5 Fantasy Football Implications Stemming From Tuesday's Crazy Injury News
Torrey Smith's Target Potential Keeps Increasing
We've known the whole offseason that Chip Kelly's joining the San Francisco 49ers would increase the target potential for Torrey Smith. Not only would they be running a bunch of plays, but Anquan Boldin was out of the picture, and Smith was sneakily efficiency in 2015. Now, the team has lost the player who had the best shot to dig into that target market share.
The #49ers placed receiver/returner Bruce Ellington on season-ending injured reserve, which explains the Jeremy Kerley trade.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 30, 2016
Bruce Ellington had been generating a ton of buzz entering his third season in the NFL, and now he hits the shelf, too. Football is a cruel sport.
The 49ers' depth chart is now completely barren after Smith. Even if Blaine Gabbert is horrendous, you know -- at the very least -- that Smith is going to get volume.
This also means we'll need to monitor the 49ers' other passing-game assets closely. If Jeremy Kerley, Vance McDonald, or another pass-catcher can cement a role, they'll have fantasy value simply because the team will be passing so often. It's more permissible to chase volume at wide receiver than other positions, and it seems fine to do that with Smith given the situation.
