Predicting Every Team’s Biggest Disappointment in 2017

We’re just days away from the start of preseason football and the HDL league is finally back in full swing. After a short period of down time in the beginnning of Summer, our league is finally back with a free agent auction, power rankings, trades, collusion, and much more. Too many teams are sniffing themselves right now so i’m here to bring some reality to every owner and predict who will be the biggest disappointment for every team this upcoming season.

1. Gutter Slugs (Falcone, Black Chris)- Davante Adams WR, Green Bay Packers

One thing we know for sure when looking at the Gutter Slugs is that they will have underachievers. If you look at 2016 alone you could classify Deandre Hopkins, Todd Gurley, Dez Bryant, Jordy nelson (injury), and Keenan Allen (injury) all as fantasy busts. This year I predict Davante Adams will take a significant step back from 2016. With Jordy Nelson hurt and Randall Cobb having one of his worst seasons to date, Adams reaped the benefits. This year I believe Nelson and Cobb get back to being the focal points of the offense and Adams not snagging in close to 12 touchdowns.

2. Hillary Clinton’s Email (Hallahan, Scott)- Stefon Diggs WR, Minnesota Vikings

First thing is I actually like Stefon Diggs as a player and by no means think he’s gonna have a bad year. I do however think Hallahan and Scott are expecting a monster campaign out of Diggs which likely won’t happen. The Vikings still have Sam Bradford as a quarterback which limits Diggs’ big play opportunities. I would imagine they will also try to get former first round pick Laquon Treadwell a lot more involved in the offense. They also added Dalvin Cook and Latavius Murray so will likely look to lean on their running game. I see Diggs having a “meh” year not reaching the 1,000 yard mark and having about 5 touchdowns. Shockingly that would be 2 more than he had in 2016.

3. -\_(?)_/- (Sarlo, Hark)- Sammy Watkins WR, Buffalo Bills

This is probably the easiest one to explain. Watkins has been one of the most underwhelming “superstars” to enter the league in some time. Every year is the year Watkins will break out until he pulls his hammy and misses 6 games again. The only thing Watkins has going for him is he’s in a contract year but things in Buffalo don’t seem to be working out and I think another injury plagued/disappointing year for Watkins is upcoming.

4. The Drama Queens (Billy Davis)- Tyreek Hill WR, Kansas City Chiefs

Tyreek Hill was the 7th ranked fantasy receiver in 2016. I can assure you hat will not happen this year. Hill had zero 100 yard receiving games last year and less than 600 yards receiving total. Those big plays he made on special teams were fun and he might make a few again this year, but counting on Hill to be a WR1 or WR2 this year is no bueno. He’ll significantly drop off in fantasy this year in 2017.

5. Hooked on a Thielen (Bpou, Adam)- Martavis Bryant WR, Pittsburgh Steelers

It was really hard finding a player that would disappoint in 2017 on a roster that has no players with any expectations. Bryant is definitely the best player here, but I still see him being overhyped. Leveon Bell and Antonio Brown are always going to receive the overwhelming majority of targets in Pittsburgh and the relationship between Big Ben and Bryant doesn’t seem great. The only thing Pitt needs out of their other offensive weapons is to make a catch here and there to move the sticks or fly down the field for an occasional bomb. Bryant will probably catch a few of them this year andfind the end zone a couple times, but I don’t see a high number of catches or a bulk of yards for Bryant in the near future.

6. Uhhh WATT! YEEAAHH! (Cleve Bryan)- Doug Baldwin WR, Seattle Seahawks

Doug Baldwin has been one of the most surprising fantasy players the past two years. Baldwin broke out in 2015 and followed it up with another strong campaign in 2016. This is the year however I think Baldwin takes a big step back. Seattle has never been a passing team and has a nice duo in Eddie Lacy and C.J Prosise they can lean on in the running game. I suspect Wilson is going to spread the ball around a lot more this year. Aside from Baldwin, Seattle has Jermaine Kearse, Tyler Lockett, Jimmy Graham, Paul Richardson, and don’t sleep on rookie WR Amara Darboh ;). Baldwin still has a decent year, but does not finish near the top 10 again.

7. Mike and Roy’s Dynasty (Mike Altbaum, Roy Altbaun)- Marshawn Lynch RB, Oakland Raiders

Roy has done a nice job sabotaging this team since I sent him over to join forces with Mike and give him the worst advice possible in every scenario. After the highly scrutinized move to add Marshawn Lynch in the free agency auction, Mike is left with a 31 year old running back that hasn’t played football in over a year and averaged 3.8 ypc in his last season. I think the Lynch experiment in Oakland is going to be very underwhelming and they will use a running back by committee approach.

8. The Mr. Peanuts (Head, Frank)- Sterling Shepard WR, New York Giants

Sterling Shepard has been a very good player since he came into the league, but I don’t see him being a dependant fantasy wide receiver, especially next season. The Giants added Brandon Marshall in the offseason and draft Evan Engram. Suddenly Shepard might be the 4th option in the passing game for Eli, meaning a very pedestrian season for the young wideout.

9. MEHrino’s MEHn (Dan Mehrino)- Mark Ingram RB, New Orleans Saints

Ingram should see a significant decline in fantasy points next year for obvious reasons. Adrian Peterson is an upgrade even at this stage of his career, and the Saints drafted Alvin Kamara who will likely be featured in third down situations. The Saints never seemed committed to Ingram and another top 10 finish for him is nearly impossible. I wouldn’t count on this guy to be an RB2 this year.

10. Asshat Cowboys (Calhoun)- Carlos Hyde RB, San Francisco 49ers

I will never forget my thoughts after seeing Carlos Hyde’s first game of his sophomore season against Green Bay on opening day. I had just convinced mike to trade him to Calhoun for the 1.03 (Melvin Gordon) that year and he came out looking like a combination of Barry Sanders, Walter Payton, and Jim Brown. I wanted to drive off the Ben Franklin bridge after that game. Luckily for me, it was a fluke and Hyde is nothing special by any means. Some analysts and dopes (Sarlo) are predicting Hyde to have a let down year so this prediction might not be bold, but I believe it to be true. Just like Ingram and the Saints, the 49ers don’t seem to be committed to Hyde and there have even been rumors he could be on the trading block. I’m not sure who’s gonna generate offense for San Fran this year, but it feels like Hyde won’t be the one to do it.

11. Dalvin and the Chipmunks (Ian, Dirty Mike)- Curtis Samuel WR, Carolina Panthers

This was another tough decision because there are so little expectations for every player on this team. While I dont know if anyone is really expecting Samuel to be a viable fantasy asset, I don’t think he will be. Maybe the Panthers are hoping to find the next Tyreek Hill in Samuel and add some big play opportunities, but the consistency won’t be there for him to be a reliable option. He might have a couple games where he breaks a run or quick screen for 70 and a touchdown, but predicting when that will be is the hard part.

12. Mealey’s Taco-ver (Troy Altbaum)- Jordan Reed TE, Washington Redskins

Finally we reach my team and the first non RB/WR to make the list. When healthy, Jordan Reed is a fantasy stud and one of the best TEs in the game. The problem: he is never healthy. Reed is already jumping off to a fast start in 2017 entering training camp on the PUP list. I don’t see any way Reed stays health this year so the hype on Julius Thomas better be real… While some might think Andrew Luck should be the choice here, I have a feeling he will be on the field and a top QB again this upcoming season.