Week 2 Thought Bubbles

It’s Week 2 and after a quite wild week 1 it’s time to pick through the wreckage and try to figure out what each game may hold for Fantasy and where the sneaky plays may come from. This is my weekly thought bubble on the scheduled games.

Ravens @ Bengals
The Thursday night game usually is one to fade and this week is no different. The Ravens blew out the Bills but I think even I could have torched Buffalo last week. It’s clear the Ravens aren’t as on board with Alex Collins as the Fantasy community was but with Kenneth Dixon on IR now it’s either Collins or Buck Allen so Collins owners may have dodged a bullet.
For the Bengals, Joe Mixon looks to finally be a bell cow as we all wished and maybe some sense is slowly creeping into the Cincinnati coaching staff. John Ross looks like he will be one of the steals of the year and you may want to get on board if you’re not already.

Panthers @ Falcons
Cam Newton is still Cam Newton but with pieces around him falling such as Greg Olsen he is going to need help more than ever. DJ Moore should be a big beneficiary of Olsen’s injury while McCaffrey looks like the may get a higher percentage of work that I’d expected. As a last note, I thought their defence would be patchy at best this season, game one suggests I may need to rethink that.
The Falcons have been decimated on defence losing Keane Neal and Deion Jones which changes the whole picture in Atlanta. With Freeman nursing another small injury Julio and Ryan will be confident plays and the likes of Sanu, Coleman and even Hooper should all see an uptick across the season.

Chargers @ Bills
After I hyped the Chargers DST this offseason they got torched by Tyreek Hill and Pat Mahomes. Joey Bosa is a huge miss for that defence but against the Bills, they should still be a top 3 option. On offence, I’m expecting Rivers and Allen to put a big game together and the support pieces like the Williams’, Gates and Ekeler should be playable in deeper leagues. Melvin Gordon will be a must-start for as long as he is healthy.
The Bills are the dumpster fire we called in the offseason and if you’re letting the often score shy Ravens put up 40+ points you really are bad. They need to get Shady into the game but when you need to throw to look competitive you really need receivers... Maybe Josh Allen being thrown in early will improve things? However, I think the problems are deeper than just Peterman.

Vikings @ Packers
The preview for this will be dominated by Aaron Rodgers and his knee injury. If he plays it could be a fascinating matchup as one of the best pass attacks meets one of the best defences. If Rodgers plays you can fire up whichever receivers are healthy and since he’s the least banged up Geronimo Allison is one of my plays of the week, so long as it is Rodgers. If Kizer plays they get your Minnesota stock out there.
The Green Bay defence didn’t look too solid so Kirk Cousin, Thielin, Diggs and Rudolph are all going to put up points. Surprisingly, Dalvin Cook saw the field on the majority of snaps and Latavious Murray was barely a feature despite Cook returning from injury and being treated carefully in the build up. Cook now is a weekly must start and is in the reckoning to be the #1 RB. Last note here, if Rodgers is out, the Vikings DST goes from risky to top 3.

Texans @ Titans
Deshaun Watson didn’t start like a QB with the record he had last season. I’ve been expecting him to bust all summer and this was a good start but against the Patriots they can make any QB look average on their day. The Titans DST still are not an easy proposition and with the Texans still a few sandwiches short of a picnic on offence it will be a struggle. Lamar Miller will need more of a role but if Fuller remains sidelined (he is trending towards starting) the guy you may want in deep leagues is Bruce Ellington.
The Titans will just hope to have a game that runs its course properly rather than having 2, 2hr storm delays. Before there break Derrick Henry got the bulk of the work and appeared ineffective. After the break, Dion Lewis took over and lit up Fantasy scoreboards (a lot being my own). Expect that to continue. Passing wise Mariota is good to go but is going to have to convince a few people that he is still a good QB. Corey Davis is questionable so Really share Matthews gets an uptick and with Delanie Walker out long term, Jonnu Smith is going to have to get straight to business.

Browns @ Saints
The Saints defence can’t be as bad as last week. Being torched by Fitzmagic was a shock which they won’t want to repeat. The Browns ended their losing run in the most Browns way by drawing with the Steelers but with some poor conditions in that game, their true ability may be clearer this week. Tyrod now can be more effective and the likes of Landry and Gordon should have easier job reeling in catches. I like Duke Johnson as a play this week but when facing Drew Brees the tips are the same; fade the defence and play the pass catchers.
The Saints still have a powerful offence. Michael Thomas started off on fire and even Ted Ginn got in on the act. With Cam Meredith still not up to speed Ginn is a great option and at a, push Ben Watson is a decent TE stream.

Dolphins @ Jets
The Dolphins looked decent against the Titans when they weren’t sheltering against the lightning. Kenny Stills was up there as maybe my 2nd most drafted player across 50 games and my confidence so far does not look misplaced. The running game didn’t see a lot of work and I sense that may be a theme, but Tannehill to Stills looks like a combo to believe in.
The Jets really slated the Lions and made me eat my article last week. I’m still not sold on the Jets but Crowelll looks like the player people overdrafted last year and the 1-2 punch of Anderson and Enunwa worked well for Darnold and for fantasy owners. Again, I can see those three continuing to score plenty for the Jets and the defence should still be a good play this week, even if I’m not sure how long it will last.

Chiefs @ Steelers
The Chiefs started the season on fire against a Chargers team I rated. Now they face a Steelers defence I really don’t rate and coming off the embarrassment vs the Browns I’m expecting Mahomes, Hill and all the pass catchers to continue where they left off last week. Kareem Hunt should see an uptick too, after a quiet week one I think it’s time for last years rushing leader to step up. This has the potential to be a shootout so don’t even think about the defences.
So, onto the Steelers offence and with Bell likely to miss this game James Connor will be as playable as he was last week. Big Ben was terrible in week one and with him nursing an injury I’d steer clear in week two. With that being said you can never drop AB, and Juju is heading into the same realm.

Eagles @ Buccaneers
The opening day winners play the first Sunday’s biggest upset team. The Eagles are waiting to see is Alshon Jeffrey will return but if not my #1 most drafted player this year Nelson Agholor will be the guy to own and against this Bucs defence he is a must play. My #2 most drafted player Corey Clement I’m hoping is more of a factor and really he should be (see Kamara last week) while Jay Ajayi may be used sparingly again yet still score well like he did against the Falcons.
The Bucs will still be under Fitzmagics stewardship but the Eagles should offer more resistance than the Saints and I just can’t see a repeat. In fact, it may be a regression towards the mean. The one guy to look out for is Chris Godwin. If Desean Jackson misses the game then Godwin is a great waiver wire option. Barber will be the starter at RB but there’s still going to be better options available.

Colts @ Redskins
Andrew Luck is back and he didn’t look too rusty in week one and as he gets more games under his belt I think he’s only going to be better. TY Hilton will be relevant all year but the main area of interest is tight end. In week one both Ebron and Doyle were top 7 in PPR so Luck can certainly keep both relevant which reduces Ryan Grants ceiling a little.
The Redskins we’re one of my biggest surprises in week one one both sides of the ball and Adrian Peterson looked capable of having one more big year. He Colts are still leaky in defence so Alex Smith is a solid play, Crowder and Doctson should be flex plays and if you know what rule 86 is, you’ll know to play Jordan Reed if you own him.

Cardinals @ Rams
Before week one played out this matchup would have been seen as David Johnson vs Todd Gurley in the battle of the top picks. However, after the events of week one, there are concerns for the Cardinals. They looked short on options, short on ideas and short on talent. Sam Bradford was bot what I had hoped and a repeat performance will definitely start the Josh Rosen shouts. DJ looks the only real weapon since Bradford even made Larry Fitzgerald struggle to be relevant. I don’t see how they can fix things fast enough and with a Rams defence which seems to be as good as advertised, the only Cardinal you can play is DJ.
The Rams should pretty much explain themselves. Gurley is always a must start, the defence is stellar, Goff should get plenty of work and Cooks/Kupp/Woods will be a split and guessing it is a real game of risk and reward. If Cooks is shadowed by Patrick Peterson I’m looking for Cooper to be a few people’s Kupp of tea.

Lions @ 49ers
I’ve said it already, thenLions can not be as bad as they were in week one. That was an outlier and right now they could be decent trade targets. With an opponent who doesn’t know their play calls and with a lot of work still to do themselves the Lions offence should get a chance to rebound. Stafford, Tate and Jones should be treated like they were in week one but after being one of the brighter sparks against the Jets, Kenny Golladay is a deeper league play.
The 49ers got the Jimmy G unbeaten streak snapped and have work to do on both sides of the ball. Garçon isn’t convincing, Goodwin may miss due to injury and the running game hasn’t coped with the loss of McKinnon yet so the two guys left are Kittle and Pettis. Apart from sounding like they should be a village shoe shop these two may be very interest plays as the volume should be there.

Raiders @ Broncos
The Raiders haven’t got any younger the last time I looked. Gruden is already calling out his players in public and the players themselves still seem shellshocked by the personnel moves that they’ve made. I’m steering clear of all Raiders, including Lynch and Cooper until they can prove there is life there.
The Broncos look like they should have a lot of joy. Keenum is a great stream at QB. Lindsey might remain relevant and Royce Freeman should start to live up to his ADP and shine. Thomas and Sanders should both be fired up with confidence and if somehow we even get a fantasy relevant tight end in Denver that that really would be a kick up the Jake Butt.

Patriots @ Jaguars
A rematch of that ill fated AFC Championship game and it already feels like a grudge match. Both teams have great defences but get things done (enough) on offence. If Fournette is a full go the Jags will be pounding the Patriots as much as they can. Yeldon will get into the action either way and with a bunch of pass catchers available for Bortles to use the team should do great, but predicting the best fantasy asset is a risky business.
The Patriots seem to be going through receivers like they are just a grocery store item and with Chris Hogan having a disappointing game one there’s only Brady and Gronk you can really trust. Having said that I do feel that James White will be a decent play this week and over the season.

Giants @ Cowboys
This is a difficult one to judge on. Both teams lost tight affairs and showed signs that they haven’t quite fixed every Robles they have. The Giants have OBJ back fit and firing and Saquon Barkley eventually ripped off that big debut TD run to announce his arrival. Otherwise, Engram and Shepard were quiet and with Eli at the helm, I can see that trend continuing.
The Cowboys will always have an offensive threat for as long as Zeke is on the field but after Elliott they really don’t appear to have much. Dak is a shadow of his former self, Hurns and Gallup didn’t offer a lot and I’m not sure anyone could name who their main Tight End is going to be. It’s a mess, only made worse by the loss of their starting centre. Joe Looney is not Travis Fredericks and that showed against the Panthers.

Seahawks @ Bears
The final game of the week will be the Seahawks and the Bears. In years gone by you’d be saying it’s an elite defence vs an offence likely to use the run a lot. I’d argue you can use the statement still, but swapping the teams around. The Legion of Boom has self destructed and with Doug Baldwin going down the likes of a Carson and Penny are going to see a lot of work. Yes, they have an ageing Brandon Marshall and a nearly man in Tyler Lockett but is that going to be enough for Russel Wilson to find when he’s scrambling to avoid hits like usual? I don’t think I want any part of the Seahawks and right now apart from Wilson as he may be the only piece they have left.
The Bears meanwhile have created a monster defence to Bear down on the opposition. I thought they would be good even before they traded for Khalil Mack but that just pushed them over the top and now I’m picking them up everywhere. They got double digits against Aaron Rodgers people! On offence, it’s not quite so rosy yet but the pieces are there. Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen should be stronger this week but I wonder if it may be another few weeks before the likes of Allen Robinson and Anthony Miller get to show their full potential. The issue could be Trubisky. He has a lot of weapons when you also include Burton at tight end, but he just doesn’t seem in sync yet. The high turnover of personal has set them back a bit but Seattle does offer up a great opportunity to get it together. If they do, they’re a contender.