3 QBs Bound to Hit Paydirt in 2018
The best feeling on game day during the fantasy football season is when one of your players scores a touchdown. Over the course of the year, a few players consistently failed to score touchdowns when they were needed most. That being said, here are 3 quarterbacks from last year who should see a spike in the number of touchdowns they score this year.
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Cam Newton (QB, Carolina Panthers)
Cam Newton is one of the few players in this article series that actually came off a good season last year, finishing with about 300 points and as the 3rd best QB. He had 22 passing touchdowns last year, which was a little below his career average of 22.67, but there is good reason to believe that he’ll have a better year in 2018.
Newton is coming off a successful year despite many factors going against him. His top wide receiver in Kelvin Benjamin was traded midseason while his most trusted receiver in Greg Olsen was out a good portion of the year with injury. These massive losses to the offense forced Newton to turn to receivers that he had less experience working with, which could explain why he threw the most interceptions since his rookie year.
This season, Newton will have Olsen back healthy, and the additions of D.J. Moore and even Torrey Smith will prove to be significant upgrades from the group Newton had to work with last year behind Devin Funchess. The stars are aligned for Newton to not only have a solid year but finish as the highest scoring player in fantasy.
Eli Manning (QB, New York Giants)
Many people will be quick to dismiss Eli Manning as a legitimate fantasy option for the 2018 season after his poor performance last year. His meager 19 passing touchdowns have convinced a lot of fantasy owners that Manning’s ability has fallen off due to his old age, but this can mostly be attributed to the loss of Odell Beckham Jr. to injury.
In the seasons that Manning has had OBJ, he averages around 30 passing touchdowns, or about 11 more touchdowns (11!) than Manning had in 2017. With Beckham back healthy, Manning should have his top target back that will help boost his fantasy numbers.
It should also be noted that for the first time in years the Giants project to have a solid running game by adding Saquon Barkley through the draft. Not only will Barkley force defenses to add another defender in the box, but he is also a dynamic player who should be a legitimate receiving option for Manning. With OBJ back from injury, the addition of Barkley, and talented other options in Sterling Shepard and Evan Engram, Manning should be considered a legitimate fantasy option in 2018.
Marcus Mariota (QB, Tennessee Titans)
After his solid 2016 fantasy season, Marcus Mariota seemed destined to solidify himself as one of the best, young quarterbacks in the NFL. Then 2017 happened. His late game heroics against the Kansas City Chiefs in the playoffs made most fantasy owners forget that Mariota only had 13 passing touchdowns last year compared to his 26 passing touchdowns in 2016.
Mariota’s horrible 2017 fantasy season can be attributed to the failure of the run game. This is proven by the fact that last year Mariota had more completions (281 v 276) and a higher completion percentage (62% v 61.2%) than he did in 2016, but he only threw for half of the touchdowns (13 v 26) because the running game didn’t put him in as many positions to throw touchdowns. In 2016, Demarco Murray had a top 5 fantasy season and Derrick Henry looked like a rookie who could have had a 1,000 yard season as a starter elsewhere. Now Murray is a free agent and Henry showed inconsistency more than sustained success in 2017.
The production out of the backfield last year convinced the Titans front office to sign Dion Lewis in free agency. Last year Lewis proved to be one of the most successful runners in the league, albeit in a small workload. His addition to the team will definitely help rejuvenate the run game as well as aid the passing game as Lewis is one of the most talented receivers out of the backfield. Expect Mariota to get a lot more touchdowns this year and finish as a fringe fantasy starter.