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: Ted Ginn Jr. signs with New Orleans.
Transaction: New Orleans Saints sign Ted Ginn Jr.
Fantasy Outlook: Ted Ginn Jr. was a 1st round pick in 2007. As a matter of fact, he was the 2nd wide receiver taken that year, behind some guy nicknamed Megatron. You could even make an argument that he’s been the 2nd best wide receiver from that draft. Guys like Steve Smith (not the recently retired Smith Sr.), Stevie Breaston, James Jones and Robert Meachum have been on fantasy players’ radars in the past, but they’ve hardly been successful for years at a time.
That’s what’s strange with Ted Ginn Jr. He’s known, made his mark mostly as a kick returner, and then actually did well the last couple years in Carolina. I mean, the last two years combined, he’s caught 14 touchdowns. That counts for something, right?
And here we are talking about Ginn Jr. one more time. He just signed a free agent contract with New Orleans, a team that recently shipped off Brandin Cooks to New England. The Saints needed someone that could stretch the field. Despite Ginn Jr.’s brick-like hands, he certainly can fly past corners. And Brees knows how to find his man. Ginn Jr. said it best upon singing: “Drew Brees is a kind of guy that can extend your career.” Kind of hard to dispute that logic.
Look, Ginn Jr. won’t be their number one wideout. That honor belongs to breakout WR Michael Thomas. He won’t even be their number two, as they still have Willie Snead in the fold. He’ll push Brandon Coleman for the number three spot and will also return punts. And just remember, if he takes one to the house, that’s six points for you. I think Ginn Jr. can easily have 500 receiving yards in this offense, but probably something along the lines of 35-40 catches. He could have more if his hands weren’t made of wood. I’ll say 5 TDs as well, putting him in top 45 territory come 2017.