Week 3 was much easier to swallow than the injury carnage of Week 2. We did lose Saquon Barkley, but there were exciting young quarterbacks all over the place from Daniel Jones and Kyler Murray to Gardner Minshew II and Kyle Allen. Today and every Monday afternoon, though, I’ll be telling you about everything I saw when I went back through and watched every play of every game. I saw the Thursday night game and three Sunday games live then used NFL Game Pass to see the other 10 contests this morning. As you can imagine, I had to wake up extremely early to see it all and write this up by the afternoon, but it’s easy to get up when your job is to watch football. I can tell you about how incredible Dalvin Cook looks, but you already know things like that. I want to tell you about what you may have missed.
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Darwin Thompson had the single most impressive run of the week
And it went for negative yards. Credit to friend of the FantasyPros Football Podcast, Sigmund Bloom, for bringing this to my attention. After avoiding a tackle he leaped over another then sustained two huge hits one after another and kept his feet. This isn’t to say all of his runs are this incredible but I still believe he is the best of the four running backs on the Chiefs. If he ever gets a chance, he has league-winning upside.
Sony Michel may very well lose his starting gig
I hate typing this. Michel seemed like a crazy value just weeks ago, but he looks absolutely washed the same way Jay Ajayi did after all his knee trouble and Todd Gurley did towards the end of last season. We know Michel has had knee problems and that they may resurface at some point, but it was tough to imagine his play would hit a brick wall because of it. At this point, Michel may be the 3rd or even 4th best running back on the roster. Sell him now for A.J. Green or Saquon Barkley if you are 3-0, or Mike Williams if you are not.
The Patriots still have three excellent wide receivers
Julian Edelman and Josh Gordon are obviously terrific talents, but if you were to watch the game Sunday without any knowledge of the past, you’d likely say Phillip Dorsett was every bit as good. Not only is he exceptionally fast, but he is playing the game like a veteran in lock-step with his quarterback. Let’s forgive him of his past disappointments and remember that he still has the talent of a former first-rounder.
Amari Cooper didn’t exactly dominate Xavien Howard
Yes, Cooper went for 88 yards and two scores on what was previously regarded as a consensus top-five corner in football, but the fact of the matter is that Howard just looked disinterested. How can you blame the guy when his team is averaging fewer than 5 points and losing by 30+ per game? Howard is still incredible, but don’t fade opposing wide receivers in the future until he returns to playing with passion.
Parris Campbell is ridiculously fast
No, really, this dude has some serious burners on him. Think T.Y. Hilton but bigger and faster. Oh, and he might just be playing in Hilton’s role this week if the strained hamstring causes him to miss time. More than likely, Campbell won’t be worth using this year in fantasy leagues, but if you can acquire him in dynasty, he is going to be a playmaker for years to come once he is locked into the lineup.
Other notes
- Shaq Barrett may be the most impressive pass-rushing OLB since DeMarcus Ware
- Darius Slayton has my attention if he eventually finds his way into playing time
- Jaire Alexander has quickly become one of the best cornerbacks in football
- Lamar Jackson looked awful against a halfway competent defense
- Mason Rudolph rarely threw past the line of scrimmage. Yikes.
- Wayne Gallman is just a guy. Don’t be surprised if they sign C.J. Anderson or Jay Ajayi to replace him.
- The Chargers offensive line is an absolute disaster right now
- Chris Carson was yanked from the field after his fumble was returned for a touchdown
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