Recently, Matthew Stafford has received national attention headed into the 2020 NFL Season with several writers not only singing his praises but also putting him in the MVP conversation.
That makes my ears perk up with regards to fantasy football, so let’s take a look at Stafford’s draft position and projections in this week’s Fantasy Football Weekly.
Re-draft leagues
In re-draft, the key is to wait on quarterbacks, making them one of your last few picks if you can. In a standard 10 team league, upper-tier quarterbacks will start to be selected in the fourth or fifth round.
Stafford’s current average draft position is 111th overall on Fantasy Pros, which qualifies him a mid-tier quarterback in their Experts Consensus Rankings (ECR). He has long been considered a fantasy quarterback that you can wait on, with the upside to reach elite numbers and as a 10th or 11th round pick, he will almost always outperform his draft spot.
The Lions signal-caller is a great option, but you might have to select him a round or two earlier then projected if you want to secure him on your team. Load up on running backs and wide receivers early and then adding a talent like Stafford late might just be the formula that wins you a fantasy championship in 2020.
Best ball leagues
Stafford has often produced 300+ yard passing with multiple touchdown games which can give you those quarterback numbers you need to win in best ball leagues. But in recent years, he’s a bit more careful with the football, and with the Lions now having two young running backs and a focus on the run game, it’s fair to wonder if those monster games don’t come as often as they did in the past.
He played really well to start last year, so that bodes well for 2020 barring injury, of course. In best ball, you have to consider injuries a bit more as there are typically no waiver wire pickups during the season, so if one of your teams’ quarterbacks goes down for an extended amount of time that can really hamper your overall team.
The Lions long-time trigger man is again ranked around 115th overall in best ball leagues where the main strategy should still be to wait on a quarterback.
Dynasty leagues
Dynasty is often focused on youth and upside, and while Stafford is only 32 years old, he’s considered a veteran after double-digit plus years in the NFL. His upside depends on who you ask. Some still feel his dynasty value is very high as quarterbacks can play past the age of 40 these days, but many think other younger options on perennial top scoring offenses are better selections.
I believe Stafford has at least five good years left in fantasy football, so his play should still outperform his current draft stock which is around the 15th quarterback drafted. He has wide receivers, tight ends, running backs, and a revamped offensive line, so don’t be afraid to draft Stafford in dynasty leagues — but grab those younger guys at premium positions first.
Statistical projection and analysis
My 2020 projections for Stafford are:
- 4,200 passing yards
- 32 touchdown passes
- 12 interceptions
- 120 rushing yards
- Two rushing touchdowns
Stafford has always been a fantasy football darling. When healthy he always puts up numbers, but most of us are still waiting for his glory days of 2011 to return when he threw for over 5,000 yards and 40 plus touchdowns. Those numbers are beyond elite and no longer expected from him, but I could see the Lions quarterback showing off his arm cannon all year in 2020 and putting up numbers that could easily help your team bring back the top prize in your league regardless of the fantasy format.