season and is already having injury issues during training camp (https://www.rotoworld.com/football/nfl/player-news/9716346). Should he experience difficulties staying on the field during the2020 season, we should fully expect Scott to assume a much larger workload as he did during week 17 of last year.
See Where Scott & Cohen Compare In Our Rankings!
Tarik Cohen only topped 800 scrimmage yards once in his three-year career. Outside of that, Cohen is averaging 696 yards per season while rushing for 370 and 213 yards in each of those seasons. The Bears do not view him as an early down back. That role is primarily reserved for David Montgomery.
Because Cohen is utilized as the Bears’ pass catching back, the edge goes to Scott this year primarily because of the rushing volume that his role dictates. Besides for Sanders and Scott, there are no other notable running backs in Philly for the first time in Doug Pederson’s head coaching tenure.
Expect Scott to garner a fair share of carries on a weekly basiswhile easily topping 800 yards by seasons end. The opportunities are now available for Scott as he will be locked in to at least 10 touches per game. I have Scott ending the 2020 season with a spicy 1129 scrimmage yards and 4-to-5 touchdowns.
With his strong showing to close the season, it is my belief that Scott has opened the door of opportunity to put up solid numbers in 2020. He is currently being drafted 48 picks later than Cohen. This is an unforgivable oversight on the part of the fantasy community. He is going to crush his ADP of 160. Go steal Scott in your drafts and by end of the season, you will surely be laughing heartily while pointing aggressively at the Cohen owner at the end of the season (be sure to point aggressively).
