Fantasy Football: One Breakout Candidate From Every NFL Team
Tyler Lockett, WR, Seattle Seahawks
Outside of Doug Baldwin and Jimmy Graham, there's not a lot we know for sure about the Seattle Seahawks' pass-game weapons. If he can stay healthy, C.J. Prosise could be a nice option out of the backfield, while Jermaine Kearse has underwhelmed in his role as the number-two receiver.
That brings us to Tyler Lockett.
As we covered earlier this offseason, Lockett has quietly put together two decent campaigns. He was a popular breakout pick last season, but a lack of volume kept him from taking a big step forward. Still, he vastly out-produced Kearse on a per-target basis and was the team's second-best wideout, according to our numbers, behind Baldwin.
| Player | Targets | Receptions | Reception NEP/Target |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jermaine Kearse | 89 | 41 | 0.49 |
| Tyler Lockett | 66 | 41 | 0.71 |
Of course, this great per-target efficiency doesn't help us from a fantasy perspective unless Lockett and Kearse flip jobs. Well, Lockett's role was definitely trending up over the second half of 2016.
Across his final six full games (not counting his injury-shortened game in Week 16), Lockett saw at least six looks in five contests, something that had only happened once in the eight games prior. In all, he was targeted 35 times in that span. Kearse, meanwhile, also saw 35 targets over that same six-game stretch.
Lockett is reportedly good to go after breaking his leg in the aforementioned Week 16 game, and he could see a boost in usage if things pick up where they left off a season ago. Even if he doesn't have a monster year, Lockett has a great chance to return value at his current ADP, which is WR66.
