4 Players to Stash in Fantasy Football From the NFC West

Paul Richardson, WR, Seattle Seahawks

The Player

Last year when discussing the Seahawks in this column, I mentioned a little-known backup named Thomas Rawls over the more hyped Christine Michael. But with the top backs in this backfield now firmly on the fantasy radar (although still plenty of confusion to go around), I thought it would be wise to take a look at the passing game.

We obviously know the top three targets in this passing game, with Doug Baldwin, the buzzy Tyler Lockett, and the newly resigned Jermaine Kearse holding down the fort. But if an injury hits, Paul Richardson is a name deep league and dynasty owners should know.

Drafted in the second round of perhaps the greatest wide receiver draft in NFL history (ahead of Allen Robinson, Jarvis Landry, Donte Moncrief, and John Brown) in 2014, the injury-plagued and now-forgotten player is poised to show off his blazing 4.3 speed in his third season.

While his skinny frame left some wondering if he had the strength to battle NFL defensive backs (Richardson was just 6'0, 175 pounds at the combine), no one doubted his speed, explosiveness, and ball tracking ability. But an ACL tear in his rookie year and a hamstring injury in 2015 left him watching and rehabbing while the rest of the 2014 receiving class were resetting the record books.

The Opportunity

While the Seahawks remain one of the lower volume passing games in the NFL, averaging just 454 passing attempts over the last three seasons (would have been tied with the Vikings for 32nd in the NFL in 2015), their efficiency has improved every year as Russell Wilson has improved. Based on our metrics, only Andy Dalton and Carson Palmer were more efficient passers on a per-play basis, and Wilson's 0.30 Passing NEP per drop back was by far the highest mark of his career.

And now with uncertainty at the running back position and a more effective passer in Wilson, an uptick in both volume and efficiency wouldn't be hard to see.

Doug Baldwin is an effective slot receiver who surpassed the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in 2015 (1,069 yards), and the Tyler Lockett love is well deserved, but in the event that injury or ineffectiveness does plague one of those top two options, don't forget the name Paul Richardson. He certainly has the talent to be an effective deep threat -- and perhaps more if the opportunity presents itself.