Last year mark the first season -- since his rookie season -- in which Greg Olsen did not play in all 16 games. Injuries restricted him to just seven appearances for the Carolina Panthers, and he was never truly healthy in any of them. It brought an end to three-year streak with at least 1,000 receiving yards, the first by any tight end in NFL history. He was certainly worth his weight in gold in reality and fantasy over that span.
| Season | Games | Targets | Recs | Yards | Touchdowns | Rank (Standard) | Rank (PPR) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 16 | 129 | 80 | 1,073 | 3 | 4th | 3rd |
| 2015 | 16 | 124 | 77 | 1,104 | 7 | 4th | 5th |
| 2016 | 16 | 123 | 84 | 1,008 | 6 | 2nd | 5th |
Olsen's tally of 655.6 PPR points between 2014 and 2016 were the most of any tight end.
After flirting with retirement during the offseason, Olsen instead signed a contract extension that ties him to the Panthers for the next two seasons. Olsen's return to fitness makes him a strong bet to return to prominence among fantasy tight ends, as does his rapport with quarterback Cam Newton. Newton averages 7.92 adjusted yards per attempt when targeting Olsen in his career, the third-most among players he has targeted at least 50 times.
Volume shouldn't be an issue for Olsen, especially after the Panthers appointed Norv Turner as their offensive coordinator this offseason. During Turner's term as the head coach of the then-San Diego Chargers, Antonio Gates averaged 17.04% of the team's market share. Olsen should once again flirt with top-tier tight end numbers in 2018.