T.Y. Hilton Due for a Fantasy Football Bounce Back in 2020 with Philip Rivers at the Helm

SI's Ben Heisler and AllColts editor Phillip B. Wilson break down the Colts ahead of the 2020 season

With Philip Rivers now under center for the Colts, fantasy football players are banking on a rebound season for the speedy wide receiver.

2019 wasn’t just a down season for T.Y. Hilton, it was his worst year since entering the NFL in 2012. Hilton’s 45 catches and 501 yards were all career lows. He missed six games due to injury but even when healthy, Hilton and quarterback Jacoby Brissett couldn’t find a consistent rhythm. Yet hope springs eternal for Hilton now that Philip Rivers is the new starting quarterback for the Colts. Sports Illustrated’s fantasy football analyst Ben Heisler and AllColts editor Phillip B. Wilson discuss Hilton’s fantasy football value plus talk about tight end Jack Doyle and second-year wide receiver Parris Campbell in the attached video.

Read the transcript for more of their analysis:

Bill Enright: With Philip Rivers now under center for the Colts, fantasy football players are banking on a bounce back season from T.Y. Hilton and Jack Doyle. Let's find out what the experts say by talking with Sports Illustrated's fantasy analyst Ben Eisler and AllColts editor Phillip B. Wilson. Phil, I'm going to start with you, because 2019 was such a disastrous season for T.Y. Hilton, and I feel like that was his flaw. There's only one way to go for Hilton to go in 2020, and that's up.

Phillip Wilson: Yeah, there wasn't much this T.Y. hand gesture stuff last year. He was in witness protection I think, we couldn't find him. His longest catch was, I think, 35 yards. And I'm not blaming that on him, T.Y. was hurt, he missed six games. He played hurt. He spoke of, admirably, what it meant to be a teammate and being there even though he was hurt. That was clearly a shot at Eric Ebron, who many Colts thought quit this team when he got hurt. So T.Y. proved he could play through pain. But the problem is his numbers were as bad as they've ever been and people fantasy-wise are probably down on it. I'm not. He's in a contract year. He wants his next contract to be his last contract. He wants to stay with the Colts as long as he's on the field and can stay reasonably healthy. I think T.Y., with Philip Rivers, has a bounce back year.

Bill Enright: Just 45 catches and 501 yards for T.Y. Hilton in 2019, both of which were career lows. Ben, I'm gonna go over to you. Let's talk about the tight end Jack Doyle and second year wide receiver Parris Campbell. What do you make of them from a fantasy football perspective? 

Ben Heisler: I think Jack Doyle is one of those guys that you can rely on in the middle of the field, and Philip Rivers has used his tight end before. Certainly with all those years with Antonio Gates and the latter a couple of years with Hunter Henry. So I think he'll be perfectly fine. I'm excited for more downfield opportunities with this offense. I think Parris Campbell provides that. He'll likely play out of the slot, of course you have T.Y. Hilton, as Phillip mentioned earlier before. And I'm really excited about Michael Pittman, the second round wide receiver that they drafted, big physical target. I look at him like a Mike Williams-type for the Indianapolis Colts this year. So there should be plenty of targets. And Philip Rivers actually has time to throw. So plenty of offensive versatility for Indianapolis this season.