Week 1 is in the books and what a week it was! Last week’s Matchup of the Week wasn’t the barn-burner I had expected, but it was an exciting game nonetheless as the Lions upset the Chiefs at home. It looks like Travis Kelce is more valuable than we thought to Kansas City’s offense, and we were already calling him the only reliable option. Patrick Mahomes did all he could to win the game, but even the greats need someone to catch the ball.
Moving on to this week, there are a few candidates for the matchup I’m most excited about. I initially wanted to go with the Jets vs. Cowboys, but both teams have pretty stout defenses that could stymy fantasy options, not to mention Aaron Rodgers’ season-ending Achilles injury. The Chiefs vs. Jaguars has the highest over/under to start the week, but if Kelce doesn’t play again, we could be in for another hard-to-watch dropfest from Mahomes and company. The Seahawks vs. Lions could be exciting too, but the matchup I’m going with this week is…
Miami Dolphins vs. New England Patriots
Even if you didn’t have Tyreek Hill this past weekend, you felt the aftershock of Hill’s explosive performance. Whether you were devastated because he killed your chances to win, you were ecstatic because he won you your week, or you were fraught with jealousy, Hill’s 215-yard, 2-TD day was truly a spectacle to behold. It only makes sense that he, and his Dolphins, be featured in this week’s Matchup of the Week, even if it is against New England. To be honest, the Patriots deserve a closer look after nearly beating Philadelphia. They were in control most of that game after a mistake-filled start but ended up letting the game slip through their fingers.
Quarterbacks
Tua Tagovailoa is the best quarterback in the league! Okay, yes, it’s only been one week, but we’ve seen him put up QB1 weeks before. When you have the fastest guys in the league surrounding you, passing yards come in heaps. New England should be a much stiffer test for Tagovailoa and company, but I believe the Dolphins can win their individual matchups. I’d feel confident starting Tua over Joe Burrow, Justin Fields, and Lamar Jackson this week.
Mac Jones wasn’t terrible against a good Eagles’ defense. That’s saying a lot when I had no faith in him throughout the offseason. Now, put Jones up against a lesser defense, and in a situation where he may need to play keep-up, he may just be a serviceable QB2 for Superflex. You could certainly do worse with other waiver wire options.
Running Backs
Raheem Mostert led the charge for Miami with Jeff Wilson Jr. on IR, and De’Von Achane a pregame scratch. He handled 66% of the backfield carries and converted his goalline opportunity. Achane should be back to spell Mostert in this one, but his presence will hurt Salvon Ahmed‘s value more than Mostert’s. Mostert should be good as an RB2 this week, but expectations should be tempered as New England only gave up 60 rushing yards to the Eagles’ RBs. Your hope is that he finds paydirt again, which is a good bet in my opinion considering the explosiveness of this offense and his solidified role as the goalline back.
Achane is still a wait-and-see player. It’s unclear how Miami plans to use him when he’s 100%, but he will be more involved moving forward. Don’t play Achane unless you absolutely have to. Give yourself the grace of first seeing how he performs in real game action.
Rhamondre Stevenson and Ezekiel Elliott split the workload nearly 50/50. Stevenson had 12 carries (25 yards) and 6 catches (6 targets, 64 yards) while Elliot had 7 carries (29 yards) and 5 catches (7 targets, 14 yards). No one knew what sort of split would take place when Elliot joined the team, but I know Stevenson managers were certainly hoping it wasn’t this much. I’d project that this is what they want to do throughout the season — keep both backs healthy and involved by sharing touches. Stevenson was pushing the RB1 category during draft season, but reality says he should be more in the mid-low RB2 range. Elliot is a useable flex option, but I’d rather start other options over him, like Gus Edwards, Tank Bigsby, and Jerick McKinnon.
Wide Receivers
Miami
On Sunday, Hill made the case that he should have been the WR1 off the board, maybe even the 1.01. It’s not just talk when he says, “I always feel like nobody can guard me.” He certainly made it seem like that. If you have him, congratulations! You have one of the most exciting players to watch in the NFL. Lock him in and never take him out.
Jaylen Waddle was an afterthought with his four catches on five targets for 78 yards. That’s still a respectable line; it was just overshadowed by what Hill did. Not every game is going to be a Tyreek bomb fest, and Waddle will certainly have his time in the sun. He’s as solid of a WR2 with WR1 upside as they come. I’d play Waddle over Keenan Allen, Garrett Wilson, and CeeDee Lamb.
All other Miami wide receiver options are not playable. In deeper leagues, if I had to, I’d go Braxton Berrios over River Cracraft.
New England
If you’ve read any of my articles this offseason, you’d know that I’d rather have an empty spot on my roster over one of these Patriots options. Kendrick Bourne was the most involved receiver of the group, catching six of 11 targets for 64 yards and 2 TDs. The next highest wide-receiving options were Demario Douglas (7 targets for 4-40-0) and JuJu Smith-Schuster (7 targets for 4-33-0).
Honestly, if I’m going to flirt with danger on any of these options, it’d probably be Bourne, but I wouldn’t feel good about it. It may have been his week, but history tells us that’s not reliable. He can’t be counted on as anything more than a hopeful flex option. I’m staying away from Douglas and Smith-Schuster even in deep leagues.
Tight Ends
Durham Smythe isn’t completely irrelevant for fantasy purposes. He had seven targets (3-44-0), two more than Waddle. In a week where we saw Kelce and Mark Andrews sit out with injuries, and tight ends up and down the league struggle to get anything going, Smythe was surprisingly valuable. The Patriots did shut out Dallas Goedert though, so maybe this isn’t the week to try him on for size. If Smythe can have another fantasy-relevant game, then Week 3 should fare a bit better for him when Miami hosts Denver.
Hunter Henry is arguably the best receiving option for New England. Heck, he was the TE1 on the week with his 5-56-1 line on six targets. His big-bodied presence in the middle of the field is exactly what Jones needs to keep the offense moving. He has hands, athleticism, and the best thing of all: a weak receiver corps beside him. He could start to get the Kelce/Andrews treatment and become the focal point of the Patriots passing attack with no notable wideout. I’m targeting him on waivers in leagues I’m streaming the position, and even considering him over options like David Njoku, Tyler Higbee, and Pat Freiermuth.
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