We’re currently in that mystical preseason place where anything can happen with your fantasy football squad. (Remember to get that lewd joke or Simpsons-based team name sorted out in advance.) Optimism is plentiful, you’ve decided to never trust Jeremy Langford again, and your would-be superteam is destined for glory. We at UPROXX believe in you and your holy quest and we want to help.
Every NFL squad always has a player (or six) that are bound to seduce you into drafting them too high and put you in some variety of Archer certified Danger Zone. These are the sort of fantasy options that could still pay off huge, but come with some serious questions before you make your official selection. We’ve wrangled together a tidy collection of 32 players (one for each team, including the dead mall of a football club that is the New York Jets) that we think are worth having a think about before joining your roster.
Today we visit the NFC South. Home of more crushing Super Bowl defeats than the division would prefer. Put on your finest fantasy football speculating jumpsuit and let’s hop to it, shall we?
- AFC South Danger Zone Picks
- AFC North Danger Zone Picks
- AFC West Danger Zone Picks
- AFC East Danger Zone Picks
- NFC North Danger Zone Picks
NFC South
Atlanta Falcons – QB Matt Ryan
Reason To Salivate: Matty Ice (KILL THIS NICKNAME DEAD, PUNDITS!) is heading into 2017 coming off the most decorated season of his career. The quarterback of the highest scoring offense in the NFL, Ryan threw for 4,944 yards with 38 touchdowns and a sparkling league-best 117.1 passer rating in his last campaign with MVP honors and a Super Bowl trauma to show for it. He still has Julio Jones to pass to and substantial protection provided by a sturdy O-line, so why be skittish? Plus, you go into your season knowing you’re more likely to get 16 games out of Matt Ryan than probably any other quarterback out there.
Reason To Worry: Ryan’s career-high totals in 2016 are worth gawking at, but he certainly wouldn’t be the first quarterback to win MVP honors and stumble in the follow-up. (Howdy Cam Newton!) Prior to 2016, Ryan wasn’t really coveted as any sort of fantasy beast and his current slice of ADP real estate (ranked 4th among quarterbacks according to the FantasyPros consensus) shows a much more bullish market for Ryan than Russell Wilson, and Andrew Luck. This wasn’t the case before, so why let this madness continue? To meet those expectations, Atlanta’s new offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian will have to make a big splash in his first year as an NFL mastermind and keep Ryan at career-high numbers with last season’s obscene TD percentage intact. Best to enjoy a Snapple or something before knocking over your commish to grab him in the 3rd or 4th round of your draft.
Carolina Panthers – QB Cam Newton
https://www.instagram.com/p/BXL6ao8AHDu/?hl=en&taken-by=cameron1newton
Reason To Salivate: For one, Cam Newton rules! He’s awesome to watch play and when he’s dominant he turns into the best NFL Blitz quarterback Midway could ever dream of. 2016 could easily be read as a hangover season for the Panthers and that extends to their star pivot who was the victim of bad luck and a frightening concussion in an underwhelming season. Previous to that, Newton was the 2015 NFL MVP and embarrassed opponents in the air and on the ground. 2017 sees Newton get some new weapons added to the offense in draft picks Christian McCaffrey (8th overall) and Chris Samuel (40th overall), plus when Newton goes off he can put up ridiculous performances that can single-handedly win you your week and shatter the dreams of your close friends who made the fatal error of letting you join their fantasy league. Deal with it, Mitch!
Reason To Worry: Sweet Sir Purr, where do we start? Last year’s numbers were atrocious by Cam Newton standards and he enters this season coming off surgery for a torn rotator cuff. (He’s already missed a preseason start while recovering.) Cam’s repaired rotator cuff will be put to the test with Carolina looking to reduce their quarterback’s role as a rusher on the team. That philosophy has the potential to spell doom for Newton’s numbers as a dual threat and give his interception totals an unwanted boost. Heck, Cam doesn’t even have Ted Ginn to throw to in 2017. With all these pitfalls, QBs with similar or lower ADP positions to Newton (Kirk Cousins, Jameis Winston) look a lot more enticing. Even if they don’t have SWEET PROCESS BLUE UNIFORMS, BUD!
New Orleans Saints – RB Adrian Peterson
Reason To Salivate: Adrian Peterson brings his legendary running talents to a high-powered New Orleans offense (29.3 points per game in 2016) in a bid to find football life after Minnesota. Prior to a shortened and unsatisfactory 2016, Peterson ran for a league-best 1,485 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2015. Not too shabby totals for a running back getting picked in the sixth round. AP can also enjoy a higher tier of quarterback in Drew Brees than he ever had with the Vikings. That may devastate those of you with Christian Ponder commemorative plates in your home, but you know it’s true.
Reason To Worry: Not to get all Logan’s Run, but Adrian Peterson is a 32-year-old running back. It’s a cruel life for geezer running backs and that’s how the 2015 rushing champ ends up getting the job of being Tim Hightower’s substitute in a multi-back running attack. Peterson will have to share carries with Mark Ingram who has blossomed into the brand of weapon New Orleans envisioned when they drafted him in 2011. Not working Peterson’s favor is a history of injuries that received a cherry on top in 2016 in the form of a torn meniscus suffered in prime time on Sunday Night Football. Buyer beware.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers – RB Doug Martin
Reason To Salivate: Are folks sleeping on the Muscle Hamster? Doug Martin is on a mission for a bounce back campaign after a forgettable 2016 and he’ll be doing so in a potentially potent Tampa Bay scoring attack. In 2015, Martin’s numbers were something to drool over. 1,402 rushing yards, 271 receiving yards and an overall total of 7 touchdowns. In a competitive pool of Tampa running backs, Martin will be looked to reclaim his former glory in the Bucs’ bid to return to postseason waters. Arrr matey and all that.
Reason To Worry: For one, Martin is sidelined until Week 4 thanks to getting popped last year for a PED violation, which means he will score as many points for you in the season’s first three weeks as Doc McStuffins, Tintin or a garbage bag full of smashed Christmas lights. That’s traditionally considered a bad thing. Martin has also lost his de facto no. 1 running back status thanks to his suspension gap (and a putrid 2016 campaign with a dismal 2.9 YPC average) and now Jacquizz Rodgers and Charles Sims are gunning to win and keep top RB duties for the entirety of the campaign. That’s not promising news for what you want out of a veteran rusher ranked 73rd overall in ADP. Gamble with caution.
