Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford did not produce the gaudy numbers fantasy football owners are used to seeing from him last season. Stafford completed 60.3 percent of his passes while throwing for 4,257 yards with 22 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Overall, he finished 2014 as fantasy's No. 14 quarterback. Prior to last season he was a perennial top ten fantasy QB.
So what should fantasy football owners expect from him this year? ESPN Lions reporter Michael Rothstein thinks he is poised for a bounce back season.
"There are many enticing players to pick on the Lions, including rookie running back Ameer Abdullah, but Matthew Stafford should be a guy to pay attention to here," Rothstein wrote. "Stafford has the full complement of weapons, something he didn't have that often a season ago. He also is in the second year of the offensive scheme devised by coordinator Joe Lombardi and has looked extremely sharp throughout most of training camp. If he has a healthy Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate the entire season, he should return closer to his norm in terms of yards and touchdowns after a down 2014 - critical for fantasy players."
If his wide receivers are healthy, it's a good bet that Stafford will perform better in 2015. But it's worth noting that he attempted the fewest passes (602) of his career during a full 16-game schedule last year. Plus, the Lions drafted a starting guard in the first-round in Laken Tomlinson and traded for starting center Manny Ramirez this offseason. Couple that with the addition of rookie running back Ameer Abdullah, and it appears as if Detroit will be a more balanced offense this season.
The increased emphasis on rushing the ball could lower the ceiling on Stafford as a fantasy QB. But for a late round pick, you could do a lot worse.
