By The Hudsonian, Joshua Hudson
If you head over to the Club Fantasy Instagram page, you can stay up to speed on all the transactions as they occur, or as fast as my graphic designer can make some bomb ass pictures for you to like. Below you’ll see how I view all of the relevant NFL offseason transactions. I say relevant because, for the purposes of fantasy football, defensive signings don’t impact us as much as the offensive ones. I’ll cover the defensive signings when I do my team-by-team previews later in the summer.
I’ll identify the player, who they signed with or were traded to, and how I think it impacts their fantasy value going into 2017, positive or negative. Next up: Robert Woods signs with the Los Angeles Rams.
WR Robert Woods returns to Los Angeles, where he starred at USC, and instantly becomes the Rams’ best WR. Design credit: Kathilia Colón (@katcolon37 on Instagram)
Transaction: Robert Woods signs with the Los Angeles Rams
Fantasy Outlook: Robert Woods has been something of an underachiever since entering the league. He was sure-handed out of USC, and it was easy to think he would be just as productive in the NFL. Then he landed in Buffalo, where wide receivers seemingly go to die. Not literally, but you get it. Woods could be a solid number 2 receiver on a good team if he has a good quarterback, and if he can get over the nagging injuries faster.
See, that’s been Woods’ biggest issue. Sure, he plays in a lot of games – one full season in four years and only seven missed games in those same four years – but his issues linger. And it affects his play. Never once has he topped 700 receiving yards or 65 catches in a season. His season high in touchdowns in five.
I present those numbers because Woods is going to be making almost $8 million a season in Los Angeles for the Rams. Sure, that’s WR2 money these days, but the Rams are paying gadget gimmick Tavon Austin WR1 money, and we all know he’s hardly a WR1, So does Woods have the skills to be the number one guy for Jared Goff and the Rams offense?
Gun to my head? Hell no. Strangely enough, Woods’ biggest strength as a wide receiver is his blocking. Seriously. That should never be a wide receiver’s best attribute. With a new coach and likely a new offense, Woods can easily play the Pierre Garcon role here. New coach Sean McVay worked with Garcon the last three seasons in Washington, and Woods has a similar build. He does have good hands, and despite his issues with knocking off injuries, he does still play in mostly all the team’s games. That said, that should be Woods’ ceiling when looking at him on draft day when fantasy drafts roll around.
The only Rams player you’re likely to draft is Todd Gurley, but Woods could be a nice add late in drafts or someone to keep an eye on as the season progresses. Woods’ production though is directly tied to Goff’s development. If he takes a huge leap in Year 2 of his career, then Woods could push for 80 catches and 800 yards, maybe hit his career high of 5 touchdowns. Not bad value in round 13 when people are scrambling for lottery tickets.