With the news that Redskins cornerback Josh Norman will shadow
Alshon Jeffery this weekend, fantasy owners rightly became concerned.
According to ESPN's Mike Clay, Norman shadowed Jeffery -- then with Chicago -- on 35 of his 40 routes (34 of 35 on the perimeter) in Week 16 last season. Jeffery caught four balls for 78 yards on nine targets against Norman and added one additional 14-yard catch against Kendall Fuller.
Clay is among those who expect the two to face off again in Week 1, and though Jeffery had some success last year, Norman remains one of the game's better cover corners. It's a tough matchup and he should be downgraded.
As a result of this matchup, Bashaud Breeland will be on Torrey Smith and Nelson Agholor will face off with Fuller in the slot.
Clay believes both Smith and Agholor should be upgraded and are Week 1 sleepers with Smith making for an intriguing DFS tournament target.
But does that mean those of us with Jeffery on our rosters should bail on him?
According to CSNPhilly.com, Eagles head coach Doug Pederson recently went back and watched every one of Jeffery's targets in Chicago from the last couple of seasons. That included last year's game against Norman.
"I just wanted to go back and, No. 1, see him against Josh Norman," Pederson said. "I think it's important to see how he played, good or bad. How did Josh play him? I think you can learn a lot from that. And then just watch the type of routes he was running. There's good and bad on the film. It's not all the positives; it's not a highlight film, by no means. It's the good and the bad. Alshon won his share and Josh won his share. It's a good battle. I think those two have a lot of respect for each other and it's great competition. I just wanted to see how he handled a little pressure in those situations."
Norman can be an aggressive player — is there a way to take advantage of that? Don't be surprised if they try. And don't necessarily be in a hurry to bail on Jeffery if you don't have high-end options.
