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Projecting Cameron Meredith’s 2017 Fantasy Value

By Bill Zimmerman

Nov 13, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; Chicago Bears wide receiver Cameron Meredith (81) works out prior to the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 13, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; Chicago Bears wide receiver Cameron Meredith (81) works out prior to the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Is Cameron Meredith on the verge of becoming a legit WR1? Here’s what to expect from him for your 2017 Fantasy Football team.

Cameron Meredith has steadily climbed the Chicago Bears wide receiver depth chart since the team signed him as a UDFA in 2015 out of Illinois State. When injuries opened up the door last season, Meredith stepped up and, at times, played like a legit WR1.

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Meredith is going to be one of the big fantasy question marks heading into the 2017 season. Will he step up and become a WR1 for the Bears that fantasy owners can rely on or will he simply be a borderline roster player that can spot start when your higher caliber wide receivers are banged up or on a bye?

The key to fantasy football is opportunity. You can have a player with all the talent in the world, but if he’s simply sharing the ball with multiple players, he isn’t going to have as much value as the less talented player that is getting boatloads of opportunities because there isn’t much else around him. That, at a minimum, is Cameron Meredith.

The Bears are going to focus on running the football, but in today’s NFL, every team basically throws for 3500 or more yards. Last year, 26 teams threw for 3500 or more yards. The Bears, and their carousel of mediocre QBs were 31 yards shy (or a couple Josh Bellamy drops) of throwing for 4000 as a team. That means someone has to catch the ball.

If the Bears are right around 4000 yards passing again with Mike Glennon (and there’s no reason to think they won’t be), who will be the recipient of those passes? The running backs shouldn’t be able to tally more than 800 or 900 of those yards and the tight ends will probably combine for something similar. That means the wide receivers should be able to eat up close to 2500 yards receiving.

The receivers aren’t the most talented. Kevin White has shown flashes but can’t stay on the field. Kendall Wright and Markus Wheaton are complementary pieces and nothing more. Josh Bellamy is nothing more than a sub-player, and if players like Daniel Braverman or Tanner Gentry emerge this year, they certainly won’t instantly be major targets.

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Someone has to catch the ball, and there’s no reason to think Meredith won’t be targeted often. Even if White does stay on the field and emerge as a threat, Meredith would compliment him well and there’s no reason to think that both of them won’t get the chance to eat.

Meredith almost certainly will lead the team in receptions and receiving yardage and by default will find himself in he end zone a few times. Because he’s certain to get plenty of targets, he should emerge as a reliable high-end fantasy WR2 for your team.

Cameron Meredith 2017 Projections- 87 catches, 1148 yards, 13.2 YPC, 6 TDs

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