Fantasy Football Player Notes

Even with DeAndre Hopkins on the field, Fuller has totaled 116 targets in 18 games over the last two years (6.4 per game), which is more than enough to do damage, especially when you've averaged 14.3 yards per reception over your career. Fuller's volume will be there when he's in the lineup, as Hopkins' 150-plus targets have to go somewhere, and Fuller is the only one returning to the starting lineup who has any familiarity with Deshaun Watson. You must understand the nature of his game before drafting him though. He's finished with fewer than 8.0 PPR points in 20-of-42 career games. He's also finished with more than 20.0 PPR points in nine games. He's been the definition of a boom-or-bust receiver, and one who's been hurt a lot (missed 22 games over four years). Still, with Hopkins gone, Fuller should see a bump in targets and become a bit more stable. If he's healthy, you should have zero issue plugging him in as your WR3 with top-10 upside. You're getting a discount due to his health concerns.

There have been just nine wide receivers who've finished as a top-24 receiver in at least four of the last five years. Julio Jones, Mike Evans, Jarvis Landry, Michael Thomas, DeAndre Hopkins, Antonio Brown, Davante Adams, Amari Cooper, and... Cooks. He's done that with three different quarterbacks, and it's hard to say Deshaun Watson is a downgrade. The lack of offseason might prove to be a lot for the chemistry between the two, but knowing Cooks has transitioned well in the past, it shouldn't take too long. Concussions, on the other hand, are a big worrisome point. He only missed two games due to concussions in 2019, but they're starting to add up. It also affected his performance (clearly) in a big way, as he never topped 46 yards in the six games following the injury. There's going to be one of Will Fuller or Cooks who shines as a top-30 receiver with top-20 upside, yet neither are being drafted there. Knowing Cooks has been in this situation before, he gets a vote of confidence. If you land him as your WR4, you should be psyched. If Fuller misses any time, he'd be a must-play WR2 nearly every week.

Remember how many people were fading Cobb last year, saying he'd passed his prime and wanted nothing to do with him now that he was separated from Aaron Rodgers? He went on to post his most yardage since 2015. Granted, it took him 83 targets to get there, but he showed that he was capable. Deshaun Watson hasn't been a quarterback to target his slot receivers a whole lot, but he's never had a possession-style on like Cobb, and he's never played without DeAndre Hopkins. Will things change? It's certainly within the realm of possibilities. The issue is that Keke Coutee and Kenny Stills are also solid slot receivers who can fill that role, if needed. My issue with Cobb is... what's the upside? Cole Beasley-type numbers from last year? He even finished as the No. 34 wide receiver, but was any fantasy owner excited to put him in their lineup? Maybe during bye weeks but that's about it. He's just a WR5-type option to me, and one who lacks upside.

Stills wasn't heavily involved last year after a preseason trade to the Texans, and he missed three games do to injuries. But he did rank seventh in the league in yards per target and had the fourth highest catch rate (72.7%) among wide receivers. Although DeAndre Hopkins is gone, the Texans added Brandin Cooks and Randall Cobb, so it's unlikely that Stills will suddenly have an important role on the team. Given that he's never had more than 63 catches or 931 yards receiving, it's unlikely that he'll be worth rostering this season.