You want 2020 stats? We got them! Let’s be honest, stats are important in this game. After all, it’s what you score points for!
So, with that in mind, I wanted to give you the stats from the 2020 stats that I’ll use. But more importantly (I think) how I use them to help me shape my thoughts on players.
2020 Stats Database
This nifty view will let you browse through the database as you like, but if you want to dig into the numbers yourself. Then you can do that using this link to the Google Sheet.
Using The Stats
The key to using stats is understanding what is important to each position. That might seem obvious, but it’s something that can easily be looked over! What I mean by that (and what you’ll see in our database) are things that are relevant to a position. It might look great on Redzone to see your QB catch a TD pass, but it isn’t going to be something to really consider when you are about to draft a player!
Instead, knowing how much of a share a particular receiver gets in the offense or how far a player gets down the field before he is targetted can help you make better decisions. As you can imagine, each position is different as to what is important.
2020 Stats- Quarterback
QB is a position that is readily available. But each season you can find a late-gem. Some stats are very variable each and every year. Unfortunately, those are the ones that you score with. Yards, TDs, and INTs are all very sticky (meaning they can vary wildly year to year). That being said, the likes of Patrick Mahomes, Aaron Rodgers, and Deshaun Watson are likely to be relatively consistent season. But we are looking at stats to find gems!
Before we continue, don’t hear what I’m not saying. I am likely going to stream the position, but I have no issue with trying to roster two QBs early in the season (if my bench allows) to see if I have found the next late-round QB.
Average Target Depth & Completion Percentage
These are two stats that I tend to look at to start with. Finding a QB that takes deep-ish shots, but hasn’t completed too many of them is your ideal situation. Whereas, the converse isn’t going to really help you too often.
For example, Jared Goff has an average target depth of 6.44 yards and a completion % of 67.0. That just isn’t going to help you win. However, one player that could spring back is Carson Wentz who has an average target depth of 9.36. With just a little uptick in completion percentage from 57% (say up to a league average of 66%) would give you a further yard for each attempt!
Sack %
You could look at the raw number of sacks, but that can be easily skewed by the number of attempts a team has. Instead, I much prefer to use the % that they are sacked on their dropbacks. The reason that I’ll look at it is an indication in how much pressure he has faced. More pressure leads to increase in INTs, and poor throws.
However, with the stat being a culmination of a few events, this stat can vary a little from season to season. But it’s worth noting that typically players will have a similar number of sacks in their career. That is, if they aren’t facing Aaron Donald each week! It’s also something that can dramatically be improved season to season, as teams pick up free agent talent or new pieces in the draft.
For that reason, I’d look at the likes of Matthew Stafford, or (again) Carson Wentz to improve on their mark.
2020 Stats- Running Back
The RB position, alot of the time, is a real win or lose for your fantasy week and therefore your fantasy season. What I’m looking for here might be obvious, but let me explain.
Carry Share %
Obviously, if you want to score points your player needs to have the ball in his hands. So ideally, you are looking for a player that has a decent share of the offense. For example, the likes of David Johnson with HOU might not have felt like a good pick, but he had 43% of the carries of the team and was an RB2 on the season!
Equally, you could look at a player like Damien Harris, who had just 27% of the carries on that team. Bumping that up with half of Sony Michel’s workload would be another 30 carries on the season. Not much, but an incremental change in TD % too could mean a breakout!
Point per Opportunity (PPO)
Point per opportunity gives you an indication of how efficient (or inefficient) a player is. What you’ll notice is that the top of the position are efficient with their opportunities on the field. Alvin Kamara’s 1.14 is crazy- even discounting half a point for a reception that’s a around 6 yards for each touch of the ball (obviously excluding the TDs scored).
So for the likes of Josh Jacobs’ at 0.68 you really need him to be getting volume to be valuable to your team (and infact, could fall off if he is unable to be more efficient). Conversely, J.K. Dobbins mark of 0.98 is up in amongst the elite at the position, with a few more opportunities each game he could easily step up to be an RB1.
2020 Stats- Wide Receiver
Now, target % is a really obvious stat to look at. Thinking about it, maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned Carry Share % for RB’s? Either way, Target % is a great indicator of if your receiver is going to be successful. However, there are other stats that can help you find a gem.
Average Depth of Target (aDOT)
Average depth of target is a great stat to keep an eye on. If it’s deep enough, you could be looking at around 2 points in a half PPR league on a single catch. If you are looking for a guy that could break out, the likes of Marquise Brown and his 12.36 aDOT could pay dividends over the likes of Russell Gage’s 8.34.
AY Share
Air Yards in themselves can be a good indication, but I prefer to use the AY share. The reason being that it equalizes out scheme a little. Infact, when considering it I’ll look at the Yards share too. What I’m looking for is a player that has alot of Air Yards that haven’t translated into receiving yards.
The type of gap that stands out to me is the one for DJ Moore. He accounted for 39% of the team’s air yards, but only 29% of the teams yards. That implies that he left a number of yards on the field, something that could improve with another year with his QB.
2020 Stats- Tight End
Tight End is a position that there are always unexpected players that seem to burst out of nowhere. The reason being that a number of them are hugely TD dependent. That’s why Robert Tonyan became a fantasy darling- he just kept catching the ball in the end zone.
That is hard to predict season to season, but you can look to some stats to give you an indication that a player could be a decent option in your draft
Routes Run Per Game
The thing that hurt a TE’s fantasy relevance is being too talented! What I mean by that is that a really well balanced player, might not help out your fantasy lineup- because he is blocking defenders.
Routes run will give you a decent indication of a TE that has a chance of catching the ball. The like of Travis Kelce and Darren Waller are right at the top of the league (as you’d expect) but there are plenty of guys that could break out.
Looking at 2020, he may have felt like a let down, but Hayden Hurst stands out as a potential gem. He ran 34 routes per game, just two behind Travis Kelce. His 88 targets should increase with another year in the offense with the Falcons. Conversely, Mark Andrews and Robert Tonyan only ran 23 per game, so could be inline for a regression in receptions as well as TDs!
Rec TD Rate
Rec TD rate is another stat to check- the TE position is massively TD dependent, which is one of the reasons that there a number of players that switch from being a top option to not being a top option.
Looking at the Rec TD rate for Evan Engram 1% is incredibly low- especially for a TE. A decent rate is around 5-6% so there should be plenty of scope to improve.
But that’s enough from me! Jump in and have some fun with it! Don’t forget to check out our other content in our draft kit!
Image Credit: Chuck Cook – USA TODAY Sports
