The 13 Most Undervalued Players in Fantasy Football
John Brown, WR, Arizona Cardinals
Part of the reason the aforementioned Carson Palmer was unable to get the ball downfield as effectively last year was the health of John Brown. Brown had issues with his sickle-cell trait, and while he technically only missed one game last year, he clearly wasn't as big of a part of the game plan: his market share fell from 17.97% in 2015 to 11.15% in 2016, torpedoing his targets from 101 to 72.
An easy way to see that John Brown wasn't his usual self is through what he did after the catch last year:
| Season | Air Yards Per Catch | YAC Per Catch |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 10.49 | 4.94 |
| 2016 | 10.46 | 2.79 |
His air yards profile was actually pretty similar year over year, but he shaved off over two yards after the catch per reception. In other words, the ball was being placed in similar spots, but he wasn't able to do as much with the rock in his hands, more than likely because of his health.
It's just tough to judge Brown by his 2016 campaign. As noted, his usage was down, and that altered his red zone work dramatically, as he saw just a pair of red zone catches last year after catching 10 balls in that area of the field in 2015.
Reports are positive about Brown's health today, though. And if he's feeling 100%, he should have no problem matching his near 18% market share from two seasons ago, especially considering Michael Floyd's no longer in the picture. At a WR41 price tag, then, Brown's 100-plus target outlook in a strong offense looks mighty enticing.
