Kenny Golladay - 2018 Fantasy Football Sleeper

There is so much depth at the wide receiver position in the NFL that dipping into the right team’s depth chart can find you a viable fantasy option, even some high-upside WR2 candidates.

That’s what we have in Detroit with second-year receiver, Kenny Golladay. Although he's behind Golden Tate and Marvin Jones on the depth chart, he's been seeing plenty of action in two-receiver sets this preseason and could take more snaps than expected.

How should you value Golladay in your fantasy draft? Let's dive in and take a look at this promising young receiver.

2018 Sleeper - Kenny Golladay

With such an emphasis on the top-tier running backs going early in fantasy drafts this year, wide receiver is a go-to position in the middle-to-late rounds. There are plenty of chances to find great value after the 10th round. Owners who like to target safe receivers early can find solace in going after a high-upside receiver in Lions WR Kenny Golladay, later in drafts.

Golladay made noise last preseason but he was hampered by injury throughout the year and he subsequently failed to make a big splash as a rookie. This is how Golladay fared in end-of-season rankings:

2017 STANDARD SCORING FANTASY FINISH: WR-64
10-TEAM STANDARD ADP: 13.10 (WR-52)
2017 PPR SCORING FANTASY FINISH (PPR): WR-69
10-TEAM PPR ADP: 14.04 (WR-62)

Last season, Golladay was fresh off of being drafted in the third round out of Northern Illinois. There was a lot of hype for the rookie with big-play potential. However, Golladay had Golden Tate and Marvin Jones ahead of him, so no one knew what to truly expect. He was being drafted mainly as a later round flier, with an ADP of 12.11 in STD leagues.

At the end of the season, he had two top-15 performances, one in Week 1 and the other in Week 17. In between, he battled an injury and missed five games with a strained hamstring. Upon his return in Week 9, he posted at least 40 yards receiving in five of the nine remaining games. On the year, he caught 28 passes on 48 targets for 477 yards, and three scores.

It was a frustrating year for those who owned Golladay. While he either wasn’t drafted or he was going late, owners saw stars after his Week 1 performance when he caught two touchdowns on four receptions. However, he didn’t score again until Week 17. He isn’t a red-zone threat, only drawing five targets inside the 20 last season. Quite simply, when he was on the field, he was a dart throw as a standard-league flex play.

This preseason, Golladay has been given plenty of opportunities to showcase his ability. In the second preseason game, the first-team offense ran eight two-receiver sets and Golladay was opposite of Jones on all of them, leaving out Tate.

While head coach Matt Patricia indicated this was for snap count purposes, it’s clear that the staff wants to see how the second-year receiver performs in these situations. Through three preseason games, he has 10 targets, including five in their most recent game against Tampa Bay. All five targets were from Matthew Stafford, throughout the first half, so it's at least a good sign that the veteran quarterback is looking to get the ball in Golladay's hands.

Bottom Line: With a full, healthy season, getting Golladay in the back end of the 13th round could wind up being a major steal as a flex or WR2 during a bye week. Matthew Stafford has thrown for over 4,000 yards in each of the last seven seasons, and the Lions are looking to replace 86 targets with the departure of tight end Eric Ebron. One injury to Tate or Jones and Golladay is looking at a surplus of targets. That's the kind of situation you want for your WR4/WR5 late in drafts.

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