Fantasy Football: Top 5 breakout candidates for 2019
4. Cooper Kupp, WR, Los Angeles Rams
Before a torn ACL derailed his potential breakout 2018 campaign, Cooper Kupp tallied 40 receptions, 566 yards and six touchdowns. While the overall numbers might not sound overly impressive, Kupp was averaging around 14 yards per reception and at least seven targets per game. He’s Jared Goff‘s favorite target out of the slot.
Even with fantasy superstars like Robert Woods, Brandin Cooks and Todd Gurley to share the offense with, Kupp managed to get himself a nice piece of the offense with a 22 percent target share in the seven games he was healthy for in 2018.
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Kupp isn’t the primary option in the Rams offense but he will still be Goff’s security blanket in the passing game. If you can nab him early enough, you’ll be happy to have him on your fantasy football roster.
3. Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens
Much like Kupp, Lamar Jackson only started seven games for Baltimore after the bye week. However, once he got his shot, he made defenses look foolish and fantasy owners happy. On top of that, the Ravens traded Joe Flacco this offseason, giving Jackson no competition for the starting quarterback job.
In his seven weeks as the starter, Jackson had 556 rushing yards on 119 carries. For a quarterback, that’s unheard of. He was second on the team in rushing yards only behind Gus Edwards (who played in 11 games last season). With the addition Mark Ingram taking the pressure off of Jackson and keeping defenses honest, it’s not hard to imagine Jackson topping 700 yards by their Week 8 bye.
With C.J. Mosley‘s departure in free agency, in addition to other defensive losses, the Ravens will likely need to put up more points in 2019 if they want to be competitive. As Jackson now has a full season in Baltimore under his belt and with the situation regarding the defense, the quarterback could be a true dual-threat presence that passes more while still being productive in the rushing attack.