OK, there's a lot to cover today. What happened Sunday that we should care about? As always, jump in with your own thoughts: a buy-low RB or a TE you're giving up on.
Bills vs. Washington -- Savvy managers did not give up on Zack Moss after Week 1. It's also a good time to sell high to an RB-needy manager in deep leagues. It will be hard to pinpoint each week whether Moss or Devin Singletary (or neither) thrives. And Logan Thomas now has three straight double-digit fantasy days to start the season. He has nine straight dating back to last season. Incredible.
Browns vs. Bears -- Odell Beckham Jr. returned with a decent performance, which was surprising given how low his floor has become, although surely Jarvis Landry's injury contributed to his usage. He will vie for WR3 respectability most weeks. And a disastrous game for Chicago. Justin Fields injured his hand (severity unknown while writing this), and Allen Robinson simply isn't startable in smaller leagues.
Lions vs. Ravens -- Wow, what an ending. First, Jamaal Williams has been far better than I ever anticipated, despite some suspect running the past two weeks. And congrats to those who wisely sold high on Ty'Son Williams. And Justin Tucker. Incredible.
Titans vs. Colts -- A.J. Brown's hamstring injury marred what already was a troubling Tennessee passing attack. Julio Jones presumably would get a bump next week against the Jets if Brown sits, though surprising riser Nick Westbrook-Ikhine could be a trendy deep-league pickup. And since last year, Indy is somehow worse on offense and defense. Yet Michael Pittman, one of my favorite preseason bargain WRs, now has 24 targets in his last two games and is headed toward must-start territory.
Chiefs vs. Chargers -- There's so much to say about this game. The narrow fantasy view is that Clyde Edwards-Helaire's bellcow status nearly ended after a second-quarter fumble with KC in field goal range. But KC stuck with him, and he came through with his best game in a while. His fantasy managers can breathe a little bit easier. And Mike Williams once again out-shined Keenan Allen. Just as I wrote last week and suggested the week before, Williams will compete with Keenan for #1 WR status--and so far is clearly out front.
Patriots vs. Saints -- James White's injury, if serious, would hurt Mac Jones by removing a veteran safety valve. Elsewhere, Nelson Agholor has not stepped up since Week 1 and is at risk of becoming the #3 or #4 receiver in a sub-par passing attack. And Marquez Callaway finally stepped up, though it'll be another couple games before we see if he's truly the #1 before Michael Thomas returns.
Giants vs. Falcons -- Sterling Shepard's injury gave Kenny Golladay a boost, though the bigger story is Saquon Barkley's impressive usage (22 touches). His 3.2 YPC is almost irrelevant at the moment. A weekly 20+ touch Barkley is what managers need most. And probably for the first time since Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman roamed this backfield, two Atlanta RBs had good fantasy days. Cordarrelle Patterson is easily one of the biggest surprises of this young season.
Steelers vs. Bengals -- An injured Ben Roethlisberger throwing to a fantastic trio of receivers is one thing. An injured Ben throwing to one healthy receiver is another. This is officially a middling-to-bad offense. Will JuJu Smith-Schuster and/or Diontae Johnson return next week? It might not matter if Ben can't hit his wideouts. Of course, I have to mention Najee Harris's astounding 14 catches on a somehow more astounding 19 targets. What team does that? A team that has no better option. If you can sell Najee high (top-10 RB), go for it. And Ja'Marr Chase is dominating on only 11 receptions this season. Imagine what he could do with 6-7 catches instead of 3-4.
Jaguars vs. Cardinals -- A surprisingly competitive contest. Marvin Jones now has 12+ points in all three games. And Rondale Moore took a backseat, while Christian Kirk took another step forward. It will be fascinating to see whether all four Arizona wideouts can remain relevant most weeks.
Broncos vs. Jets -- I like Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon this week for Jet-related reasons, but expected Javonte to push further past Gordon. Instead, on the verge of a 20+ point effort, Javonte fumbled at the 1 and ended up with mere flex production. That said, I still like him better than Gordon going forward. Oh, and Tim Patrick keeps getting it done. I followed my own advice and picked him up two weeks ago. A guy who's long deserved more playing time. And the Jets have reached rock-bottom for the eighth time in their past, let's say, 12 games. While there's plenty of blame to go around, Zach Wilson has looked as bad as any starting QB the past two weeks, and it's fair to wonder if trading away Corey Davis makes perfect sense for any self-respecting fantasy manager.
Raiders vs. Dolphins -- Two franchises headed in opposite directions--sort of. First off, Peyton Barber had an insane performance. Hats off to the zero of you who started him. As I say every two years when Barber has a good game: don't buy into it. This was likely a one-off. And Mike Gesicki's usage skyrocketed with Jacoby Brissett at QB. He remains one of the most painfully underutilized TEs in fantasy, though that will change if the Fins' coaches are finally ready to feature him.
Rams vs. Buccaneers -- Robert Woods' muted production is overshadowed somewhat by his team's impressive 3-0 start. With 2020 second-rounder Van Jefferson getting meaningful looks and DeSean Jackson suddenly stepping back in time, it's hard to know if this is what we should now expect from Woods. I have to believe some big games are on the horizon. And when Tom Brady leads a backfield in rushing yards, that's trouble. The passing attack was stellar as always. Gio Bernard thrived playing from behind, which won't happen much this year.
Vikings vs. Seahawks -- An impressive victory, especially without Dalvin Cook. Alexander Mattison reinforced why elite RB handcuffs should be drafted a round or two early. And as expected for Seattle, it was D.K. Metcalf's turn. He and Tyler Lockett will both get their numbers over the course of the season.
49ers vs. Packers -- Trey Sermon has come a long way in only two weeks, though he didn't do enough to earn bellcow honors once other guys get healthy. This remains, as always, a backfield to avoid. And Marquez Valdes-Scantling now has 16 targets in three games--or 11 more than Randall Cobb. Deep-leaguers could do worse than rostering MVS as a situational streamer.
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Bills vs. Washington -- Savvy managers did not give up on Zack Moss after Week 1. It's also a good time to sell high to an RB-needy manager in deep leagues. It will be hard to pinpoint each week whether Moss or Devin Singletary (or neither) thrives. And Logan Thomas now has three straight double-digit fantasy days to start the season. He has nine straight dating back to last season. Incredible.
Browns vs. Bears -- Odell Beckham Jr. returned with a decent performance, which was surprising given how low his floor has become, although surely Jarvis Landry's injury contributed to his usage. He will vie for WR3 respectability most weeks. And a disastrous game for Chicago. Justin Fields injured his hand (severity unknown while writing this), and Allen Robinson simply isn't startable in smaller leagues.
Lions vs. Ravens -- Wow, what an ending. First, Jamaal Williams has been far better than I ever anticipated, despite some suspect running the past two weeks. And congrats to those who wisely sold high on Ty'Son Williams. And Justin Tucker. Incredible.
Titans vs. Colts -- A.J. Brown's hamstring injury marred what already was a troubling Tennessee passing attack. Julio Jones presumably would get a bump next week against the Jets if Brown sits, though surprising riser Nick Westbrook-Ikhine could be a trendy deep-league pickup. And since last year, Indy is somehow worse on offense and defense. Yet Michael Pittman, one of my favorite preseason bargain WRs, now has 24 targets in his last two games and is headed toward must-start territory.
Chiefs vs. Chargers -- There's so much to say about this game. The narrow fantasy view is that Clyde Edwards-Helaire's bellcow status nearly ended after a second-quarter fumble with KC in field goal range. But KC stuck with him, and he came through with his best game in a while. His fantasy managers can breathe a little bit easier. And Mike Williams once again out-shined Keenan Allen. Just as I wrote last week and suggested the week before, Williams will compete with Keenan for #1 WR status--and so far is clearly out front.
Patriots vs. Saints -- James White's injury, if serious, would hurt Mac Jones by removing a veteran safety valve. Elsewhere, Nelson Agholor has not stepped up since Week 1 and is at risk of becoming the #3 or #4 receiver in a sub-par passing attack. And Marquez Callaway finally stepped up, though it'll be another couple games before we see if he's truly the #1 before Michael Thomas returns.
Giants vs. Falcons -- Sterling Shepard's injury gave Kenny Golladay a boost, though the bigger story is Saquon Barkley's impressive usage (22 touches). His 3.2 YPC is almost irrelevant at the moment. A weekly 20+ touch Barkley is what managers need most. And probably for the first time since Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman roamed this backfield, two Atlanta RBs had good fantasy days. Cordarrelle Patterson is easily one of the biggest surprises of this young season.
Steelers vs. Bengals -- An injured Ben Roethlisberger throwing to a fantastic trio of receivers is one thing. An injured Ben throwing to one healthy receiver is another. This is officially a middling-to-bad offense. Will JuJu Smith-Schuster and/or Diontae Johnson return next week? It might not matter if Ben can't hit his wideouts. Of course, I have to mention Najee Harris's astounding 14 catches on a somehow more astounding 19 targets. What team does that? A team that has no better option. If you can sell Najee high (top-10 RB), go for it. And Ja'Marr Chase is dominating on only 11 receptions this season. Imagine what he could do with 6-7 catches instead of 3-4.
Jaguars vs. Cardinals -- A surprisingly competitive contest. Marvin Jones now has 12+ points in all three games. And Rondale Moore took a backseat, while Christian Kirk took another step forward. It will be fascinating to see whether all four Arizona wideouts can remain relevant most weeks.
Broncos vs. Jets -- I like Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon this week for Jet-related reasons, but expected Javonte to push further past Gordon. Instead, on the verge of a 20+ point effort, Javonte fumbled at the 1 and ended up with mere flex production. That said, I still like him better than Gordon going forward. Oh, and Tim Patrick keeps getting it done. I followed my own advice and picked him up two weeks ago. A guy who's long deserved more playing time. And the Jets have reached rock-bottom for the eighth time in their past, let's say, 12 games. While there's plenty of blame to go around, Zach Wilson has looked as bad as any starting QB the past two weeks, and it's fair to wonder if trading away Corey Davis makes perfect sense for any self-respecting fantasy manager.
Raiders vs. Dolphins -- Two franchises headed in opposite directions--sort of. First off, Peyton Barber had an insane performance. Hats off to the zero of you who started him. As I say every two years when Barber has a good game: don't buy into it. This was likely a one-off. And Mike Gesicki's usage skyrocketed with Jacoby Brissett at QB. He remains one of the most painfully underutilized TEs in fantasy, though that will change if the Fins' coaches are finally ready to feature him.
Rams vs. Buccaneers -- Robert Woods' muted production is overshadowed somewhat by his team's impressive 3-0 start. With 2020 second-rounder Van Jefferson getting meaningful looks and DeSean Jackson suddenly stepping back in time, it's hard to know if this is what we should now expect from Woods. I have to believe some big games are on the horizon. And when Tom Brady leads a backfield in rushing yards, that's trouble. The passing attack was stellar as always. Gio Bernard thrived playing from behind, which won't happen much this year.
Vikings vs. Seahawks -- An impressive victory, especially without Dalvin Cook. Alexander Mattison reinforced why elite RB handcuffs should be drafted a round or two early. And as expected for Seattle, it was D.K. Metcalf's turn. He and Tyler Lockett will both get their numbers over the course of the season.
49ers vs. Packers -- Trey Sermon has come a long way in only two weeks, though he didn't do enough to earn bellcow honors once other guys get healthy. This remains, as always, a backfield to avoid. And Marquez Valdes-Scantling now has 16 targets in three games--or 11 more than Randall Cobb. Deep-leaguers could do worse than rostering MVS as a situational streamer.
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