Spin Doctors: Randall Cobb vs. Kelvin Benjamin

For all intents and purposes, wide receivers Randall Cobb (42.1 ADP, WR21) and Kelvin Benjamin (31.6 ADP, WR17) were on semi-permanent vacations in 2015. The lanky Panthers target missed the entire season due to a knee injury. Meanwhile, his contemporary, like the Packers offense as a whole, did backstrokes in a statistical cesspool. Which wideout will bounce back biggest this fall? Liz Loza and Brad Evans exchange pleasantries.

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Loza butters up Cobb: More melty than sharp, 2015 proved to be a year most Cheddar Heads would rather not relive. Falling from the sixth most prolific squad in 2014 to the twenty-sixth ranked offense this past year, the Packer’s found themselves uncharacteristically shredded on more than a few occasions. From Jordy Nelson’s season-long absence to Eddie Lacy’s ballooning waistline, Green Bay’s obstacles were many. Unfortunately, they also contributed to Cobb’s dip in production.

After gutting through an AC joint injury he suffered in the preseason to puncturing his lung in the divisional round of the playoffs, Cobb’s most recent campaign was cringe worthy from start to finish. Struggling to get open (in large part due to the pain) and getting zero help from the painfully inefficient Davante Adams, the former Pro-Bowler closed out the year with WR3 numbers. While the targets were there, Cobb struggled to convert, posting a 64 percent catch rate, which was the lowest of his five-year career.

Clearly, the guy’s a bum and should be considered fantasy poison, right?

Wrong.

He’s a young and gifted player with a defined skill set. Who, despite an underwhelming stat line, averaged 5.7 yards after the catch, which placed him among the top twenty players at the position for that statistical category. He’s just not a No. 1 wideout. So what?!? Instead, he’s the second best option on a team oft rich with points and helmed by one of the most surgical passers in the league. If he stays healthy and is asked to do his job as a high volume slot/gadget guy then he can and will deliver stats similar to those he posted in 2014.

Small and savvy, Cobb is antithetical in nearly every way to the looming and raw Benjamin. While just six months separate the two players in age, Cobb will enter his sixth professional campaign this fall, whereas Benjamin will take the field in only his second regular season. Of course, an ACL injury prematurely sidelined Benjamin from his sophomore outing, but there’s a point to be made about age and experience.

The kid’s upside is obvious, and he’s an absolute beast in the red zone. But he’s also a limited route runner who failed to convert nearly 50 percent of his targets in 2014. Additionally, Carolina is a run-first operation. The Panthers proved last year that they didn’t need Benjamin’s size to win. I’m sure they’ll be glad to have it back and I trust he’ll be fully recovered by the fall, but to pass on Cobb’s precision – especially given his discount coming off of a seemingly jinxed year – is shortsighted.

Evans reaches 373.15 degrees Kelvin: After Benjamin’s one-year siesta due to a nasty knee setback, it’s easy to forget how special his rookie campaign was in 2014. That year, the youngster made a cannonball splash notching 73 receptions for 1,008 yards and nine scores. His corresponding 9.7 fantasy points per game in standard formats ranked No. 20 at the position and was the 11th-best first-year effort by a WR since 2000. Considering he displayed butter hands (12 drops) and was limited by Carolina’s largely conservative offense (51:49 percent pass-to-run split), what he achieved was nothing short of remarkable.

The 25-year-old is on the fast track to return at full-speed when Panthers training camp opens in late July. Though not quite 100 percent, he has actively participated in OTAs without a setback. Assuming that upward trend continues he should operate without inhibition Week 1 versus Denver. Throw in Cam Newton’s improved efficiency (career-best 7.1 TD% and 99.2 QB rating in ’15) along with the Panthers’ likely increased vulnerability on pass D minus Josh Norman, and Benjamin is a strong candidate to match or even best his Year 1 numbers.

Cobb was absolutely rancid a season ago. Jordy Nelson’s absence combined with Green Bay’s permeable offensive line partially explain the drop off. Still, much of the blame falls on the slot man’s shoulders. He posted career worsts in dropped passes (12), catch percentage (62.1) and missed tackles forced (12). He’s better than where he finished in ’15 (WR40), but, entering his sixth season, it’s becoming more and more glaring his 2014 breakthrough was an anomaly.

Though Benjamin is going some 10-15 picks before Cobb in early drafts, Carolina's premier red-zone threat is the surer bet.

SEE ALSO: Ryan Mathews vs. C.J. Anderson

Follow our fearless forecasters on twitter, Brad (@YahooNoise) and Liz (@LizLoza_FF).