The Best Players to Stash in Fantasy Football From the AFC North
Sammie Coates, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers
The Player
Sammie Coates was a polarizing prospect heading into the 2015 NFL draft. While his size, strength and speed reminded scouts of a young Terrell Owens, his marginal ball skills made it difficult for some to see how he would ever become a consistent weapon.
With the raw Cordarrelle Patterson as a present reminder of how simple athleticism does not a receiver make, Coates fell to the Steelers in the late third round, a relative bargain for a player with his athletic makeup. Here are players who possess a similar size and speed profile:
| Name | Hght | Wght | 40 yd | Bnch | Vert | Broad | 3Cone | 20 ss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deandre Hopkins | 6' 1" | 214 | 4.57 | 15 | 36" | 115" | 6.83 | 4.5 |
| Hakeem Nicks | 6' 1" | 212 | 4.51 | 36" | 6.96 | 4.43 | ||
| Justin Blackmon | 6' 1" | 207 | 4.46 | 14 | 35" | 123" | 7.13 | 4.38 |
| Sammy Watkins | 6' 0¾" | 211 | 4.43 | 16 | 34" | 126" | 6.95 | 4.34 |
| Sammie Coates | 6' 1" | 212 | 4.43 | 23 | 41" | 131" | 6.98 | 4.06 |
| Amari Cooper | 6' 1" | 211 | 4.42 | 33" | 120" | 6.71 | 3.98 | |
| Cordarrelle Patterson | 6' 2" | 216 | 4.42 | 37" | 128" | 7.28 | 4.4 |
At Auburn, there were times when Coates would literally throw a defensive back off of him, and his ability after the catch make him a dangerous weapon in the open field. His 23 bench repetitions are tied for fifth most among receivers at the NFL combine since 1999, demonstrating his dominant strength at that position.
But Coates just isn't a natural receiver. He fights the ball and is often late to get his hands up to make the catch, leading to an inordinate amount of drops. He struggles to track the ball on deep routes and doesn't look very skilled as a route runner.
So can the Steelers turn him from raw prospect into an NFL weapon?
The Opportunity
The Steelers have had an amazing run at drafting receivers as of late, with Mike Wallace, Emmanuel Sanders, Martavis Bryant and Antonio Brown all selected in the third round or later.
Bryant especially showed us what this offense can do with a raw but explosive player, and the rookie finished the 2014 season with eight touchdowns and an absurd 21.1 yards per catch average.
In 2014, Antonio Brown and Bryant dominated our Net Expected Points (NEP) metric, which is our our in-house metric that compares a player or team’s production to league expectation level. However, number-two receiver Markus Wheaton struggled in contrast, posting a 0.66 Reception NEP per target that was similar to the season Larry Fitzgerald posted. Not terrible, but considering Fitzgerald played with an inaccurate collection of quarterbacks, not what you would like to see out of the young Wheaton.
Ben Roethlisberger just never seemed to be on the same page as Wheaton, and his job could be on the line as the ascendant Bryant continues to assert himself in this offense. If Wheaton continues to struggle to develop chemistry with Big Ben, those extra targets could go to the athletic rookie.
And don't forget, the Steelers were sixth in the NFL last season in pass attempts, second in yards, and fourth in Adjusted (for strength of schedule) Passing NEP per play. This is an offense that looks capable of supporting three targets in the passing game.
In short, Sammie Coates is far from a complete receiver. In fact, he may never develop into that type of player. But he doesn't need to become a master of the position in order to be a valuable fantasy commodity. A good NFL comparison (in terms of role) could be Percy Harvin, who was a great fantasy asset despite never posting a 1,000-yard receiving season. Coates has the athletic ability to become a similar type of weapon, and preseason could be a good indication of whether or not the Steelers will be creative in how they utilize their new receiver.
