Daily Dr. Roto — August 23, 2018
New Orleans Saints Team Preview
Outlook: The Saints look close to making another Super Bowl run, but they are going to need their defense to step it up another notch to compete with their offense. Losing Mark Ingram for the first four weeks is going to hurt, but if they can come out 3-1 or better over the first four weeks, they will be primed for a competitive season.
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QB: You would think that Drew Brees would be slowing down by now, but like a fine wine he seems to be getting better with age. Brees has total command of this offense, and the emergence of Alvin Kamara last season made the team less reliant on his arm than in previous seasons. What this means for Fantasy owners is that Brees is far more likely to throw for 4000 yards than he is for 5000. But, a better running game can help elongate his career and give him another few seasons of high caliber play.
RB: The Saints running game took a huge step up last season with the drafting of Alvin Kamara. Kamara jumped from third string all the way to Fantasy superstar in less than a month. It goes to show that talent always finds a way to win out in the NFL. This year Kamara is generally considered a top-six pick, especially with Mark Ingram suspended for the first four weeks. Look for Kamara to equal or better last year’s stats. In fact, I think he is a lock for 1500+ total yards from scrimmage and double-digit TDs. As for Ingram, he is going to miss the first four weeks, but with the Saints having a BYE in Week 6, it might feel like he will be out until Week 7. That said when he returns he should be back to sharing time with Kamara, dominating the Fantasy landscape. More importantly, I really like the Saints’ Fantasy playoff schedule (Tampa Bay, Carolina, and Pittsburgh). Both Kamara and Ingram should be able to dominate those defenses and help their owners win Fantasy titles. If you are thinking of drafting Ingram, you might have to take him as your RB2, but ideally, I would much prefer him as my RB3. Jonathan Williams also has some value at least in the first five games of the season as he will be Kamara’s primary backup with Ingram sidelined.
Think you can beat the elite? Just $299 to find out if you have what it takes to win the $50K grand prize!WR: The WR1 on the Saints is clearly Michael Thomas. In his two years in the NFL Thomas has over 2300 receiving yards and 14 TDs. He is Drew Brees’ favorite target, and he is well worth drafting early in Round 2. The Saints WR2 is far more muddled. They signed Cameron Meredith from the Bears in the off-season, but Meredith has been injured for much of training camp and has not really built a good rapport with Brees. I still like Meredith’s upside, but I think the lack of reps drops him from a WR4 to a WR5. Ted Ginn Jr. is back once again, but I see him more as a gadget player than a receiver who can be consistently worth playing. Ginn is a much better value in Best Ball formats when he can help when he has a long-distance TD. A sleeper to consider might be rookie third round pick Tre’Quan Smith. Smith has played well in preseason thus far and now with Brandon Coleman released; he should have the WR4 slot all to himself.
TE: The Saints brought Ben Watson back this off-season after he left for the Ravens in 2017. Watson is a huge downfield target who has always had a good connection with Brees. He’s a great value in the late rounds for any team looking for a TE2 as he could easily have 50 catches for 600+ yards.
K: Good offense—check! Domed Stadium—check! Wil Lutz—Check!
D: The Saints defense played better overall last season and in fact, worked their way up to a starting Fantasy defense. They don’t have many big-time names (Cameron Jordan and Alex Okafor are their best pass rushers), but they play well as a group. Safety Marcus Williams made a horrific play in last year’s playoffs, but if he can recover from that, he might be a potential IDP star.
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