Fantasy Football Player Notes

Yes, the Browns just paid Hooper a lot of money. Yes, the Browns also picked up the fifth-year option on Njoku's contract, and then drafted a tight end in the fourth round. What a mess. This is a lot like the Vikings duo of Kyle Rudolph and Irv Smith last year. Don't forget that the Vikings paid Rudolph a lot of money (4 years, $36 million) just one year ago, after they had already drafted Smith. Do you know how that situation played out? Rudolph got 48 targets while Smith got 47 of them. The Vikings tight ends combined for 105 targets last year when you add in Tyler Conklin. Even if you want to weight them more towards Hooper, what are you looking at? A 55/40/10 between these three tight ends? The magic number for a tight end to be considered a TE1 is right around 80 projected targets. We cannot get there with Hooper. Njoku and his agent know that this is a bad situation and want out, but the Browns have said they're holding onto him because Stefanski loves to use two tight ends. The best-case scenario with Hooper is that he gets close to the 70-target mark and scores at least six touchdowns, though I don't see it happening. I'm staying away from this tight end unit unless some injuries arise. If Hooper or Njoku were to get hurt, the other would turn into an attractive option.

Not only did the Browns add Austin Hooper in free agency, but they decided to throw down a fourth-round pick on Harrison Bryant, another tight end to add to the mix. The Browns further hurt Njoku's value when they picked up the fifth-year option on his contract. He's in a bad place right now. All dynasty owners can hope is that he's traded.