Breaking down the Washington Football Team offense in fantasy football leagues for 2021

The Washington Football Team has undergone many personnel changes this offseason, most notably at the quarterback position with Ryan Fitzpatrick.

Fitz, in addition to wide receivers Curtis Samuel and Dyami Brown, should significantly improve Washington’s offensive output and fantasy football appeal.

So, let’s break down the Football Team's newly built offense and dive into how to approach it in fantasy football drafts.

Editor's Note: All average draft position (ADP) info is sourced from Underdog Fantasy.

Offensive Philosophy and Production

Let's first address Washington's offensive philosophy — more specifically, their run and pass splits from 2020. The team returns both head coach Ron Rivera and offensive coordinator Scott Turner, so it should remain relatively consistent in its splits.

Washington Football Team run and pass play percentages | 2020

On the surface, the Football Team was pass-happy and preferred an aerial approach as opposed to a strong ground game. These numbers can sometimes be skewed by teams that spend a lot of time playing from behind, and Washington was one of them — it ran the fourth-most snaps while trailing by a deficit of seven or more points (475 plays).

Depending on the success of the franchise this season, we can expect these numbers to even out a little bit. The Football Team should spend less time trailing by such significant margins, but that won’t be determined until the players hit the field.

Either way, the Washington offense utilized running backs at a tremendous rate, even if it wasn’t necessarily with running plays. Their utilization and target shares were exciting for any fantasy football leagues that include points per receptions formats (PPR leagues).

Target shares for all positions in the Washington offense | 2020

These numbers are also likely to shift with two out of three former quarterbacks no longer on the roster. Alex Smith’s 5.4-yard average depth of target (aDOT) ranked 44th among quarterbacks, and Dwayne Haskins’ 6.9-yard mark ranked 39th among quarterbacks with 100-plus pass attempts; Kyle Allen’s 6.4-yard aDOT wasn’t much better.