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As Donkey Teeth approaches his second week at Ghostbuster’s Fantasy Camp, he sent me a Ouija board to help communicate with him. You see, they don’t allow phones at the camp (interferes with the EMF detectors), and sometimes it’s helpful to talk to your good editor buddy about things like, “Why is Philip Rivers retiring” or “Can I use company funds to buy a shrimp boat?” So I got this Ouija board, and I followed the directions I found on the internets to the best of my ability: I played alone, in a graveyard, and I didn’t say good-bye at all. And wouldn’t you know? Donkey Teeth says I can buy a shrimp boat! Hot gravy, my next article is gonna be written from the scenic Gulf of Mexico, where I’ll barely be able to see my budget laptop’s screen in the bright sun. The Ouija board also let me ask about my next sleeper, and of course, it brought out every NFL fan’s favorite fantasy football player: Corey Davis. Let’s roll!

Corey Davis

Way back in July 2020, I hinted at some late round wide receivers that I targeted in 2020 drafts. If you don’t want to click through, here’s the executive summary: Corey Davis, Cole Beasley, and Kelvin Harmon. Harmon got injured in the pre-season and never touched the field. The other two guys finished as top 30 WR when you could draft them in basically every league format available in the last round. Davis and Beasley ended up being my late-round wide receiver targets that helped me win an industry fantasy football tournament. The way I identified them? Foremost: Rudy’s 2020 Razzball Premium Projections. Second: opportunity for targets. This should be a familiar formula for anybody who read my Justin Jefferson 2021 fantasy football outlook

With 2021 still very young and Corey Davis an unrestricted free agent this year, it makes for a great time to acquire the 25-year old from other fantasy managers. Fantasy owners maligned Davis for several years because he had a first round pedigree and never seemed to provide adequate return on investment for demanding tastes. Part of that problem was the former Titans quarterback, Marcus Mariota. When Ryan Tannehill stepped under center, Davis thrived. Here’s what I wrote in July 2019: “When Tannehill took over, Davis put up a respectable 63% catch rate for 30 receptions, averaging 13.33 yards per catch, which put him on par with Mark Andrews and Preston Williams, and ahead of Tyler Lockett. Perhaps most notably, Davis put up 241 yards after catch on those limited receptions, which totaled yards after catch per reception than Terry McLaurin, Courtland Sutton, and Michael Gallup.”

With 2020 finished, we saw Davis play WR2 to the mighty A.J. Brown, who finished as a top 10 WR in standard formats. With defenders giving Davis the second biggest cushion in the league, Davis accrued the fourth highest yards per route run, snagging nearly 25% of the Titans’ passing yards and touchdowns. He finished in the top 20 in yards per catch and top 10 in yards per target, which was stunning for a receiver that many had given up on. The Titans declined Davis’ option before 2019 began, meaning Davis knew he was playing 2020 with the incentive to earn another contract on the open market. He responded by catching 88% of the possible balls sent his way, finishing 18th overall in air yards, and tacking on another 285 yards after the catch, good for 35th in the league. At the end of the year, Davis finished as a top 30 wide receiver in most fantasy formats, good for your starting WR3 or a FLEX in smaller leagues. 

Fantasy Takeaway

Corey Davis saved his career in 2020. Or was it Ryan Tannehill who saved Davis’ career? Davis was but a footnote on the Titans’ offense before Tannehill showed up. If Davis re-signs with the Titans, that seals the deal that you should look at him as your WR2/3 or FLEX option. If Davis re-signs on a team with a deep receiver corps, of course, that complicates things. However, at only 25-years old, Davis has shown that he has every bit of deep-threat capability to operate on many NFL teams. If he ends up as the WR2 on a team with an efficient QB, he could be quite the upside pick for 2021. 

What are your thoughts on Corey Davis in 2021? Let me know down in the comments, and have an awesome day!