Fantasy Upside
After a stellar rookie season in 2014, Kelvin Benjamin missed all of 2015 with a torn ACL before returning last year to catch 63 passes for 941 yards and seven touchdowns. Now two years removed from his injury, Benjamin is the WR1 on a roster that was the highest scoring offense in the league two years ago. He has exceptional size for his position, standing 6-foot-5. Quarterback Cam Newton has a tendency to float passes, which works in Benjamin’s favor, and he should continue to be a viable red zone target due to his body control and ability to catch contested balls.
Fantasy Downside
Benjamin looked slower and incapable of gaining separation in his first year back from injury, which reduced the number of quality targets he saw. The Panthers had a makeshift offensive line last season, and Benjamin’s inability to get open off the line on a consistent basis didn’t allow Newton to get many clean throws to him. Benjamin is never going to be a burner, but he’ll need to learn to get off the line with a little more explosiveness if he’s going to improve. Benjamin showed up to camp out of shape in May, which is never a good sign with a young player. Talented pass-catchers acquired in the draft could take some pressure off Benjamin, but could also reduce his targets.
2017 Bottom Line
Benjamin has a lot of upside, but he’s too risky to draft early. The Carolina offensive line should improve a little with the addition of Matt Kalil and some natural progression from the young guards, but Newton will still likely have a hard time finding a clean pocket. It’s encouraging that Benjamin has had over 100 targets in each of his two playing seasons and that he caught seven touchdowns in a bad year in 2016. He gets a value boost in touchdown-only leagues, but overall, his seventh-round ADP might be too rich for me to buy this season.
