Kenny Golladay Fantasy Football Outlook & Value 2021

The crown jewel of the 2020 free agency receiving class packed his bags in Detriot and moved them to the Big Apple. That’s right, Kenny Golladay walked on the Detriot Lions after spending his first 4 seasons there and signed a massive contract with the New York Giants. Golladay only played 5 games in the 2020 season because of a hip flexor injury. There was a lot of hype for Golladay after catching 11 touchdowns and over 1100 yards in 2019, but sadly, injuries derailed his 2020 and he could just not make it back onto the field. Golladay is far from damaged goods and will look to have a year similar to 2019 in his first season with the Giants. 

2020 Recap 

Golladay was having a pretty good year before missing the rest of the season with a hip injury. In the 4 full games he played, Golladay averaged almost 14 fantasy points a game and recorded 20 catches for 338 and 2 touchdowns. If we extrapolate those numbers, we could see that Golladay could have recorded 80 catches for 1352 yards and 8 touchdowns. Those numbers are incredible and would have put him top 8 in fantasy for receivers last season. Sadly, injuries are a part of the game and we will never know what Kenny Golladay could have become. Golladay will look to have a redemption year and prove to everyone around the league that he is worth his fancy new contract. 

2021 Projections

Kenny Golladay can have a huge impact on the fantasy landscape in 2021. Golladay is the deep threat New York has been desperately looking for. He’s big, he’s fast, he’s got a huge vertical leap, and he has great hands. He can also take a hit as he did many times during his time with the Lions. Golladay has shown his big-game potential and if he is fully healthy in 2021, he should be competing for the Comeback Player of the Year Award.

ADP & Auction Value 

ADP: 49, Rounds 4-5, WR19

Auction Value: $16 

Golladay barely cracked the top 20 wide receivers list for fantasy in 2021. This could be partly because he was injured and partly because he only has 2 good seasons under his belt compared to top-tier guys who have multiple excellent seasons in their times in the NFL. Guys like Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams have been lighting up scoreboards for years now and Golladay is relatively new to being fantasy great. Golladay will earn most of his points in bunches or the red zone since he is 6’4” and ran a 4.5 40-yard dash. Golladay is a top 20 ranked receiver before the season for a reason and will look to climb even higher in his new team. 

Floor 

Golladay is on a new team and has some injury concerns. Golladay missed 16 games out of 64 because of hamstring, elbow, and chest injuries as well as a concussion. Missing 25% of your games is not what you want to see as a fantasy owner and should be a concern you have when drafting him. Let’s not also forget that Golladay is on a new team. That means he will need time to learn the offense and develop the right chemistry with Daniel Jones. This takes time so don’t be surprised if Golladay starts off the season slowly. Regardless, Golladay is an elite deep threat receiver who could only fall to your WR2 at his worst. 

Ceiling 

Golladay could reach skyscraper heights in 2021. Apparently, Daniel Jones is one of the best deep-ball passers in the NFL. All I knew about Daniel Jones was that he was the one that fell on his face before scoring a touchdown and that he fumbled a lot. But according to PFF.com, Jones has a 143.1 passer rating on passes 20+ yards, and that fits Golladay’s strengths. Golladay also has a supporting cast around him. That means that some of the targets are taken away from him, but it also means that he won’t be double-teamed like he was on the Lions. The new supporting cast Golladay surrounds himself means that he should have some easy one-on-one defense to cook and score on. If everything breaks his way, we could see Golladay entering the top 10 receiver category. 

Daniel Jones passing 20+ yards downfield:

💥 143.1 passer rating (1st)
💥 5 TDs
💥 0 INTs pic.twitter.com/1LYSYJMvs2

— PFF Fantasy & Betting (@PFF_Fantasy) December 12, 2020

New York Giants Offense

The Giants have a newly revamped offense that should be able to score with anyone. The G-men were an abysmal 31st in total offense and only scored 17.5 points per game last season, which only beat out their fellow New York team in the Jets. However, they get their workhorse back in Saquon Barkley from injury and GM Dave Gettleman was busy this offseason by signing the jewel of the wide receiver free agency market in Kenny Golladay and drafting super shifty wide receiver Kadarius Toney in the first round. The Giants have also been slowly rebuilding their offensive line over previous drafts and have improved it from the one that got Eli Manning killed into one where Daniel Jones has time to throw and Saquon has room to run. Speaking of Daniel Jones, this is his prove-it year. Jones is now in his third season as Giants quarterback and for the first time has weapons around him. The Giants ranked 28th in passing offense last year and 18th in rushing offense, but both should improve dramatically if Daniel Jones stops turning over the ball and progresses into the #6 overall draft selection the Giants think he can be. 

Strength of Schedule  

The Giants have the 7th easiest schedule in the NFL. That makes sense as the NFC East was laughably bad last season, as no team finished over .500 in that division. This year the Giants have to play the NFC South and AFC West along with games being played against the Rams, Chargers, Dolphins, and Bears. Their hardest games are the ones against the two teams that were in the Super Bowl last season, the Buccaneers and Chiefs, as well as their game against the Super Bowl hopeful Los Angeles Rams. Their games against teams hoping to make playoff pushes in the Dolphins, Bears, Raiders, and Saints are also going to be difficult for the Giants to win. If the Giants want to make a playoff run, they will need to beat teams that are around their same skill level or teams that they are supposed to beat. That means they will have to beat every other team in their division as well as the Panthers, Broncos, Chargers, and Falcons. The NFC East is wide open and the Giants certainly have the defense and coaching necessary to win it, but they will need major contributions from Saquon Barkley, Daniel Jones, Kenny Golladay, Kendarius Toney, and Evan Engram if they want to guarantee their spot in the playoffs.