Fantasy Football Guide 2021: NFC sleepers, targets, busts, strategies

Carolina Panthers Fantasy Football Guide

I do believe in Sam Darnold, and I don’t believe in Adam Gase. So maybe there is some fuel left in the 24-year-old tank. There’s still no way I’m drafting him, though a future waiver claim could be in the cards.

Christian McCaffrey is great. He’s the first pick. Simple as that. Chuba Hubbard is a fine handcuff—as long as you don’t draft both. Why would you do that? To ensure you have Hubbard if McCaffrey gets injured? That’s still a massive loss because your best player just got hurt. And it’s not like Hubbard is the next McCaffrey anyway. If you were going to draft these so-called handcuffs, draft them for players who aren’t on your team. If you have McCaffrey and feel like holding a bench spot hostage, draft Tony Pollard or Alexander Mattison.

D.J. Moore deserves more recognition as a good receiver. He’s in the same system as last season, so we can expect similar usage. Perhaps he’ll get a bump with a slight improvement at quarterback, if that happens at all. Moore was last year’s WR28 in points per game and scored just four times, so he’s likely due for some positive regression. He’s a solid pick in drafts.

The same thing can be said about Robby Anderson, minus the touchdown part. If I were choosing between, say, Tee Higgins and Anderson, I’d choose Higgins. Don’t expect the 28-year-old to get better, especially with Terrace Marshall Jr. in tow.

Speaking of Marshall, the talented second-round rookie is one of my favorite rookie receivers at his current value. At a bare minimum, I expect him to have flex consideration by the season’s end. I can see it now: “Your waiver claim for Dan Arnold is successful.” A week later: “You have successfully waived Dan Arnold.” Hey, at least Tommy Tremble has dynasty value.