5 NFL Under the Radar Players 2019

We all know of the big-time players and the elite numbers they explode with vs teams with every week – and fans go nuts and TV blows up with highlights of them all the time. But lets take a real look at some of the guys who are having some really strong individual seasons – yet just don’t get the attention or much of the TV time for some reason. Some guys who are sneakily and quietly putting up some pretty nice numbers and years for their teams.

VTD will examine some of the most under the radar talents that are playing this season.

Courtland Sutton
44 catches ( 29th in the NFL )
692 YDs ( 13th in the NFL )
4 TDs ( 22nd in the NFL )

This choice is predicated on the 6-4 Courtland Sutton becoming an exceptional  WR, right before our very eyes, that many thought he could be. He had 5 games of 76+ receiving YDs with at least 4 catches – and he has been keeping up that kind of production this season, every single game. Few WRs in the game get as many targets as he gets at 7.5/game and Sutton’s YDs/reception yield of 15.73 /catch has brought great results – not to mention that his hands have also been pretty darn good.

Sutton is one of the most under the radar WRs this season with an electric game – but happens to be on a struggling team, that no one seems to care about watching. He had too many games where he disappeared last year, but his speed was always a sure concern, this year he has been steady every single week. The 2nd year player is a bigtime play maker who has shown to be highly motivated to take the tops of defenses, and make fans shake their heads.

Carlos Hyde, RB, Houston Texans
149 carries ( 10th in the NFL )
704 YDs ( 10th in the NFL )
3TDs ( 26th in the  NFL )

Carlos Hyde has been one of the hardest running RBs when on the field – but teams have always been leery of signing him. He has had a problem staying on the field – with just 1 season of 16 games under his belt played out of a potential 7 seasons – thats not an exceptionally good look for a RB. Taking this season out of the equation – Carlos has played an average of just 9.6 games/season – missing an average of 4 games/year.

But Hyde has found a new life in Houston – with a mix of power and vision, his 78 YDs / game this season is a career high and is currently 10th in the league. The dedication has paid off for Hyde – and the Texans have seemed to grab a bit of lightning in a bottle with the 29 year old. Carlos has been great on 3rd downs, picking up 5.7 YPC on the crucial down for Houston – and he has run the field with doubtless power – he is a RB that has brought some big play ability from their backfield, that Houston has not had since Arian Foster was running for them.

Matthew Stafford
291 pass attempts ( 16th in the NFL )
2,499 YDs ( 10th in the NFL )
19 TDs ( 2nd in the NFL )
106.00 passer rating ( 5th in the NFL )

There’s always a lot of guessing with Matthew Stafford – the biggest guess is which Matthew Stafford are we getting each year. The Matthew Stafford who completed just 58% of his passes and threw 19 picks – or the Matthew Stafford who tossed 32 TDs, 4200+ YDs, and completed 63%? This year we have gotten another great version of Matthew Stafford.

Stafford had some great QB play during the most recent 3 game stretch, that he played – when Stafford went for 371/game – and he showed teams he is still a consistent threat on the field with 10 TD passes over those same 3 games. He has always been known to be a cold heart-breaker for opponents and he is not showing any sign of stopping – and remember, he is not far removed from his league leading 8 game winning drives in 2016, so the lethal ability to hit pay-dirt under the gun is always there.

Hopefully for him he gets back on the field as soon as possible, if he can stay healthy –  which toughness and durability has been his trademark – I wouldn’t be shocked if Stafford continues putting up the massive numbers – like he has been in 2019 and he helps make things interesting towards the last 3-4 games of the season, somehow, someway.

Nick Chubb, RB, Cleveland Browns
201 carries ( 2nd in the NFL )
1,011 YDs ( 1st in the NFL )
6 TDs ( 7th in the NFL )

Nick Chubb was already one of the most exiting and promising young RBs with his 5.2 YPC in 2018 and now – in 2019 he has gotten even better, he is still plowing away at a whopping 5.0 YPC clip, but now he is getting 101 YDs/game and his improved catching ability with 73% catch rate and is on pace for about 48 grabs on the season.
His 6 TDs is tied with superstar Zeke for 5th – and his six 20+ yard runs sits at the top of the NFL.

Chubb is one of the RBs who has certainly found some bigtime success this year – as he has rung up 5 games with 85+ yards rushing in 8 games. Nick is a heck of a RB – so the prediction here – is that he keeps making a huge impact for the Browns. He really needs a bit more notice and love – his season has been really skimming under the radar.

Kenny Golladay
38 catches ( 44th in the NFL )
697 YDs ( 11th in the NFL )
8 TDs ( 1st in the NFL )

Kenny Golladay looked like he had put it all together during last year’s 1063 YD season with his 70 YDs/game average – ripping up teams with 5 games of 90 or more receiving yards, and becoming a very real fear factor for opponents with his game. And it is obvious, the Lions would have a much harder time without Golladay on the field, and as his target percentage would seem to indicate, he is going to be a huge part of their plans for the future.
But there looks to be even more for him coming.

There is just simply too much talent to not believe he can put everything together for Detroit for years to come. His mixture of length and speed has been incredible to watch. Golladay is the future for Detroit – if he can consistently play like he has from 2018 to now – the rest of the NFL’s DBs will be in a great amount of trouble for a long, long time.

And actually, with Marvin Jones still getting his looks, it has actually made Golladay even more devastating this season, as the lethal mix of the 29 year old and the 26 year old Golladay have been a super difficult tandem to handle.

Look, none of these guys are going to out-win Russell Wilson, DeShaun Watson, or even CMC for the MVP this season. But – these are all guys who have proven to be studs and absolutely necessary to their respective teams.