Week 6 - Daniels has been putting up consistent stats for the last couple weeks, which is enough to vault him into the top 10 TE’s in football this season. Start him in the majority of formats going forward as Schaub prefers to check down to Daniels with the large leads the Texans have been playing with.
Week 5 - Owen Daniels had a terrific week 4 which saw him catch 6 passes for 72 yards and a TD. The only reason we have him at #10 on our weekly projections is his matchup with the Jets. The Jets were just gashed by the San Fran 2 headed running attack, giving the Texans a blue print for success, however, Vernon Davis didn’t figure into that game plan much for the 49ers. Daniels is a low TE1 for his week 5 matchup.
Week 4 - After watching 3 weeks of Houston Texans football, it is becoming more and more obvious what the gameplan is. Run, run, run, run, throw deep to Johnson or Walter, run, run, run. Owen Daniels will only have value as a TE2 as long as he keeps finding the end zone, as he did in week 3, but he won’t be highly targeted, and there will be disappointing weeks ahead. Daniels is good trade bait at this point in the season, if you can find a team to dump him off on.
Week 2 – Daniels has gotten a boost in the rankings after posting a respectable 8.60 points in week 1, and he gets to face a Jaguars defense which was one of the worst a season ago in defending TE’s. Depending on your roster, you will want to find a way to get Daniels in the game as there should be plenty of opportunities for him to score in week 2.
Week 1 - Owen Daniels gets to face the 26th ranked defense vs TE from 2011. The Miami Dolphins allowed 973 yards receiving to TE’s a season ago, but just 5 TD’s. So while it is unlikely that the Dolphins will allow Daniels to find the end zone, they will be busy concentrating on stopping the run, and Matt Schaub should be able to find Daniels on plenty of short to intermediate routes. Daniels is a low end TE1 for week 1 of fantasy football 2012.
Preseason Analysis
Owen Daniels has one of the best yards per catch averages in the NFL, which may surprise many owners, since 2007 it has consistently been over 12.2. The only problem is the Texans don’t call his number very often, which led to his poor stats last season. In 2011 he recorded just 54 catches, and in 2010 he caught just 38 passes. We expect Schaub to look Daniels way more in 2012, and he can be in line for career year. Target him as a TE2 in most formats, with the upside to become a TE1 in season
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2009 stats – 8 games – 40 Receptions, 519 Yards(13.0 Average), 5 TD’s, 1 Fum/ 0 Lost
2010 stats – 11 games – 38 Receptions, 471 Yards(12.4 Average), 2 TD’s, 0 Fum
2011 stats – 15 games – 54 Receptions, 677 Yards(12.5 Average), 3 TD’s, 0 Fum
