Well, wow. Losing Arian Foster for at least half a season two weeks ago was shocking enough. Losing Kelvin Benjamin for the year is a fantasy earthquake. It's not only his absence that matters, but the ripple effect it has on the fantasy universe. For example:
- Cam Newton takes a hit, as he loses his clear-cut #1 WR, with no one on the roster or in free agency who can come close to Kelvin's upside. He might run the ball more. But he can't compensate for the loss of nine Kelvin TDs.
- Greg Olsen gets a bump as Cam's #1 target. He caught 84 balls last year and probably will clear 100. In PPR, he moves close to Rob Gronkowski in the rankings. Talk about an impact.
- David Funchess gets a bump as the new #1 WR in Carolina. He comes to the NFL with a lot of upside and a lot of downside. He's moved up to 51st on my WR list--worth a late-round flier given his top 35 WR upside.
- Philly Brown and Ted Ginn likely will battle for the #2 job, giving one of them top 50 WR potential, though we shouldn't expect too much at this point.
- Jericho Cotchery is getting old. If somehow he wins a starting job, sure, treat him like a WR5. Stranger things have happened.
- Jonathan Stewart takes a hit. Outside of Olsen, Kelvin was the Panthers' best chain mover last season. We'll see fewer first downs and fewer red zone opportunities, lowering Stewart's TD cap.
- Cameron Artis-Payne takes a small hit. Even if he plays a meaningful role this year, as stated with Stewart, touchdowns will be few and far between.
- The Panthers DST takes a hit. Fewer first downs means the defense will be on the field more often, giving opponents more scoring opportunities. This unit is now outside my top 10 and off the top 250 page.
- Giants and Falcons DSTs face Carolina in the all-important weeks 15 and 16. We're talking about the fantasy playoffs. There might not be an easier matchup by that point, making the Giants and Falcons two streaming DSTs to target around weeks 12 or 13 if you have the bench space.
- Cam Newton takes a hit, as he loses his clear-cut #1 WR, with no one on the roster or in free agency who can come close to Kelvin's upside. He might run the ball more. But he can't compensate for the loss of nine Kelvin TDs.
- Greg Olsen gets a bump as Cam's #1 target. He caught 84 balls last year and probably will clear 100. In PPR, he moves close to Rob Gronkowski in the rankings. Talk about an impact.
- David Funchess gets a bump as the new #1 WR in Carolina. He comes to the NFL with a lot of upside and a lot of downside. He's moved up to 51st on my WR list--worth a late-round flier given his top 35 WR upside.
- Philly Brown and Ted Ginn likely will battle for the #2 job, giving one of them top 50 WR potential, though we shouldn't expect too much at this point.
- Jericho Cotchery is getting old. If somehow he wins a starting job, sure, treat him like a WR5. Stranger things have happened.
- Jonathan Stewart takes a hit. Outside of Olsen, Kelvin was the Panthers' best chain mover last season. We'll see fewer first downs and fewer red zone opportunities, lowering Stewart's TD cap.
- Cameron Artis-Payne takes a small hit. Even if he plays a meaningful role this year, as stated with Stewart, touchdowns will be few and far between.
- The Panthers DST takes a hit. Fewer first downs means the defense will be on the field more often, giving opponents more scoring opportunities. This unit is now outside my top 10 and off the top 250 page.
- Giants and Falcons DSTs face Carolina in the all-important weeks 15 and 16. We're talking about the fantasy playoffs. There might not be an easier matchup by that point, making the Giants and Falcons two streaming DSTs to target around weeks 12 or 13 if you have the bench space.