NFL
Breaking Down the Potential Target Split for the 2015 Colts
The Colts might have the best passing game in football. Where will all those targets be going?

In January, apparently was playing at only 70% when on the field) yet finished as the TE2 while Fleener again finished as the TE1. Due to these injuries Fleener has accounted for more targets than Allen, but it is important to note that the team's true TE1 is in fact Allen, so if the team moved towards more "11" (three WR) packages than "12" (two TE) sets, it would be Fleener who would be losing snaps.

Among the running backs, you'll notice a major lack of consistency at the position. In 2012, the RB1 was possession receiver and should see an increase compared to Wayne's 18% from last year.

I'm projecting a bounce-back year for Dwayne Allen who, as I mentioned earlier, is the team's true TE1. Beyond that, Allen has outperformed Fleener by a significant margin each year in terms of Reception "Absolutely." It is possible Dorsett cuts into more of Moncrief's targets, but based Moncrief's level of efficiency last year and the level of complexity in Pep's system, I don't see him getting more than 7%.

Perhaps the most controversial projection is Frank Gore at 10%. Typically, Indianapolis running backs have controlled a relatively equal share of targets. At the NFL owners' meetings in March, coach Chuck Pagano said that he envisions Frank Gore as "a workhorse and every-down back." While you shouldn't take everything a head coach says in the offseason to be fact, I tend to believe him in this case.

Colts running backs have averaged more than 100 targets per year since Pep Hamilton took over as offensive coordinator. Since Greg Roman took over as offensive coordinator of the 49ers in 2011, Frank Gore averaged just 1.75 targets per game. Before Roman's arrival, between 2006 and 2010, Gore averaged 5.25 targets per game and consistently ranked near the top among running backs in terms of Reception NEP per Target. Meanwhile, according to that same metric, Dan Herron ranked 55th out of 59 qualified backs.

I think it's safe to assume that rookie Josh Robinson can beat out Dan Herron as Gore's back-up. I don't see Robinson eating too much into Gore's overall touches though, maybe just filling in each time Gore needs a breather, but he could still see close to 3% of overall target share. The other 2% of the total target share I have going to Herron, Carter, maybe a fullback, and anyone else on the roster.

In fantasy football, it's important to know who the most productive passing teams are going to be, who the most productive players on that team are going to be, and then buying into those players come draft day. What we've done here is built a nice baseline for your projections. The next step would be to project yardage and touchdowns, but I'll leave that up to you.

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