Fantasy: 4 offenses you should avoid
Matt Williamson is a former scout for the Cleveland Browns, and spent the last 10 years at ESPN as a scout and co-host of "The Football Today Podcast."
In fantasy football, every player has a price. There's a point in the process for any player who is "draftable" where you eventually turn the card in to add them to your team. Of course, everyone values players differently, and there are many guys that more or less would never end up on your team in 100 tries.
A major determining factor when ranking players for fantasy is the offense they are a part of. Below are four you should avoid. That doesn't mean there isn't a breaking point for when you should select someone from these teams, but each one has shown danger signs for implosion. Also, while there might be plenty of "garbage time" production for these two teams, Cleveland and San Francisco were left off this list on purpose, as they were just too obvious (although the 49ers could end up with a ton of passing attempts).
Buffalo Bills
The Bills have a tough schedule, their best offensive player - Sammy Watkins - is recovering from foot surgery, and Karlos Williams has been suspended for the first four games of the season. What we are hearing now is that Watkins is on schedule with his recovery, and should be ready for Week 1.
But here is my concern: To me, this offense is just too Watkins-reliant, as the Bills lack anything else of substance at wide receiver. If he isn't himself - and we probably won't see him throughout the preseason to confirm how healthy he looks - then every defense Buffalo faces will plan to take away the run to an extreme that the Bills will have a very difficult time overcoming.
This is a very good running game that is also a high-volume attack, but if Watkins isn't the massive threat he's capable of being (and who's to say he stays healthy all season, anyways) than I just see a lot of three-and-outs from this offense. All of that being said, I'm nabbing Jonathan Williams very late in drafts, because I love his talent, and he now has a very intriguing path to a lot of touches.
Denver Broncos
As was the case last year - and obviously it worked quite well - the Broncos are going to have to win close, low-scoring games. Well, that isn't super conducive to putting up huge fantasy numbers, as I just don't see this offense producing a lot of touchdowns.
The offensive line should be improved, and even at his current cost, I have no problem drafting C.J. Anderson, but this is going to be one of the worst quarterback situations in the league, and that could have a major negative effect for all involved.
Washington Redskins
As I wrote last week, I'm just not a Kirk Cousins believer. Now, that isn't to say that the Redskins' offense, which is absolutely loaded with receiving weapons right now, won't be an excellent offense with Cousins at the helm. But I have some concerns here.
First off, Redskins players aren't a cheap purchase in fantasy right now, although it is downright shocking how late Jordan Reed is being picked. Secondly, Washington has a brutal 2016 schedule. Next, the Redskins have put an awful lot of faith in Matt Jones to carry their running game, and wow, was he up-and-down during his rookie season. If he can't be "the guy," Washington may have little ground game to speak of in 2016, and that puts a whole lot of pressure on the quarterback. Which brings me to my final point: As I stated last week, I just have too many questions about Cousins.
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys have the NFL's best offensive line, a very favorable schedule, and a couple of highly desirable fantasy commodities, including Ezekiel Elliott, who I absolutely think will be Offensive Rookie of the Year. In fact, I recently took Elliott eighth overall in a fantasy draft, and was doing cartwheels in disbelief he lasted that long. Heck, I would love to have Dez Bryant as well. But I have one massive concern with Dallas for fantasy reasons, and that's Tony Romo.
Why am I down on Romo? I am not actually, in terms of what Romo can do on the field, and this might be unfounded, and there is no distinct evidence to back this up, but of all the starting quarterbacks in the NFL, the one I trust the least to stay healthy is Romo. And if he goes down, or maybe even if Bryant isn't himself due to injuries, the entire offensive ship in Dallas goes down with him, as we saw last year.
Others to worry about: Rams, Eagles, Bears