2021 Fantasy Preview – Washington Football Team

Team Overview

At 7-9, the Washington Football Team limped their way out of the tattered NFC East to a surprising playoff berth. But despite the interesting season, they did greatly improve from their 3-13 season the year before. They brought in the traveling gunslinger QB in Ryan Fitzpatrick, and with a competent QB at the helm, they should be realistically competitive. But the rest of the NFC East looks like they stepped up their game or are getting healthy this season as well. This division should be just as competitive, but hopefully at a higher standard than 2020.

Their defense is a stout unit and can keep them in games even when Fitzpatrick has his downswings, and they got even better through the draft with the selection of Jamin Davis and Benjamin St. Juste. The offense looks loaded with weapons as they brought in Curtis Samuel and Dyami Brown to take some of the burdens off of Terry McLaurin. This team is a long-term QB away from looking like a promising squad. But stand-in Fitzpatrick should make them competitive in the 2021 season.

2021 Fantasy Preview Washington Football Team- Projected Depth Chart

Individual Players

Studs

  • Terry McLaurin: McLaurin has had to endure more than most WRs do in their first two years in the league. He has had a rotating cast of Alex Smith, Dwayne Haskins, Kyle Allen, and Case Keenum throwing him the ball his short career. Despite this, he has produced back-to-back 900+ yard seasons and a WR2 finish last year. Now he has Ryan Fitzpatrick, the best QB he’s played with in his career, and a gunslinging QB at that. McLaurin should be primed to produce at a borderline WR1 level this year and is only 25 for those dynasty teams.
  • Antonio Gibson: Despite missing basically 3 games in 2020, Gibson produced just outside the top 12 RBs (RB13). He broke out his rookie season and all signs are pointing towards the team giving him the rock more this year. He was efficient with his opportunities and should continue that with a more balanced offensive approach in 2021. For dynasty leagues, he’s only 23 and should continue to be a borderline RB1 for years to come.

Role Players

  • Ryan Fitzpatrick: Through the first 6 weeks of last season Fitzpatrick was a top 10 QB. Then he started switching out time with Tua even though it looked like Fitz was on the verge of leading Miami to the playoffs. Now with Washington, there isn’t a young QB that looks to be the future face of the franchise like Tua was in Miami. Fitz should get to start the whole season, but as good as he can be, fans have all seen his down games as well. Even though he can be a roller coaster, he should be a solid fantasy starter and a good one-year stopgap for dynasty teams.
  • Curtis Samuel: Samuel has flashed a lot of potential in his time with Carolina, but has always at least been the second or third option in the offense. He is a dynamic player that can lineup everywhere on the field, even the backfield at times. Now at Washington, he looks to be the clear number 2 option next to a receiver in McLaurin that demands the defense’s attention. He should be a great WR3, potentially WR2, for the 2021 season. But his job following the season could be in question with Day 2 draft pick Dyami Brown biting at his heels.
  • Logan Thomas: Thomas quietly had a great season in 2020 as the second option in the Washington offense. They have brought in both Curtis Samuel and Dyami Brown who could end up taking some targets away from Thomas. That being said, Thomas should still be a solid middle-tier TE1 at a sparse position. 
  • JD McKissic: McKissic was the definition of a PPR RB2. His 110 targets and 80 receptions were the biggest factor in him finishing as the RB17 in PPR leagues. Gibson should progress in his sophomore season and take some of those targets away, but McKissic should still produce at about the same clip as valuable as he is in the passing game.

Keep an eye on

  • Kelvin Harmon: Harmon had a quiet rookie season in 2019 and then wasn’t able to show any improvements in 2020 after he tore his ACL. Coming off of his injury, there are reports that he looks good in camp and could contend for a starting spot in 3 wide sets. He showed a lot of promise coming out of college and could have a second opportunity to prove his worth in the NFL. A situation to keep an eye on.

Dynasty Stashes

  • Dyami Brown: Brown was a third-round selection and selected to solidify the lacking WR core behind Terry McLaurin. He looks to be behind Curtis Samuel in the depth chart but could also be fighting with other WRs for the starting 3rd wide receiver position. As a rookie, he doesn’t have much stand-alone value. But dynasty leagues he is an excellent stash as his talent and draft capital suggest he should have a role in this offense soon enough.
  • Antonio Gandy-Golden: AGG started the season off fighting for a playing time in a crowded WR group, but suffered a hamstring injury that kept him out a majority of the season. Coming back in 2021, he is yet another WR vying for that third starting WR position. At only 23, he still has time and could be a deep dynasty league stash.

***Note: All projections and discussions are assuming full PPR formats.***

2021 Fantasy Preview Washington Football Team- Stat Projections

Passing

Player Name Pos Att Comp Yards TDs INTs
Ryan Fitzpatrick
QB
390
559
4,372
28
17

Receiving

Player Name Pos Targets Rec Yards Yds/Rec TDs
Terry McLaurin
WR
118
81
1,134
14.0
8
Curtis Samuel
WR
94
61
732
12.0
6
Dyami Brown
WR
59
38
517
13.6
3
Logan Thomas
TE
76
57
513
9.0
4
Antonio Gibson
RB
41
33
314
9.5
1
JD McKissic
RB
59
44
282
6.4
1

Rushing

Player Name Pos Att Yards Yds/Att TDs
Antonio Gibson
RB
202
887
4.4
10
JD McKissic
RB
40
169
4.2
1
Ryan Fitzpatrick
QB
40
169
4.2
2

***Note Player Projections are only fantasy relevant players. Team totals may not add up as we left out players that may not have a significant impact on the season. Projection provided by Rich King and is based on 16 games.***

Team Projection

Record HC OC
8-9
Ron Rivera
Scott Turner
Rushing Att Rushing Yards Rushing TDs Passing Att Passing Yards Passing TDs Total Yards Total TDs
402
1,771
19
588
4,602
29
6,373
48
28th
28th
6th
4th
5th
8th
17th
7th

What do you think? Reach out on social media, you can find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Or jump into our Discord server.

Image Credit:Steve Mitchell – USA TODAY Sports