2017 Fantasy Football Preview: Philadelphia Eagles

2016 Fantasy Recap

The Eagles had another lackluster season in 2016, finishing the year with a 7-9 record. They missed the playoffs once again for the third straight year, finishing last in the NFC East. Philadelphia had a rookie starting quarterback in Carson Wentz and a terrible overall cast of receivers for him to throw to. With the addition of key offensive players such as Alshon Jeffery and LeGarrette Blount, the Eagles’ offense is looking to bounce back in a big way in 2017. Philadelphia won’t contain too many fantasy football championship caliber players but there are some guys who will be worth a look in your upcoming drafts.

Key Additions and Losses

Additions: 

• Alshon Jeffery 
• LeGarrette Blount
• Torrey Smith
• Derek Barnett

Losses:

• Leodis McKelvin

Quarterback Fantasy Outlook

Carson Wentz started his rookie campaign off last season with a bang, fizzling out rather quick though. He finished his first season as the Eagles signal caller, completing 62.4% of his passes for 3,782 yards, 16 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. One of his biggest obstacles last year was Philly’s lack of offensive threats for Wentz to run his offense through. Well this year, he’ll have plenty of help, increasing his fantasy stock by a bit. This team really wants to move the ball down the field with deep passing, so the addition of a guy such as Torrey Smith should tremendously help Wentz out. Carson will easily be a QB2 for your fantasy squads this year and is on the cusp of potentially being the next big thing in the NFL. If he can figure out a way to score touchdowns in the red zone, Wentz could be worth a look in your fantasy drafts.

Grade: C+

Running Back Fantasy Outlook

The Eagles have a decent offensive line for their running backs, finishing 11th overall in run defense. The guys in this running back group just don’t seem to be able to stay healthy, especially Ryan Matthews. I don’t really see him reason to sniff at Matthews in fantasy drafts this year because there are much better options on this Philly team. The addition of LeGarrette Blount is a really intriguing option from a fantasy standpoint. Last year with New England, Blount had a killer season, rushing 299 times for 1,161 yards and a whopping 18 touchdowns. Will he match those numbers this year? Probably not but Blount will have a decent line to run behind, making him an ultra-viable weekly fantasy option. The Eagles also have Darren Sproles in the backfield too! At the age of 33, Sproles rushed the ball a career-high 94 times. Wendall Smallwood will also be a deep sleeper for fantasy purposes in case of a few injuries to Philly’s players.

Grade: C+

Wide Receiver Fantasy Outlook

Like I said earlier, Wentz just didn’t have anyone to throw the ball to, outside of Jordan Matthews last year. In 2016, Matthews finished the season with 73 receptions for 804 yards and three scores. Matthews really does high upside potential but will need to drastically increase his touchdown totals to truly become relevant. The addition of both Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith greatly improves this group of wide receivers. Last year, Alshon caught just 52 passes for 821 yards and two touchdowns. His 2016 season was once again riddled with injuries, so Jeffery will have to find a way to stay healthy this year. Jeffery is the big bodied receiver that this Eagles squad needed to the next level on offense, so I’m excited to see what he’s going to accomplish. With Philadelphia’s game plan being to throw the ball down the field, the addition of Smith is key to their success. Smith really could use a breakout campaign, so hopefully, 2017 will be his year.

Grade: B-

Tight End Fantasy Outlook

Zach Ertz has all the talent in the world but he’s just so darn inconsistent. Ertz really seems to be a slow starter but gets it going deeper into the season. At the end of last year, he looked dominant and was his quarterback’s safety blanket. Last year, Ertz caught 78 passes for 816 yards and four touchdowns. With the addition of Jeffery to this receiving group, the field should be opened up a bit more for a guy such as Ertz to prosper. Barring him staying healthy, I could see Ertz edging closer to the 1,000-yard reception mark in 2017, making him a potential TE1 fantasy producer.

Grade: B-

Defensive Fantasy Outlook

In 2016, the Eagles possessed a middle of the road defensive unit but showed signs of life from time to time. Philadelphia was at league average in rushing yards allowed and gave up 10 rushing scores. Philly’s pass defense finished ranked 13th overall in yards allowed while giving up 25 touchdowns. The Eagles recorded just 34 sacks in their 2016 campaign, which will need to be better this season. The addition of 14th overall pick Derek Barnett gives Philly an exciting player to look forward to in their defensive group this year. Guys such as Timmy Jernigan and Chris Long will help solidify a lackluster defensive line in 2017. Both their defensive line and linebackers have improved for the upcoming year and the secondary won’t be terrible. Philly has a solid group of safeties with a sketchy group of cornerbacks who will have to prove themselves this year.

Grade: C+

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