A Wide Receiver to Target in Each Round of Your Fantasy Football Draft
Round 4: Doug Baldwin, Seattle Seahawks
ADP: 49th overall (4.12)
The fourth round is the land of the PPR studs. Jarvis Landry, Julian Edelman and Golden Tate all boast a fourth-round ADP, but in standard leagues, Doug Baldwin makes for a really solid selection.
Baldwin -- who inked a new deal this offseason that made him one of the 10 highest paid wideouts in the game -- exploded onto the scene last year with an insane second half of the season. Starting in Week 10, Baldwin amassed 724 yards and 12 scores over the final 8 games. He rode his incredible streak to a WR7 finish, and this is a wideout who was drafted outside of the top 65 receivers prior to 2015.
Among receivers to see at least 80 targets, Baldwins ranked second -- trailing only Sammy Watkins -- in Reception NEP per target. He was boosted in that regard by his 14 touchdowns.
Of course, 12 touchdowns in eight games is an unsustainable pace, and Baldwin is unlikely to ever again find the end zone 14 times in one season. On the bright side, the Seattle Seahawks' passing-game volume -- and subsequently Baldwin's role -- grew for the fourth straight campaign.
| Year | Seattle Pass Attempts | Baldwin's Targets | Baldwin's Receptions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 393 | 49 | 29 |
| 2013 | 407 | 73 | 50 |
| 2014 | 452 | 98 | 66 |
| 2015 | 483 | 103 | 78 |
The 483 attempts were a career high for Wilson. There is still plenty of room for the Seahawks' aerial attack to keep progressing as that total put Wilson just 18th in the league in pass attempts.
Tyler Lockett has been an offseason darling, and he is expected to be more of a factor in the passing game. Baldwin should still get his, though, as Seattle is said to be shifting to more of a passing offense, similar to what they ran in the second half of last year -- you know, that stretch when Baldwin was so dang good.
Baldwin doesn't need to repeat that second-half tear -- which is good, because he won't -- to be a quality fantasy asset. Our projections rank him as WR17, making him a nice little bargain as the 24th receiver off the board.
