Bears Blitz

Published by Joe Pantorno on October 20, 2016
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears are down to their third-string quarterback in Matt Barkley after the team announced that Brian Hoyer would not return to Thursday night’s game after he injured his left arm against the Green Bay Packers.  

For fantasy football owners with two of Hoyer’s biggest targets in wide receivers Alshon Jeffery and Cameron Meredith, this could prove to be nervy times, as Barkley hasn’t appeared in an NFL regular-season game since 2014 as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles. 

However, consistency has not been a key for both of these receivers while Hoyer, who was forced to start after Jay Cutler injured his thumb, was under center:

Alshon Jeffery

Jeffery has been Chicago’s No. 1 receiver since 2013, although injuries limited him to just nine games last season. 

From 2013 to 2014, Jeffery was a WR1 candidate in fantasy, recording over 2,500 yards and 17 touchdowns during that span. 

Playing just over half of a season last year was still enough for Jeffery to record 807 yards and four touchdowns. The NFL showed his deep-threat capability on Twitter:

This season has seen his touches lag a bit with the emergence of veteran Eddie Royal. Through six games, they both had 29 receptions, while Royal recorded 50 fantasy points compared to Jeffery’s 46, even though the latter had five or more receptions in four of his first six games. However, Royal suffered a toe injury that held him out of Thursday night’s game and could limit him moving forward. 

Even with Barkley under center, Jeffery has shown in the past he is a premier receiver who is capable of making big plays. Because of that, he should still be in your starting lineup.

Cameron Meredith

It’s been a coming-out party of sorts for the second-year man Meredith. After recording just 11 receptions all of last season, he looked destined for that same kind of output after his first two games of the season. He recorded just two fantasy points with six catches for 52 yards. 

But in Weeks 5 and 6 against the Indianapolis Colts and Jacksonville Jaguars, Meredith exploded with 20 receptions for 243 yards, a touchdown and 28 fantasy points while showing good chemistry with Hoyer, via the NFL:

But Week 7 hasn’t been as kind to him, as he caught just one pass through the first two-plus quarters on Thursday night. 

Meredith doesn’t offer a large enough body of work to make him a surefire bet in fantasy football, which makes him a risky play moving forward especially with an inexperienced quarterback. 

If you’re desperate, the best-case scenario for him could be at the flex position. 

Fantasy stats courtesy of ESPN.com. Career stats courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.com. 

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