Don McPeak-USA TODAY Sports
We love upside.
It’s what we target, not only in fantasy football, but also in life. Do you want the normal chocolate chip cookies or the ones with candy and peanut butter cups? Should you buy the normal cell phone that makes phone calls or the one that has an HD camera and all the bells and whistles, thus, not even serving as a cellular phone half of the time.
Chasing upside. It’s the name of the game.
And when it comes to the wide receiver position, Justin Hunter has massive upside. The Titans sophomore wideout is quickly becoming the talk of the fantasy town, and for good reason. A 6’4″, 210-pound burner with 4.44 speed, Hunter showed some serious flashes down the stretch last year. During his final five games, Hunter hauled in 11 balls for 232 yards and two touchdowns. Ahh, touchdowns. Get used to seeing this guy find paydirt. Between preseason and regular season, Hunter has just 30 career catches, but a whopping eight of them have gone for touchdowns. That’s almost 30 percent of his receptions, folks. Those who grabbed him in their leagues toward the end of last year didn’t see close to this kid’s upside. In his rookie year, Hunter saw inconsistent playing time due to some ball security issues. According to Pro Football Focus, his drop rate sat at an ugly 12.1 percent.
Still, we know how much this kid is oozing with talent and big play ability. According to ESPN, Hunter averaged an awesome 4.64 fantasy points per game off vertical throws, good for 25th overall among receivers, despite seeing limited playing time. I love the addition of Ken Wisenhunt, who has gotten the best out of his team’s passing game throughout the course of his career as a coach or offensive coordinator. Also, I am a big believer in second-year wideouts breaking out. When ESPN looked back at the 57 receivers to ever accumulate at least 1,200 career fantasy points, they noticed that the biggest spike occurred in year two, as receivers saw a 65 percent uptick in fantasy points from their rookie campaign.
Hunter has been referred to as this year’s Alshon Jeffery, and while the numbers may not be to that extent, he could still be very, very good. The Titans will throw more than they have in year’s past, especially without Chris Johnson in the backfield, while the Titans have some great matchups this year, facing the entire NFC East, for instance.
I’m buying on the Hunter breakout and would not at all be surprised if he finished the year as a top-30 fantasy option.
Adam Pfeifer is a lead fantasy sports writer for Rant Sports. You can follow him on Twitter @aPfeiferRS.
