Fantasy Football Player Notes

Amari Cooper's season-long stats were notable despite shifting quarterbacks, ranking 10th in yards (1,250) and second in 20-yard gains (42). His 41% air yards share also ranked 10th in the league. While he finished 17th in points/game (12.7) as the WR18 overall through 17 games, his performance with Deshaun Watson as QB offers promise. During these five games, he maintained a 23% target share, 42% air yards share, averaging nearly 100 receiving yards/game. His fantasy output was also strong, averaging 14.8 points per game (6th) and 15.7 expected points per game (15th). Even with Jerry Jeudy's addition, Cooper remains the WR1 for the Browns.

Keon Coleman, a second-round pick for the Buffalo Bills, boasts impressive physical attributes at 6'4" and 215 lbs, fitting the mold of an outside X-receiver. His collegiate career showcased consistent improvement, highlighted by a notable junior year at Florida State with 50 receptions, 658 yards, and 11 touchdowns. Despite his youth, Coleman demonstrated dominance, outperforming future NFL prospect Jayden Reed in key metrics. With the Bills, he enters a favorable situation with a talented quarterback and opportunities to rise in the depth chart, setting the stage for a promising start to his NFL journey.

Khalil Shakir concluded his second season on a high note, shining in the absence of Gabe Davis with impressive performances. Over the last three games, he caught 16 of 17 targets for 180 yards and 2 touchdowns, showcasing his reliability and big-play ability. Shakir topped the NFL in catch rate (88%) and generated the highest passer rating (141.5), while leading the Bills in receiving EPA and ranking 16th overall in the league. Despite earning a larger role in the offense for 2024, he faces competition for targets from second-round rookie Keon Coleman and veteran slot WR Curtis Samuel.

Curtis Samuel's 2023 season with the Washington Commanders was underwhelming, finishing as the WR44 overall and averaging 7.9 fantasy points per game. His performance was consistent with his career trend of sporadic production due to injuries. While his receiving stats mirrored his 2020 campaign, he saw limited usage as a rusher. Entering his age 28 season, Samuel has yet to break into WR2 territory in fantasy, typically settling as a WR4 option. However, with a reunion with his former OC Joe Brady in Buffalo, who utilized him effectively from the slot in Carolina, Samuel holds sleeper potential in the Bills offense, especially with changes to their receiving corps. But Samuel first needs to overcome a preseason turf toe injury, although he returned to practice on Aug 28th.

Mack Hollins is entering his age 31 season (wait what) and signed with the Buffalo Bills this offseason, presumably to operate as a field-stretcher and downfield blocker. Our new cardio king.
Hollins has only had one productive season in the NFL (2022 with the Raiders as the fantasy WR41) when finished 10th in routes run per dropbacks (93%) and commanded 1,153 air yards as the clear-cut No. 2 wide receiver.
The journeyman new landing spot will likely be completely overlooked by fantasy managers, but a WR running a route on 90% or more of Josh Allen's dropbacks (the Gabe Davis role) is pretty tantalizing, especially at a free price tag.
Just don't get carried away with Hollins as anything more than a depth fantasy WR4/5 a best. Worth an addition in deeper WR formats.