Take each team’s leader in receiving yards each year since 2008, and call him Dave. Take each team’s No. 2 in receiving yards each year since 2008, and call him George. Total Dave’s receiving yards in that time. Total George’s yards in that time. See how much Dave has outgained George by.
Fantasy football impact: Someone, anyone to help Calvin Johnson and the Lions
Calvin Johnson has been toiling in lonesomeness for years now, but Detroit spent its offseason trying to give him some company. Did it work? We break down the fantasy implications.
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| Team | Dave's total, 2008-2013 | George's total, 2008-2013 | Dave's advantage | Dave's advantage per year |
| Detroit Lions | 8,572 | 3,362 | 5,210 | 868.333 |
| Houston Texans | 8,042 | 4,266 | 3,776 | 629.333 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 6,767 | 4,059 | 2,708 | 451.333 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 6,475 | 4,144 | 2,331 | 388.5 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7,638 | 5,316 | 2,322 | 387 |
| Cleveland Browns | 5,420 | 3,213 | 2,207 | 367.833 |
| Carolina Panthers | 6,340 | 4,213 | 2,127 | 354.5 |
| Buffalo Bills | 5,624 | 3,613 | 2,011 | 335.167 |
| Chicago Bears | 6,038 | 4,029 | 2,009 | 334.833 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 7,162 | 5,154 | 2,008 | 334.667 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 5,592 | 3,652 | 1,940 | 323.333 |
| Green Bay Packers | 7,201 | 5,302 | 1,899 | 316.5 |
| Washington Redskins | 5,987 | 4,118 | 1,869 | 311.5 |
| Denver Broncos | 7,318 | 5,490 | 1,828 | 304.667 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 5,872 | 4,102 | 1,770 | 295 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 6,910 | 5,182 | 1,728 | 288 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 7,076 | 5,407 | 1,669 | 278.167 |
| Miami Dolphins | 5,875 | 4,242 | 1,633 | 272.167 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 6,274 | 4,769 | 1,505 | 250.833 |
| New England Patriots | 7,340 | 5,849 | 1,491 | 248.5 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 5,838 | 4,419 | 1,419 | 236.5 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 5,481 | 4,078 | 1,403 | 233.833 |
| Oakland Raiders | 4,937 | 3,550 | 1,387 | 231.167 |
| New York Giants | 6,494 | 5,126 | 1,368 | 228 |
| New Orleans Saints | 6,704 | 5,487 | 1,217 | 202.833 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 6,970 | 5,802 | 1,168 | 194.667 |
| New York Jets | 4,748 | 3,606 | 1,142 | 190.333 |
| San Diego Chargers | 6,013 | 4,964 | 1,049 | 174.833 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 4,723 | 3,745 | 978 | 163 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 4,666 | 3,751 | 915 | 152.5 |
| Tennessee Titans | 4,975 | 4,121 | 854 | 142.333 |
| St. Louis Rams | 4,126 | 3,333 | 793 | 132.167 |
The Dave of the Detroit Lions has outgained the George of the team by more than five thousand yards in the last six years. Put another way, Detroit Dave’s yearly lead over Detroit George is more than the total of the Daves and Georges in Tennessee and St. Louis.
Making it even more impressive, of course, is that Dave in Detroit is just one guy: Calvin Johnson. The Lions are the only team in the NFL to have the same guy lead in receiving yards for the last six years running (Larry Fitzgerald, Roddy White, Steve Smith, Reggie Wayne, and Wes Welker didn't lead their teams in 2013; DeSean Jackson didn't in 2012; Andre Johnson didn't in 2011). The closest any Lions No. 2 receiver has come to Johnson in that time, percentage-wise, is 2010, when Brandon Pettigrew's 722 receiving yards were 64 percent of Johnson's 1,120.
You all know how dominant Johnson is, how dominant he has been over his career. His ability (both standard and with “dur-” attached) is remarkable. But equally remarkable is that, over his career, the Lions haven’t surrounded him with much of anything as far as a running mate goes.
I covered this in various ways in my pieces on the Chiefs and the Redskins - stars and scrubs is a heck of a dicey way to go about building a real football roster. The Lions have tried to avoid it, of course. But Pettigrew never really developed into the tight end Detroit was looking for, and Nate Burleson's particular combination of injury-proneness and mediocrity was underwhelming. Ryan Broyles hasn't been able to stay healthy. Running backs have come and gone.
Last season, Reggie Bush and Joique Bell were Nos. 2 and 3 on the team in receiving yards; Bush actually bested Johnson in overall yards from scrimmage. Both are still with the team, as is Pettigrew, fresh from signing an extension. Joseph Fauria, the team's new favorite red-zone toy last year, is there. The Lions drafted tight end Eric Ebron with their first-round pick, 10th overall. And then, of course, they signed wide receiver Golden Tate to a five-year deal.
Tate is of course the prize there. Theoretically, at least, Tate will be the best No. 2 Johnson has ever had in Detroit. He led the Seahawks in receiving yards in 2013, setting a career high with 898 yards.
With Tate in tow to go with Johnson ... you know what? I guess I’ve already started the positions. Let me at least give it a header:
Wide receivers
There's not much easier in fantasy than ranking the No. 1 receiver. If you were feeling squirrelly a couple months ago, you might have been able to make an argument for Josh Gordon, and if you wanted to talk about Demaryius Thomas or A.J. Green or something, I suppose I'll listen. But anyone not taking Johnson at the top of the wide-receiver position is going well against the grain.
Johnson finished third at the position in 2013. This despite missing two games and being hampered by injury for a handful of others. He’s averaging 1,333 yards and more than nine touchdowns a year in his career, and is only a year removed from setting the single-season record for receiving yards.
Look, I don’t need to dwell on Johnson. This section is really about Tate.
There's a lot of buzz about Tate being added to the Detroit rotation. Yahoo! has him slotted at 29th among wide receivers, 70th overall, in the range of Mike Wallace, Eric Decker, Cecil Shorts. That's a lot of faith in a guy who has averaged less than 550 yards a season and only has 15 touchdowns in four years.
On the other hand, Tate had Tarvaris Jackson and aging Matt Hasselbeck as his quarterbacks his first two seasons. Russell Wilson was around in years three and four, sure, but it's not like he's ever threatened the kind of yardage numbers Tate's new quarterback Matt Stafford puts up when he's bored on a Tuesday.
Being paired with Johnson can only help Tate, of course - anything to distract the defense is nice, and something as powerful as Johnson as that distraction ought to create all sorts of space for him. By leaving Seattle and joining Detroit, Tate goes from being his team’s No. 2 option to his team’s ... what, four? Five? Johnson, Bush, and Bell are for sure preferred options.
If I’m drafting, I’m taking Johnson in the first round, seventh or eighth overall. On the other hand, I can’t help but feel that Tate is overrated in the rankings I’m seeing. Having freedom from opponents’ best defensive players has to help his value, but being so low on the team’s list of options take it back the other way. Would you really trust Tate over someone like Decker, who has little choice but to be his team’s top pass-catcher? I would have trouble taking Tate in my top 100 overall, in my top 40 wide receivers.
As for the team's other wide receivers - Kris Durham, Ryan Broyles, draftee T.J. Jones - they're depth plays and little else. If the worst happens to Johnson, we'll see, but barring that, they aren't worth a fantasy look.
Tight end
I drafted Ebron in the 11th round of our SB Nation Analysts' Mock. But I did that after having taken my starter - Vernon Davis - in the fifth round. Were I looking for a starting tight end around the 11th, though, I would never have dreamed of taking Ebron.
Pettigrew has been disappointing in his career, sure, but he has two 700-plus-yard seasons on his record, and more than 2,800 yards in his five years. Fauria, a rookie last year, caught only 18 balls, but seven of them made it into the end zone. He’s a 6’7” monster, and while he might not be a deep-field target, he’s not going anywhere in the red zone.
Because of the presence of those two, no one should draft Ebron - or, frankly, the other two - as a starting tight end in fantasy. If Pettigrew gets a handful of yards, if Fauria gets into the end zone a few times, there might not be enough passes to Ebron to make him worthwhile.
But he was the No. 10 pick in the draft. The Lions want Ebron to be something. That was why I took him when I did. If I'm even considering relying on a tight end there, I'm taking Antonio Gates, Ladarius Green, Martellus Bennett. But if I'm seeking upside - which I was - Ebron has maybe the highest upside of any tight end who isn't already in the top tier.
As for Pettigrew and Fauria, the presence of Ebron really steals any value they might have had. If you’re using them, you’re super-desperate. Don’t get that desperate.
Running back
Reggie Bush and Joique Bell are going about three round apart in most drafts, with Bush going higher, and to be honest, I really don’t understand why. Yeah, Bush topped 1,500 yards from scrimmage last year, but he’s also only played 16 games twice in his career, and only once since his rookie 2006. He’s a regular injury risk who just turned 29, and has more than 1,600 career touches.
Meanwhile, Bell has only played two seasons, and he had almost 1,200 yards of his own last season. Heck, he had more touchdowns than Bush (eight to seven) in 2013, even with Bush being the team’s dominant guy. I have looked, man, and I can’t find much reason to take Bush three rounds ahead of Bell - frankly, I could pretty easily envision a scenario in which I would take Bell first out of the two.
That last sentence might be a bit of an overstatement, sure. But the moral of the story is that the Detroit running attack is a two-headed beast. Because it’s a “beast,” both guys will get their points, both guys will be worthy fantasy plays. But because it’s “two-headed,” both guys are flex plays. If you’re taking either as your RB1 or RB2, it’s a stretch.
Quarterback
Matthew Stafford has just been giggling merrily all summer, hasn't he? This is a quarterback who has averaged almost 4,900 passing yards a year for his last three seasons, throwing to Calvin Johnson and the pips. Last season added Bush and Bell, and now the influx of Tate and Ebron? It's happy times in the Stafford house, for sure.
The top three at quarterback is pretty well established as Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, and Drew Brees, in some order. Stafford, though, has the best chance of any non-big-three quarterback to join that big three, by virtue of his restocked weapons cabinet.
Perhaps that's not the boldest statement, seeing as how he and Cam Newton are the very next tier. But still, Stafford has thrown for 30 touchdowns a year in his last three, throwing to one guy. With weapons, who's to say he won't have a crazy year in 2014?
Most experts or analysts will tell you that it's fine to wind up with Manning, Brees, or Rodgers early, but if you miss out on them, hold off on any quarterback until late, until Colin Kaepernick or Philip Rivers or Russell Wilson in the double-digit rounds. I'm basically fine with that advice, but I might bump the line down to include Stafford.
His upside is obvious. His downside - barring injury, of course, but he hasn’t had his old injury problems for years now - is also high. Again, so many weapons. Imagine a scenario in which a healthy Stafford fails. I can’t find one.
