Putting Together your Upcoming Fantasy Football Team (NFC North Edition)

Today, I highlight some players in the NFC North who could be difference makers for your fantasy football team this year.  

With the NFL season still two months away, I decided to take a break from the analysis and predictions and touch on a lighter subject for this 4th of July weekend article; Your upcoming fantasy football drafts.  

Most fantasy football leagues will begin kicking off their seasons in the next month or two and it is important to know which players on your favorite team as well as your hated division rivals are worthy of earning a spot on your roster and helping you win a championship.

Whether it be a keeper league, auction league, standard format league, or PPR league, I will highlight some players from the NFC North, who I think will give you an edge this year.    

King of the North:

1. Aaron Rodgers 2-4th round- Aaron Rodgers is still worthy of an early round selection in any type of league despite his struggles from last season.  Last season, Rodgers fought through a tibia plateau fracture, along with a deteriorating relationship with his head coach that clearly affected his performance. With a new offensive philosophy and a clean bill of health, I look for Rodgers to throw for over 4,000 yards and 35 touchdowns and prove his doubters wrong.

2. Mitch Trubisky middle/late round selection (keeper/auction/salary cap leagues)- Despite not having the same pedigree as Aaron Rodgers, Mitch Trubisky still does provide value in most non-standard fantasy football leagues.  If you are in a 10-14 team league and want to load up on skill players, Mitch Trubisky could be your man at quarterback.  If you are in a league with salary restrictions and need to spend your money elsewhere, (auction or salary cap) Trubisky can give you over 3,000 yards, 25 total touchdowns for a fraction of the price of Stafford, Cousins, and yes, even the King of the North himself, Aaron Rodgers.  

Running Through the North:

 1. Tarik Cohen mid-round steal- Tarik Cohen was a product of 1st-year coach Matt Nagy's innovative offense.  He received many opportunities in different specialized packages catered to his skill set and became a breakout fantasy football star in 2018.  Cohen provides his greatest value in PPR leagues because of his ability to accumulate yards both in the passing attack as well as on the ground.  In 2019, I look for Cohen to get even more opportunities as one of the featured skill players in Matt Nagy's system and I believe he will have over 60 receptions, 1,200 total yards, and 10+ touchdowns.

2. Aaron Jones mid/late round steal- Aaron Jones constantly goes under the radar in most leagues and this year will be no different.  As names like Gurley, Barkley, McCaffrey, Kamara, Elliot, and Bell go off of the draft board early on, you can still construct a championship contending roster with your early picks coming in the form of a couple of dynamic receivers, a quarterback, and a tight end. After you have drafted away the top wide receiver, quarterback, and tight end, away from your competition, you can then target your second running back in the middle of the draft and come away with a talent like Aaron Jones.  In an offense that is expected to commit more to the run in 2019, Aaron Jones could be a candidate to amass 1,400 total yards, 10+ touchdowns and be the middle to late round steal that everyone talks about in 2019.

Who Has the Best Skills?

 For this section, I am going to give you my top three fantasy skill players (wide receiver and tight ends) who reside in the NFC North.

Drumroll please.....(sarcasm)

This list is pretty academic in my opinion:

1. Davante Adams early round pick- It is no surprise that Davante Adams will again be an easy early round pick to make in any type of fantasy football league.  Adams will have a great chance to break most of the Packers receiving records with a healthy Aaron Rodgers delivering him the football.  I see Adams getting plenty of reps in both the slot, as well as on the outside and see this translating into plenty of touchdowns, plenty of receptions, and plenty of yards.  I look for Adams to have 100+ receptions, 1,200+ yards, and over 12 touchdowns.  

2. Stefon Diggs early/mid round pick- Stefon Diggs is probably the number three receiver in the NFC North behind Davante Adams and Adam Thielen.  Like Adams, Diggs can play both inside and outside and accumulate receptions, yards, and touchdowns in volume. One of Diggs greatest attributes is he possesses tremendous hands for jump balls and sideline catches in red zone situations.  For me, the difference between Diggs and Adams is who is throwing them the ball.  I'll take the proven success of Rodgers over the unstable personality and late game choking of Kirk Cousins. 2019 Projection: 80 receptions 1,000+ yards 10 touchdowns

3. Adam Thielen, early round pick- Unfortunately Packer fans know that Adam Thielen is the complete package at wide receiver as they have seen him have his best games against them for years.  Thielen like Diggs possesses great hands, runs precise routes, and can make would be tacklers, miss.  Thielen might be the best inside-outside combo receiver in the division and is certainly one of the best in the NFL.  Look for Thielen to continue to put up big numbers for the Vikings in 2019.  2019 Projection: 100+ receptions 1,200+ yards 10+ touchdowns. 

Sleeper Picks From the NFC North Who Could Add Depth to Your Roster:

1. Dalvin Cook

2. T.J Hockenson

3. Geronimo Allison

4. Marquez Valdes-Scantling

5. Jake Kumerow

6. Riley Ridley

7. Allen Robinson

8. Trey Burton

9. Marvin Jones

10. Jimmy Graham

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David Michalski is a staff writer for Cheesehead TV. He can be found on Twitter @kilbas27dave 

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Comments (8)

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Bearmeat's picture

July 06, 2019 at 12:17 pm

Dalvin Cook will be gone by mid round 2 at the latest. Diggs is no sleeper. Aaron Jones will be gone by mid-round 3. Mitch's rushing floor is the only reason he's even valuable in fantasy football. Dude is a bad QB.

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dobber's picture

July 06, 2019 at 01:31 pm

If you play with GB fans, yeah, Jones will be overdrafted. I think Dalvin Cook lasts a little longer than round 2, but I tend to subscribe to zero RB drafts (and have done pretty well with it), and I don't worry too much about early round RBs unless I pull a 1-3 pick.

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Rossonero's picture

July 06, 2019 at 08:40 pm

Not necessarily. I've been doing mocks for several weeks now, and the secret is out on Jones. I see him go rounds 2-3 pretty commonly. I wouldn't bank on him falling past the 4th.

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Bearmeat's picture

July 06, 2019 at 02:20 pm

I do almost exclusively Superflex leagues. Which basically means you want to start 2 QBs a week. It puts the fantasy emphasis back on the QB, like the real NFL. I like it a bit more. RBs aren't supermen in real life like they are in 2 QB leagues.

But yes, I see your points. I do think Cook will go in round 2 in most drafts and Jones by the end of round 3. Both prices, FWIW, that I won't be paying.

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Rossonero's picture

July 06, 2019 at 08:46 pm

Mitch Trubiskey - hard to draft him as a Packers fan, but fantasy-wise, he'll be cheap in auction drafts and will go late in re-draft leagues (i.e. snake drafts) unless you're playing with a bunch of Bears fans. He'll be in his 2nd year with Matt Nagy's offense, spreads the ball around a ton and also offers upside with his feet.

Marvin Jones -- saw him go for high $20's and low $30s in auctions last year. He got injured, but he's a very solid WR2 still in his prime. All the focus is on Kenny Golladay, who's being drafted way ahead of Jones and a lot more is being spent in auctions on him. I'm for Marvin Jones all the way.

Hockenson -- meh. I need to find the stat, but it's incredibly rare for a rookie TE to have any kind of impact. Given his draft status, they'll force the ball to him, but there's still a learning curve. I think he'll do more in 2020.

Jimmy Graham -- is going insanely late in drafts and for pennies in auctions. I'll take him all day not just because I'm a Packer fan, but because he's healthy, in a new offense, another year of chemistry with Rodgers, and he's got a chip on his shoulder.

Geronimo Allison -- I think most of us on here agree he'll be the No. 2 behind Davante Adams. Some think it'll be MVS, but Adams has unquestionable chemistry and trust with Rodgers, and he was on pace for a 1,000 yards+ before injury ruined his season last year. Count me in on him, and you can get him pretty late in re-draft and cheap in auctions (unless playing with a bunch of packers fans).

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Bearmeat's picture

July 07, 2019 at 07:07 am

Agreed on all points. The main league I'm in has eight die hard Bears fans in it, so I almost never get any Bears. Mitch will get good FF points, but dude is not very good at NFL football.

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Rossonero's picture

July 07, 2019 at 12:33 pm

Thanks. You probably won't get David Montgomery or Anthony Miller either then, who I both like a lot for fantasy purposes. However, Alllison and Graham shouldn't be a problem.

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fastmoving's picture

July 07, 2019 at 05:12 am

I would put Geronimo at the 4th place, even his chemistry with AR is by far his biggest assett.

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