Fantasy Football Guide 2021: NFC sleepers, targets, busts, strategies
By Zach Cohen
Los Angeles Rams Fantasy Football Guide
You know Matthew Stafford is about to have an MVP season, right? Look at what this Rams offense did with Jared Goff, and now they’re getting a proven passer. I can see Stafford having a season similar to what Tom Brady did last season. Brady finished as QB8 due to high volume, a great receiving corps and, well, just being good. Stafford checks those boxes.
I’m mostly buying a share of every Rams offensive player. Historically speaking, the best fantasy players come from the best offenses—unless you’re a running back. That’s typically because good offenses pass the ball very well. While Darrell Henderson isn’t a bad receiving back, he may not get a big enough workload to become an RB1. He has legit RB2 upside thanks to—what should be—a strong grip on the starting job. For what it’s worth, I would’ve said the same thing about Cam Akers.
You could’ve probably guessed I’d be high on Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp. Neither has real potential to be a top-five receiver, but both are the epitome of consistency. Woods’ PPR finishes in the last three years: WR10, WR14, WR13. Kupp’s finishes based on average points per game (he missed half of the 2018 season): WR14, WR7, WR29. Okay, so Kupp took a step back last year. Or was it a product of bad quarterback play? I’m willing to bet Kupp bounces back with Stafford behind center. DeSean Jackson is a solid pick in best ball and Van Jefferson is a solid pick in dynasty. We’ll see about Tutu Atwell.
How good is Tyler Higbee? His fantasy value has only ever derived from touchdowns, which happened three times in 2020. It’s no surprise those were the only three games he scored more than nine points in. I want to hop on the Higbee hype train, I really do. Losing Gerald Everett should be a massive boost for Higbee. I just haven’t seen anything too inspiring, even when he’s played more than 80% of the Rams‘ snaps. It’ll also be tough to compete with Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp for targets. Again, draft a good tight end early.
And don’t reach for the Rams’ defense/special teams, either. You’re better off picking one from the waivers each week. Check out my short analysis on why.