First, let’s get the thank you out of the way. All of these stats are courtesy of fantasydata.com, footballcalculator.com, and playerprofiler.com. The depth charts are from ourlads.com.
Los Angeles Fantasy Football Face-Off: Chargers Vs Rams
As we know, fantasy football is all about opportunity. So here are a few things to keep in mind:
- This is pre-draft, and as we have seen, anything is possible with the 2021 draft.
- Matthew Stafford is the new quarterback in Rams clothing. The stats for the wide receivers, tight ends, and running backs were with Jared Goff.
- There is a new tight end in Chargers baby blue. His stats were with his former team.
- BUT past performances are indicative of future performance to an extent. So let the judging of the stats begin!
- The Chargers ran 41.3 passing plays per game v Rams 38.4 passing plays per game.
- The Rams ran 29.6 rushing plays per game v Chargers 29.1 rushing plays per game.
LWR: COOPER KUPP v KEENAN ALLEN
Kupp 2020 stats: 15 games, WR26, 124 targets, 92 receptions, 974 yards, 3 touchdowns; 80.7% snap share, 442 slot snaps, 23.7% target share, 9 deep targets, 13 red-zone targets, 7 drops; 2021 ADP 6.11.
Allen 2020 stats: 12 games, WR12, 147 targets, 100 receptions, 992 yards, 8 touchdowns; 85.0% snap share, 420 slot snaps, 26.8% target share, 11 deep targets, 17 red-zone targets, 3 drops; 2021 ADP 3.04.
RWR: VAN JEFFERSON v MIKE WILLIAMS
Williams 2020 stats: 15 games, WR47, 85 targets, 48 receptions, 756 yards, 5 touchdowns; 78.2% snap share, 98 slot snaps, 15.7% target share, 22 deep targets, 11 red-zone targets, 3 drops; 2021 ADP 11.08.
Jefferson 2020 stats: 16 games, 31 targets, 19 receptions, 220 yards, one touchdown; 24% snap share, 42 slot snaps, 6.2% target share, 4 deep targets, 3 red-zone targets, 2 drops.
SWR: ROBERT WOODS v N/A (according to ourlads.com, the Chargers currently have no SWR)
Woods 2020 stats: 16 games, WR13, 129 targets, 90 receptions, 936 yards, 6 touchdowns; 90.6% snap share, 275 slot snaps, 23% target share, 14 deep targets, 11 red-zone targets, 5 drops; 2021 ADP 5.12
TIGHT END: TYLER HIGBEE v JARED COOK
Cook 2020 stats: 15 games, TE17, 60 targets, 37 receptions, 504 yards, 7 touchdowns; 47.5% snap share, 109 slot snaps, 12.4% target share, 7 deep targets, 15 red-zone targets, 3 drops; 2021 ADP 11.02.
(comparison Hunter Henry 2020 = 92 targets, 60 receptions, 87.3% snap share, 248 slot snaps, 16.8% target share, 5 deep targets, 14 red-zone targets)
Higbee 2020 stats: 15 games, TE18, 60 targets, 44 receptions, 521 yards, 5 touchdowns; 79% snap share, 82 slot snaps, 11.3% target share, 9 deep targets, 6 red-zone targets, 3 drops; 2021 ADP 12.10.
RUNNING BACK: CAM AKERS v AUSTIN EKELER
Akers 2020 stats: 13 games, RB38, 145 rushing attempts, 625 yards, 4.3 average, 2 touchdowns, 33 red-zone touches, 5 goal line carries; 14 targets, 11 receptions, 123 yards, 1 touchdown, 4 slot snaps; 38.1% snap share; 2021 ADP 3.03.
Ekeler 2020 stats: 10 games, RB22, 116 rushing attempts, 530 yards, 4.6 average, 1 touchdown, 27 red-zone touches, 1 goal line carry; 65 targets, 54 receptions, 403 yards, 2 touchdowns, 17 slot snaps, 60% snap share; 2021 ADP 3.01.
QUARTERBACKS: MATTHEW STAFFORD v JUSTIN HERBERT
Both quarterbacks are fantasy football viable. Stafford will be with a new team for the first time in 12 seasons, but Sean McVay is an upgrade, and his supporting cast is much better, including the Rams returning four of the five starting offensive linemen.
Herbert will be with a new head coach and a new offensive coordinator for his second season in the NFL. His supporting cast is pretty good, and the porous offensive line was upgraded in free agency, but can still be improved.
While there is an expectation of regression for Herbert, there is an expectation of increasing production for Stafford.
Stafford 2020 stats: QB16, attempted 528 passes, completed 339, 71 red-zone passing attempts, 61 deep-ball passing attempts, 4084 passing yards, 26 touchdowns, 10 interceptions, receivers dropped 84 passes; 29 rushing attempts, 112 rushing yards
64.2% completion percentage, 66.9% play-action completion percentage, 54.9% red-zone completion percentage, 42.6% deep ball completion percentage, 15.9% pressured completion percentage, 70.7% clean pocket completion percentage
Herbert 2020 stats: QB10, attempted 595 passes, completed 396, 80 red-zone passing attempts, 65 deep-ball passing attempts, 4336 passing yards, 31 touchdowns, 10 interceptions, receivers dropped 60 passes; 55 rushing attempts, 234 yards, 5 rushing touchdowns
66.6% completion percentage, 72.5% play-action completion percentage, 56.2% red-zone completion percentage, 38.5% deep-ball completion percentage, 46.8% pressured completion percentage, 74.6% clean pocket completion percentage
FANTASY FACE-OFF WINNERS
In the Los Angeles fantasy world, there are no losers. There is even reason to be cautiously optimistic regarding Jefferson, who per his current non-ADP status will be a steal in the later rounds.
Wait and see on Williams and grab Allen, Kupp, and Woods. Those who employ a zero-running back strategy expect both Akers and Ekeler to be gone when you come around to draft a running back. And as for the shallow tight-end pool, remember that Henry was the sixth most targeted tight-end in 2020, with Herbert tossing him the ball (6.6 average targets). T.J. Hockenson was the ninth-most targeted tight-end with passes coming from Stafford (6.3 average targets).
The draft should not make a seismic shift in any of the Los Angeles crew’s values, but then again, crazier things are happening here in 2021. Stay tuned for the draft update.