Is Jonathan Stewart the Panthers Most Valuable Fantasy Running Back?
Jonathan Stewart has already surpassed former fantasy football MVP DeAngelo Williams as the most valuable fantasy running back on the Carolina Panthers but fantasy G.M’s seem to be ignoring this fact.
Currently being drafted an average of two rounds after DeAngelo Williams, Jonathan Stewart finished the season as the #12 ranked running back in the Yahoo game and the #11 back in the ESPN game, while DeAngelo who dealt with an injury finished #14 and #13. The Daily Show Jonathan Stewart is projected to be the #11 ranked player in the ESPN game, while DeAngelo is projected #13.
An interesting piece of statistics from ESPN’s Matthew Berry highlighting Jonathan Stewart’s elite fantasy potential:
“The Daily Show and DeAngelo Williams put up double-digit performances in the same week three times. Stewart went on to be the lead rusher in four of the final five Panthers games due to Williams’ injury, and that contributed to Stewart’s double-digit points in seven of his final 10 games. To give you a comparison, Adrian Peterson had only four in his final 10.”
Jonathan Stewart ranked 3rd in missed tackles (44) despite having about 300 less snaps and roughly 100 less rushing attempts than the other top 3 names: AP, Chris Johnson and MJD who had 50, 45 and 44 respectively.
Jonathan Stewart is also ranked by Pro Football Focus as the #3 rated runner (rushing only) in the NFL and the #6 rated running back. Stewart is also #3 in average yards after contact and #7 in overall yards after contact, which shows he can consistently break tackles and get much needed extra yardage. The Daily Show is the only running back with less than 225 carries with over 740 yards after contact.
Jonathan Stewart has always been a Win My Fantasy League favorite and if he were not stuck behind such a talent in DeAngelo Williams, Jonathan Stewart would be setting the fantasy football world on fire and would be a top-5 fantasy pick. Expect Stewart’s role to grow more this year and he may even take over the lead back role with DeAngelo Williams being in a contract year. Stewart is listed by Chris Wesseling of Rotoworld as a top-12 pick in dynasty league settings, 1 spot above incumbent DeAngelo Williams.
Jonathan Stewart will perform like a 1st round fantasy running back and will be drafted somewhere near the 4th round, snap up this exceptional ADP value and laugh at your rival G.M’s all season long. There is absolutely no reason for Stewart to be going so late but it is happening due to DeAngelo Williams still being the starter in name.
Avoid D-Will on draft day and opt for Stewart two rounds later, he is their feature back of the future and has already produced back to back 1000 yard, 10+ TD seasons, the sky is is the limit for Jonathan Stewart aka Green Lantern.
