The 2021 Fantasy Football “All-Fun” Team

Fantasy Football season is upon us.

While you might have money, dignity, or both on the line this season, ultimately, at the end of the day, it is purely a game and one that is almost entirely determined by luck.

None of the projected rankings have any idea if an injury could occur or if a game plan could change, or if someone could break out of a slump. Just last year, Christian McCaffrey was ESPN’s preseason #1 ranked player, and Michael Thomas was #6. McCaffrey played three total games, and Thomas played 7.

If it’s a game entirely determined by luck, why make your picks by the rankings determined by these so-called experts? Shouldn’t you want someone that would be FUN to own since it’s a game? Winning is what makes it fun, of course, but if that is so up-in-the-air, you should pick the studs that will be fun to watch on a week-to-week basis.

I present to you the Fantasy All-Fun Team, with one fun pick early and late at each position for your fantasy draft.

Early-Round Quarterback // Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers

Later-Round Quarterback // Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams

Justin Herbert put up otherworldly numbers last season as a rookie with an incompetent coach and one of the worst offensive lines in the league; the Chargers have been accustomed to bad luck for seemingly years now, and they blew leads of 16 points or over for four straight games last year. They should have been winning. Now, he has a new coach from the Rams that seems to be Sean McVay’s protege; they invested in an offensive line, the defense will get injured players back, and you get Herbert in his second season at only 23 years old.

We’re not even sure how good he can be! And you get to watch him throw the ball downfield in those sweet powder blue uni’s every week. It would be fun to ride the wave and see what his ceiling could possibly be. He’ll probably go earlier in drafts because of his “second-year leap” possibility and has the capability to run a little bit.

In the other locker room in Los Angeles, Matthew Stafford has long been the guy that hasn’t gotten any credit he deserves from being on a losing, inept team in Detroit with no help. Now, he gets to go on the big “F- you” tour playing for the Rams in what many think is the most advanced offensive machine that somehow made Jared Goff a Super Bowl quarterback. He’s a bit older and less mobile, but he’s the feel-good narrative of the year.

Early-Round Running Back // Najee Harris, Pittsburgh Steelers

Later-Round Running Back // Mike Davis, Atlanta Falcons

There have been so many critics of the Steelers selecting Najee Harris in the first round when they had the offensive line issues they have. Still, their rushing situation was so abysmal last year because they didn’t feel like they had “the guy” that Ben threw the ball over and over again.

They now feel like they have that guy.

The Steelers have a history of making a running back their workhorse when they find him, from Jerome Bettis to Le’Veon Bell getting a huge workload, and that’s what Najee is going to be. He’ll be on the field A LOT. You also get to shove it to the non-believers who didn’t think the Steelers should’ve taken him.

Mike Davis is now on the Falcons with Arthur Smith, who unlocked Derrick Henry in Tennessee. He took over for the games that Christian McCaffrey was hurt last year in Carolina and held his own, getting the fifth-highest targets during that span. The Falcons notoriously never have been able to run the ball and balance out Matt Ryan over the years, and now they’ll have Smith calling plays.

Mike Davis is getting such little hype to be the #1 guy in Atlanta because he suffers from a boring name. If his name was Storm Lightfoot or something awesome, he’d be a top-tier option given the volume he’s going to get.

Early-Round Receiver // DK Metcalf, Seattle Seahawks

Later Round Receiver // Michael Gallup, Dallas Cowboys

DK Metcalf is only 23, is shredded like an Adonis, has neon-highlighted hair with flashy eye makeup and earrings and is animated on the sidelines, and is one of the best deep-threat receivers in the NFL. There are very few plays in the game of football more exciting right now than Russell Wilson escaping pressure and throwing a 50-yard bomb to DK into a tight end zone window. You don’t want to root for THAT on your team every Sunday?

Michael Gallup might be the third receiving option for Dak when Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb are healthy. Still, he gets his fair amount of targets and has solid chemistry with him on deep throws- he only had less than 50 yards receiving in one of the games that Dak wasn’t hurt last season. Amari Cooper this year is sounding NOWHERE TO BE FOUND with nagging health issues going into the season so that Gallup could be even more involved. The Cowboys have an atrocious defense, so they’ll, in all likelihood, be throwing the ball frequently, too.

Also, Dallas is on TV seemingly every week. You’ll get to see him in action a lot.

Early-Round Tight End // George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers

Later-Round Tight End // Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons

George Kittle might be coming off of a season plagued by injuries. Still, before then, he was the most electric, thunderous bison running down the field to catch passes, truck defenders over with a stiff arm, or light them up with a block, being a top-3 tight end in fantasy in 2018 and 2019. He also loves what he does- taking pride in blocking just as much as catching, and is just a charismatic, lovable guy. He made Tight End University to train with guys on other teams in the offseason and make everyone better.

He has Joker and Halo tattoos and gets himself into an alter ego to get psyched for games. That alter ego is going to be back in full force as he’ll be extra motivated to come back in a rejuvenated 49ers offense that will be putting up a ton of points with potentially a new quarterback in Trey Lance.

On the other side of things, Kyle Pitts is an unknown commodity being a rookie, but he’s the highest-drafted tight end ever since MIKE DITKA. Scouts are already practically putting him in the hall of fame with how versatile a receiving threat he was at Florida, where he’d manhandle anyone to the turf. We truly don’t know how good he’ll be, and it might take a while out of the gates from the rookie learning curve, but he’ll be catching passes from Matt Ryan, a former MVP who threw lobs effortlessly to Julio, who’s gone now. Ride the Kyle Pitts hype train!

Featured Image: Robin Lundberg/Sports Illustrated