Earlier this month I listed Jimmy Graham as a potential sleeper in your 2016 fantasy draft. After further review, Graham may not be worth the risk for your fantasy roster. If we were basing this on his potential, Graham would be flying off of the fantasy shelves, but fantasy football is a game of production and Grahams may not be that high for this season. Personally, I am avoiding Graham in all of my drafts as there is great depth in many of the later rounds.
Jimmy Graham. Photo by Mike Morris
Graham is 29 years old and is reaching the proverbial year 30 of life, this significantly drops the value of the once great fantasy Tight-End. It is hard to believe that Graham will reach the number one spot of Tight-Ends. He is coming off a major knee injury which some might even rank worse than an ACL tear. During a Week 12 game against the Steelers he ruptured his right patellar tendon and did not return to the game. If you want an idea of how significant the injury is, take a look at Victor Cruz. He was once an elite NFL wide receiver but has not fully recovered for the usual recovery for an injury like this is typically a year but Graham was able to recover in 8-months.
Graham may not be able to have the same production value, as he wasn’t getting the same amount of red zone targets and touchdowns he did on the Saints. He lost a lot of his targets and touchdowns to back up Luke Wilson.
At this point, I have Jimmy Graham as a low TE2, even without the injury, he was very inconsistent in the Seahawks offense. He pulled down two touchdowns in his first 3 starts but did not show up in the next 8 games as he did not have a touchdown after that. I would avoid Graham at all cost as he value and production are on the low end for me.
Coby Fleener: This year I am taking Coby Fleener in all of my fantasy leagues and I will tell you why. Fleener is joining a New Orleans Saints offense in which most Tight Ends are able to flourish. Coby Fleener was held back during his time with the Colts due to split time with Dwayne Allen. He was never able to show his full talent.
With Fantasy owners jumping out at the chance to own bigger names such as Gronk and Reed, Fleener might be a huge value in late rounds. Fleener is a TE1 and if you can also draft Brees would make for a great combo.
Last year in the Saints offense, the number one Tight End Target, Ben Watson had pretty solid numbers. Hauling in 74 catches on 109 targets for 825 yards were all career highs. Watson also scored 6 touchdowns which was his best mark since his time with the New England Patriots. Placing Fleener is the same position as Watson with a lot more intangibles will make for great production this season from a fantasy standpoint.
