Rising

Allen Robinson

The last Jacksonville Jaguars player who experienced some hype in the preseason for fantasy football was Toby Gerhart. That was disastrous for fantasy football owners last year who drafted Gerhart as a No. 2 option.

Now it’s 2015, and another Jaguar should be rising up the fantasy football draft board. Wide receiver Allen Robinson played as well as could be expected for a rookie on an offense as inept as the Jaguars last season.

Robinson played in 10 games and totaled 48 receptions for 548 yards and two touchdowns. The biggest issue during his season was an injury that forced him to miss the final six games.

He’s healthy this year and he should be quarterback Blake Bortles’ top target. In the past, that wasn’t as big of a deal. However, this season, the Jaguars should be better on offense. Tight end Julius Thomas has joined the Jaguars, and T.J. Yeldon is already getting praise as a rookie running back. The offensive line also has gotten a boost, which may help Bortles in his development.

The Jaguars should be better and thus, they should move the ball much better. Many fantasy football owners may dismiss Robinson, based on his jersey color. He’s not worth a top-20 grade for wide receivers, but he’s not far off.

Sinking

Larry Fitzgerald

Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald has been a tremendous weapon during his career. However, his fantasy football worth has continually decreased during the years and this year should be no different.

He was once a perennial top-10 wide receiver in fantasy football, but nowadays, he’s likely barely making it in the top-40 or even 50.

Fitzgerald is still listed as the No. 1 receiver on the Cardinals roster, so that’s a positive for any fantasy football owners looking to draft him. However, his numbers and targets are continuing to drop.

In 2012, Fitzgerald still had plenty of targets at 156, but he hauled in only 71 catches for 798 yards and four touchdowns. In 2013, he did contribute in yards and touchdowns with 954 yards and 10 touchdowns. The only issue during that year was his targets reduced by more than 20 at 135.

That drop in targets continued last season, when he was only targeted 103 times, as he tallied only two touchdowns with 784 yards. Part of the problem for Fitzgerald as been inconsistency at quarterback, so if Carson Palmer can stay healthy, there will at least be a competent quarterback tossing the ball around in Arizona.

However, with the targets reducing these past two years, it may have more to do with age playing a factor (Fitzgerald will be 32 when the season starts) rather than quarterback play.

 

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