Whilst fantasy predictions for the opening slate are always a challenge, we’ve now been able to see all 32 teams in action and get a feel for what they will bring in 2020. It is always easy to overreact and overhaul your fantasy team if you suffer a defeat in the opener, but this is a marathon, not a sprint. There are some interesting matchups on offer this weekend and these are my candidates to start and sit in Week 2.
Quarterbacks
Start ‘Em
Philip Rivers – Aaron Rodgers made the most of the weak Vikings secondary last week as he racked up 30.76 fantasy points, with 364 yards for four touchdowns. I would expect Rivers to do similarly well and after the shock opening loss to the Jags, the Colts should come out firing in this one. Rivers was good in Week 1, finishing with a CPOE of 7.7. He was getting the ball out quickly too and Rodgers showed last week the kind of damage that can do to this Vikings secondary.
Tom Brady – Brady wasn’t great against the Saints but its important to remember that they were up against perhaps the best all around roster in the NFL. People want to write off the Bucs already, but we’ve only seen sixty minutes of football. This week they face a poor Carolina defense that ranked 31st in Week 1 per PFF and allowed 34 points against the Raiders. The Bucs should be pretty comfortable winners and I think Brady is a solid option as a starter.
Sit ‘Em
Drew Lock – There was a tonne of offseason hype around this Broncos offense but they failed to deliver in Week 1. Lock was solid enough, completing 22 of 33 passes for 216 yards and a touchdown, but he hasn’t shown enough to be considered a fantasy starter. The Broncos are also suffering from multiple injuries at skill positions which isn’t going to help. With a road trip against a tough Steelers defense ahead of him, Lock is likely to have a tough time of it.
Kyler Murray – Whilst Murray and the Cardinals deserve credit for their shock win over the 49ers in Week 1, it is important not to lose sight of the performance. The Arizona offense was pretty lacklustre until the fourth quarter and aside from DeAndre Hopkins his receivers didn’t offer much. This Washington defensive line looked legitimately impressive in Week 1 and I would expect them to put the pressure on Murray from the outset. Washington may well fall apart and the Cardinals may end up as comfortable winners, but that’s not a gamble I want to take.
Running Backs
Start ‘Em
Zack Moss – The Patriots showed that the way to beat the Dolphins is with the running game and I would expect the Bills to work from that template this week. Whilst they seem determined to split their carries, it looks like Moss is their goal line back moving forward as he took the bulk of their red zone carries against the Jets. The Bills are also keen to use him as a receiver out of the backfield and he should get some opportunities against the Dolphins to put up points.
Jonathan Taylor – Taylor looked like he could have a big season as soon as he was drafted by the Colts. Running behind one of the best offensive lines in the NFL will help and although he only featured on 33 per cent of Colts snaps last week, this should increase significantly with Marlon Mack out injured. He is coming up against a Vikings defense that struggled against the run last week and he could put up some impressive numbers.
Sit ‘Em
Mark Ingram – One of the main takeaways from the Ravens win against the Browns was the immediate impact of their rookie running back J.K. Dobbins. Not only did he finish the game with more snaps than Ingram, he looks to be the Ravens’ designated goal line back moving forward and grabbed two touchdowns in his debut outing. Ingram will certainly play a role on Sunday but if he isn’t consistently getting red zone reps he just doesn’t provide enough fantasy value.
Cam Akers – Akers had a solid enough debut against Dallas, but Sean McVay’s commitment to backfield rotation limited him to just 39 yards on 14 carries. Malcolm Brown looks like their RB1 right now and whilst Akers is the high upside option in the long run, his restricted carries and lack of goal line action mean I would sit him for the time being. The Eagles also allowed just 2.2 yards per carry against Washington so I wouldn’t expect great numbers this week.
Wide Receivers
Start ‘Em
Michael Gallup – The Seahawks tore apart this weak Falcons secondary last week and I would expect Dallas to target them again. Atlanta allowed 88.3 per cent of passes to receivers to be caught and gave up 229 yards to them in the process. This has the potential to be a high scoring game with plenty of passing from both sides and Gallup should be one of the beneficiaries.
Emmanuel Sanders – Michael Thomas will miss time thanks to an ankle injury and you can expect Emmanuel Sanders to fill in for the Saints. New Orleans have little else to offer at receiver and whilst you can expect Jared Cook and Alvin Kamara to see more targets thanks to Thomas’ absence, the main beneficiary will be Sanders. Thomas averaged over 11 targets per game in 2019 and if Sanders gets just half of these he should do well against an underwhelming Raiders secondary.
Sit ‘Em
Sammy Watkins – Given their tendency to spread the ball around it is always tricky picking Chiefs receivers in fantasy football. The game against the Texans also suggested they will be focusing more on their running game this year. Both of these things are bad from Watkins’ fantasy perspective. He tend to blow hot and cold and given that he put up 21.5 fantasy points last week, I’d expect a less exciting week against the Chargers, particularly given the strength of their coverage unit.
Will Fuller – Fuller is a good receiver and had a solid game against the Chiefs, with eight catches for 112 yards. He will have his work cut out against a tough Ravens secondary this week though and there are certainly better options available at the position in Week 2. Baltimore limited the Browns to 189 yards passing, with Beckham and Landry combining for just 83 yards on 16 targets.
Tight Ends
Start ‘Em
Dallas Goedert – The Eagles are once again suffering from a depleted offense and they looked really poor in their loss to Washington last week. One of the few bright sparks was Dallas Goedert, who finished with eight receptions for 101 yards and a touchdown. A lack of depth at receiver should see them looking to their tight ends even more than they normally do. I’m not expecting much from this Eagles offense on Sunday but you can almost guarantee that they will be throwing the ball Goedert’s way.
Eric Ebron – Week 1 was pretty quiet for Ebron in his Steelers debut but I would expect him to put up some points against the Broncos this week. He did feature a lot though, which bodes well for fantasy production in the long run. Pittsburgh ran a tonne of two tight end personnel and he played over 60 per cent of their offensive snaps. He only had a single reception against the Giants but Denver allowed 23.2 points to the position in their opener and with injuries across their defensive they could struggle.
Sit ‘Em
Rob Gronkowski – Gronk has spent a year out of the game and it showed on Sunday. Whether or not he can ever recapture his Patriots form remains to be seen but if Week 1 was anything to go by he is seriously rusty and needs some time to re-acclimatise. Against the Saints he put up just two receptions for 11 yards and just 3.1 points. Whilst he should have a better chance against the Panthers, I’d give him a miss until we see some signs of the old Gronk.
Austin Hooper – The Browns made Hooper the highest paid tight end in the NFL when they signed him this offseason. It didn’t show last week though, with just two catches for 15 yards. He benefited from being the lone tight end in a high volume passing offense in Atlanta, but things are different in Cleveland. Kevin Stefanski’s scheme is based around 12 personnel and it looks like Hooper will be sharing targets with David Njoku for the foreseeable future.
Defenses
Start ‘Em
Los Angeles Rams – It is difficult to overstate just how poor the Eagles offense looked against Washington last week and the Rams look like a safe bet on defense this week. I would expect Aaron Donald to dominate a depleted Eagles offensive line and with the lack of quality at receiver, their secondary shouldn’t have too much trouble covering.
Sit ‘Em
Minnesota Vikings – One of the concerns for the Vikings entering the season was the lack of experience at corner. They have an almost entirely new unit and it was evident last weekend that it still isn’t quite there yet. They also struggled to create pressure upfront and are coming up against one of the best offensive lines in the league in Indianapolis. I would expect the Colts to put up a tonne of yardage and a fair number of points on Sunday and wouldn’t go anywhere near this Vikings defense.