In this article series, I’m analyzing every one of the 32 NFL teams and all of their redraft-relevant fantasy assets. It’s a long project, but I want to make sure that you, the reader, have something you can refer to for every team. For each article, I’ll split up the fantasy assets into three categories: high-end assets, usable contributors, and dart throws. I’ll reference my PPR redraft rankings at the time of writing, which are here. If you want to read my previous work in this series, the full list with links is at the bottom of the article. Let’s jump into the Panthers.
High-End Assets
Christian McCaffrey
McCaffrey needs no introduction considering what he’s done in fantasy football over the last three years. In PPR formats, where he excels the most, he’s been the RB10, RB2, and RB1 in his three seasons. In 2019, he scored 150 more PPR points than RB2, Aaron Jones, and almost 100 points more than Michael Thomas. He’s never missed a game in his three-year career, so he’s one of the most durable running backs in the league.
Somehow, McCaffrey has 303 receptions in his three seasons in the NFL, averaging 101 receptions per season. He broke the 1000-1000 barrier in 2019 with 1387 rushing yards and 1005 receiving yards. McCaffrey is a special player, and the Panthers rewarded him with a 4-year, $64 million extension with $30 million guaranteed. He’s now the highest-paid running back in the league, and he deserves every penny of that deal.Â
You cannot miss taking McCaffrey at 1.01 overall in your redraft leagues, no matter the format. While he’s even more valuable in PPR leagues, he’s the top pick even in standard or half PPR leagues. Unfortunately, you will only get him if you have that top overall pick. For the first time in recent years, the number one pick isn’t a conversation. It’s McCaffrey alone at the top.
D.J. Moore
Moore fully broke out in 2019 after a promising 2018 rookie year. In 2018, he caught 55 of 82 targets for 788 yards and two touchdowns. He also added 13 carries for 172 yards. While he only finished as the WR36, the Panthers and fantasy owners expected a big step forward in Year 2.
Despite the Panthers’ poor quarterback play in 2019 from Cam Newton, Kyle Allen, and Will Grier, Moore flourished. He had 87 receptions on 135 targets for 1,175 yards and four touchdowns, and he finished just behind McCaffrey in targets and led the Panthers in receiving yards. Moore was the WR16 in 2019 in 15 games and averaged 15.4 PPR points per game, 16th among wide receivers.
Going into 2020, the Panthers signed quarterback Teddy Bridgewater in free agency to a 3-year, $63 million contract. While I don’t think Bridgewater is a great quarterback, either in real-life or for fantasy football, I believe he can improve on what the Panthers had in 2019. The Panthers did bring in Robby Anderson in free agency, but they also gave 58 targets to Jarius Wright in 2019, so I don’t expect Moore’s volume to drop much based on Anderson’s signing.Â
Moore just turned 23 years old in April, so he could conceivably develop further into a star wide receiver. I expect the Panthers’ offense to focus on funneling volume to McCaffrey and Moore once again in 2020, allowing Moore to thrive. I don’t have Moore as a top-tier WR option, but he’s my WR11 and 27th overall player. Given what he’s done so far, I think it’s a fair ranking. If I began a draft with two running backs, I would be happy to grab Moore as my WR1 and third player on my fantasy team.
Usable Contributors
Oddly enough, I don’t have anyone from the Panthers’ entire team that fits into this category for me. I think they’re one of the most top-heavy offenses in the league. I love McCaffrey and Moore, but I don’t want anyone else on their team. There are simply too many other players on what I expect to be a relatively low-volume passing attack.
Dart Throws
Robby Anderson
Anderson previously played for the Jets before signing with the Panthers in free agency, which I broke down here. Anderson had a career year in 2017, finishing as the WR17. However, he disappointed in both 2018 and 2019, finishing as the WR37 and WR41, respectively.Â
On those Jets’ teams, Anderson was considered the top receiver, if not the top receiving weapon. Now, Anderson is at best the third option, behind two target hogs in McCaffrey and Moore. Also, Bridgewater is a terrible quarterback for Anderson, since Anderson plays in a downfield role. Bridgewater is a checkdown machine, so he’ll prefer to use McCaffrey and Moore even more, as they excel in the short area of the field.
Even in 2019, Curtis Samuel was nothing special as the WR36. Now, that role has split between Anderson and Samuel, and I want nothing to do with either player. Since the Panthers gave Anderson $12 million in guaranteed money, I give a slight edge to Anderson over Samuel. Anderson comes in as my WR55, and I doubt I’ll have any Anderson shares at that ranking. I think that the only important thing Anderson will do in 2020 will be reducing Moore’s touchdown upside.
Curtis Samuel
You can copy and paste everything I said about Anderson and apply it to Samuel. The Panthers were disappointed in Samuel’s 2019 performance. He caught 54 of 105 targets for 627 yards and six touchdowns. Even though he had poor quarterback play, that’s not a blanket excuse, as Moore excelled with the same quarterbacks.
After the Panthers decided to bring in Anderson in free agency, it’s clear they don’t see Samuel in their long-term plans. They’re going to need to pay D.J. Moore shortly, and Samuel’s contract expires after 2020. I think Samuel has had his chances, and he will get fewer in 2020. I have him as WR61, and I don’t expect him to be fantasy-relevant in 2020.
Ian Thomas
I can certainly see the case for Thomas in 2020. Greg Olsen left behind an 82 target role and finished as the TE13 in 2019. In parts of 2018 and 2019, Thomas filled in for Olsen, catching 52 of 79 targets for 469 yards and three touchdowns. He’s undoubtedly flashed talent and is the starting tight end for the team.
However, Thomas is relatively unproven. He hasn’t played any extended stretches as the Panthers’ starter and is on a crowded offense. Therefore, I prefer other tight ends in the later rounds for their superior upside. Thomas comes in as my TE19, just outside my range of draftable tight ends. I think I’ll have to wait for him to produce for fantasy before picking him up off waivers.
Teddy Bridgewater
I’ve talked about Bridgewater at length when discussing all the other players in the Panthers’ offense. The Panthers gave Bridgewater $63 million and locked themselves into his contract through 2021. Therefore, they’re committed to him as their starter. However, just because the Panthers are happy with Bridgewater doesn’t mean that he’s going to be good for fantasy football.
In 2019, Bridgewater started five games for the Saints, going 5-0. However, he averaged only 17.1 fantasy points per game, even in the Saints’ high-powered system. For comparison, Drew Brees averaged 20.8 fantasy points per game with the same offense. In Bridgewater’s two previous years as a starter in 2014 and 2015, he finished as the QB22 and QB23. He threw for only 14 touchdowns in each season and provided little to no fantasy upside.
Even though Bridgewater has excellent weapons in Carolina, so did Kyle Allen in 2019. Allen averaged a horrific 13.8 fantasy points per game and was the QB28. Until Bridgewater proves to me that he’s a solid fantasy quarterback, I have to believe that he won’t be. Allen didn’t do it in 2019, and Bridgewater has never been fantasy-relevant in his career. Therefore, Bridgewater is my QB24 in my rankings.
Backup RBs
In 2019, McCaffrey took almost all the snaps for the Panthers at running back. Reggie Bonnafon led the backups with 16 carries for 116 yards and a touchdown. Jordan Scarlett and Mike Davis chipped in four and two carries, respectively. The Panthers didn’t add anybody at running back, so these three players remain as McCaffrey’s irrelevant backups.Â
I assume that Bonnafon would get the first crack in case McCaffrey went down, but I wouldn’t bother to draft him. I think McCaffrey is excellent because he’s an exceptional talent, not because of the Panthers’ offense. Since McCaffrey has never missed a game, I’d only worry about his backups if that seems like a real possibility.
Thanks for reading this article. You can find me on Twitter at @DFF_Karp. I love to interact with anyone in the community, so reach out at any time! I take fantasy questions and help with all formats, so keep sending those questions my way.
Previous Redraft Team Focus Articles: Giants, Cardinals, Titans, Bills, Saints, Steelers, Vikings, Chiefs, Cowboys, 49ers, Texans, Jets
