NFL News And Notes, 2020 Fantasy Football

There was a conspiracy theory that was being widely floated that the Patriots planned on tanking the 2020 season to put themselves in position to draft Trevor Lawrence in the 2021 draft. As far fetched as it was, I wouldn’t put anything past Bill Belichick. The man isn’t getting any younger and finding success without Tom Brady is clearly at the top of his priority list.

It was only a matter of time before the Patriots brought in Cam Newton. Apparently this deal has been in the works for a while but Covid provided difficulties with physicals and workouts. But alas, Cam will be an NFL starting quarterback on a very team friendly deal that probably comes with some under the table cigar shop investments from Robert Kraft. The personality fit will be the most interesting part of this whole experiment. Cam Newton has always been a player to show a lot of personality. He’s honest, willing to talk, he loves to smile, he loves to celebrate, and he loves to interact with fans. He’s the exact opposite of Tom Brady during his time with the Patriots outside of a few instagram productions and a very weird Facebook show.

You are here to find out how Cam Newton on the Patriots adapts to fantasy football in 2020. Truth be told, I’m just as curious as anyone. There isn’t really a large sample size of quarterbacks who suffered Lisfranc injuries in recent memory. There’s just Matt Schaub and Ben Roethlisberger from what I remember and they both came back fine. The biggest question mark to me is Cam’s shoulder. Even after Cam had “fully healed” from MAJOR shoulder surgery he was not hitting throws through the first two games of the season in 2019. That could easily be a case of shaking off the rust, but nobody can be sure. Cam has a big advantage playing for two of the most consistently creative minds in the NFL between Belichick and Josh McDaniels. Belichick is historically a big admirer of Cam so I’m sure his wheels have been turning about this partnership for a while.

Before properly ranking Cam, he needs to win the starting job. On the surface, that doesn’t seem like a huge mountain to climb considering the competition. The Patriots do like Stidham, but the long term sustainability seems questionable to even his biggest supporters. And Brian Hoyer is a big el oh el. According to the CBS fantasy rankings, Cam comes in as QB16 sandwiched in between Aaron Rodgers and Jared Goff. By just looking at the names behind him in their rankings, there’s a handful of QBs I would rather have in 2020 including Joe Burrow, Gardner Minshew, Baker Mayfield. I also think that Teddy Bridgewater has more upside based on the offensive pieces in Carolina.. I don’t believe that there is a lot of QB1 potential with the skill position players that New England has to offer. Julian Edelman is getting older and he has taken a beating in recent seasons. Muhamed Sanu is nothing special despite what his biggest touts believe. N’Keal Harry is the wild card. Hopefully we see what he can bring to the table in 2020. Cam Newton has historically liked to rely on his tight ends. The Patriots have two rookies, Matt LaCosse, and Ryan Izzo. Devin Asiasi is likely going to have to make an impact right away at a position that carries a lot of responsibility.

Other News

Kyler Murray and DeAndre Hopkins have started to work out together. Building chemistry is going to be a tough hill to climb with the uncertainty of how training camp is going to work in the NFL in 2020.
Jalen Hurts and DeSean Jackson have also been working out together in Florida. Florida is the right place to be if you want to catch Covid-19 and build those antibodies… I guess?
Jordan Howard is the most likely candidate to get red zone carries in Miami. The problem for the Dolphins will be getting to the red zone.
Apparently Josh Allen has spent the offseason putting on muscle in his upper body. It’s too bad that it’s unlikely that fans will be allowed to attend games because even some of the cheaper seats would have a shot at catching one of his Stefon Diggs overthrows.
Ted Ginn Jr. expects Mitchell Trubisky to be the Bears’ starting QB this season. Ginn was then heard inaudibly groaning and maybe hoping there isn’t a season after all.
As of late last week, Ezekiel Elliott was starting to feel better after a bout with Covid, but as luck would have it for Elliott, the bars are once again closed. Another house party it is.
And finally, Antonio Brown is drawing interest from the Baltimore Ravens and the Seattle Seahawks. Nothing like a locker room distraction to bolster your playoff hopes, amiright? Nah, he’ll be fine I’m sure. He’s only moody like 75% of the time.