Jordan Reed (TE, WAS) - 2015 Fantasy Football Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target in Late Rounds

Current ADP: 162 STD, 147 PPR

ANALYSIS: Fantasy owners tend to avoid the guys with glaring issues that might make them look foolish such as old players and high injury risks. So much so that these players often come at an extreme bargain and don’t always fall into their seemingly obvious pitfalls.

Jordan Reed burst onto the scene as a rookie in 2013 with a five-game stretch where he had two touchdowns and averaged 76 yards per game. Then the injuries arrived and we’ve only had occasional glimpses of production since. Reed had a severe concussion in 2013 that put him on the IR and dealt with multiple hamstring injuries in 2014. Even though his 2014 numbers don’t stick out (50 receptions for 465 yards and ZERO touchdowns), Pro Football Focus tells us he was still a top receiving tight end. He was ranked as the third tight end in yards per route run ahead of guys like Greg Olsen and Martellus Bennett. He was even ahead of Jimmy Graham in YPRR though he obviously lacks the touchdown potential of Graham. When Reed was on the field he was still performing.

The injury risk remains but this is a talent I will take a chance on because if he were to stay on the field, he could very easily be a top-10 tight end. That’s a big if but at such a cheap price it’s worth it to grab that upside. He’s being drafted well behind guys with no upside at all like Jared Cook and Heath Miller. I think some people worry that Niles Paul is a threat to win the starting job outright but his blocking ability is a serious issue while Reed has been an average blocker in his two seasons. Paul was one of the very worst last year, ranking as 62nd of 67 tight ends in PFF’s run blocking grade. With Reed’s superior blocking skills and excellent receiving ability, I don’t see Paul as a threat as long as Reed is healthy.