Fantasy Football: Biggest Studs and Duds of 2013
Dear editor, please ensure this is co-authored by Lucas Karr and Cooper Allen.
With most regular season fantasy football pools coming to an end in Week 16, Cooper and Lucas are changing things up for their final studs and duds piece of 2013. Each week they have broken down who they think will do well and who will not reach expectations. Now, they will stick with that theme, but focus on the entire season.
A variety of different players exceeded expectations this year and just as many failed to live up to them. In this piece, we will highlight the players at the top of these categories and hand out awards for the biggest studs and duds of the season.
Without further ado, here are your 2013 fantasy football studs and duds.
With most regular season fantasy football pools coming to an end in Week 16, Cooper and Lucas are changing things up for their final studs and duds piece of 2013. Each week they have broken down who they think will do well and who will not reach expectations. Now, they will stick with that theme, but focus on the entire season.
A variety of different players exceeded expectations this year and just as many failed to live up to them. In this piece, we will highlight the players at the top of these categories and hand out awards for the biggest studs and duds of the season.
Without further ado, here are your 2013 fantasy football studs and duds.
Cooper: Nick Foles
One of the biggest waiver wire pickups of the year was Philadelphia quarterback Nick Foles, who replaced Michael Vick in Week 6. After injuring himself in Week 7, he returned again in Week 9 and never looked back.
Through nine starts this season, Foles is averaging nearly 300 yards and three touchdowns per games while only throwing two interceptions. He has been able to put up points on the ground as well, rushing for over 200 yards and finding the end zone three times.
Despite starting seven less games than most players, he scored the 12th most fantasy points among all quarterbacks, ahead of the likes of Tom Brady and Colin Kaepernick. The Eagles are in good hands if Foles can continue to play the way he has been.
Lucas: Philip Rivers
Entering 2013 Rivers was coming off of a pair of bad seasons and was slipping into low-end QB2 territory. Rivers didn’t have many guys to throw to after the Chargers dealt with one injury after another to their wide receiving core, and Antonio Gates age plus the lack of a run game prior to this year seemed to mean another bad year for Rivers.
Well, I got that one all wrong. Rivers burst back onto the scene in 2013, especially early on. He had at least 400 yards in three of his first five games and at least three scores in three of those games as well. Until a week 16 match-up with the Raiders he scored at least 12 points per game and had numerous games over 35. Rivers was one of the steals of the draft.
One of the biggest waiver wire pickups of the year was Philadelphia quarterback Nick Foles, who replaced Michael Vick in Week 6. After injuring himself in Week 7, he returned again in Week 9 and never looked back.
Through nine starts this season, Foles is averaging nearly 300 yards and three touchdowns per games while only throwing two interceptions. He has been able to put up points on the ground as well, rushing for over 200 yards and finding the end zone three times.
Despite starting seven less games than most players, he scored the 12th most fantasy points among all quarterbacks, ahead of the likes of Tom Brady and Colin Kaepernick. The Eagles are in good hands if Foles can continue to play the way he has been.
Lucas: Philip Rivers
Entering 2013 Rivers was coming off of a pair of bad seasons and was slipping into low-end QB2 territory. Rivers didn’t have many guys to throw to after the Chargers dealt with one injury after another to their wide receiving core, and Antonio Gates age plus the lack of a run game prior to this year seemed to mean another bad year for Rivers.
Well, I got that one all wrong. Rivers burst back onto the scene in 2013, especially early on. He had at least 400 yards in three of his first five games and at least three scores in three of those games as well. Until a week 16 match-up with the Raiders he scored at least 12 points per game and had numerous games over 35. Rivers was one of the steals of the draft.
Quarterback Duds
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Lucas: Eli Manning
When the Giants won the Super Bowl twice in only a handful of years, I gave no credit to Eli Manning. He played with some of the best defenses in the league and a ground game that could eat up the clock and take pressure off of him. This year he was missing both of those aspects and the true Eli Manning showed up.
Manning was taken before my stud at the position and proved to be nothing more than a bad bye-week filler. I couldn’t even trust Manning to have a good game against a bad defense. Excluding week one of the year, Eli Manning NEVER surpassed 20 fantasy points in a game…..not once. His brother only had 3 games below 20 points. Ouch.
Cooper: Matt Ryan
From certain individuals to the team as a whole, the Atlanta Falcons have been nothing short of disappointing this season. This group was supposed to contend for the Super Bowl and many predicted that Matt Ryan would have a breakout year.
It has been a lot of the opposite, however. Ryan was barely able to crack the top 15 in terms of fantasy points scored by a quarterback. He surpassed the 4,000-yard mark again, but has thrown only 24 touchdowns while turning the ball over 20 times.
For a guy who many considered to be a fantasy draft steal at the beginning of the year, he certainly has not lived up to expectations.
When the Giants won the Super Bowl twice in only a handful of years, I gave no credit to Eli Manning. He played with some of the best defenses in the league and a ground game that could eat up the clock and take pressure off of him. This year he was missing both of those aspects and the true Eli Manning showed up.
Manning was taken before my stud at the position and proved to be nothing more than a bad bye-week filler. I couldn’t even trust Manning to have a good game against a bad defense. Excluding week one of the year, Eli Manning NEVER surpassed 20 fantasy points in a game…..not once. His brother only had 3 games below 20 points. Ouch.
Cooper: Matt Ryan
From certain individuals to the team as a whole, the Atlanta Falcons have been nothing short of disappointing this season. This group was supposed to contend for the Super Bowl and many predicted that Matt Ryan would have a breakout year.
It has been a lot of the opposite, however. Ryan was barely able to crack the top 15 in terms of fantasy points scored by a quarterback. He surpassed the 4,000-yard mark again, but has thrown only 24 touchdowns while turning the ball over 20 times.
For a guy who many considered to be a fantasy draft steal at the beginning of the year, he certainly has not lived up to expectations.
Cooper: Joique Bell
It was tempting to go with a guy like Eddie Lacy or DeMarco Murray as both men had solid seasons and were reliable in the RB2 spot and maybe even as a RB1 to some. Both of them were drafted usually in the middle rounds, however, and had expectations to be starting calibre players.
A man that was supposed to be a bench/depth pick in deep leagues and went undrafted in some of the smaller leagues, however, was Joique Bell. He came into the year with fairly low expectations as a backup to Reggie Bush in Detroit.
The Lions used both running backs throughout the season and each of them finished in the top 15 among fantasy backs. Bell was able to find the end zone eight times and had over 1,100 combined yards. His 164.18 fantasy points are more than those of Alfred Morris, Maurice Jones-Drew and Ray Rice. Not bad for a guy who was in very few, if any starting lineups in Week 1.
Lucas: Knowshon Moreno
I literally laughed out loud when I saw Moreno go in the fourth round of our re-draft. Moreno seemed to be about third on the depth chart for a pass-heavy team. He wasn’t even on my radar. But blocking for Peyton Manning is one of the only things that matter in Denver, and Moreno was the best of the trio at that.
He got off to a slow start in two of his first three games, but then hit the ground running and never looked back. With over 1500 total yards and a dozen scores, he has easily surpassed his best years in the league and has nearly doubled the combined output of 2011 and 2012 in one year! Owners have to be very happy with any risk they took on this “flyer”.
It was tempting to go with a guy like Eddie Lacy or DeMarco Murray as both men had solid seasons and were reliable in the RB2 spot and maybe even as a RB1 to some. Both of them were drafted usually in the middle rounds, however, and had expectations to be starting calibre players.
A man that was supposed to be a bench/depth pick in deep leagues and went undrafted in some of the smaller leagues, however, was Joique Bell. He came into the year with fairly low expectations as a backup to Reggie Bush in Detroit.
The Lions used both running backs throughout the season and each of them finished in the top 15 among fantasy backs. Bell was able to find the end zone eight times and had over 1,100 combined yards. His 164.18 fantasy points are more than those of Alfred Morris, Maurice Jones-Drew and Ray Rice. Not bad for a guy who was in very few, if any starting lineups in Week 1.
Lucas: Knowshon Moreno
I literally laughed out loud when I saw Moreno go in the fourth round of our re-draft. Moreno seemed to be about third on the depth chart for a pass-heavy team. He wasn’t even on my radar. But blocking for Peyton Manning is one of the only things that matter in Denver, and Moreno was the best of the trio at that.
He got off to a slow start in two of his first three games, but then hit the ground running and never looked back. With over 1500 total yards and a dozen scores, he has easily surpassed his best years in the league and has nearly doubled the combined output of 2011 and 2012 in one year! Owners have to be very happy with any risk they took on this “flyer”.
Lucas: Trent Richardson
Richardson was the number six player on my draft board going into the season. When he moved from the Brown to the Colts I liked him even more. But whether it was the change of scenery or just a lack of talent, T-Rich was a huge flop this year. Richardson didn’t finish in the top 35 at the position which means he wasn’t even good enough to start on most fantasy squads.
Richardson is averaging less than 3.0 yards per carry on the year. He has no burst and cannot break tackles. In just one short season he went from a super start to a complete bust. He might be the saddest player on this list.
Cooper: C.J. Spiller
It is hard not to like C.J. Spiller. I love watching this guy play as he can make big things happen almost every time the ball is in his hands. It is hard to ignore him as one of the bigger running back duds of the year, though. There was a ton of hype surrounding him prior to the season after he broke out in 2012.
He was a first-round pick in the majority of fantasy drafts and was supposed to be a reliable RB1 for his owners. That is not something he has been able to live up to in 2013. He has battled an injury, but he has still played and has not put up the numbers people expected him to.
Spiller has just 979 total yards and two touchdowns on the year, which is down from the 1,703 yards and eight scores he had a year ago. Anytime a first-round pick falls outside of the top 25 in terms of production, then it is safe to call him a dud.
Richardson was the number six player on my draft board going into the season. When he moved from the Brown to the Colts I liked him even more. But whether it was the change of scenery or just a lack of talent, T-Rich was a huge flop this year. Richardson didn’t finish in the top 35 at the position which means he wasn’t even good enough to start on most fantasy squads.
Richardson is averaging less than 3.0 yards per carry on the year. He has no burst and cannot break tackles. In just one short season he went from a super start to a complete bust. He might be the saddest player on this list.
Cooper: C.J. Spiller
It is hard not to like C.J. Spiller. I love watching this guy play as he can make big things happen almost every time the ball is in his hands. It is hard to ignore him as one of the bigger running back duds of the year, though. There was a ton of hype surrounding him prior to the season after he broke out in 2012.
He was a first-round pick in the majority of fantasy drafts and was supposed to be a reliable RB1 for his owners. That is not something he has been able to live up to in 2013. He has battled an injury, but he has still played and has not put up the numbers people expected him to.
Spiller has just 979 total yards and two touchdowns on the year, which is down from the 1,703 yards and eight scores he had a year ago. Anytime a first-round pick falls outside of the top 25 in terms of production, then it is safe to call him a dud.
Cooper: Alshon Jeffery
The future is looking very bright for the NFL at the wide receiver position. As players like Andre Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald get older, a new breed of talent has come along and is starting to take over.
After playing in just 10 games during his rookie year, resulting in only 367 total yards and three touchdowns, few people had Alshon Jeffery on their fantasy radar. He has stayed healthy this year, though, and is developing into one of the better wideouts in football.
Statistically, he has outperformed his own teammate in Brandon Marshall. That is by no means a knock on Marshall, but a tribute to how good Jeffery has been in 2013. Both of the Bears receivers are in the top 10 among fantasy point producers at their position. Marshall comes in a No. 7 and Jeffery is just ahead of him at No. 6 with 192.60 points.
Alshon has gone from being a late-round fantasy pick, to a legitimate WR1 or WR2. If that is not a stud then I am not sure what is.
Lucas: Josh Gordon
Going into the season Gordon was on my do not draft list. He had already been suspended once, for the first two games of the season, and he was a mistake away from possibly facing a season-long suspension. Plus, the dude plays for one of the worst teams in the league with no decent quarterback throwing the ball. Well, apparently no one told that to Josh Gordon.
Gordon easily leads the league in fantasy scoring among wide receivers. I can’t imagine what this guy could do with Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers throwing him the ball. He is making Jason Campbell look like a legit quarterback, something that is not easy to do.
Gordon deserves a huge payday
and should be an example to those guys who are faced with similar situation that putting football first and working hard at it can provide huge dividends.
The future is looking very bright for the NFL at the wide receiver position. As players like Andre Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald get older, a new breed of talent has come along and is starting to take over.
After playing in just 10 games during his rookie year, resulting in only 367 total yards and three touchdowns, few people had Alshon Jeffery on their fantasy radar. He has stayed healthy this year, though, and is developing into one of the better wideouts in football.
Statistically, he has outperformed his own teammate in Brandon Marshall. That is by no means a knock on Marshall, but a tribute to how good Jeffery has been in 2013. Both of the Bears receivers are in the top 10 among fantasy point producers at their position. Marshall comes in a No. 7 and Jeffery is just ahead of him at No. 6 with 192.60 points.
Alshon has gone from being a late-round fantasy pick, to a legitimate WR1 or WR2. If that is not a stud then I am not sure what is.
Lucas: Josh Gordon
Going into the season Gordon was on my do not draft list. He had already been suspended once, for the first two games of the season, and he was a mistake away from possibly facing a season-long suspension. Plus, the dude plays for one of the worst teams in the league with no decent quarterback throwing the ball. Well, apparently no one told that to Josh Gordon.
Gordon easily leads the league in fantasy scoring among wide receivers. I can’t imagine what this guy could do with Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers throwing him the ball. He is making Jason Campbell look like a legit quarterback, something that is not easy to do.
Gordon deserves a huge payday
and should be an example to those guys who are faced with similar situation that putting football first and working hard at it can provide huge dividends.
Lucas: Lance Moore
I had this as a tie between Moore and Roddy White, but decided the factors for White were enough to give him a pass.
Lance Moore had a solid 2012 season where he posted over 100 yards and six scores. He had reached the six score or more mark in three straight seasons and it seemed he would be a nice WR2 with Brees throwing the ball a lot and Coach Peyton calling the shots. Thru 16 weeks he has only 384 yards and has only found the end-zone ONCE all year. With a ton of talent around him, Moore should have been seeing single coverage all day. It seems this is likely a sign of thing to come for Moore.
Cooper: Steve Johnson
When the fantasy football season kicked off, I avoided Steve Johnson like the plague. The quarterback situation was just too big of a mess in Buffalo and he is not the type of receiver to consistently make big plays out of nothing.
Other people, however, drafted him in the middle rounds and were relying on him as either a WR2 or a solid flex play. He turned out to be neither, finishing outside of the top 50 among receivers with only 597 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
This is definitely a disappointment after three straight seasons of at least 1,000 yards and six scores. Although he has missed a few games this year, his numbers in the games he did play were not what most owners expected.
I had this as a tie between Moore and Roddy White, but decided the factors for White were enough to give him a pass.
Lance Moore had a solid 2012 season where he posted over 100 yards and six scores. He had reached the six score or more mark in three straight seasons and it seemed he would be a nice WR2 with Brees throwing the ball a lot and Coach Peyton calling the shots. Thru 16 weeks he has only 384 yards and has only found the end-zone ONCE all year. With a ton of talent around him, Moore should have been seeing single coverage all day. It seems this is likely a sign of thing to come for Moore.
Cooper: Steve Johnson
When the fantasy football season kicked off, I avoided Steve Johnson like the plague. The quarterback situation was just too big of a mess in Buffalo and he is not the type of receiver to consistently make big plays out of nothing.
Other people, however, drafted him in the middle rounds and were relying on him as either a WR2 or a solid flex play. He turned out to be neither, finishing outside of the top 50 among receivers with only 597 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
This is definitely a disappointment after three straight seasons of at least 1,000 yards and six scores. Although he has missed a few games this year, his numbers in the games he did play were not what most owners expected.
Cooper: Jordan Cameron
Before I get into talking about how great Jordan Cameron has been this year, it is worth noting the season that Charles Clay has had in Miami. He has been a solid replacement for the injured Dustin Keller and his great performance has been overshadowed by the two tight ends Lucas and I are about to discuss.
Cameron has been one of two primary targets for the Browns, with wideout Josh Gordon being the other. It is incredible what these two have been able to do considering the state of the quarterback situation in Cleveland.
Gordon has lit up the league as Lucas mentioned and Cameron is right up there with the best players at his position as well. He trails only Jimmy Graham, Vernon Davis, Julius Thomas and Tony Gonzalez in fantasy points for tight ends and has been a pleasant surprise for anyone that took a late-round flyer on him.
Lucas: Julius Thomas
Thomas landed in the perfect storm this season in Denver. He was thrust into the starting line-up with the greatest quarterback of all time in a system that allows the tight end to see plenty of work. While Thomas essentially missed three games from injuries this year, that didn’t stop me from picking him as the tight end stud of the year.
Certainly based on ADP he was the steal of the draft for the tight end position. He scored in 10 of the 12 games he played in fully this year, which certainly pleased all of his owners. Manning liked to move the ball around, but in the red-zone Thomas was a beast. Don’t be surprised if he is the second tight end off of the board in 2014.
Before I get into talking about how great Jordan Cameron has been this year, it is worth noting the season that Charles Clay has had in Miami. He has been a solid replacement for the injured Dustin Keller and his great performance has been overshadowed by the two tight ends Lucas and I are about to discuss.
Cameron has been one of two primary targets for the Browns, with wideout Josh Gordon being the other. It is incredible what these two have been able to do considering the state of the quarterback situation in Cleveland.
Gordon has lit up the league as Lucas mentioned and Cameron is right up there with the best players at his position as well. He trails only Jimmy Graham, Vernon Davis, Julius Thomas and Tony Gonzalez in fantasy points for tight ends and has been a pleasant surprise for anyone that took a late-round flyer on him.
Lucas: Julius Thomas
Thomas landed in the perfect storm this season in Denver. He was thrust into the starting line-up with the greatest quarterback of all time in a system that allows the tight end to see plenty of work. While Thomas essentially missed three games from injuries this year, that didn’t stop me from picking him as the tight end stud of the year.
Certainly based on ADP he was the steal of the draft for the tight end position. He scored in 10 of the 12 games he played in fully this year, which certainly pleased all of his owners. Manning liked to move the ball around, but in the red-zone Thomas was a beast. Don’t be surprised if he is the second tight end off of the board in 2014.
Lucas: Gavin Escobar
The Dallas Cowboys drafted Escobar in the second round of the 2013 draft and it seemed they would play a lot of two tight end sets and utilize him often. At 6’6 and 250 pounds he and Witten would be an unstoppable combo. I loved his upside.
But then the Dallas Cowboys decided not to use him. He only saw 14 targets on the year in limited playing time despite being one of the ore athletic weapons on their offense. Maybe Tony Romo needs less of the blame for any errors the Cowboys have to overcome. If they aren’t even going to use the weapons they drafted for him then they deserve whatever they get.
Cooper: Brandon Pettigrew
I was originally leaning towards Antonio Gates for this award, but he started out strong, has had some good games and was not drafted as high this year as he has gone in years past. A guy who was drafted around the same area as him that did not have the same success is Brandon Pettigrew.
Even though Nate Burleson missed some time with an injury, the tight end’s numbers have been significantly worse than they have been in previous seasons. Stafford is starting to look away from him and is finding other targets such as Joseph Fauria and Kris Durham.
Pettigrew has only 416 receiving yards and two touchdowns to date, which are the lowest totals he has had in a season since his rookie year. He is not a huge dud considering where he was drafted, but he has not exactly been a good play for fantasy owners this year, either.
The Dallas Cowboys drafted Escobar in the second round of the 2013 draft and it seemed they would play a lot of two tight end sets and utilize him often. At 6’6 and 250 pounds he and Witten would be an unstoppable combo. I loved his upside.
But then the Dallas Cowboys decided not to use him. He only saw 14 targets on the year in limited playing time despite being one of the ore athletic weapons on their offense. Maybe Tony Romo needs less of the blame for any errors the Cowboys have to overcome. If they aren’t even going to use the weapons they drafted for him then they deserve whatever they get.
Cooper: Brandon Pettigrew
I was originally leaning towards Antonio Gates for this award, but he started out strong, has had some good games and was not drafted as high this year as he has gone in years past. A guy who was drafted around the same area as him that did not have the same success is Brandon Pettigrew.
Even though Nate Burleson missed some time with an injury, the tight end’s numbers have been significantly worse than they have been in previous seasons. Stafford is starting to look away from him and is finding other targets such as Joseph Fauria and Kris Durham.
Pettigrew has only 416 receiving yards and two touchdowns to date, which are the lowest totals he has had in a season since his rookie year. He is not a huge dud considering where he was drafted, but he has not exactly been a good play for fantasy owners this year, either.
Cooper Studs: 1 point
QB: Ryan Tannehill: 312 yards, 3 TDs, point
RB: Alfred Morris: 106 yards, TWO lost fumbles, no point
WR: Cecil Shorts: Out, no point
TE: Matthew Mulligan: nothing, no point
Cooper Duds: 1 point
QB: Andy Dalton: 250 yards, 2 TDs, no point
RB: Chris Johnson: 91 yards, TD, no point
WR: Brandon Marshall: 95 yards, 1 TD, no point
TE: Brandon Myers: 37 yards, 1 point
Lucas’ Studs: 2 points
QB: Nick Foles: 469 yards, 3 TDs, point
RB: Daniel Thomas: 18 yards, 1 TD, no point
WR: Keenan Allen: 29 yards, 2 TDs, point
TE: Dennis Pitta: 24 yards, no point
Lucas’ Duds: 3 points
QB: Andrew Luck: 180 yards, 2 TDs, 1 TO, point
RB: Le’Veon Bell: 107 yards, 1 TD, no point
WR: Victor Cruz: 25 yards, point
TE: Jared Cook: 8 yards, point
Week 15: Lucas 5, Cooper 2
2013: Lucas 49, Cooper 41
QB: Ryan Tannehill: 312 yards, 3 TDs, point
RB: Alfred Morris: 106 yards, TWO lost fumbles, no point
WR: Cecil Shorts: Out, no point
TE: Matthew Mulligan: nothing, no point
Cooper Duds: 1 point
QB: Andy Dalton: 250 yards, 2 TDs, no point
RB: Chris Johnson: 91 yards, TD, no point
WR: Brandon Marshall: 95 yards, 1 TD, no point
TE: Brandon Myers: 37 yards, 1 point
Lucas’ Studs: 2 points
QB: Nick Foles: 469 yards, 3 TDs, point
RB: Daniel Thomas: 18 yards, 1 TD, no point
WR: Keenan Allen: 29 yards, 2 TDs, point
TE: Dennis Pitta: 24 yards, no point
Lucas’ Duds: 3 points
QB: Andrew Luck: 180 yards, 2 TDs, 1 TO, point
RB: Le’Veon Bell: 107 yards, 1 TD, no point
WR: Victor Cruz: 25 yards, point
TE: Jared Cook: 8 yards, point
Week 15: Lucas 5, Cooper 2
2013: Lucas 49, Cooper 41
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