For the first time since 2015, Nick Foles will open the season as a starting quarterback. Sounds weird, right?
Yes, Foles led the Philadelphia Eagles to their first ever Super Bowl title during the 2017 campaign. And yes, he led them to another playoff win this past season, but Foles doesn't actually have a huge track record as an NFL starter.
But now, he will get the chance to show his stuff, as he will be the Jacksonville Jaguars' No. 1 signal-caller.
So, just what should we expect from Foles this year?
Well, for starters, we should probably note that he is one of the riskier Fantasy Football picks you can make. Maybe Foles will perform like he did during the Eagles' playoff run in January and February 2018. Or, maybe he will play like he did the last time he was given a chance to be a full-time starter, when he threw seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions before losing his job with the St. Louis Rams back in 2015.
Here is what we do know: Foles has talent and can absolutely play quarterback in the NFL. The question is, can he be consistent, and can the Jaguars put him in a position to succeed?
A big problem in Jacksonville is the lack of talent in the receiving corps, which could seriously compromise Foles' numbers in 2019. Marqise Lee missed all of 2018 with a knee injury and has had a lot of difficulty staying healthy throughout his career in general, and while Dede Westbrook and DJ Chark certainly have potential (Westbrook had a decent year in 2018), we don't really know what to expect from them this coming season. The Jags did add former Kansas City Chiefs wide out Chris Conley, but he has a very small sample size of production.
Throw in the fact that running back Leonard Fournette is coming off of an abysmal season and that the Jaguars' offensive line is a mess, and things seem like a recipe for disaster for Foles.
The hope is that Lee can stay healthy and that Westbrook can improve upon a solid 2018 campaign, which will at least give Foles a couple of solid options in the passing game. If Fournette can regain his form from 2017, it would really open things up for Foles overall, but given the state of Jacksonville's offensive line (the Jaguars allowed 53 sacks in 2018) and the fact that Fournette only averaged 3.9 yards per carry in his best year, expecting him to have a big season is a relatively tall order.
Really, Foles couldn't be stepping into a more difficult situation. Yes, Blake Bortles was a problem this past year, but he was far from the only issue on the offensive side of the ball, so who knows how much better Foles will fare?
Here is the thing with Foles: he has never thrown for 3,000 yards in any of his seven seasons since coming into the NFL, and he has only reached doubles figures in touchdowns twice.
So, here is what we can realistically expect from the 30-year-old in 2019. Something like 3,300-3,500 yards, less than 25 touchdowns, and probably somewhere in the neighborhood of 10-12 interceptions.
Like I said earlier: outside of that one fabled run, we don't have all that much evidence that Foles can be a reliable starter in the NFL, and it's not like the Jags have a whole lot of offensive talent to begin with.
It would be a pretty big shock if Foles puts together a Pro Bowl-caliber season, so you might want to temper your expectations for him as far as Fantasy Football goes.
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