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Dontrelle Inman | San Diego Wide Receiver (1 Viewer)

Ghoti

Footballguy
I didn't see an official topic for Dontrelle Inman, so here we go. With the injuries in San Diego, opportunity is knocking. Let's take a look at the current situation:

Keenan Allen - Out for the year.

Malcom Floyd - torn labrum. Probably out for the year (even though he says he will be back this season).

So we've got a heavy passing team with Stevie Johnson, Antonio Gates (limited in practice Wednesday), Danny Woodhead, and Ladarius Green (did not practice this week) splitting up the pot. The question is - where does Inman fit? Is he still 4th-5th on the team for passing targets? Or does he climb the ranks a bit, out of necessity, being one of the few healthy bodies left?

Before the bye week, Inman caught 3-of-5 targets for 28 yards in the loss to the Bears. He also lost a fumble. Not exactly stellar numbers. But it could be argued the injury to Floyd threw the entire offense out of sync that night and a bye week to help prepare for an expanded role could help Inman immensely.

So what do you folks think? Is there gold to be mined here?
 
He's the guy you want over Steve Johnson. Steve is often injured and he'll be facing other teams top corners leaving Inman against the inferior corner usually. If Steve goes down, which it will probably happen it will leave Inman as the top receiver too. I think Inman will have games where he gets 7-8 catches for 80 plus yards and the occasional TD. I agree with you!

 
Starting over John Brown because he can't be trusted and SD has to start Inman. There is no one else left.

 
You must've missed him before the bye. He can't catch and Rivers seems get frustrated with him. Yea he'll play by default but zero confidence he performs.

 
True. There certainly is a "leap of faith" factor here, but the circumstances dictate that he will get a shot. There really is not much positive history for Inman himself to point to, but we can look at the tendencies of San Diego as a pass-first team... I personally do not think they are going to try and change that philosophy, and they really don't have the running game to do so even if they wanted to. My waiver wire is extremely thin at this point, so I have decided to invest a roster spot in this guy over a lot of other potential breakout candidates. Am I confident he will perform at a superstar level? Heck no. But is he in a position to get the targets needed to be rosterable and flexed in a "spot start" manner if he doesn't massively screw it up? I believe so.

 
True. There certainly is a "leap of faith" factor here, but the circumstances dictate that he will get a shot. There really is not much positive history for Inman himself to point to, but we can look at the tendencies of San Diego as a pass-first team... I personally do not think they are going to try and change that philosophy, and they really don't have the running game to do so even if they wanted to. My waiver wire is extremely thin at this point, so I have decided to invest a roster spot in this guy over a lot of other potential breakout candidates. Am I confident he will perform at a superstar level? Heck no. But is he in a position to get the targets needed to be rosterable and flexed in a "spot start" manner if he doesn't massively screw it up? I believe so.
Actually, I am considering using Inman this week (over DGB).

 
I've watched every Charger game for years....Inman is talented!

I was at the game when he fumbled against the Bears.....Inman made a great catch, he made a move, and then instead of going down, he tried to make something happen and fumbled. Guys like him don't get a chance to show what they can do, so when they get the chance, sometimes they try too hard.

Now that he pretty much is guaranteed 5-7 passes a week, I believe he's gonna be more disciplined. Just my two cents.

But to say he's a bum and he can't catch is way of base. Look Steve Johnson is an injury waiting to happen.....He's gonna go down again and probably for the season....mark my words....Inman is the guy to own.

 
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I'm in a bind this week at wr. Going with crowder for now but thinking of Inman. He's been on my radar. I think he has good potential. Allen was getting a TON of targets, those have to go to someone...

 
VandyMan said:
Actually, I am considering using Inman this week (over DGB).
Guessing you won't regret that decision- it remains to be seen what Inman does, but DGB didn't really take the reins when given a chance last night.

It's interesting you brought DGB up, because he was another WR stash that I considered from the wire this week - I just like the offense in SD better.

This week will say a lot. My expectations aren't sky high, but if he's somewhere in the range of 4 catches for 60+ yards and a shot at a TD, I'll consider it a good play.

 
Ghoti said:
But it could be argued the injury to Floyd threw the entire offense out of sync that night
I guess you could argue anything that you really wanted to, but some arguments likely shouldn't be made.

 
VandyMan said:
Actually, I am considering using Inman this week (over DGB).
Guessing you won't regret that decision- it remains to be seen what Inman does, but DGB didn't really take the reins when given a chance last night.

It's interesting you brought DGB up, because he was another WR stash that I considered from the wire this week - I just like the offense in SD better.

This week will say a lot. My expectations aren't sky high, but if he's somewhere in the range of 4 catches for 60+ yards and a shot at a TD, I'll consider it a good play.
I chickened out and started DGB. Probably gonna cost me a bye in round 1 of our playoffs.

 
There is just no way you can ignore the WR2 on the most pass happy offense in the league. It's very much akin to the situation in BAL. Aiken/Givens aren't world beaters but BAL, much like SD is constantly playing catch-up and abandoning their run game which has given their WRs very real PPR value. As long as Rivers continues to toss it up 45 times a game and Inman remains on the field (played 99% of the snaps last week) he'll be relevant even if he's 4th in the pecking order behind Stevie, Gates and Woodhead. He's also not nearly as bad as his game vs. CHI would suggest. I think it's very safe to expect 10-15 points from him in PPR this week with a little bit of upside if Rivers can hit him on the post/go routes Floyd traditionally runs.

 
Speaking as a Charger fan, for FF purposes, I'd rather roll the dice with Tyrell Williams (who will likely be activated from the practice squad this week). Inman's got a pretty low ceiling. Williams has a ton of athletic ability and could break some big plays if he gets a chance (and focuses on catching the ball before trying to break the big play).

 
Speaking as a Charger fan, for FF purposes, I'd rather roll the dice with Tyrell Williams (who will likely be activated from the practice squad this week). Inman's got a pretty low ceiling. Williams has a ton of athletic ability and could break some big plays if he gets a chance (and focuses on catching the ball before trying to break the big play).
One thing about Rivers, he needs to build trust with his receivers. Inman at least has some experience with Philip, Williams doesn't. Not saying that Williams can't make a big play but Inman will come in right away and get the targets and more opportunity. How many years has Ladarius Green been on the team? And Rivers finally, this season, and more out of necessity, started to call his number. That's just the way Rivers rolls.

 
Speaking as a Charger fan, for FF purposes, I'd rather roll the dice with Tyrell Williams (who will likely be activated from the practice squad this week). Inman's got a pretty low ceiling. Williams has a ton of athletic ability and could break some big plays if he gets a chance (and focuses on catching the ball before trying to break the big play).
April article on Williams http://www.oregonlive.com/nfl/index.ssf/2015/04/tyrell_williams_western_oregon.html
Article on Williams from yesterday's (Nov 19) San Diego Union Tribune.

 
Speaking as a Charger fan, for FF purposes, I'd rather roll the dice with Tyrell Williams (who will likely be activated from the practice squad this week). Inman's got a pretty low ceiling. Williams has a ton of athletic ability and could break some big plays if he gets a chance (and focuses on catching the ball before trying to break the big play).
One thing about Rivers, he needs to build trust with his receivers. Inman at least has some experience with Philip, Williams doesn't. Not saying that Williams can't make a big play but Inman will come in right away and get the targets and more opportunity. How many years has Ladarius Green been on the team? And Rivers finally, this season, and more out of necessity, started to call his number. That's just the way Rivers rolls.
Not much. And so far the results have been less than stellar. There have been times over the last game or two where you could see Rivers was visibly upset/disappointed with Inman and some of the other receivers.

 
Speaking as a Charger fan, for FF purposes, I'd rather roll the dice with Tyrell Williams (who will likely be activated from the practice squad this week). Inman's got a pretty low ceiling. Williams has a ton of athletic ability and could break some big plays if he gets a chance (and focuses on catching the ball before trying to break the big play).
One thing about Rivers, he needs to build trust with his receivers. Inman at least has some experience with Philip, Williams doesn't. Not saying that Williams can't make a big play but Inman will come in right away and get the targets and more opportunity. How many years has Ladarius Green been on the team? And Rivers finally, this season, and more out of necessity, started to call his number. That's just the way Rivers rolls.
Not much. And so far the results have been less than stellar. There have been times over the last game or two where you could see Rivers was visibly upset/disappointed with Inman and some of the other receivers.
Rivers has had 1+ seasons and 2 offseasons of practice with Inman. He has had comparably little practice with Herndon and Williams. You can't dispute that.

It is true that Inman has not been impressive recently, but he has been impressive on the field for the Chargers before, which is something Herndon and Williams have not.

 
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Dontrelle Inman will be the Chargers No. 2 receiver this week.
With Keenan Allen (kidney) out for the season and Malcom Floyd (shoulder) likely to join him soon, Inman and Stevie Johnson will serve as the top two receivers for the foreseeable future. "We talk about it all the time," Inman said. "We’ve got to carry the load. We’re going to go out there and give it our all. Expect the best game out of both of us." Inman recorded back-to-back 79-yard games to close out last season, but he struggled when thrust into a bigger role before the bye this year. Against a Kansas City defense playing better as of late, Inman is nothing more than a WR3 in PPR leagues this week, but he could develop into a usable fantasy asset down the stretch.
 
Not sure I would have the guts to do that without seeing at least a week's worth of targets. But I am liking his chances.

Some more from the article BustedKnuckles quoted above (http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2015/nov/21/chargers-stevie-johnson-dontrelle-inman/):

What was expected became official Friday, as the Chargers ruled out Floyd for Sundays game against the Chiefs. His absence to a shoulder injury elevates not only Johnson but Dontrelle Inman into more solidified, prominent roles. Both figure to start Sunday and see ample chances.

This, to some degree, is nothing new.

Johnson has played 432 offensive snaps this year, third-most of any position player behind Allen and Floyd. He did not leave the field offensively against the Bears in Week 9, as the team played its first game without Allen. Floyd exited in the second quarter.

Likewise, Inman played 71 of 72 offensive snaps against Chicago. Hes stepped up when called upon in the past. Last year, the former CFL standout spent his first season on an NFL roster. He didnt run a route until Week 16 when he entered a road game against the 49ers at halftime. He caught seven of nine passes, including a late fourth-down conversion, for 79 yards in an overtime win. Inman added 79 yards the next week against these same Chiefs in Kansas City.

Neither is new to the field. Each has a rapport built with quarterback Philip Rivers.
 
Am I crazy for putting him in over TY or what? Maurile Tremblay has him higher...
FBG is pretty high on Inman this week in comparison to the rest of the field. Tremblay, Dodds and Bloom all have him ranked as a WR3 and are very much in the minority.

KC isn't as good of a match-up for WRs as it was earlier in the year but it's still much better than ATL. Hilton is also likely to face off against Trufant which is obviously a negative. Still, in Hasslebeck's two starts he targeted him 13 and 9 times respectively. Inman isn't guaranteed that type of volume so I'd probably err on the side of caution which in this case is volume. I don't think it would be insane to start Inman over him though considering the aforementioned variables.

 
Meh, he may get to #1 by default if Stevie is out but he had less targets today than Javonte Herndon. Take that for what it is.

 
He looked pretty good on Thursday, and I think should be a solid option opposite Keenan Allen in 2016, with Floyd moving on and Gates turning 36 before the season starts.

Definite dynasty add IMHO.

 
He looked pretty good on Thursday, and I think should be a solid option opposite Keenan Allen in 2016, with Floyd moving on and Gates turning 36 before the season starts.

Definite dynasty add IMHO.
What's Stevie's contract situation?

 
So... with good reason, everyone is salivating over Tyrell Williams post Keenan Allen, but Inman is the guy listed as a starter opposite Benjamin.

When Allen went down, SD was leading 21-3 I think, so they really didn't need to throw for a while (until they blew the lead).  Just wondering if Inman's actually the guy we should be chasing while Williams/Benjamin keep going deep.  Allen was a possession guy after all...

ETA - after Allen went down last year, Inman got 45 targets in 7 games...

 
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He just seemed to disappear last year when he had the chance. However it's a bit of a crapshoot right now by the looks of it, it could just as well be him as Benjamin or Williams. I think Woodhead will profit for sure though.

 
A lot of ?s with this group right now. Agree about bumping woodhead and I'd add Gates as well. My bet is still on Benjamin because he has a bit more experience and already was a starter. Idk. Tough to say. 

 
Player / Snaps / Snap%

D Inman WR 58 79%

D Fluker G 57 78%

T Benjamin WR 55 75%

D Woodhead RB 50 68%

A Gates TE 48 66%

T Williams WR 44 60%

H Henry TE 30 41%

K Allen WR 27 37%

M Gordon RB 23 32%

Three observations:

Williams not far off from Inman in terms of snaps. Question is whether he is the better player then, because at these percentages, the better player will emerge.

Hunter Henry is eating into Gates' snaps. He got 2 looks to Gates' 4. Interesting dynamic here after one game.

Mel Gordon truthers, ouch. In a game where they led like 90% of the time, he got out snapped by Woodhead 2 to 1.

 
I'm not sure any of these guys are going to be great, expect for Woodhead.  Here is a link to the reception totals for the Chargers last year.  Granted, Allen played 7 more games than he will this year so roughly 650 yards are up for grabs, and Benjamin is a new addition, but I don't really see much changing with these stats expect the names associated with them.  I think you could actually see an increase in Gordon's receptions.  Williams went for over 20% of that FAAB in my league which was too high for me but maybe he will prove to be worth it.  He has the measurables, just hard to believe in a second year UDFA assuming the #1 wr role

 http://www.espn.com/nfl/team/stats/_/name/sd/year/2015

 
Hunter Henry is eating into Gates' snaps. He got 2 looks to Gates' 4. Interesting dynamic here after one game.
Not unexpected. Gates said before last season that he expected to play considerably fewer snaps but play in all key passing situations (e.g., third downs, red zone). Gates is 35 and is a poor run blocker. It makes no sense to play him more than they did in week 1. That's why they spent an early second round pick on Henry.

IMO the more interesting fact is that Gates only got 4 targets, not that Henry got 2 targets.

Even more noteworthy, while Inman led all of these players in snaps, he had only 3 targets, fewer than Allen, Benjamin, Williams, Woodhead, and Gates.

 
Tough situation to read. I suggest bidding for Williams and Inman. The question is how much to bid for the lesser of both options.

 
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Not unexpected. Gates said before last season that he expected to play considerably fewer snaps but play in all key passing situations (e.g., third downs, red zone). Gates is 35 and is a poor run blocker. It makes no sense to play him more than they did in week 1. That's why they spent an early second round pick on Henry.

IMO the more interesting fact is that Gates only got 4 targets, not that Henry got 2 targets.

Even more noteworthy, while Inman led all of these players in snaps, he had only 3 targets, fewer than Allen, Benjamin, Williams, Woodhead, and Gates.
Noticed that too - Inman played a ton of snaps but only got 3 targets.  That's why I ultimately decided to hold off for now.

 
You guys are looking too deep into this. The largest beneficiary of Keenan going down is Woodhead. The guy is gonna be a rb1 in ppr most likely again. 

 
Not unexpected. Gates said before last season that he expected to play considerably fewer snaps but play in all key passing situations (e.g., third downs, red zone). Gates is 35 and is a poor run blocker. It makes no sense to play him more than they did in week 1. That's why they spent an early second round pick on Henry.

IMO the more interesting fact is that Gates only got 4 targets, not that Henry got 2 targets.

Even more noteworthy, while Inman led all of these players in snaps, he had only 3 targets, fewer than Allen, Benjamin, Williams, Woodhead, and Gates.
Special teams accounted for some of Inmans snaps.

 
Hunter Henry is eating into Gates' snaps. He got 2 looks to Gates' 4. Interesting dynamic here after one game.
I thought I read this past off-season that Rivers was committed to helping Gates pass Tony G. for TDs this year.  Expected big things, targeted him in my draft, somebody else must have been thinking the same thing!

 
Special teams accounted for some of Inmans snaps.
The snaps numbers I posted were for offense only. Inman out snapped Williams this week, but not by enough to say that he's got a strong hold on the starting WR spot, especially if Williams continues to outperform him.

 
This thread's OP Title needs to be edited...

Bears acquired WR Dontrelle Inman from the Chargers in exchange for a conditional 2018 seventh-round pick.

Inman has played just 39 snaps this season as the Bolts' No. 4/5 receiver. This was a trade that made complete sense for both sides; the Bears badly need receiver help, and the Chargers had no use for Inman in the final year of his contract. Inman has been productive when given opportunities in the past. Last season, he caught 58 balls for 810 yards and four scores. Inman has good size at 6'3/205 and has averaged 13.7 yards per catch. The 28-year-old should contribute immediately in an offense that has been starting Tanner Gentry and Tre McBride.
You know the deal with Inman. Tall, possession type receiver with surprising burst and speed. PROBABLY becomes the X receiver for the Bears (Kendall Wright plays the slot) once he gets acclimated... should translate in low-end WR2 value pretty quickly assuming Trubisky isn't terrible, and early reports say he can get the ball where it needs to be. Thoughts?

 
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I love Inman. He's been the last bench man on my last 2 title teams. He's just ok at football but that's light years ahead of any WR on the Bears now. 

 

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