The NFL draft is over and the selections have been made. Of course fantasy football minds already have the wheels in motion about which rookies could potentially have breakout seasons with their new teams in 2014. Let’s take a look at some rookie and veteran duos could hit it big in the 2014 fantasy football season.
1. Drew Brees and Brandin Cooks, New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints spent their precious first-round draft pick on Cooks from Oregon State. In fact, the Saints traded up in the draft to secure Cooks so that no other teams, who might have had their eye on a guy who had 1,730 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns in 2013, could slip away.
Take Cooks’ 128 receptions last year and Brees’ 5,162 passing yards and 446 completed passes, and give a fourth or even a fifth of Brees’ passes to Cooks. The rookie receiver could easily hit the 1,000-yard receiving mark with 80-plus receptions. Say he scores six or seven touchdowns, and this would put him in the top-20 fantasy football wide receiver range.
2. Detroit Lions: Quarterback Matthew Stafford and tight end, Eric Ebron
New Lions OC Joe Lombardi comes from New Orleans. Let the Jimmy Graham/Eric Ebron comparisons begin: http://t.co/HQAaJCuFiu
— Adam Levitan (@adamlevitan) May 9, 2014
Yes, reports are all over the place indicating that the Detroit Lions will utilize their newly drafted tight end out of North Carolina in a Jimmy Graham type of role. If this is the case, then the 6’4″, 245-pound Ebron, who had 62 receptions with 973 yards last year, could be a potential beast on the field.
We all know that Stafford is no slouch when it comes to passing yards, and wide receiver Calvin Johnson, aka “Megatron,” can’t catch everything. Defenses will be honed in on Megatron and newly signed wide receiver Golden Tate, which could open the door for more catches by Ebron if he does indeed line up at wide receiver more than at tight end. The Lions already have the blocking tight end position sufficiently covered by Brandon Pettigrew and Joseph Fauria.
Ebron makes a sneaky fantasy football tight end pick if you wait to choose this position later in draft rounds. He and Stafford could potentially role out some big fantasy points together in 2014.
3. Carolina Panthers: Quarterback Cam Newton and wide receiver, Kelvin Benjamin
New Panthers WR Kelvin Benjamin will wear No. 13. pic.twitter.com/KnxL6hD98E
— Joe Person (@josephperson) May 9, 2014
This is an exciting veteran/rookie duo to keep an eye on in 2014. Thank goodness the Panthers drafted a wide receiver as their first pick in the draft. As we all know, they team waived adios to all of their receivers, including long-time veteran Steve Smith these past few months. This makes big shoes for Benjamin to fill, but with not a lot of major receiving competition out there, other than tight end Greg Olsen, Benjamin, who had 1,011 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns last year, is going to be in for a busy season.
The 6’5″ Benjamin should be a tall threat to stop working with his super-sized 6’6″ quarterback Newton, who is melding into his prime. With Benjamin on the field, Newton might air the ball even more, enhancing both of their fantasy values. That combined with Cam’s mobility, and a thriving Carolina defense to protect their two giants, could have Benjamin and Newton dishing you up some sweet fantasy points in 2014.
How cool would this be?
https://twitter.com/ddangatti/statuses/464782237909934082
Please vote which NFL Rookie/Veteran Duo You Would Want For Your Fantasy Team in 2014
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Photo: Adam Hunger, USA Today