As the fantasy season starts to come upon us again it’s now time to start reviewing notes in getting back to football. And a great year for most could be the worst year for others, but that’s what Fantasy is all about at the end of the day. While running backs are always going to be the number one priority this year I would like to talk about a specific receiver in this article. Keenan Allen was a gem last year who managed to be a clutch in most leagues that ended up winning the title last year. He was drafted later and ended up being a solid player as the chargers transitioned with their new QB. Let’s Rewind That Tape on Keenan Allen.
Allen was not supposed to put the numbers up that he did with everything that was going on in Los Angles that year. Yet he surprised everyone and had a heck of a year ranking 12th with an average league setup with a full point for PPR. It set up many owners to have themselves a steal WR2 because he was drafted so late in the draft compared to most of the other receivers in the same ranking area as him. Allen put up 100 receptions and 8 touchdowns and showed no signs of age getting to him anytime soon. It may have been the motivation for him to be rated lower in madden, but honestly, he looked like a solid WR1 all through last year.
The number one reason has to be due to Justin Herbert and his success. He is projected to have another great year and I wouldn’t be surprised if he does. Herbert is just one of those QBs that you will know will be great just watching him play. He is another one of the players who are high up in the fantasy rankings and could be a potent QB1. This not only helps Allen but the offense as a whole. Fantasy players are only as good as their team is in most cases. This is no different. When the Chargers are good then the players on the Chargers will be good fantasy players. It is going to be important that the Chargers have a good offense like they did last year in order for Allen to have another year.
Allen needs to just continue to keep his connection with Herbert red hot. If that continues to happen then he will be able to be a great fantasy receiver for this year as well. What is interesting is the Chargers adding a new offensive coordinator this year in Joe Lombardi. He spent 5 years as the QB coach of the New Orleans Saints. That in itself gives him enough credit to run a decent offense who have been at the tops of fantasy boards in previous years. I do believe that the addition of Lombardi is only going to help the Chargers grow as a team which is going to help Allen get a huge boost in fantasy this year.
So what should owners be looking for out of Allen? Well from how it looks, Allen should be a top 10 WR in fantasy this year. I really think that where he is being drafted is lower than it should be. So right now Allen appears to be a steal from the upcoming year. Watch out for him and the Charger’s offense as they take their next step in the 2021 season.
Top Picture by Getty Images