Fantasy Football Start ‘Em Sit ‘Em – Week 2
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Brendan: Well that was a wild and wacky Week 1. Not a good opening week to be in a survivor pool! Overall I think we did a great job giving some start/sit advice last week Benjamin. I’ll take my huge lump with Dawson Knox against the Rams. After all the offseason smoke and mirrors about more tight end usage in that Bills offense, Knox was only targeted twice and had one reception for five yards. I had a rough overall first week of fantasy football, with lots of top-of-league scoring, but close losses (by .5 in my home league). How’d you do Benjamin?
Benjamin: Thanks for asking, Brendan. Week 1 was off-the-wall bonkers! I did get knocked out of my survivor pool thanks to the lovely field conditions that the 49ers and Bears had to trudge through. I love that Cordarrelle Patterson came out strong with 120 rushing yards. Brendan’s Jerry Jeudy pick paid off with that huge 67-yard touchdown catch. I also missed at tight end with David Njoku managing just one catch. In terms of my fantasy squads, they either squeaked by (thank you Brandon McManus) or came up just short. I’m feeling really good about week two, though!
Quarterbacks
Start: Carson Wentz, Commanders
Benjamin: After putting up top three numbers in Week 1, I’m on board with Carson Wentz this week. There are enough weapons in Washington to let any run-of-the-mill quarterback succeed against a porous defense. With 313 passing yards and four scores, he was a hot commodity on the waiver wire. Heading to Detroit this week is another ideal matchup after they surrendered 38 points to the Eagles. In his previous two games against the Lions, Wentz threw two touchdowns in each game and has a nice little 7.8 YPC average. He’ll make for a great streaming option in Week 2.
Trey Lance, 49ers
Brendan: I think the theme of Week 2 every year is overreaction. Trey Lance played in horrible conditions in Chicago and didn’t play that well completing 13 of 28 pass attempts for 164 yards and an interception. This week they will play at home, hopefully not in a monsoon. Lance should know well that he’s going to need to turn this around quickly, with Jimmy Garoppolo nipping at his heels. I expect a big game from Lance this week.
Sit: Ryan Tannehill, Titans
Brendan: I have to be honest, I have never been a fan of Ryan Tannehill. However, this is a horrible matchup for him against Buffalo. With a much better offense, this Buffalo defense sacked Matthew Stafford seven times, forced three interceptions, and only allowed 240 yards passing. Tannehill is going to have a worse stat line on Monday night in Buffalo.
Jacoby Brissett, Browns
Benjamin: The only thing in favor of starting Jacoby Brissett is his passing attempts. Last week, he threw the ball 34 times and that’s what we want our fantasy signal-callers to do. However, he completed only 18 passes for 52.9%. Even the matchup with the Jets doesn’t instill confidence for me. Until we see something noteworthy, I’m staying away from this passing game.
Running Backs
Start: A.J. Dillon, Packers
Benjamin: The Week 1 spanking served up by Minnesota has surely left a very sour taste in the mouths of the Packers. That’s just bulletin board material as they’ll be hosting the Bears this coming Sunday. All that frustration is going to be funneled directly into defense. Don’t be swayed by the Week 1 result against the 49ers as the elements took a toll on that entire contest. Against the Vikings, Dillon led the team in total touches, yards, and he scored their only touchdown. I believe that Dillon will continue to take the bulk of running back carries this season while Aaron Jones is used in more pass-catching situations. Both have great value, but Dillon’s punishing run style demands more ground opportunities. In fact, I have Dillon ranked as a top 10 fantasy running back this week.
Michael Carter, Jets
Brendan: No one believed the Jets when they said Michael Carter was the starter in New Jersey for the start of the season, but he sure was. Carter rushed 10 times for 60 yards and caught seven passes, while being targeted 9 times, for 40 yards. Meanwhile, Breece Hall saw 12 touches and lost one to a fumble. With this usage split, both Hall and Carter have fantasy potential in large leagues, but Carter saw all the goal-line work. In a committee running back room, I will always give the advantage to the back seeing the goal-line work.
Sit: David Montgomery, Bears
Brendan: David Montgomery has been one of my favorite, under-the-radar backs, for years. However, I think his time is coming to an end in Chicago. It appears like he is in a true timeshare with Khalil Herbert, and Montgomery looks like he’s losing his explosiveness. He carried the ball 17 times for 26 yards and added two receptions for 24 yards. Herbert carried the ball nine times and scored a touchdown while looking like he had much more juice in his legs than Montgomery. With a new regime in Chicago and in a contract year, I expect this to be his normal usage and have tough sledding against the Packers this week.
J.K. Dobbins, Ravens
Benjamin: First off, I love J.K Dobbins as a player and as a fantasy producer. However, if he does suit up for the first time this week, I’m waiting a week. An ACL injury is no joke and can take more than a year to fully recover from. I want to see Dobbins crank out some good numbers in a game before I slot him into my starting lineup. In a week or two, I’m sure he’ll be back to playing strength and find a long-term home in my starting lineup. If he doesn’t play in week two, I’m also not starting any Ravens running back this week.
Wide Receivers
Start: Julio Jones, Buccaneers
Benjamin: Come join me on the Julio Jones hype train! Find yourself a seat quickly because the waiter is coming to take drink orders! Jones was the second-most targeted Buccaneer in Week1’s 22-point affair with Dallas. He also had just two fewer yards (69) than Mike Evans (71) with two fewer catches. It’s very likely we won’t see Chris Godwin in action for a while and that opens up opportunities for the future Hall of Fame receiver. Jones is also no stranger to facing the Saints as he has surpassed 90 receiving yards in 10 games against them with a career average of 15.8 yards per reception. I’m expecting a big performance from Jones this week.
Christian Kirk, Jaguars
Brendan: All aboard! I’m buying tickets on that Julio Jones train as well. My pick this week is Christian Kirk who was targeted 12 times pulling in six of them for 117 yards. After paying Kirk the big bucks, it appears the Jaguars and Trevor Lawrence will put their money where their mouths are and target Kirk a ton. Enter the Indianapolis Colts, that gave up 82 receiving yards on seven receptions last week. If Kirk continues to see this high volume of targets, he will have a big game this week.
Sit: DeVante Parker, Patriots
Brendan: DeVante Parker was on the field for all 57 offensive snaps for the Patriots, but was only targeted twice, with one reception for a meager nine yards. Mac Jones and this Patriots offense looked really bad in Miami last week, and with the report of Jones suffering from back spasms, this could get much worse. This week they also face the Steelers who forced a much better Joe Burrow to throw four interceptions last week. Parker does have some upside with him being on the field so much, but he needs to find the targets first.
Darnell Mooney, Bears
Benjamin: If you drafted Darnell Mooney, you probably drafted him to be an every-week starter on your fantasy squad. In Week 2, he’s stepping into an unenviable situation that shouldn’t be ignored. If there’s one part of the Green Bay defense that should be respected, it’s the secondary defenders. Sure, they got torched by Justin Jefferson in Week 1, but he’s not the only dangerous pass catcher in Minnesota. In Chicago, it’s Mooney or bust when it comes to pass catchers. He can create big plays whenever he gets the ball. The Packers’ defenders are going to shackle him all day, limiting his big play potential.
Tight Ends
Start: Pat Freiermuth, Steelers
Benjamin: Pat Freiermuth was targeted more than any other tight end in Week 1 aside from the one that Brendan will tell you about. His 73% catch ratio is also impressive, especially for a second-year tight end. Freiermuth turned his 10, Week 1 targets into five catches for 75 yards in a game where Mitch Trubisky was constantly pressured and needed to get the ball out of his hands, quickly. The Patriots are a team that can nullify the opponent’s main offensive weapon, likely making Freiermuth the best option in the passing game. I think we will continue to see the young tight end featured for the Pittsburgh offense.
Tyler Higbee, Rams
Brendan: Tyler Higbee didn’t have the best stat line against the Bills in Week 1, but who in the Rams offense really did? The big news for Higbee is that he continued to be a favorite target of Matthew Stafford, seeing 11 targets on the night. This could be a sign of a lack of chemistry between Stafford and Allen Robinson and Van Jefferson missing the game, but I really like that target share. While Robinson is building up a report with Stafford, and Jefferson continues to miss time, I like starting Higbee.
Sit: Cole Kmet, Chicago Bears
Brendan: I’m going to stick with Cole Kmet for the second week in a row. I like Kmet and think he can be a productive professional tight end, but just don’t see it right now. As I mentioned before, game conditions were horrible in Chicago last week, but he still was only targeted once. Another concern is Ryan Griffin saw quite a bit of usage last week as well. The future should be bright for Kmet, but I would let him ride your bench for the time being until we see more from this Bears offense.
Robert Tonyan, Packers
Benjamin: Man, we’re really hating on the Bears this week. Well, here’s something Bears fans can hopefully get behind. Robert Tonyan is not high on my Week 2 list. He did have the second-most targets (5) for Green Bay last week, but that may not be enough in Week 2. Green Bay will command their offense through the running game which puts Tonyan into more blocking situations. He’ll still get a couple of looks, but not enough to warrant a fantasy start. I’d even go with Kmet over Tonyan this week.
Don’t forget to hit us up on Twitter with any of your lineup questions. You can find Benjamin @FFRabbitDad and Brendan @OBryanBren. If you have a question, we will give you some guidance. After all, we want you to win!
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