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Caines Player Images: Justin Paradis Player Photography: Icon Sportswire TABLE OF CONTENTS TEAM PREVIEWS ARIZONA CARDINALS 2 ATLANTA FALCONS 7 BALTIMORE RAVENS 12 BUFFALO BILLS 18 CAROLINA PANTHERS 23 CHICAGO BEARS 29 CINCINNATI BENGALS 34 CLEVELAND BROWNS 40 DALLAS COWBOYS 45 DENVER BRONCOS 50 DETROIT LIONS 54 GREEN BAY PACKERS 59 HOUSTON TEXANS 65 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS 69 JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS 76 KANSAS CITY CHIEFS 81 LOS ANGELES CHARGERS 85 LOS ANGELES RAMS 90 LAS VEGAS RAIDERS 98 MIAMI DOLPHINS 105 MINNESOTA VIKINGS 113 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 117 NEW ORLEANS SAINTS 124 NEW YORK GIANTS 130 NEW YORK JETS 135 PHILADELPHIA EAGLES 140 PITTSBURGH STEELERS 148 SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS 154 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS 161 TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS 167 TENNESSEE TITANS 174 WASHINGTON FOOTBALL TEAM 180 TABLE OF CONTENTS FANTASY 101 HOW TO SPOT EARLY-ROUND BUSTS 186 PERSONNEL PACKAGES 191 SNAKE DRAFT STRATEGIES 196 WAITING ON QUARTERBACK 198 WHAT STATS MATTER 200 INTRO IN DYNASTY FANTASY FOOTBALL 211 WHAT IS FANTASY FOOTBALL? 214 CHEAT SHEET 2020 CHEAT SHEET 218 ERIK SMITH’S TOP 200 PLAYERS 220 TEAM PREVIEWS 11 By Marc Salazar TEAM STATS In his first season as the head coach of the Arizona STAT NUMBER Cardinals, Kliff Kingsbury ushered a new era of offense into the NFL, struggled out of the gates, but 2019 Team Wins 5 quickly adapted as the season progressed. The team finished 5-10-1 on the season but hopes are high for 2020 Projected Wins 7 an improved 2020. The team’s issues on the offensive line haunted them all season, forcing Kingsbury to alter Total Plays 1,074 his gameplans, mostly by removing receivers to add additional pass blockers. The defense was also among Total Plays Rank 23 the worst in the league, but the Cardinals focused their entire off-season on improving those areas. All of this Pass % 60% points to Arizona putting more receivers on the field, which could mean great things for fantasy owners in Pass % Rank 12 2020. Rush % 40% Rush % Rank 15 Plays/Gm 67 Plays/Gm Rank 23 Points Per Game 23 PPG Rank 16 2 OFFENSE - ARIZONA CARDINALS QUARTERBACK KYLER MURRAY ADP: 63.4, QB5 Kyler Murray, the number one overall pick in 2019, exceeded even the highest 2020 PROJ. of expectations in his rookie year. Murray set team rookie records for nearly all PASSING passing stats, including five 300-yard passing games, and his 544 rushing yards PASS ATT 370 were a team record as well. Murray finished as the QB8 in fantasy with more COMP 565 than 3,700 yards passing and 20 touchdowns. Murray, however, was tied for the league lead in sacks taken with 48 and was running for his life most weeks. YARDS 3,994 Kingsbury began the season with more receivers on the field but was forced to TD 26 add blockers as the year progressed. The Cardinals focused their off-season on INT 14 improving the offensive line, and fantasy owners would be thrilled to see an RUSHING uptick in the number of 4-receiver sets. That will mean great things for Murray, RUSH ATT 106 and the addition of DeAndre Hopkins gives Kingsbury all the more reason to open up the offense even further. YARDS 565 TD 3 BEST CASE SCENARIO Murray feels right at home with more receivers on the field and overwhelms the league with a diverse passing game. Murray tops 4,500 yards and 30 touchdowns and adds 500 yards rushing. He finishes as the overall QB1. WORST CASE SCENARIO The offensive line woes continue to limit Murray, and the Air Raid offense doesn’t find a place in the league. Murray finishes as the overall QB10, not living up to his high draft cost and disappointing owners who drafted him expecting the breakout. RUNNING BACK KENYAN DRAKE ADP: 11.6, RB9 Kenyon Drake is a player many fantasy owners have an affinity for. After years 2020 PROJ. of flashing talent in Miami but struggling to get a legitimate opportunity, Drake RUSHING was traded to Arizona mid-season and given the lead-back role. Drake closed out RUSH ATT 230 the season by helping plenty of fantasy owners to championships. Drake has shot YARDS 1,087 up draft boards and is expected to explode this season in a full-time role. This Arizona offense is favorable to running backs; the backfield trio of Drake, Chase TD 9 Edmonds, and David Johnson combined as the overall RB5 and scored more than RECEIVING 300 fantasy points. Drake has been up and down over his career but he looks TARGETS 68 locked in as the every-down back and his upside is a top-5 running back. The REC 54 reward outweighs the risk and the price is too good to pass on, as the departure of YARDS 456 Johnson leaves a relatively wide-open backfield for Drake to take over. TD 1 BEST CASE SCENARIO Drake dominates in this spread offense, both as a runner and receiver. Drake sets career highs in rushing and receiving, finishing with more than 70 catches and adding 1300 yards rushing. A top-3 running back finish is within reach. WORST CASE SCENARIO 3 OFFENSE - ARIZONA CARDINALS Outside of injury concerns, the downside on Drake is low. Drake finished as the RB15 in points per game and a top 15 finish is his floor. None of the backups profile to steal the job from Drake, so the opportunity is there for him while assuming health. CHASE EDMONDS ADP: 109.1, RB47 Last season, as the team struggled with injuries, Chase Edmonds earned extra 2020 PROJ. touches and proved he can be explosive. Edmonds scored 15+ fantasy points RUSHING three games in a row, including a three-touchdown 35 point outing against RUSH ATT 94 the Giants. However, Edmonds was a non-factor once Drake joined the team. YARDS 376 Edmonds will again play backup, and while he may earn a few weekly snaps, it will not be enough to warrant even a week to week flex play without a Drake TD 2 injury. However, if Drake misses time, Edmonds will be a Top 20 fantasy back in RECEIVING this offense that caters to ball carriers. He’s an outstanding best ball target, but TARGETS 36 most owners should not take him as a handcuff to Drake unless the price is late in REC 24 drafts. YARDS 221 BEST CASE SCENARIO TD 2 Drake misses 4-6 weeks and Edmonds becomes the primary ball carrier for that stretch. Edmonds gives owners several RB2 weeks and a couple of RB1 weeks. WORST CASE SCENARIO Edmonds is undersized and the team uses him in the change of pace role all year, even through injury to Drake and others. Edmonds doesn’t make a fantasy impact this season outside of the weeks he scores a touchdown. WIDE RECEIVER DEANDRE HOPKINS ADP: 16.9, WR5 The Cardinals shocked the fantasy community when they acquired DeAndre Hopkins for an aging player in David Johnson and a second-round draft pick. Hopkins has been nothing less than dominant for fantasy owners over the last five seasons and is among the best of the best. Hopkins has finished as a top-5 wideout in four of five seasons since 2015 and led the position in fantasy points in 2017 and 2018. His only down year came in 2016 when his quarterbacks were Brock Osweiler and Tom Savage. Historically when receivers change teams they suffer a hit to production but we have seen a change in that trend in recent years. Hopkins is falling to the mid-second in most drafts and obtaining a bonafide franchise wideout at the price is unusual. With a great young play caller and solid young quarterback, the risk is low and the reward is high. Owners shouldn’t shy away from Hopkins at this current price, as even if they don’t get a massive breakout from this offense, Hopkins should be a weekly floor play at the least. BEST CASE SCENARIO Hopkins dominates defenders from the get-go with Murray, topping 1200+ yards for the fifth time and scoring north of ten touchdowns for the fourth time. He finishes as the overall WR3, and a WR1 overall finish is not out of the question. WORST CASE SCENARIO 4 OFFENSE - ARIZONA CARDINALS Hopkins struggles to adjust to the NFC and his new team, and he has his worst season since 2016. Murray spreads the ball around as teams focus on Hopkins, and the offense leans on the running game at times. Hopkins finishes as the WR15 on the season, not a complete disaster, but far from what fantasy drafters were hoping for. CHRISTIAN KIRK ADP: 117.2, WR46 Heading into the 2019 season, Christain Kirk was a favorite sleeper pick for a 2020 PROJ. breakout season. He clearly improved and took a step but he left many owners RECEIVING disappointed, finishing as just the WR32 in points per game. Still, the signs are TARGETS 95 encouraging. Kirk saw the field on more than 90% of the team’s snaps and was at REC 68 least a flex play in 10 of his 13 starts. On the downside, Kirk scored in just one of those starts, a three-touchdown outing that was his only WR1 finish on the year.