Marquise Hollywood Brown

Dynasty Dilemma: Marquise Hollywood Brown

by

Dynasty Dilemma: Marquise Hollywood Brown

By Ryan Ramsarran

Marquise “Hollywood” Brown. The newest Arizona Cardinal. On the first night of the 2022 Draft, there was a shocking trade that saw the Cardinals send their first round pick (23rd overall) for Marquise Brown and a third round pick (100th overall). A lot of people are now wondering what they should do with their Hollywood shares and where his value is at this point.

 

 

Brown has been in the league for three years now and has improved year after year. He’s been a great receiver and was the clear WR1 on the Ravens. He went from 584 receiving yards in Year 1, 769 yards in Year 2, to 1008 yards last year. Brown had earned the trust of Lamar Jackson and the Ravens as a whole, and commanded 145 targets last year - in an offense that is usually very run heavy (Ravens were 3rd in rushing yards last year among all teams in NFL). 

Brown commanded a 26.7% target share last year (tied for 10th highest in the league). Being only 24 years old and getting over a quarter of the team's targets is a terrific feat. As for now, going to the Cardinals he may not see a huge target share like before but he may get a lot more quality passes from Kyler Murray than he did from Lamar Jackson. Kyler had the 2nd highest completion percentage in the league last year (69.2 %) and was tied for 1st in deep ball completion percentage (50%). 

Christian Kirk led the Cardinals in targets last year with 103, and departed this offseason to sign with the Jaguars. There's a huge opening in the offense and Brown will be able to carve out a role right from the start. Brown actually already has a great rapport with Murray from playing together in college. In their last year together at Oklahoma - Brown finished with 75 receptions for 1318 yards and 10 touchdowns. Hopkins, Ertz, and AJ Green are all over 29 years old and Brown should be able to eventually become the top target on the team as the others age out.

 

The Cardinals ranked 18th in total passing attempts last year. Their run game was very successful (led by James Conner & Chase Edmonds) which resulted in the team finishing 7th in total rushing attempts and 10th in rushing yards. Kyler also likes to spread the ball around. The highest total target share last year among the Cardinals receivers was 18% (Christian Kirk) which was slightly inflated due to Hopkins missing 7 games, and Ertz missing the first 6 games (was traded mid-season to Arizona). There is a lot more competition for targets in Arizona as they have Hopkins, Ertz, Green, Moore, and newly drafted standout TE Trey McBride joining the fold as well. Brown is very unlikely to repeat his 26.7% target share he had on the Ravens, and will likely be stuck behind Hopkins for targets. 

Brown also has not signed an extension yet. Granted, he’s only been on the team for a couple of days but AJ Brown was traded during the first round as well and signed a $100M contract right away. Tyreek Hill was also traded this offseason and got an extension that same day. Arizona was not willing to pay Christian Kirk which resulted in him signing with Jacksonville (for a contract worth $18M per year - which ultimately frenzied the WR market). There are reports that Arizona will be picking up the fifth-year option on Browns' contract - as they did with Kyler Murray as well, and will wait until next year to decide if they will offer an extension or not.  

 

 

Hollywood is a great receiver and was a great WR1 for the Ravens. He should be able to slide right into the WR2 role on the Cardinals with the possibility of becoming the WR1 in the future. He’s going to be playing with a much more accurate QB who he already has some great rapport with and will easily become one of the focal points of the offense.

 

 

Follow me on Twitter @RyanR_FF

Hollywood Rising

by

Hollywood Rising

By Alex French

Is there a nickname in the NFL that is more closely related to being a star than Hollywood? Hollywood, Florida native Marquise Brown received his nickname of “Hollywood” while playing at Oklahoma.  After not receiving any D1 offers out of high school, Brown starred at College of the Canyons before transferring to play for the Sooners.  

Baltimore drafted Hollywood with the 25th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft and he did not disappoint in his rookie season.  In his first game against Miami, Brown exploded for 147 yards and 2 TDs...while only playing 14 total snaps.  In just 14 games played last season, Hollywood had 46 receptions and 7 touchdowns. What is truly impressive about those numbers is that he only had 4 games where he played more than 70 percent of the snaps. 

There were at least 3 games last season that the Ravens were able to pull their starters in the 4th quarter.  What are the chances that it will occur again in 2020? 

I highly doubt it does. 

Additionally, I expect they will look to pass a bit more this season. With that being said, over 100 targets is realistic for Hollywood Brown. With his electric playmaking ability, that should provide massive upside for fantasy owners. 

Did I mention he was averaging 8 targets per game before his injury?  That average dropped to around 5 targets per game by season’s end, but I think a top 15 finish at the position is likely with a healthy 16 games played.  

Reigning NFL MVP Lamar Jackson will look to target TE Mark Andrews and Hollywood plenty.  The Ravens will be attempting to avenge a disappointing playoff exit, and getting the ball into the hands of their big playmakers will be a way to do that.

Oh yeah, he’s currently being drafted outside the 5th round of drafts as the WR31.  In a startup dynasty league, he is being stolen with that ADP.  He is a BIG TIME dynasty asset and should be targeted way earlier than what he is going.  

 

Predictions:

112 targets, 73 receptions, 949 yards, and 9 TDs

 

 

Follow me on Twitter @TheBlindGuyFF

Mid/Late Round Players that will Finish Top-12

by

Players Drafted Outside the Top-12 that will Finish Inside the Top-12

by Bob Miller

 

Quarterback

Matthew Stafford: Before Stafford had to be sidelined for the last eight games in 2019 due to a back injury, he was on fire. He threw for almost 2,500 yards, 19 TDs and only five interceptions. He was on pace to have a career-year, similar to 2011 when he threw for over 5,000 yards and 41 TDs. He is currently being taken outside the top-12 and should finish as a QB1 if healthy, easily making him a fantastic value pick, especially in Superflex leagues.

 

Ryan Tannehill: All Tannehill did last year after taking over in Week 7 was rack up fantasy points. In fact, from Week 7 on, the only QB to outscore Tannehill was Lamar Jackson. So why is he being drafted so low this year? Sure, he probably won’t repeat the same performance as last year, but he should put together another fantastic season with his rushing ability and weapons around him. With an ADP of 130 (#20 QB), he should drastically outperform his current price. At only 31 years old, he could be a nice bargain in dynasty leagues.

 

Ben Roethlisberger: Big Ben should be considered a back-end QB1 if he's healthy and firing on all cylinders. He is fully expected to be 100% and ready to roll for Week 1 and he's my favorite for Comeback Player of the Year. JuJu Smith-Schuster should also experience a nice rebound season after a 2019 to forget without Roethlisberger slinging him the rock. Roethlisberger, with all his weapons around him, should be a fantastic pickup late in your draft that can payoff big time.

 

Running Back

Kenyan Drake: Drake is in a high-octane offense that’s trending upwards and should put up insane numbers this season. Greg Rosenthal of NFL.com states that Drake could get over 350 touches. Wow! There are a lot of great options in the top 10 RBs right now, but you can wait. Drake has legit potential to explode this season and a top-6 finish is not out of the realm of possibility.

 

Cam Akers: There is rumor that the Rams backfield could be a RBBC, but LA wouldn’t have spent a 2nd round pick on Akers if they believed in Darrell Henderson or Malcom Brown. We all know what a running back is capable of in this offense after watching Todd Gurley for the last few seasons. Even though the Rams have lost some guys on the O-Line, Akers is primed to be the early down back to start the season and could take over full time very quickly. It will be hard to keep him off the field, making him a double digit touchdown threat. He can definitely finish as a top-12 back.

 

James Conner:  There is no doubt that Conner is a fantasy stud...when he’s on the field. That’s the question. Can he stay healthy? Regardless, the Steelers have one of the best offensive lines in the league, and Conner has proven that he can shine behind them. He is a contract year player and extremely motivated to stay in Pittsburgh. If Conner can stay healthy, he will drastically outperform where he's being drafted right now. Take full advantage, as the risk is worth the reward.

 

Todd Gurley: Just like in 2017, Todd Gurley can be a league winner again. Gurley is going to be given all the touches he can handle in this Falcons offense, if he can stay healthy. If he shows that he can handle a significant workload, he'll easily outperform his ADP in 2020. Atlanta has the 3rd easiest schedule this season, which makes Gurley hands down one of my favorite values.

 

Wide Receiver

Cooper Kupp: Cooper Kupp may end up being one of the biggest steals in your draft this year. He was incredibly productive through the first half of 2019. In fact, from Weeks 1-8, Kupp was the WR2 in all of fantasy football. He finished as the #6 WR in PPR with 94 rec, 1,162 yds, 10 TDs on 134 targets. With Brandin Cooks gone, Kupp could see over 150+ targets this year. As Jared Goff’s security blanket, especially in the Red Zone, it’s very possible that Kupp could finish as a top 3 WR in PPR Leagues this year. With a current ADP of WR15 (35th overall), Kupp is a steal at this price.

 

Marquise “Hollywood” Brown: I know there’s a ton of hype around Hollywood this year, but it’s for good reason. He is the current #1 Wide Receiver in Baltimore’s offense. He showed what he was capable as a rookie with a bad foot hauling in 584 yds with 7 touchdowns on 46 receptions. Now imagine what he will do with a year’s experience under his belt, a healed and healthy foot, and a whole offseason working out with Lamar Jackson. He is primed to blow up this season. I have him projected to have 74 rec, 1,089 yds, and 9 TDs. That’s 239 PPR points, which would have been top 7 last season. Currently being drafted as a WR3/FLEX, he could be a league winner this year.

 

Jarvis Landry: “Old Reliable” is what I refer to Landry as. Wait.. old? Nope. He’s only 27 years old. The same age as Michael Thomas and younger than DeAndre Hopkins, meaning Jarvis Landry has plenty of good years ahead of him. He may be coming off an injury, but he has never missed a game in his NFL career...Never. He averages 94 catches a year, so why is he being drafted outside the top 30 WRs? I have no idea, but I absolutely love it. He is a wonderful target in the mid-rounds, which gives you an opportunity to stock up on RB or QB (if you’re in a Superflex league). He is as close to a sure thing to have 80+ receptions this year as you can get. Like Hollywood Brown, Landry is currently being drafted as a WR3/FLEX. He is a high end WR2 with WR1 upside in a Browns offense that should be improved.

 

Tight End

Blake Jarwin: Jarwin is finally free! Free from playing behind Jason Witten. He's in a great situation this season in a very dynamic and powerful offense. He’s very athletic and can stretch the field extremely well for a TE, which will result in some good chunk plays. He's going to see plenty of work and should be a back-end TE1 this season. Currently being drafted outside the top 20 TEs, Jarwin can pay off big time as a late round pick.

 

 

Hayden Hurst: Hurst is no sleeper by any means, and he is getting more hype as the season gets closer. This is a player with an ADP of the #21 TE a month ago. He has now creeped up into the Top 15. That’s still not bad, because he can still be the biggest surprise at TE this year. Hurst has a very good chance and path to finishing as a Top 5 option at the end of this season. Hurst is a tremendously talented tight end who is finally going to be given a full-time opportunity in Atlanta's dynamic offense. He will be a homerun pick in the later rounds of your draft. If you are in a dynasty league, go trade for him. You may have to pay more than you’d want, but it could still be a great bargain.

 

You can follow me on Twitter @DynastyProBob