Chicago Bears: Fantasy football players to watch, Week 1

Kendall Wright, wide receiver

Did you know Kendall Wright caught 94 passes and posted 1,079 yards in his 2013 campaign with the Tennessee Titans? Do you know who his offensive coordinator was, at that time? It was Dowell Loggains, who is currently the Chicago Bears offensive coordinator.

With the injury to the Bears top receiver Cameron Meredith, Wright is going to have to step up and become the team’s number two wide receiver.  Wright has not come close to the production that he had in 2013, so, hopefully, he is able to revitalize his career with the Bears.

When the Bears faced the Titans in their preseason victory, Wright recorded three catches for 35 yards, while leading the team in targets (5). Glennon certainly enjoyed throwing to Wright, which makes sense. I don’t think Glennon is really going to take chances and stretch the field, so Wright is a crafty option on shallow crosses, which will lead to many chances for receptions.

ESPN lead fantasy writer, Matthew Berry, recently gave his bold fantasy football predictions for all 32 teams. The one he gave for the Chicago Bears was that Kendall Wright finishes in the top 10 in the NFL in receptions this season. He presented strong evidence for this:

"My thinking: Reunited with offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains, (with whom he had 94 receptions and 1,079 yards in 2013) Wright is the most accomplished wideout on the Bears and a chain-moving, short-pass-catching asset to try to control the clock, as Chicago works the run game and tries to keep its defense off the field."

This means that Wright may be able to be a key contributor in PPR leagues, and we should see evidence of this against the Falcons. Wright is projected for 10.5 points in PPR and 6.3 in standard. Start Wright in PPR leagues with confidence.