Defenders are becoming more and more involved in the offensive third and rostering at least 1 defender with goal upside could just set you apart from a good chunk of the field. If you hit 2 defenders who will ignite the masses, well, you may just be celebrating right along with them. As the sites have been learning; so, too, have we. In the last 4 gameweeks, 77 defenders have had an attempt at goal. Of those 77 defenders, 61 of them have taken a shot from inside the box. Of those 61, 32 have had a shot on target from within the box. For the purposes of this exercise, I am leaving out the defenders who only have shot from outside the box. Those are a lot harder to deliver; but, for the record, only 1 defender has scored from outside the box, in the last 4 gameweeks. 19 others have scored.
Now, let’s apply this to the 7 game main slate. There are, theoretically, 28 defenders we actually might care about. I haven’t analyzed matchups yet so we will give everyone the benefit of the doubt, for now. Looking down the list of defenders, we have 31 defenders who have recorded a shot on target in the last 4 weeks. 4 of those definitely had their shot on target come from outside the box. I say definitely because they have not recorded a shot from inside the box. There are 9 defenders who have multiple shots on target in the last 4 weeks. They are Harry Maguire (4), Michael Dawson (4), Patrick Van Aanholt (4), Gary Cahill (3), Robert Huth (2), Virgil Van Dijk (2), Lamine Kone (2), Angel Rangel (2), and Younes Kaboul (2). Those first 4 guys have played all 90 minutes of each game in that span. Kaboul only missed 12 minutes. Huth has played 270 minutes, so perhaps he got some rest for a match. Van Dijk is a mainstay but he did get rest for a match. The other guys get spot starts or enter in relief.
For you DK players, a shot is a shot, so I want to note that 37 of those 77 defenders have recorded multiple shots in the last 4 gameweeks. Of those 37, 8 are averaging a shot attempt or better per week, in this 4 week timespan. They are Harry Maguire (7), Michael Dawson (5), Marcos Alonso (5), George Friend (5), Patrick Van Aanholt (4), Hector Bellerin (4), Steve Cook (4), and Sebastian Prodl (4). Maguire, Dawson, Van Aanholt, Bellerin, and Cook have played all 90 mins in the 4 matches. Prodl has the equivalent of 3+ matches and Alonso has only missed 25 minutes of action. The interesting one on this list is George Friend. He has logged only 177 minutes through 4 weeks and he still has taken 5 shots with 4 of them on target. Food for thought.
Expect that the guys from these lists who are starting matches to be decently owned week in, week out. They will make excellent plays for your cash games and can anchor the back line on your fantasy team. You won’t want to roster 2 of them unless you have a strong hunch they score because they will cost as much as your punt midfielder. Each week we will try and mine for some hidden gems. Paying down at defender has been mostly good to me but the times are changing.
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