D’Andre Swift Fantasy
It’s late August, which usually means two things;
- The vast majority of football fans are crawling their way to the finish line, thirsty for real football.
- Chicago Bears fan hype has reached its peak, and the impending reality check is about to hit
But this season feels different. Let’s cast our eyes back 365 days. We were about to see Caleb Williams light up the NFL, and his only contender for OROY was surely Rome Odunze, right? Alas, the football gods don’t always buy into our plans. With that said, the 2024 season was not without hope. Williams, despite taking league-leading sacks behind a dismal offensive line, showed undeniable glimpses of what caused the NFL to fall in love with him pre-draft. The firing of head coach Matt Eberflus, although late, was a necessary component of change. Better late than never, as they say. The secondary, despite all the changes, showed it was a genuine strength – and finally, the weaknesses of the team became glaring, specifically the offensive line.
Offensive Line
The O-Line is so important to the Fantasy outlook of D’Andre Swift that it warrants mention in the opening write-up and its own section. Now, I’d be remiss not to point out that the O-Line ranked 17th, and was also tasked with blocking for the fourth-longest time of any unit in the league. But still, change was required. And change, they did. In free agency, they added Joe Thuney, Jonah Jackson, and Drew Dalman. Drafting an additional two linemen in Ozzy Trapilo and Luke Newman.
The three free agency pickups combine for an average 73.7 PFF Run Blocking grade. Replacing Matt Pryor, Coleman Shelton, and Braxton Jones, who averaged a PFF Run Blocking Grade of 67. Not a world-beating upgrade, but an upgrade nonetheless.
[the_ad id=”105842″]Coaching
Second to the offensive line is the upgrade in the coaching staff. Ben Johnson, the mastermind behind Detroit’s two-headed rushing monster, lands in Chicago. He has coached Swift previously with the Lions, and still chose to keep him instead of upgrading with a high draft pick. Ben Johnson means two things here: a hard-to-decipher run game and playing to Caleb Williams` strengths. You can expect to see the young QB get the ball out quicker when needed (including to his receiving running back), and extend plays when it’s smart to do so. So, defenses will likely have to account for the intermediate game more often, and this should result in the opportunity to pound the rock for 5–to 8–yard gains with consistency.
[the_ad id=”104525″]Fantasy Impact
D’Andre Swift, love him or hate him, is the clear-cut RB1 in Chicago. Looking back over his career and his current ADP (RB22), it’s not hard to fade Swift. There’s definitely a world where he is a mid-level flex or depth piece. But I’d argue the best is yet to come.
Let’s start with durability; it’s been an issue. But he finally made it through an entire 17-game season – and he made it through with a true workhorse role. In fact, 77.8% of rush attempts had the rock in Swift’s hands. The only RBs who accounted for more of their teams rush attempts were Derrick Henry (81.9%) and Kyren Williams (79.6%).
He is utilized in the passing game, and based on Ben Johnson’s history, we can expect to see an increase in that volume as well.
Not that I am in any way implying that he is Jahmyr Gibbs, but he will definitely take on the Gibbs role in Ben Johnson’s revised offense.
So with the upgrades on the offensive line, a schematic advantage, and pass-catching weapons that will stop opposing defenses from stacking the box, maybe we will finally see the version of D’Andre Swift that was promised when the Lions took him with the 35th overall pick.
His current Full-PPR ranking per Fantasy Pros has him behind the likes of Tony Pollard, James Connor, and Chubba Hubbard. I believe Swift will outperform these 3 quite easily. But here’s a hot take for you – James Cook, the current prime candidate for fantasy regression, is currently RB16. I think Swift has the situation to overtake Cook this year. Remember, being a good player and a good fantasy asset are two different things. Swift’s volume, playcaller and receiving skills put him inn prime position to take a fantasy leap in 2025, and I could see him pushing himself up as high as RB13 – 14.
I accept that a certain TE proposing means this is the lesser talked about of the two Swifts, but in fantasy circles, this time next yea,r you can look back at this article as the reason you picked up great value in D’Andre Swift. Take that one to the bank.
