Fantasy Upside
There is a ton of upside every season for the game’s best WR. Calvin Johnson is over the injuries that nagged him last year and, to no one’s surprise, has looked great in camp. After his illustrious ’12 season that saw him catch 122 passes for a record 1,964 yards, he 'settled’ for 84 receptions, nearly 1,500 yards and 12 TDs last season. Calvin has been over 1,100 yards in four straight years, totaling 45 TDs during that span. To give you an idea of his importance to the team, the Lions offense ranked 13th in the NFL last year with an average of 24.7 points per game; but in the games Johnson missed at Green Bay and at Minnesota, the offense struggled mightily and scored a combined 22 points.
Fantasy Downside
Battling knee injuries for much of last season, Calvin missed a lot of practice, which he felt affected his play in games. He did not reach the 100-yard mark or score a TD after Week 13 and even missed the final (meaningless) game of the season. With new OC Joe Lombardi in place, Detroit is expected to have a more balanced attack on the ground in ’14.
Bottom Line
Megatron turns 29 in late September and has several productive years remaining, assuming he can stay healthy. Playing in 14 games last season, Johnson finished as the No. 3 WR and is anticipated to be the first WR taken in pretty much any draft. He will likely be an early-to-mid first round pick, so grab him early. If he’s able to make it through all 16 games in ’14, he should catch over 100 passes, be over 1,500 yards and again double-digit TDs.