Will explosive talent around him and a new offensive mind on the coaching staff result in big gains for Teddy Bridgewater in 2016?
It’s early February, and the playoffs have concluded. In an ideal world, you the fantasy owner are enjoying a 2015 championship and talking smack to your fellow league members. But as we know, most teams don’t win anything and must look to 2016 in hopes of a championship.
In a redraft league, owners can look forward to free agency and the NFL Draft in late April. But in dynasty and keeper leagues, owners must work year-round to improve their roster.
This week, we will assess the dynasty value of the quarterback position. Let’s take a look at some long-term QB options that are currently flying under that fantasy radar.
Teddy Bridgewater – Minnesota Vikings
(15th in our Dynasty Rankings)
In 2015, Bridgewater was viewed by some as a breakout candidate. In his final four games of the 2014 season, Bridgewater threw for 1,092 yards and six touchdowns. This strong finish led the fantasy community to believe that he could thrive in 2015.
Boy did he let people down. He finished 2015 with 3,231 yards 14 touchdowns and nine interceptions, good for the 23rd-best quarterback.
What makes him a better option for 2016 and beyond? Well for one, Adrian Peterson will still be with the team. His rushing ability will continue to make opposing defenses focus on Minnesota’s running game.
Then there’s Stefon Diggs. Diggs cooled off late in the year, but that can be attributed to the talented defenses that Minnesota faces. However, in his thirteen games played (only nine as a starter), Diggs caught 52-of-84 passes for 720 yards and four touchdowns.
Finally, there’s the addition of Pat Shurmur, who will be Minnesota’s tight ends coach. Shurmur’s previous experience should help get Kyle Rudolph more involved with the passing game, hopefully leading to a more effective offense.
Tyrod Taylor – Buffalo Bills
(21st in our Dynasty Rankings)
Taylor, the former Ravens backup, was signed by Buffalo last off-season to compete with Jeff Tuel, E.J. Manuel and Matt Cassel for the Bills’ QB job. Not only did Taylor win, but he put up some impressive numbers in the regular season.
In his 14 games, Taylor threw for 3,035 yards and 20 touchdowns. Adding 568 yards and four touchdowns on the ground, Taylor finished 16th among quarterbacks.
It’s puzzling as to why Taylor is ranked so low. His struggles in 2015 were with his offensive line, which saw him get sacked 36 times. LeSean McCoy could be in some legal trouble, so second-year man Karlos Williams should be ready to step up for 2016.
Top receiving targets Sammy Watkins and Charles Clay will be back to full health again before training camp. There’s no reason to think Taylor can’t be a low-end QB1 for the next few years.
Ryan Tannehill – Miami Dolphins
(17th in our Dynasty Rankings)
Bridgewater wasn’t the only player who was poised for a breakout season. Tannehill was also expected to have a big year. But Miami as a whole failed due to poor coaching.
The Dolphins finished 6-10, firing their coach Joe Philbin after Week 4. However, interim Dan Campbell got the team to function more efficiently. Tannehill finished with 4,208 yards and 24 touchdown passes, finishing 15th among quarterbacks.
Tannehill was a top-10 QB in the final four weeks of 2015. The emergence of WR Devante Parker helped with this, but all in all, the offense was very balanced.
In 2016, the Dolphins may lose RB Lamar Miller to free agency. They will still boast a talented offense with up-and-coming RB Jay Ajayi, WR Jarvis Landry, WR Rishard Matthews and TE Jordan Cameron. Tannehill’s breakout may just be coming a year later than expected.
Jeffrey Greco is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Jeffrey, check out his archive and follow him @Jeffrey_Greco.
