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ESPN is starting to publish fantasy football articles now that NFL training camps are opening up. Tips, player rankings, tricks, tiers, handcuffs, sleepers, breakouts, busts...they are all here. Within this overload of information, DeAndre Hopkins was named a Tier One wide receiver and Will Fuller was named as a potential breakout player. This is what the sports conglomerate had to say about Houston’s top two wideouts.
DeAndre Hopkins:
2018 outlook: After seeing what Hopkins did in quarterback Deshaun Watson’s six starts last season -- 38 catches for 551 yards and six touchdowns -- the Texans have high expectations for their No. 1 receiver in 2018. Hopkins said it gives him “chills sometimes just to think what [he and Watson] did in the little time we had together,” adding that he thinks the pair can be the best quarterback-receiver duo in the NFL. The Texans made sure Hopkins will be in Houston for the foreseeable future by signing him to a five-year, $81 million contract last August. -- Sarah Barshop, ESPN Texans reporter
Projected target share: 33 percent. Hopkins paced the NFL in target share last season, and his 508 targets over the past three seasons are 367 more than any other Houston player. There’s a large gap between him and No. 2 WR Will Fuller on the depth chart. -- Clay
Will Fuller:
The Houston fantasy hype train is running at full speed for Deshaun Watson and DeAndre Hopkins -- and it should be going nearly as fast for Fuller. Last season, Fuller out-paced Hopkins in vertical YPA (13.5 for Fuller, 9.4 for Hopkins), stretch vertical YPA (Fuller 16.6, Hopkins 11.3) and overall YPA (Fuller 9.8, Hopkins 8.1). The Texans cannot want Hopkins to rack up close to 200 targets again this season, so sending more volume in Fuller’s direction also would diversify their offense. Fantasy managers who want to partake in the Houston offense without paying full price to do so should strongly consider taking Fuller a round or two earlier than his current WR4 ADP value.
Where would you target drafting Hopkins and Fuller this season for fantasy football purposes?