Fantasy Sports Fix: Football Draft Special part 1 — Quarterbacks

Welcome, fantasy football fanatics! It’s that time of year again, it’s time to draft your way to glory — or not. Either way, it’s going to be a fun season.
This is the first installment of my four-part draft special and I’ll be focusing on some breakouts, sleepers, undervalued players and players to avoid at the quarterback position.
Just a little hint; quarterback is super deep this year, so you might find it useful to wait until later in your draft to fill the position. There’s just so much value this year that your team might benefit from a late round selection.
Let’s get it!
Undervalued
Tyrod Taylor, Buffalo BillsTyrod Taylor, Buffalo Bills
Tyrod Taylor, Buffalo Bills
Taylor’s athleticism and talent will have him in the running for a spot in the top 15 quarterbacks this year. He has several excellent weapons at his disposal in the likes of Sammy Watkins, LeSean McCoy, Robert Woods, and Karlos Williams. His rushing ability will give him some added depth, and also note that he did rush for 568 yards in 2015.
Drew Brees, New Orleans SaintsDrew Brees, New Orleans Saints
Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
Since 2008, Brees has never thrown fewer than 32 touchdowns. His high was 46 in 2011. He’s being drafted behind Ben Roethlisberger, who has never thrown more than 32 touchdowns in his career. He still has enough juice left to come out on top of the quarterback ranks in my opinion.
Kirk Cousins, Washington RedskinsKirk Cousins, Washington Redskins
Kirk Cousins, Washington Redskins
Captain Kirk represents a value this year as he is currently the 15th quarterback taken in mock drafts. That’s a tad bit low for someone who threw for over 4,100 yards and 29 touchdowns in 2015. In his first full year as a starter, he ranked as the ninth overall fantasy quarterback and I expect more of the same this year and even a little improvement on last years stats.
Matthew Stafford, Detroit LionsMatthew Stafford, Detroit Lions
Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions
After Jim Bob Cooter was elevated to offensive coordinator last year, Stafford went on to play some of the best football of his career. His completion percentage went up four points to 69 percent while his touchdown average went up to 2.22 from 1.71. Imagine what he can do in a full year under the new system.
Sleepers
Brock Osweiler, Houston TexansBrock Osweiler, Houston Texans
Brock Osweiler, Houston Texans
He steps into a situation where the Texans are ready to win now and are surrounding him with a much improved offense. In eight full games last year, he threw 10 touchdowns and threw for over 250 yards five times. His current average draft position is outside of the top 25 quarterbacks taken.
Robert Griffin III, Cleveland BrownsRobert Griffin III, Cleveland Browns
Robert Griffin III, Cleveland Browns
Although he didn’t play last year, the Browns remain committed to RG3 and he is their likely stater for Week 1 versus the Eagles. The Browns are also giving him room to work within the offense, which means he could be a threat in the air and the ground once again.
Marcus Mariota, Tennessee TitansMarcus Mariota, Tennessee Titans
Marcus Mariota, Tennessee Titans
Tennessee coach Mike Mularkey plans to put Mariota’s rushing skills on display this year, and if that’s true, he could easily top 500 yards rushing this season. If he can put it all together along with the passing game, Mariota could finish among the top 10 ranked quarterbacks.
Breakouts
Derek Carr, Oakland RaidersDerek Carr, Oakland Raiders
Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders
Carr took a big step forward in 2015. His completion percentage rose three points from 58.1 to 61.1, his passing yardage improved from 3,270 to 3,987 yards, and he threw 32 touchdowns compared to 2014’s 21, all while keeping his interceptions relatively low.
Andy Dalton, Cincinnati BengalsAndy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals
Andy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals
Dalton’s incredible 2015 was cut short by a thumb injury. In the 12 games he did play though, he set career highs in quarterback rating (106.3), touchdown to interception ratio (3.5:1), yards per attempt (8.4), and completion percentage (66.1%).
Avoid
Tom Brady, New England PatriotsTom Brady, New England Patriots
Tom Brady, New England Patriots
Some people see him as a value this year, but I don’t. Brady will miss the first four games of the season after all the fallout from the infamous “Deflategate.” He will also be unavailable for 38 percent of the standard 13-game fantasy football season, which is awfully high. Plus, he’s very likely to throw for under 4,000 yards and under 30 touchdowns this year.
Carson Palmer, Arizona CardinalsCarson Palmer, Arizona Cardinals
Carson Palmer, Arizona Cardinals
Over the past five years, Palmer has played in 63 games between the Raiders and the Cardinals while managing to score 26 or more fantasy points just twice. In that same span, he has only scored 24 fantasy points just three times, or 4.8 percent of the time. He just doesn’t have the upside you’re looking for anymore.

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