The Nagy era is brimming with promise for both Bears fans and fantasy fans. The Bears completely overhauled their offense in a bid to give Mitchell Trubisky every conceivable opportunity to succeed. Allen Robinson was the splash free agent signing of the offseason. Trey Burton and Taylor Gabriel round out the other notable pass catchers signed. Rookie Anthony Miller is expected to produce in the offense immediately, while seventh-rounder Javon Wims has flashed in camp and preseason action. Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen are a dangerous 1-2 punch, and Kevin White’s bones seem to all be intact. The Bears should outperform their five-win 2017 season, but which players deserve a spot on your roster?
STUDS:
Jordan Howard: I’m not sure there is another player in the NFL that is as underrated as Jordan Howard. John Fox, who really should be in a Field Museum exhibit about Neanderthals, did everything he possibly could to put Jordan Howard in a position to fail. Howard responded by posting back-to-back seasons with over 1,000 yards rushing. In 2016 Jordan Howard nearly won the league’s rushing title despite being forced to spend multiple games languishing behind the awful Jeremy Langford on the depth chart because, you know, John Fox is 500,000 years old.
Howard finished 6th in rushing in 2017 despite facing stacked boxes in every single game. On the season, Jordan Howard had only 169 rushing yards less than Le’Veon Bell despite being on a team that once threw only seven passes in a game. Bell had Big Ben, Antonio Brown and JuJu Smith-Schuster keeping defenses honest while Howard had to slam into the teeth of defenses over and over again in every single game. It’s almost unfathomable how bad of a coach John Fox was when it came to an offensive scheme.
Things are different in 2018. Nagy seems willing to let Trubisky uncork it more often which, in turn, will make Howard’s life much more comfortable. Jordan Howard could easily finish as a top three back in fantasy this year. There are 13 running backs drafted before Howard according to ADP. One is a rookie. Howard rushed for my yards than eight of the remaining 12 in 2017 despite being in a horrible situation. He is an excellent value in drafts right now.
PROVEN COMMODITIES:
Allen Robinson: Robinson is the only other guy on the team who has shown he can attain top-flight fantasy results. Yes, Robinson’s 1,400 yard/14 touchdown monster came way back in 2015. And Yes, the last full season Robinson played was mediocre. That does not take away from the fact that the 6’3″ 209 lbs. wideout is still only 24 years old, brimming with talent and firmly entrenched as the #1 on a team that should feature a productive downfield offense. There aren’t many guys going in the fifth round or later that have a legitimate opportunity to finish top five overall, but Robinson is one of them.
HIGH-UPSIDE PLAYS:
Tarik Cohen: The fantasy community is excited to see what Cohen can do in a Matt Nagy offense. Plenty of people are having visions of Tyreek Hill 2.0. I would pump the breaks just a tad. There is no denying that Cohen is electric. The fact that he managed a few good weeks in the John Fox Scheme of Stupidity is a testament to his talent. Electricity cannot offset size, however.
Cohen stands just 5’6″ and weighs 169lbs. He will never be more than an RB4 on your roster because he will never get the running back workload necessary to be more than that. Cohen could, however, end up as a nice Flex play in some weeks because of his big play ability. There are lots of mouths to feed in Chicago this year, though, and each Taylor Gabriel jet sweep is one less opportunity for Cohen to break that big play you need.
Trey Burton: Two starts, three touchdowns. Those are the only numbers you need to know when it comes to Trey Burton. The man flashed when given the opportunity to fill in for an injured Zach Ertz. Burton is big, fast, strong and has good hands. That’s a rare combo. Reports are that Trubisky likes targetting Burton, who is now in a system that made Travis Kelce a fantasy superstar. The sample size with Burton is small, but everything points to a breakout year. It would be shocking if he stayed healthy and didn’t finish as a top 10 tight end in 2018.
Promising Rookie:
Anthony Miller: For a player to become a fantasy asset they need to have the opportunity to play heavily on Sundays. The best way to determine if an NFL team plans to utilize a player is to follow the money the team spent to acquire that player. Miller is a rookie, so instead of money, we need to look at draft capital. The Bears gave up a fourth-round pick in this year’s draft as well as a second-round pick in next year’s draft to move up and select Miller. That is a lot of draft cheddar.
The Bears liked what they saw in the Memphis standout. Reports out of camp validate what the scouts saw: Miller is on track to be the starting slot receiver by week one. The reality is that Miller is a stud, a fierce competitor and a man who refuses to leave things to chance (read: this). He was drafted by a receiver-hungry team that is looking to morph into an offensive machine. Not only will Miller be a fantasy contributor this year, but he also has a legit chance to be the top rookie wide receiver.
