With the conclusion of the 2024 NFL Draft, considerable upgrades were made to several NFL offenses that quite honestly scare me. I’m scared if my Minnesota Vikings have to go against them. I’m scared for my fantasy football teams to go against the players. Of course, I will aim to draft these players on my own managed teams, but with the sheer number of leagues, I’m bound to go against them at some point.
Here is my latest “Spilling the Tea With Tootsie” session on NFL Teams with upgraded, scary offenses.
The Scariest NFL Offenses (2024 Fantasy Football)
Right out the gate, let’s talk about my excitement for the Minnesota Vikings walking away with key players like quarterback J.J. McCarthy, edge rusher Dallas Turner and kicker Will Reichard. With Kirk Cousins leaving for the Atlanta Falcons, the Vikings needed to secure a quarterback for the future to pair with (assumedly) bridge quarterback Sam Darnold. McCarthy, leading an offense that has Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson, will be a force to reckon with.
This newly invigorated offense has me excited. But then, I stopped to see how the rest of the NFC North stacked up. I must confess I want to run from the Chicago Bears.
Scary Bears
The Bears drafted quarterback Caleb Williams at the first-overall pick and then snagged wide receiver Rome Odunze at the ninth-overall pick.
Odunze joins a receiver room that already includes Keenan Allen and D.J. Moore. By himself, Moore had 1,364 receiving yards last year with Justin Fields and was the sixth-most product receiver across the NFL in terms of yardage. With 1,243 receiving yards of his own, Allen – then with the Los Angeles Chargers – had the eighth-most yardage for the position. While in his last collegiate season with Washington, the newest addition, Odunze, had 1,640 receiving yards in 2023.
More than capable of supporting these three receivers, Williams had 3,333 passing yards at USC in 2023. All of these analytics put the Bears on the map as a strong contender to lead the NFC North, and these players are in a prime position for fantasy football purposes.
Commanders Command
Another team with an upgraded offense is the Washington Commanders. The Commanders drafted quarterback Jayden Daniels at the second-overall pick in the NFL Draft. While at LSU in 2023, Daniels had an impressive 3,812 passing yards.
Adding to their receiver corps of Jahan Dotson and “Scary” Terry McLaurin, the Commanders also drafted Luke McCaffrey in the third round. Interestingly, McCaffrey started his college career as a quarterback and then transitioned to wide receiver. He had 992 receiving yards in 2023 and should play a role for the team in the 2024 season.
Additionally, this offseason, the team brought in superstar running back Austin Ekeler, who is a dual threat with rushing and receiving abilities. This offense significantly upgraded, and this team and these players will be scary to go against in fantasy football.
Chiefs Dominate
In a surprising draft day move, the Buffalo Bills traded with their AFC rival, the Chiefs. This allowed Kansas City to move up to the 28th pick from the Bills while also receiving fourth-round and seventh-round picks in exchange for the 32nd pick, a third-round pick and a seventh-round pick.
With the 28th pick, the Chiefs picked up Xavier Worthy to add to their wide receiver room. Worthy will join receivers Rashee Rice, Marquise “Hollywood” Brown and tight end Travis Kelce on this high-octane offense. With 1,014 receiving yards in 2023 at Texas, Worthy should play a big role this upcoming season. Being back-to-back Super Bowl champions, this Chiefs offense always finds a way to come out on top. Now, they’ve even upgraded with one more piece.
Texans Ascend
Much to the surprise of many, the Houston Texans finished 2023 with a record of 10-7 and first in the AFC South. This was a successful season for rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud and new head coach DeMeco Ryans. Stroud saw 4,108 passing yards on the season with receiving options Nico Collins, Tank Dell (who got injured midseason) and tight end Dalton Schultz leading the charge.
The Texans then traded for Stefon Diggs from the Buffalo Bills. This already highly successful offense just got exponentially upgraded with one more receiving option, plus a now healthy Dell. This Houston offense is scary on all levels: for the AFC South, the whole AFC, the entire NFL and fantasy managers having to face these players.
Survival Mode
The best survival tactic to employ when it comes to these NFL teams with upgraded, scary offenses is to try to draft as many of these players on your own fantasy teams as possible. We must eliminate the fear of going against these players in our fantasy leagues.
We must also hope the NFL schedule doesn’t have our home teams facing these scary offenses. Come on, Roger Goodell, help us out. Despite all the scariness, these upgraded offenses will be exciting to watch in this upcoming 2024 season. Is it September yet?
Thanks for reading. Hit me up on Twitter @tootsiepop6 for more fantasy football content!
*Photo Credit: Jamie Sabau – USA TODAY Sports*