Los Angeles Rams

Sammy Watkins

Early in camp it appeared that Watkins had regained the explosiveness and agility that predated last season s foot injury. Now the question is whether he can stay healthy going forward. In the second half of 2015 Watkins was one of the most dominant receivers in the game, but last season s lingering foot issue left a lot of fantasy owners with a bad taste in their mouths. Now the move to Los Angeles further complicates the situation. In mid-preseason Watkins will need to learn a completely new offense and develop chemistry with second year quarterback Jared Goff, who is still struggling to adjust to the NFL. One positive note for Watkins is that much like in Buffalo, there should be little competition for targets at the receiver position. Former teammate Robert Woods got big money from the Rams this offseason, which raised some eyebrows because he s more of a WR2/3 NFL talent, gadgety scat back-wideout Tavon Austin gets manufactured touches, and rookie Cooper Kupp is slated for slot receiver duties. Watkins should reprise his alpha dog role with the Rams as the most talented wideout on the roster, but his future value is linked to the development of Goff for the time being.

Higbee will battle Gerald Everett for playing time in the Rams offense, but these are two very different players at the tight end position. Higbee is a big, athletic pass catcher who can be both and in-line tight end and a field stretcher. He also has a bit of a nasty streak that makes him a difficult player to bring down after the catch. From a talent perspective there's some poor man's Travis Kelce to his game if he can learn to maximize his ability. But don't overlook the fact that he's a holdover from the last coaching regime, and after falling to the Rams in the draft a couple years ago due to off the field issues, he'll need to prove himself all over again.

The man nicknamed "Greg the leg" has established himself as a power kicker, successfully kicking over 60 yards in 2012 and 2015. However, he's struggled with consistency since entering the NFL, which limits his value as a starting fantasy kicker. He owns a lousy 79.4 career field goal percentage despite improving his field goal accuracy last year, ranking ninth among NFL kickers with an adequate 86.4 percent. The Rams offense ranked last in almost every team statistic last season, limiting Zuerlein's fantasy upside. If you want a kicker that has the range to knock down 55-plus yard FG's on a consistent basis, Zuerlein's the man.

As the Rams head back to California, Rams D/ST owners will try to put 2015 out of their minds. Easily a top six drafted unit, this team has a Jekyll-and-Hyde thing going on. On paper, this defensive line should be a major sack producing unit and be at least above average stopping the run. The 2015 Rams really did neither, finishing 11th in sacks (41) and 20th in rushing yards allowed. The defense led by indomitable DT Aaron Donald should be primed for a better year in 2016 for fantasy owners. Donald will have to step into more of a leadership role as the Rams let DE Chris Long and LB James Laurinaitis go. They will need LB Alec Ogletree, the 2013 first rounder, to assume his 2014 form (or better) and be the rangy tackling machine in the middle. DE Robert Quinn, a 15-sack guy when healthy also missed half the season in 2015. In the secondary, where the Rams gave up 254 yards a game and a 66.8% opposing completion percentage, opted to keep CB Trumaine Johnson and let CB Janoris Jenkins leave to the NY Giants. They also have a hole at safety with Rodney McLeod bolting to Philadelphia. The loss of Jenkins will be mitigated by a healthy E.J Gaines, who missed all of 2015. To aid in the loss of Lauranitis, SS Mark Barron is now penciled in at linebacker. The Rams profile as a team that will rely heavily on their defense as their offense is Todd Gurley and an unknown quantity at quarterback in rookie Jared Goff. This probably hurts them and keeps them in the top 10-15 range, but many different scenarios are possible with this unit. You can wait and see on them to see if they get dropped as their first few games are pretty brutal.