New venues will add value to several players in fantasy football in 2018.
That won’t be the case for everyone who was on the move in this frantic free-agency period. Here’s three players who won’t benefit from new teams and should be downgraded in the 2018 fantasy football draft.
Carlos Hyde, RB, Cleveland Browns
Hyde was a nice fantasy football option for the most part in 2017. He finished 11th among running backs in fantasy scoring and wasn’t bad out of the backfield in the receiving department.
Despite his solid season, he faded toward the end of 2017, with less than 60 yards rushing in four of the final six games. He’s dealt with injury issues in the past and I don’t get why he chose Cleveland, especially with Duke Johnson hogging all the receiving work out of the backfield, and the possibility of Saquon Barkley suiting up for the Browns in 2018.
Three’s a crowd, and Hyde isn’t near as elite as Johnson in the receiving department, and if the Browns are going to use a top-five pick on Barkley, he won’t sit on the bench. That leaves Hyde as the odd man out.
On the right team in the right situation, Hyde is at low-end RB1/high-end RB2, as evidenced in 2017. This isn’t the case, so he deserves a downgrade in the 2018 fantasy football draft.
LeGarrette Blount, RB, Detroit Lions
Running backs’ careers go to die in Detroit. So even though Blount didn’t have a bad yard-per-carry average in 2017 at 4.4 yards, I’m passing on his sleeper status that is inevitable in the 2018 draft.
Two years ago, Blount utilized New England’s offensive scheme to be a touchdown machine for the Patriots. Last season, he disappeared in a crowded backfield in Philadelphia. He’ll disappear again in Detroit’s backfield with Ameer Abdullah and Theo Riddick attracting touches in the backfield.
Once again, in a situation where he can hog the majority of work, Blount can be a decent touchdown-dependent option. However, Detroit doesn’t offer that opportunity. Blount isn’t worth the investment in the 2018 fantasy football draft.
Jonathan Stewart, RB, New York Giants
Speaking of places where running back careers go to die. The New York Giants are regularly one of the worst places to look for in fantasy football running backs.
And with an aging Stewart looking for starter’s work, it’s not a good place to get any solid value for your fantasy football roster.
Stewart isn’t a three-down running back and it’s inevitable that he won’t be a volume-heavy fantasy option in 2018. He won’t do anything in the receiving department and there’s no guarantee that he won’t be surpassed by Wayne Gallman or Paul Perkins at some point this season.
Don’t take the bait that he will be the top running back in New York’s system. The Giants have long been a horrendous place for running backs and Stewart doesn’t have enough left in him to be a consistent fantasy option.
