There was a time a few years ago it seemed like the only position the Detroit Lions were any good at was wide receiver. With just one retirement, it became an area of need this offseason.
After nine seasons in the NFL all-world fantasy wideout Calvin Johnson decided to hang up his cleats. Although there is no way to replace a guy that caught 731 passes for well over 11,000 yards, the Lions signed 26-year-old wide receiver Marvin Jones to help fill the void.
Talent wise, Jones is no where close to Johnson, however, there are plenty of reasons to be excited about the value he can provide for fantasy owners while in Detroit.
As Cincinnati’s No. 2 or 3 wide receiver, Jones posted some solid numbers with the Bengals. In 2013, he had 51 receptions for 712 yards and 10 touchdowns, which was tied for 10th most in the league. Jones missed all of the 2014 season due to various injuries, but he rebounded to start 13 games and became an even more important part of the Bengals offense. He hauled in 65 passes for 816 yards and four scores last season.
The opportunity for more is there in Detroit. Over the last two years, quarterback Matthew Stafford is ranked sixth with 1,194 pass attempts. In the final eight games under new offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter, Stafford averaged 36.6 pass attempts per game. That was five more attempts per game than Andy Dalton and A.J. McCarron combined to average in Cincinnati last year.
Just that alone will give Jones more of a chance to make an impact for owners. Then, one has to consider the fact Jones is replacing Johnson in the Lions offense. Megatron received 149 targets, which was incredibly one-quarter of Stafford’s pass attempts one year ago.
Although there’s a high chance those targets are going to spread evenly among Jones, Golden Tate, Eric Ebron and others, those extra targets combined with a more pass heavy offense could go a long way to elevating Jones’ fantasy game.
One question that will have to be answered, however, is will Jones be the same receiver without playing opposite A.J. Green. In Cincinnati, Green demanded a lot of double teams from defenses, which opened up opportunities for other receivers to make plays in single coverage.
Over the last nine years in Detroit, Megatron was that receiver who demanded double teams. With him gone, the defense can concentrate more on stopping Jones, Tate and others.
The Lions are also very one-dimensional, finishing last in rushing yards last season. Part of that was the lack of balance due to Detroit’s heavy pass offense, but the Lions were also ranked just 26th in the NFL in yards per attempt. Cincinnati finished 13th in rushing yards in 2015.
Sometimes less is more in fantasy football. Volume doesn’t always lead to better statistics.
Even still, coming out of Green’s shadow and moving into a passing offense could end up being a very good thing for Jones, and he is going to provide fantasy owners some great value come draft time.
The consensus rankings at Fantasy Pros ranks Jones the 41st-best wide receiver and 96th-best overall fantasy player heading into 2016. His preliminary ADP, though, is 149.0, meaning owners can get him over 50 selections after the experts at Fantasy Pros believe he should go.
Even with his new starting job, Jones can’t be considered a weekly starter in 10 or 12-team leagues. But he can be a valuable bye-week replacement in those leagues or a WR3/FLEX option in 16-team or bigger leagues.
The post Extreme fantasy value to be had in Lions WR Marvin Jones appeared first on Today's Pigskin.