2018 Fantasy Football: AFC North Preview

Intro

Projected Standings

• Pittsburg Steelers 11-5
• Baltimore Ravens 9-7
• Cincinnati Bengals 6-10
• Cleveland Browns 4-12

Last year the AFC North division was the Good, The Browns and the Ugly. The Steelers were good, not great. Finishing the year 13-3, but losing to the Jaguars in the playoffs. Cleveland failed to win a single game. The Ravens posted a 9-7 record and the Bengals finished up at 7-9.

The once feared AFC north has fallen from glory, but still has plenty of fantasy gold within the division. The Steelers are obvious with two of the top five fantasy players in the game, but the rest of the North division also has some top end talent as well.

The Cincinnati Bengals disappointed for the most part last year. Andy Dalton was sub-par, AJ Green fell short of expectations and Joe Mixon didn’t live up to the hype. This season has to be better for these players though, right?

The Baltimore Ravens are now two years removed from a playoff appearance and appear to be in rebuild mode. They spent a top draft pick on highly touted rookie QB Lamar Jackson who looks to be the QB of the future in Baltimore. The Ravens brought in free agents Michael Crabtree and John Brown to try and improve their poor WR corp. And their RB depth chart is led by Seattle castaway Alex Collins.

The Cleveland Browns. Need I say more? We will get an inside look at Cleveland’s offseason, they were chosen as the featured team on HBO’s “Hard Knocks”. The Browns have made positive strides in the offseason by acquiring Jarvis Landry, Carlos Hyde and Tyrod Taylor. The Browns also made some noise in the NFL draft by grabbing Baker Mayfield with the first overall pick and Nick Chubb in the second round. One thing is for sure with the Browns, they will score points. Who will score the points? That’s a great question.

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Quarterback’s

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Ben Roethlisberger (PIT)

Big Ben has been a boom/bust QB for his entire career.  Ben has been a top 20 fantasy QB nine of his ten years in the league, the only time he wasn’t was 2015 when he finished 21st in only 12 games. I don’t need to sell you on his offensive weapons(Le’von Bell, Antonio Brown, JuJu Smith-Shuster, James Washington) the only real concern with Big Ben is will he play a full season.  Health has always been a concern for Roethlisberger, but on-the-field play has not. After a slow start last season from week 10 on, Ben was the number 1 fantasy QB in points per game. This makes Ben a great late round QB value in the 11th round of your fantasy drafts.

Joe Flacco (BAL)

Joe Flacco is the definition of an average QB for fantasy football. He is currently going un-drafted in 1QB leagues and will likely be replaced by rookie Lamar Jackson next season if not before. Think of Flacco as a bye week streamer or a third QB in 2QB league formats.

Andy Dalton (CIN)

The only QB besides Ben Roethlisberger with a top 5 fantasy finish amongst QBs in the AFC North. That’s the best I can do to hype up the Red Rifle. He falls into the tier right above Joe Flacco. A decent QB, but a few more weapons than Flacco has. This makes him a matchup streamer for your fantasy team this year.

The Browns QBs (Tyrod Taylor, Baker Mayfield)

Tyrod Taylor is currently being drafted at the end of fantasy drafts. In Tyrod’s best season he posted just over 3,000 passing yards and 20 passing TDs. This lackluster stat line hasn’t stopped Taylor from being a top 10 QB in fantasy football though. With his rushing ability, Tyrod is always a threat and always gives you a solid baseline week to week. The only question I have is will Tyrod even be the starter for Cleveland? The Browns drafted Baker Mayfield number one overall in this year’s draft. Teams always say “they will sit for a year”. Tell that to Carson Wentz, Mitch Trubisky, Jared Goff, Joe Flacco, Eli Manning etc. The Browns will be bad, and Baker will play, the Dawg Pound will make sure of it.

Running Back’s

Leaven Bell (PIT)

Draft him. 1st overall. Enough said.

Joe Mixon (CIN)

My second favorite RB in the AFC North is none other than Joe Mixon. After a disappointing rookie year, I still haven’t lost faith in Mixon. We all know Marvin Lewis doesn’t know how to properly use rookies, and with Jeremy Hill gone, I think Mixon improves greatly in 2018. The dynasty community is still abuzz over Joe Mixon because of the tremendous upside he brings to the table. Joe Mixon is currently going in the 3rd round around guys like Alex Collins and Derrius Guice, Mixon has much more upside than either of those players. While Mixon may never be the perennial 3-down back with Gio and Mark Walton in town, how many RBs are? I’ll take a two down grinder who is also a receiving threat in the 3rd round any day.

The Browns RBs (Carlos Hyde, Duke Johnson, Nick Chubb)

After the Browns acquired Hyde I was all aboard the Carlos Hype train. A top 10 RB coming into an RB needy system? Sign me up. After gaining over 1,800 yards and 14 TDs on the ground the past two seasons in San Francisco, the 49ers cut ties with the veteran back. After the Browns signed Hyde to a 3 year $15 million deal they drafted Nick Chubb in the 2nd round. Nick Chubb has the skill set to be a two-down back in the NFL for years to come. So when it comes to Browns RBs this year I would lean Hyde getting the bulk of the carries and being an RB2 for most of the year, but at the end of the day the only player I want from the Browns backfield is tried and true PPR machine Duke Johnson in the 9th round. The 24-year-old back saw 93 targets last season with the Browns. With Tyrod’s history of dumping the ball off to his running backs don’t be surprised if Duke Johnson sees over 100 targets this year.

Alex Collins (BAL)

Alex Collins finished last year as an RB2 and won many people fantasy championships. Be very cautious of Collins this year, his average draft position (ADP) is 4.02 which is the highest he should ever be drafted. If he climbs into the 3rd round Collins will likely disappoint. Kenneth Dixon is a late-round sleeper to keep your eye on. After a suspension and an injury, head coach Jim Harbough still believes in the talent of the former 4th round pick. With Alex Collins being on his final year of a cheap contract don’t be surprised to see the Ravens take a running back by committee approach in 2018. A job Kenneth Dixon is more than capable of winning.

Wide Receiver’s

Antonio Brown (PIT)

Draft him. Antonio Brown is one of the greatest receivers of all time so don’t think twice before drafting him. Brown’s number two JuJu is also an intriguing player. The Steelers are going to put up points, a lot of points. So I want as many pieces of this offense as possible. JuJu Smith-Shuster is going mid 4th round in redraft leagues, around guys like Golden Tate and Alshon Jeffery. If JuJu is your WR2 you are putting yourself in a good position to win a championship. No one else in the 4th round has a higher ceiling than JuJu.

AJ Green, Bengals WR2 (CIN)

AJ Green is either injured or a WR1 in fantasy football. Green started his career with five consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. He then posted 964 yards in only 10 games in 2016. Coming off his injury AJ Green eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark again last season adding 8 receiving TDs. Going at the end of the 2nd what more can you ask for? AJ Green has played in four full seasons, in those seasons his PPR finishes are 4,4,7 and 11th. Draft AJG at the end of the 2nd round. Thank me later.

The Bengals second option at the wideout position is murky. Will it be Brandon LaFell? Tyler Boyd? If I had to take a chance on another Cincinnati WR it would be John Ross. The Bengals spent the 9th overall pick on Ross last season, then appeared to give up on him. Some reports suggested Ross was injured, maybe he’s a bust. Either way, 4.22 speed is the big play upside you want in deep leagues this year.

Michael Crabtree and John Brown (BAL)

I am not a fan of the Baltimore WR corp for obvious reasons. Michael Crabtree in the 6th round is not a price I am willing to pay. Not after the failed Jeremy Maclin signing last offseason. Crabtree seems to be TD or bust and on a below average scoring offense. I would much rather take a late round flier on underrated John Brown. Brown is three years removed from his lone 1,000-yard season, his injury problems kept him off the field for the majority of his last two seasons. If he can stay healthy John Brown will be waiver wire gold this year.

Josh Gordon and Jarvis Landry (CLE)

Jarvis Landry received 161 targets last season in Miami. The Cleveland Browns only completed 312 passes last season. You do the math. While Landry’s future looks bright in Cleveland it may take a year or two for him to shine. I’m willing to take a chance on him with a 6th round pick but expect market share and TD regression of Landry this season.

The other big name in Cleveland is Josh Gordon. Currently going in the 3rd round of redrafts the 27-year old seems to finally have his head on straight. After breaking into the league as the number 2 overall fantasy WR, Flash faced a suspension that almost ended his career. This is his redemption story, what will he do with it? With an inefficient offense like the Browns, I can see one of these WRs being a top 15 guy. Which one? My money is on Josh Gordon. In the final year of his contract look for Josh Gordon to make a lot of noise on the field in Cleveland this year.

Tight End’s

Tyler Eifert (CIN)

After his top 10 TE performance in 2015 Eifert has had injuries hold him back. Playing in only 10 games the past two seasons combined, the injury risk is very high with Eifert.  Currently going in the 13th round of PPR drafts Eifert is the perfect TE dart throw with top 5 upside.

David Njoku (CLE)

Every rookie TE can’t be Evan Engram. Njoku was top of his class coming into the league and I still believe he can produce. Njoku only saw around 50% of offensive snaps last season, with that going up and QBs who love to target the TE, look for David Njoku to breakout in 2018.

Vance McDonald (PIT)

My favorite late round TE of 2018 is Vance McDonald. The Steelers brought him in to be an offensive playmaker last offseason, but injuries prevented that from happening. The offseason reports are good thus far for Vance McDonald, keep an eye out on this explosive TE. With the current ADP of 14.03, he may be the late round TE you need to seal a championship.

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