Fantasy Football Guide 2021: NFC sleepers, targets, busts, strategies
By Zach Cohen
New Orleans Saints Fantasy Football Guide
How many times has this sentence been said? “Jameis Winston will make or break your fantasy team.” Ironically, this is the first year where he doesn’t need to break your team to ruin it.
Winston’s ADP has risen since being officially deemed QB1 in New Orleans. I will admit: I’m intrigued. Getting to work with Sean Payton and that offensive line automatically makes him a better pick than, say, Teddy Bridgewater and Sam Darnold. I’d take his upside over Derek Carr and maybe Ben Roethlisberger. Luckily, if you draft him and he fails, you can cut him with no strings attached. For what it’s worth, I drafted Taysom Hill in all my best-ball drafts. If he has a role outside of quarterback, he may present some value.
I prefer Alvin Kamara to Dalvin Cook in PPR leagues. If you follow my content, then you’ve known this. I’m not saying Cook is a bad pick in the top three. Let me reiterate that. Cook is a good pick at No. 2. But Kamara’s involvement in his offense is higher than Cook’s involvement in his offense, though not by much.
Now that we know Michael Thomas will miss the first six weeks, we know Kamara should be getting the ball even more. After all, Kamara has scored 12 points more per game without Thomas than with him over the last two seasons. As of this writing, Latavius Murray is still with the Saints. There’s been some speculation New Orleans can move on from him to save cap, though he has stand-alone value if he stays.
If I have three wide receivers I’m comfortable with and a target or two planned for later, I’ll entertain drafting Thomas and moving him to the IR spot. (All leagues should have at least one.) Whether you think he’s a good receiver or he’s the product of New Orleans’ offense, Thomas gets targets. A lot of them. He’s worth the risk at certain points in your draft.
Marquez Callaway has become everyone’s favorite sleeper, and I have no qualms with that. Look at me still waiting on a Tre’Quan Smith breakout season. I doubt that happens in 2021. Keep an eye on his snap count, though.
Adam Trautman may be a year or two away from hitting the famed fourth season for tight ends. It seems like every great tight end in recent years took a leap during his fourth season. Trautman enters Year Two, and while I get the appeal, don’t rely too much on his upside. Although, he’s a fine target if you need a backup tight end.