Fantasy: Analysis and projections from 4th day of free agency
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Let's look at the latest wave of notable skill-position signings - and what they mean for fantasy owners.
Dolphins sign WR Will FullerContract: 1 year, $10 million
The Dolphins are doing what any smart franchise would - trying to surround their young quarterback with as much talent as possible.
While a majority of the fantasy community seems to be souring on Tua Tagovailoa, it's premature to be thinking that way. We saw more than enough in his half season as starter to give the Alabama product the benefit of the doubt. Remember that Drew Brees, a player Tua was compared to as a prospect, struggled in his first couple years before developing into a future Hall of Famer.
The addition of Fuller should help Tua's cause, giving him a wideout with dominant skills and the speed to stretch any defense. The 27-year-old will miss Week 1 while finishing up his performance-enhancing drug suspension, and his injury history is far from forgotten, but that's why he came at a relative discount.
The one-year deal will give him a chance to prove his success in Houston wasn't all courtesy of Deshaun Watson. Prior to his late-season ban, Fuller was on pace for 77 catches, 1,279 yards, and 12 touchdowns while averaging the sixth-most fantasy points among receivers on the year.
In Miami, he'll team with DeVante Parker, Preston Williams, and tight end Mike Gesicki to give the Dolphins a dangerous collection of pass-catchers. When everyone is active, Fuller will offer the most fantasy upside as a WR2, pushing Parker into the WR3 range.
With four picks in the top 50 of this year's draft, Miami's offense should only continue to get better on the line and possibly with the addition of a rookie running back. Much like the Bills over the last few seasons, the Dolphins are building something special.
Fuller's 2021 projection (13 games): 52 receptions, 827 receiving yards, 5 TDs
Raiders sign RB Kenyan DrakeContract: 2 years, $11 million
Unlike the situation in Miami, what's taking place with Vegas' football team is leaving more questions than answers.
After moving on from several members of their offensive line in an effort to free up cap space, the Raiders spent some of that money on a 27-year-old running back, who's now the 13th-highest-paid ball carrier in average salary, according to Spotrac.
We can debate the merits of investing real life capital in the running back position all we want, but there's not much of an argument for doing it when you spent a first-round pick on a lead back in 2019. It's not like Josh Jacobs has faltered, the 23-year-old has accumulated 2,619 yards from scrimmage with 19 trips to the end zone over his two NFL seasons.
If anything, the Raiders should be giving Jacobs more work, especially as a pass-catcher. However, the addition of Drake makes that unlikely. We're now looking at something resembling a committee, which is the last thing fantasy managers want to hear.
Jacobs can still be drafted as a low-end RB2, who's slightly more dependent on his touchdown scoring and has a lower ceiling and floor than he had earlier in the week. Drake will be a difficult player to peg, as someone who at the moment appears to be an overpaid backup with a Kareem Hunt-like range of outcomes.
Drake's 2021 projection (16 games): 143 carries, 572 rushing yards, 4 TDs
32 receptions, 196 receiving yards, 1 TD
Contract: 1 year, $3 million
We shouldn't be enticed by Perriman - a player who's underwhelmed for the majority of his four-year career and now joins his fifth NFL franchise.
Even so, he's inked a deal with a Lions squad in desperate need of a playmaking receiver. Sophomore Quintez Cephus has promise and Tyrell Williams has delivered over stretches in the past, but Perriman has the potential to be a fantasy factor if given the volume.
Since Week 13 of the 2019 season, Perriman has played in 12 games where he received at least five targets. In those contests, he averaged 3.9 catches, 72.9 yards, and .58 touchdowns per appearance, which put him on pace for 62 receptions, 1,166 yards, and nine scores over a full 16-game schedule.
And half of those outings occurred as a member of a dysfunctional Adam Gase-led Jets offense.
Don't run out and use a valuable pick to get Perriman on your roster this season, but keep him in mind as a late-round target with more upside than people might realize.
Perriman's 2021 projection (16 games): 37 receptions, 574 receiving yards, 5 TDs
Chargers sign TE Jared CookContract: 1 year, $6 million
Cook's past his prime, but the landing spot in Los Angeles places him in a situation where he can maximize his best remaining trait - scoring touchdowns.
Justin Herbert's emergence as one of the best young quarterbacks in the game breathed life into the Chargers' passing attack and makes them a unit fantasy managers should be trying to buy a piece of.
Hunter Henry signing with the Patriots vacates 93 targets in the Chargers' offense. Though a 34-year-old version of Cook isn't going to soak up all those looks, he's capable of taking a decent chunk of them and turning it into TE2 numbers in fantasy.
Pour one out for Donald Parham's brief hype train that has now returned to the station.
Cook's 2021 projection (15 games): 41 receptions, 438 receiving yards, 4 TDs
Giants sign TE Kyle RudolphContract: 2 years, $14 million
There aren't many moves that go down in free agency where it seems like an odd decision for all parties involved. However, Rudolph signing with the Giants definitely falls into that category.
For a player who seemed upset by having to cede targets to Irv Smith Jr. in Minnesota, Rudolph's decision to play in the Giants' offense is a peculiar one. He'll now face target competition from tight end Evan Engram, running back Saquon Barkley, and receivers Darius Slayton and Sterling Shepard. New York has also been linked to free-agent wideout Kenny Golladay.
So it appears as though Rudolph will become a blocking tight end in the later years of his career, unless the G-Men plan to move on from Engram - which has been rumored over the last year.
Rudolph's 2021 projection (16 games): Minimal production unless Evan Engram is traded
Jets sign WR Keelan ColeContract: 1 year, $5.5 million
Cole went from a Jags offense where he was buried behind other receivers to a Jets team with Corey Davis, Denzel Mims, and Jamison Crowder.
New York was rumored to be in talks with JuJu Smith-Schuster, so perhaps that's a sign Crowder's days in the Big Apple are nearing an end. Either way, Cole is a long shot to earn a spot on your fantasy roster in 2021 - unless a wave of injuries strikes the Jets' receiver room.
Cole's 2021 projection (16 games): Minimal production unless Jamison Crowder is released or traded
Bills sign QB Mitch TrubiskyContract: 1 year, $2.5 million
It's a bit of a surprise Trubisky didn't seek out a team where he might have a chance to compete for the starting job. Instead, he's following in the footsteps of Teddy Bridgewater and Jameis Winston - joining a quality organization as a backup and hoping he can rehabilitate his value in order to better position himself for a starting opportunity in 2022.
Trubisky's 2021 projection (16 games): Josh Allen's backup
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