We are just six weeks into the fantasy football season, and already it is being deemed one of the most tumultuous in years.
Quarterbacks are just interchangeable cogs in the fantasy machine. The running-back position is in complete disarray thanks to Le’Veon Bell’s holdout, injuries to Dalvin Cook and Leonard Fournette and unreadable committees perpetuated by coaches like Mike McCarthy and Matt Nagy. There are at least two dozen no-name wideouts with more touchdowns than Julio Jones, and the tight-end position is just a pile of hot trash.
Fortunately, there is one oasis in this fantasy desert of despair and probably the only constant we’ll see this season. Adam Thielen is the best and most-underrated wide receiver in all of football.
Thielen came into the league as an undrafted free agent, spent a year on the Vikings’ practice squad and through tenacity and hard work, has proven to be one of the most reliable players in the game. Sunday’s win over the Cardinals marked Thielen’s sixth-straight 100-yard game this season, and he now has four touchdowns in his past five games. Literally, every other wide receiver’s stats are in his rearview mirror.
The lack of respect Thielen gets in the fantasy community is confounding. Ask 100 fantasy owners who they’d rather own among Thielen, Michael Thomas, DeAndre Hopkins and Antonio Brown, and you would be lucky to get one person to name the Vikings wideout. People seem to forget he was in the top five of receiving yards last year, ahead of two of the aforementioned receivers. They also forget he has had one of the highest catch rates of all wideouts over the past 2½ seasons. Who needs that kind of reliability?
Maybe it’s because he isn’t flashy. Maybe his touchdown celebrations aren’t creative enough. Maybe he isn’t truculent enough with the media during postgame press conferences, or doesn’t wear outlandish outfits while dodging questions. Whatever the case may be, it is your duty as a responsible fantasy owner to seek out a trade for Thielen right now.
The task of prying Thielen away from his owner won’t be easy. His owner sees the production. However, if that owner has another wideout of the marquee variety, you can get it done. Just inquire about the asking price of their bigger name. “What do you want for Antonio Brown?” When your first-born child is what is being asked for in return, pivot to Thielen. You are guaranteed to give up less and, in the end, will turn the bigger profit.
Howard Bender is the VP of operations and head of content at FantasyAlarm.com. Follow him on Twitter @rotobuzzguy and catch him on the award winning “Fantasy Alarm Radio Show” on the SiriusXM fantasy sports channel weekdays from 4-6 p.m. Go to FantasyAlarm.com for all your fantasy sports advice and NFL player rankings.
