When I stepped out of the theater after watching Star Wars Episode VII The Force Awakens, I got in my car and thought to myself, “Wait, that story line seemed familiar. That was Episode IV with some slight differences!” Robot with important information finds their way to our hero/heroine on a desert planet, mask-clad antagonist with force powers and a gigantic galactic army and a space station/planet that can destroy planets/solar systems somehow gets blown up (for real – if I had handed a paper in this similar to another during college, I would have been accused of cheating). While I still enjoyed the movie, I was disappointed that I was duped and was given a recycled story. There’s a similar excitement that is building around the electrifying Pro Bowl kick returner for the Kansas City Chiefs – Tyreek Hill. However, it wasn’t that long ago that we saw a similar storyline, another athletic freak that got the fantasy world all hot and bothered.







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The year was 2013, and the physical specimen named Cordarrelle Patterson showed flashes of fantasy brilliance. He has over 2,000 all-purpose yards and found the end zone 9 times in his rookie season. Just look at the similarities between 2013 Patterson and 2016 Hill. Notice that although Hill found the end zone more, he was used more on offense and was brought into a more featured role earlier than Patterson. On a per touch basis, they are rather identical.

Cordarrelle Patterson:

Tyreek Hill:

% of 20+ yard receptions

Hill – 14.7%

Patterson – 15.5%

% of receptions with <5 yards gained

Hill – 32.8%

Patterson – 24.4%

The numbers they put up seemed to come from the same roles they were asked to play on their respective teams. They were needed to show off their athleticism and to give an advantage on special teams. After showing their excellence in that area, they both received opportunities on offense to use their natural quickness and speed to produce just by getting the ball into their hands. The term that was used and has since been vilified – “manufactured touches”. Both were most often targeted close the LOS and given the opportunity to win on their own. Numbers show me very similar players.

I wanted to go beyond these numbers to see what I could see on film. Cordarrelle Patterson was always considered a raw prospect. Tyreek Hill similarly was seen as the track star who didn’t necessarily have the WR tools needed to succeed at the professional level. What I watched didn’t change my mind at all. Many of Hill’s targets came on screens, slants, and dump offs that all happened around the line of scrimmage. Every so often he would get hit on a go route, but just as often wasn’t able to create separation from stiff CB competition. From the film that I watched on Tyreek Hill, he doesn’t have a clear-cut ability as a receiver that I could tangibly point to and say – “This is why he’s a better WR than Cordarrelle Patterson was.”









Andy Reid has had some high praise for the rookie WR and has recently talked the kid up, saying, “We’re asking him to do some running back and we’re asking him to do some wide receiver so you’ve got to know those things and put yourself in a position where you can be a starter as a player. Like I said, he’s innately very intelligent; he’s a smart, smart kid. Picks it up easy.” He mentioned the idea of potentially getting Hill involved as a starter, potentially doubling his snaps. Similar things were posted after Patterson’s rookie season.

Here’s where things get a little too freaky similar to me. Cordarrelle Patterson’s ADP in 2014 (according to MyFantasyLeague.com’s ADP data keeper league data) shows that CP84 was coming off the board on average of 35.63 or 3.11 in startup drafts. As Dynasty Nerds ADP has been collected in the month of January – Tyreek Hill currently sits at an ADP of 45.6 or 4.09 and seems to be moving up in February mocks so far. Within a round of one another. I understand the appeal and the upside, but we’ve seen this movie before. Don’t be disappointed if you see the same recycled plot that we saw from Patterson in 2014 as you get the popcorn ready for 2017 Hill and beyond.