Minnesota Vikings wide receiver/return man/football chameleon Cordarrelle Patterson has disappointed fantasy owners in a big way this season. He has just 28 catches for 332 yards and one touchdown. These soft numbers come despite the fact that Patterson has already played more snaps than he did his rookie year when he finished with 45 catches for 469 yards and four touchdowns.
With offensive coordinator Norv Turner joining Minnesota's staff, Patterson's fantasy stock skyrocketed like the spaceship from "Interstellar" during the offseason. He was the most popular breakout candidate in fantasy football. Now owners are just hoping he breaks out of this slump.
So what happened?
"Patterson's longest catch is 28 yards. He's averaging fewer yards on his kickoff returns. Maybe his hip injury has affected him more than we know, but Patterson looks largely insignificant in the offense right now," wrote Chip Scoggins of the Star-Tribune.
"[Coach Mike] Zimmer noted Patterson is playing in his third offense in as many years, which sounds like a nice way of saying Patterson is not always in the right spot."
Zimmer did offer a vote of confidence for Patterson, albeit on a vague eventual time frame.
"I believe that he's going to be a really good player, but everybody is impatient, including me, and I'm sure he is, too," Zimmer said, according to Scoggins. "It will come. It just may take a while."
From an outsider's perspective, it appears that Patterson is still struggling to grasp Turner's offense. Couple that with inconsistent route running, and it's easy to see why Patterson has been one of the biggest busts in fantasy football this season. Unfortunately, this trend may not change anytime soon. ESPN's Ben Goessling explains:
"Remember, when Patterson got his touches last year, the Vikings were often running plays with the express purpose of getting him the ball; 29 of his 45 catches were on balls thrown no more than 5 yards down the field, according to ESPN Stats & Information. What's more, Patterson was targeted on 27.2 percent of the routes he ran last season. Only 12 receivers were targeted more frequently on their routes, and Patterson ranked ahead of blue-chip wideouts like Dez Bryant, Josh Gordon and Alshon Jeffery. This year, the Vikings aren't manufacturing as many touches for Patterson; he's only been targeted on 17.9 percent of his routes, and only 13 of his 28 catches are on short passes. He's being asked to line up as a traditional split end and get the ball through more traditional means - beating his man and getting open for Bridgewater. That means crisper, more consistent route-running, better chemistry with a quarterback and an ability to adjust routes based on certain coverages, and it's here where it's useful to remember how little football Patterson has played. He's three years removed from Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College, and had just one year at Tennessee before the Vikings drafted him."
Patterson's inexperience is obviously a drawback, but his Vikings teammates haven't exactly helped him out. Star running back Adrian Peterson has been on the NFL's exempt list since September and will now be suspended the rest of the year. Losing a former MVP weapon is going to allow defenses to key in on other playmakers such as Patterson.
Additionally, rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater has been inconsistent since taking over in Week 3. Bridgewater has had three games with a QBR more than 70 and three games where he failed to crack 50. He's thrown for 1,479 yards with four touchdowns and six interceptions while completing 61 percent of his passes. Those aren't terrible numbers but they certainly aren't helping Patterson regain his explosive rookie form.
Patterson has failed to crack double digit fantasy points in every game except the season opener. He shouldn't be started in any leagues at this point.