Denver Broncos vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
Date/Time: Sunday September 19, 1:00pm ET
BettingPros Consensus Spread: Broncos -6
BettingPros Consensus Over/Under: 45 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Broncos 25.5, Jaguars 19.5
Denver Broncos
POS | NAME | COMP/ATT | PASS YDS | TDs | INTs | RUSH YDS | TDs | FPTS |
QB | Teddy Bridgewater | 19/30 | 207 | 2 | 0.5 | 9 | 0.15 | 17 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
RB | Melvin Gordon III | 15 | 78 | 0.85 | 2 | 11 | 0.15 | 15.82 |
RB | Javonte Williams | 12 | 54 | 0.7 | 1 | 8 | 0.1 | 11.6 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
WR | Courtland Sutton | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 56 | 0.55 | 10.96 |
WR | Tim Patrick | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 40 | 0.4 | 8.38 |
WR | KJ Hamler | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 31 | 0.2 | 5.44 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
TE | Noah Fant | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 39 | 0.4 | 8.02 |
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Jacksonville Jaguars
POS | NAME | COMP/ATT | PASS YDS | TDs | INTs | RUSH YDS | TDs | FPTS |
QB | Trevor Lawrence | 27/43 | 293 | 2.1 | 1.8 | 15 | 0.2 | 19 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
RB | James Robinson | 5 | 24 | 0.15 | 4 | 25 | 0.3 | 9.46 |
RB | Carlos Hyde | 8 | 32 | 0.3 | 1 | 6 | 0.1 | 6.76 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
WR | Marvin Jones Jr. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 73 | 0.5 | 12.89 |
WR | Laviska Shenault Jr. | 1 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 58 | 0.4 | 11.95 |
WR | D.J. Chark Jr. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 65 | 0.5 | 11.6 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
TE | James O’Shaughnessy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 24 | 0.15 | 4.81 |
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Quarterback
Denver: Teddy Bridgewater came out in his first game with Denver and looked very solid against a solid Giants secondary. He put together a very respectable 264 passing yardage performance to go with two touchdowns and zero interceptions, and he now gets to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars defense. While it’s quite possible that the RBs in this matchup have a massive outing, these are the types of matchups that you want to attack when you’re looking for a streaming option. Bridgewater should be able to have a very solid game here, and he’s certainly someone you can target if you’re in a pinch. He can be viewed as a mid-range QB2 this week.
Jacksonville: Trevor Lawrence looked like a rookie QB out there on Sunday, but that’s no reason to completely panic just yet. There were plenty of bright moments – mixed with the not so good – and Lawrence should be fine for fantasy football moving forward. However, this isn’t a matchup that we should want to target him based on what we saw last week. The Broncos are a stout defense with terrific CB play, and they should keep Lawrence in check. He can be viewed as a low-end QB2 in week two.
Running Backs
Denver: According to PFF, Melvin Gordon finished with 32 total snaps during the Broncos’ win against the New York Giants. While he had a fantastic game on the ground – 11 carries for 101 yards and a score – he was out-snapped by Williams. With Williams’ 34 total snaps, this is a complete 50/50 split, and Gordon showed that he shouldn’t be sent to the bench just yet in favor of the rookie RB. He ripped off a beautiful long TD run and significantly outperformed Williams. Even though this is a completely even timeshare, Gordon’s absolutely in play as a top-24 option this week against the Jaguars defense that just allowed the Houston Texans to run for 160 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Javonte Williams saw the majority of the snaps and carries last week, but he certainly wasn’t as efficient as Gordon with the opportunity. Moving forward, Williams should be viewed as an RB3 most weeks, but he does get a bit of a bump up because of the matchup against the Jaguars. He’s on the edge of RB2 territory this week in my rankings and can be viewed as a solid play with upside.
Jacksonville: Well, this isn’t exactly what James Robinson’s fantasy managers wanted to see. Robinson had only five carries in week one as opposed to Carlos Hyde’s nine. The good news is that Robinson was targeted seven times and reeled in six of those catches…for three total yards. This offense in Jacksonville does not look like one that we really want to be investing in for fantasy purposes, but especially here in this backfield. Until we see Robinson receive the majority of the workload – as he deserves to – he can’t be trusted as anything more than a low-end RB2. Carlos Hyde received the majority of the workload on the ground in week one, but we simply can’t trust him for fantasy football with the current state of this offense. Urban Meyer doesn’t seem to have a full understanding of how to run an NFL franchise, and it’s showing in his usage of these RBs. Hyde can be picked up in leagues if you’re desperate for a healthy RB, but otherwise, we shouldn’t be looking his direction.
Wide Receivers
Denver: Jerry Jeudy is now out of the picture for the next several weeks, which certainly bumps up Courtland Sutton. While Sutton led the Broncos in WR snaps with 53, he wasn’t particularly effective and only reeled in one catch for 14 yards on three targets. This was his first game back after missing the majority of last season, so it could have been shaking off some rust, and he now has the perfect matchup in front of him for a get-right game. The Jaguars seem to be a ship that is sinking already one game into the season, and they’re not going to have an answer for someone like Sutton. He can be viewed as a low-end WR2/high-end WR3 against Jacksonville. With Jeudy down and out, Tim Patrick immediately vaults up rankings for week two of the 2021 NFL season. Last year, Patrick was incredible with his increased opportunity when Sutton was out, and he was a reliable fantasy option nearly every single week. He appeared to be the No. 4 WR heading into this season, but he was heavily involved in this offense even before the Jeudy injury. He’s a very talented WR that now has the potential to lead this Broncos offense in targets if Sutton isn’t at 100% right now. He should be rostered in every format, and he can be viewed as a WR3 this week with upside. KJ Hamler could be something for fantasy football, and he very nearly was, but he dropped an easy touchdown last week. With Jeudy set to miss some time, Hamler should see his snap count increase, and the opportunity could be there. However, we’re going to need to see it happen first before we trust him in our starting lineup.
Jacksonville: Marvin Jones ended up leading this Jaguars team in snaps at the WR position last week, and he was able to salvage his fantasy performance with a late touchdown. While the opportunity is there in front of him – and he should continue to be heavily targeted this week – this is a matchup that I’m looking to avoid playing Jones if I can. The Broncos’ secondary should keep the Jaguars in check all game long, and this could be a tough outing for the Jaguars’ offense. Jones is a low-end FLEX option in my rankings. DJ Chark saw the second-most snaps at the WR position for Jacksonville this past week and logged an absurd 12 targets, but he was only able to reel in three of them for 86 yards and a score. It’s a solid end stat line, but the catch percentage is a big concern moving forward. In a tougher matchup against the Broncos, Chark’s a boom-or-bust WR3. Laviska Shenault certainly filled the type of role we assumed he would in this offense after Travis Etienne went down with an injury. Shenault had an ADOT of 4.0 yards in week one against the Texans, and 38 of his 50 yards receiving came after the catch. While Shenault has the talent to make this role work in the NFL, it’s probably not going to lead to a ton of fantasy production in this offense with the way it’s looked so far. Shenault can be viewed as a low-end FLEX option in week two that gets a bump up in Full PPR formats.
Tight Ends
Denver: This entire off-season, Noah Fant was lower in my TE rankings simply due to the fact that he doesn’t score touchdowns with any sort of regularity, and I didn’t see a path for how he could see 5+ targets per game. Now, with Jeudy out of the lineup, Fant has the potential to soak up targets underneath from Bridgewater, and that certainly happened in week one against the Giants. Fant’s probably still not going to rack up the touchdown totals in this offense, but he should be a very safe and reliable option every single week. At the TE position for fantasy football, that’s all we need sometimes. He can be viewed as a mid-range/low-end TE1 again this week.
Jacksonville: None of the Jaguars’ TEs should be considered for fantasy football this week.
FantasyProjection Buster: Courtland Sutton should see an uptick in work with Jeudy out, but that’s far from a guarantee based on what we saw in week one.
New Orleans Saints vs. Carolina Panthers
Date/Time: Sunday September 19, 1:00pm ET
BettingPros Consensus Spread: Saints -3.5
BettingPros Consensus Over/Under: 44.5 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Saints 24, Panthers 20.5
New Orleans Saints
POS | NAME | COMP/ATT | PASS YDS | TDs | INTs | RUSH YDS | TDs | FPTS |
QB | Jameis Winston | 20/30 | 215 | 1.85 | 0.5 | 16 | 0.25 | 18 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
RB | Alvin Kamara | 14 | 63 | 0.8 | 6 | 52 | 0.3 | 21.07 |
RB | Tony Jones Jr. | 9 | 42 | 0.5 | 2 | 17 | 0.1 | 10.57 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
WR | Marquez Callaway | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 55 | 0.4 | 9.92 |
WR | Deonte Harris | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 47 | 0.25 | 7.67 |
WR | Ty Montgomery | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 0.1 | 2.47 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
TE | Adam Trautman | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 23 | 0.35 | 5.84 |
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Carolina Panthers
POS | NAME | COMP/ATT | PASS YDS | TDs | INTs | RUSH YDS | TDs | FPTS |
QB | Sam Darnold | 23/35 | 250 | 2.1 | 1.1 | 15 | 0.1 | 18 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
RB | Christian McCaffrey | 19 | 81 | 0.7 | 7 | 65 | 0.6 | 26.09 |
RB | Chuba Hubbard | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.29 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
WR | D.J. Moore | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 69 | 0.55 | 12.66 |
WR | Robby Anderson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 45 | 0.4 | 8.83 |
WR | Terrace Marshall Jr. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 26 | 0.35 | 6.04 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
TE | Dan Arnold | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 27 | 0.2 | 5.34 |
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Quarterback
New Orleans: Alright, who saw five touchdown passes coming from Winston in week one? Yeah, put your hand down. You’re lying. Winston looked spectacular against the Green Bay Packers defense, and he’s doing it without any notable WRs. Moving forward, we shouldn’t be expecting this ridiculous touchdown rate from Winston every week, but he’s absolutely moving towards a locked-in streaming option that could be moving towards an every-week starter. I’d love to wait another week before I confidently plug Winston into my starting lineup, but he should be able to get it done for fantasy again here this week against the Panthers’ defense. He can be viewed as a mid-range QB2. Side note, whoever Jameis’ agent needs to get on the phone with Lasik ASAP and get a major endorsement deal signed…
Carolina: Sam Darnold was able to get the job done for the Carolina Panthers in week one, but he didn’t necessarily excel from a fantasy standpoint. The offense continued to flow through CMC, and Darnold was simply asked to manage the game. Moving into week two, this Saints defense just completely shut down Rodgers and the Packers’ offense, so it’s probably best to look elsewhere for your QB option in week two.
Running Backs
New Orleans: Are we finally seeing the true workhorse RB, Alvin Kamara? While Kamara has been amazing for fantasy football in years past, he’s been doing it on the back of tremendous receiving volume versus attempts on the ground. Kamara saw 20 carries against the Packers in week one, which is the second-highest mark in his NFL career. While he only saw four targets, which isn’t what fantasy managers are used to seeing, it’s not concerning moving forward. The Saints simply didn’t need Kamara to be involved through the receiving game, and Winston only threw the ball 20 total times. Heading into week two, Kamara should be viewed as a steady and reliable high-end RB1 against the Panthers’ defense. Tony Jones Jr. was heavily involved in his first NFL regular-season action, and he didn’t hurt fantasy lineups where he was started. While he’ll take a clear backseat to Kamara every single week, this role that he’s filling is still very valuable for fantasy football. He should see 10+ touches every week, and he can be started as a low-end FLEX option, if necessary. However, he needs to be rostered in 100% of leagues because of his upside if something were to happen to Kamara.
Carolina: Welcome back, McCaffrey! We’ve missed you immensely! CMC got right back to business last week and totaled 30 touches in his first game action back from injury. He was stellar, and there’s very little to analyze here up against the Saints defense that just shut down Jones and the Packers rushing attack. McCaffrey’s the RB1 in fantasy rankings every single week that he’s healthy.
Wide Receivers
New Orleans: Marquez Callaway was someone that was hyped up coming into the NFL season, and everything was lining up for him to be a valuable fantasy option in this offense. And yet, while Winston threw five touchdown passes in week one, none of them were to Callaway. In fact, the young wideout only saw two targets in week one. He has the talent and opportunity to make an impact for fantasy football, but we simply don’t know if Winston’s going to lean on him heading into week two. Right now, Callaway probably belongs on your bench until we see Winston feature him. Otherwise, Winston appears set to distribute the ball pretty evenly across the receiving corps, which makes starting any of the other options a complete dart throw. Any of them could pop off for a big performance in this matchup, but we have no predictability with them just yet.
Carolina: DJ Moore got back to doing DJ Moore things in week one, and he looked incredible on the football field. He had eight targets on only 34 routes run, and he should continue to be the number one WR target in this offense moving forward. The Panthers might end up trailing big in this one too, which will mean more involvement for these receivers. With Marshon Lattimore out week-to-week for the Saints, Moore’s a solid mid-range WR2 play in week two. Robby Anderson certainly wasn’t featured as much in week one of the 2021 NFL season as he was in 2020, but he made his opportunity count by getting behind the defense for a long touchdown play. Anderson took a back seat to Marshall Jr. from a targets perspective, but he was still the starting WR ahead of Marshall and had 33 Receiving Routes Run to Marshall’s 23. Moving forward, we can’t be as confident in Anderson as we were last season, but the opportunity is still in front of him. He can be viewed as a WR3 option for fantasy lineups in week two. Marshall Jr. saw a 17% target share in week one, which is a good sign for his involvement in this offense moving forward. With that being said, he was unable to turn his opportunity into anything of note for fantasy purposes and finished with a 3-26-0 stat line. This offense is going to flow through CMC and Moore, which leaves Marshall vying with Anderson and Darnold for the leftovers. We’ll have to monitor this moving forward to see what the target share continues to look like, but Marshall’s not worth plugging into your starting lineups just yet. He should be added to your bench in the majority of leagues, but we can’t rely on him for consistent fantasy production just yet.
Tight Ends
New Orleans: Did you know that Adam Trautman actually led this Saints offense in targets in week one with six? While it didn’t lead to much fantasy production, it’s encouraging for fantasy managers that had Trautman on their sleepers list heading into the season. We still can’t trust Trautman just yet, but he’s worth monitoring on the waiver wire as we move into week two. Juwan Johnson is going to fill a very valuable role for this Saints offense, and he certainly made an impact in week one by reeling in two touchdowns. With that being said, he only saw three targets in this game, which doesn’t put him in the “trustworthy starter” conversation yet.
Carolina: Dan Arnold has an opportunity to step up in this Panthers offense, but based on what we saw last week, it’s unlikely to happen just yet. Arnold can be dropped to the waiver wire in most formats.
FantasyProjection Buster: Will Callaway become more involved for the Saints? Based on my projections, I believe that to be the case, but we could see Winston spread the ball out yet again.
Los Angeles Rams vs. Indianapolis Colts
Date/Time: Sunday September 19, 1:00pm ET
BettingPros Consensus Spread: Rams -4
BettingPros Consensus Over/Under: 47.5 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Rams 25.75, Colts 21.75
Los Angeles Rams
POS | NAME | COMP/ATT | PASS YDS | TDs | INTs | RUSH YDS | TDs | FPTS |
QB | Matthew Stafford | 20/29 | 246 | 2.7 | 0.7 | 7 | 0.15 | 21 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
RB | Darrell Henderson Jr. | 13 | 54 | 0.65 | 2 | 17 | 0.15 | 12.91 |
RB | Sony Michel | 6 | 25 | 0.2 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 4.91 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
WR | Cooper Kupp | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 81 | 0.85 | 15.96 |
WR | Robert Woods | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 45 | 0.75 | 11 |
WR | Van Jefferson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 25 | 0.3 | 5.34 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
TE | Tyler Higbee | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 51 | 0.55 | 10.35 |
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Indianapolis Colts
POS | NAME | COMP/ATT | PASS YDS | TDs | INTs | RUSH YDS | TDs | FPTS |
QB | Carson Wentz | 24/35 | 250 | 1.95 | 0.9 | 16 | 0.2 | 19 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
RB | Jonathan Taylor | 18 | 70 | 0.7 | 4 | 33 | 0.35 | 18.61 |
RB | Nyheim Hines | 8 | 32 | 0.25 | 5 | 40 | 0.3 | 13.09 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
WR | Michael Pittman Jr. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 46 | 0.35 | 8.75 |
WR | Zach Pascal | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 43 | 0.4 | 8.35 |
WR | Parris Campbell | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 27 | 0.15 | 4.78 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
TE | Jack Doyle | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 25 | 0.3 | 5.68 |
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Quarterback
Los Angeles: Rams fans, how are you feeling about the QB upgrade after one week?! Stafford looked unstoppable in week one against the Bears’ defense and he consistently took advantage of poor defensive coverages or breakdowns in communication for big plays. Last season, Jared Goff was consistently holding this offense back with his tendency to keep the ball near the line of scrimmage – as evidenced by his 6.7 ADOT from 2020 – and Stafford has blown the doors open for this offense and what it can do. Through one week, Stafford is already towards the top of the NFL in ADOT with 10.3, and he’s showing that he’s constantly looking for the big downfield play. That type of play worked last week against Indianapolis for Seattle, and you can better believe that Stafford’s going to try to replicate exactly what Russ did with Lockett here in this matchup. Moving forward, Stafford belongs in the top-12 of QB rankings every single week. Start him with confidence here.
Indianapolis: Carson Wentz certainly didn’t look to be 100% himself in week one after working his way back from a foot injury, but he still was able to provide fantasy value to several of the other options in this offense. With that being said, Wentz probably isn’t someone we need to consider for fantasy lineups just yet. He takes on the notoriously difficult Rams defense here in week two, and it’s unlikely that he cracks the top-20 at the position. I’d recommend looking elsewhere if you can.
Running Backs
Los Angeles: Yes, it was the first game for Sony Michel in a LA Rams uniform, but all the talk about Darrell Henderson being the featured option for the Rams sure seems to be true after what we saw on Sunday night. Henderson totaled 17 touches to Michel’s one, and he appears to be the main guy moving forward. Michel is going to be there for a depth option and nothing more, which is good news for those that grabbed Henderson at a massive discount this off-season. Heading into week two, Henderson has a tougher matchup up against the historically stout Colts run defense, but they did show some cracks last week as they allowed Chris Carson to rumble for 5.7 YPC. The Rams could focus on the passing attack again this week, which doesn’t leave Henderson with a ton of opportunity, but we know this offense is going to be in the red zone frequently, and Henderson’s going to be the goal-line option for them. He has an excellent chance of finding the end zone again here, and he can be viewed as a mid-range/low-end RB2.
Indianapolis: Jonathan Taylor didn’t exactly accomplish a ton on the ground last week against Seattle – only 3.3. YPC – but it doesn’t quite matter when he sees seven targets in the passing game. That was the highest total Taylor has seen in his short NFL career, and it appears as though Wentz is going to continue to target the RBs heavily in this offense. The Rams have been known as a tough matchup for opposing RBs, but they just watched David Montgomery, and the makeshift Bears offensive line rumble over them for 100+ yards rushing. With the Colts offensive line, Taylor should get back to averaging his usual YPC numbers, and the potential for five or more targets is absolutely still there in this matchup. Trust Taylor in your lineup as a top-10 option. Nyheim Hines had some question marks surrounding him coming into the season. There was absolutely the possibility that he was a valuable option for fantasy football as a change-of-pace option to JT, but Marlon Mack‘s presence on this depth chart made that situation a little bit murky. Mack was active on Sunday but was nowhere to be seen, and Hines logged an impressive nine carries on the ground to go with eight targets in the passing game. If Mack is going to remain on the sideline, Hines absolutely is worth looking at as a low-end RB3 in Full PPR formats. Especially if Wentz is going to target his RBs as heavily as he did in week one.
Wide Receivers
Los Angeles: So I guess Stafford has his guy in LA now, right? Cooper Kupp had himself a monstrous performance against the Bears in week one, and he looks to be Stafford’s number one target in this dynamic offense. Kupp saw a ridiculous 38.5% target share in this offense, and he didn’t even have to worry about Woods stealing away opportunity. Moving forward, Kupp should be valued as a high-end WR2 with massive upside each and every week. The Colts just surrendered an Average Depth of Target of 24 to Lockett in week one, and Kupp could easily see around the same mark here in week two. Robert Woods came through for fantasy managers with a late touchdown in the game against the Bears on Sunday night, but we have to at least be concerned when Woods only saw a 15% target share to Kupp’s 38%. This offense promises to put up 30+ points nearly every single game, so the scoring opportunities are absolutely going to be there for Woods, and he’s still going to remain heavily involved. However, we have to bump him down slightly in our rankings just due to the uncertainty right now. He can be viewed as a mid-range WR2 for week two. Van Jefferson came out with a massive play right out of the gates in week one, but his opportunity in this offense probably isn’t going to be as predictable as we would hope each week. He’s a fine dart throw in the FLEX spot in deeper leagues, but we can’t view him as anything more than that just yet.
Indianapolis: Everything aligned for Pittman Jr. to have a solid game in week one, but unfortunately for Pittman’s fantasy managers, the touchdowns went to Pascal. Now, Pittman gets to face a very stout Rams pass defense that will most likely have Jalen Ramsey key in on him. Pittman was in consideration for me as a WR3 in week one, but he’s simply just a low-end FLEX play this week that you’re hoping finds his way back into significant volume. Zach Pascal was able to find the end zone twice last week, but he now faces a tough Rams secondary that should be able to clamp down on this Colts passing attack. Pascal’s worth a speculative add in redraft leagues, but we shouldn’t be viewing him as anything more than a low-end FLEX option.
Tight Ends
Los Angeles: Welcome back to fantasy relevance, Tyler Higbee! After being canceled out by Gerald Everett for the majority of the 2020 season, Higbee got back to making an impact for fantasy rosters in week one. He was featured in this offense and subsequently ended up with the fourth-highest target share for any TE in the NFL from week one with a 23% market share. He’s a dynamic talent at the position, and LA was doing everything they could to simply get the ball in his hands. If you scooped up Higbee in the later rounds of your draft, you have to be encouraged with what you saw in week one. Moving forward, Higbee can be viewed as a mid-range TE1 with upside every single week.
Indianapolis: None of the Colts TEs should be considered for fantasy football for the time being.
FantasyProjection Buster: The Colts WR group is being projected for minimal impact, but if one of them finds the end zone, they’ll outscore my projections for them.
Buffalo Bills vs. Miami Dolphins
Date/Time: Sunday September 19, 1:00pm ET
BettingPros Consensus Spread: Bills -3.5
BettingPros Consensus Over/Under: 47.5 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Bills 25.5, Dolphins 22
Buffalo Bills
POS | NAME | COMP/ATT | PASS YDS | TDs | INTs | RUSH YDS | TDs | FPTS |
QB | Josh Allen | 26/41 | 268 | 2.5 | 0.65 | 25 | 0.8 | 27 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
RB | Devin Singletary | 11 | 52 | 0.2 | 2 | 14 | 0.2 | 10.13 |
RB | Matt Breida | 8 | 32 | 0.15 | 1 | 12 | 0.1 | 6.57 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
WR | Stefon Diggs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 62 | 0.7 | 13.71 |
WR | Emmanuel Sanders | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 55 | 0.4 | 9.96 |
WR | Gabriel Davis | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 51 | 0.5 | 9.84 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
TE | Dawson Knox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 21 | 0.3 | 5.01 |
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Miami Dolphins
POS | NAME | COMP/ATT | PASS YDS | TDs | INTs | RUSH YDS | TDs | FPTS |
QB | Tua Tagovailoa | 19/29 | 209 | 2.3 | 0.8 | 11 | 0.15 | 18 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
RB | Myles Gaskin | 13 | 53 | 0.4 | 4 | 31 | 0.25 | 14.2 |
RB | Salvon Ahmed | 3 | 8 | 0.1 | 2 | 10 | 0.15 | 4.04 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
WR | Jaylen Waddle | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 58 | 0.6 | 11.46 |
WR | DeVante Parker | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 52 | 0.5 | 9.94 |
WR | Preston Williams | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 17 | 0.2 | 3.6 |
POS | NAME | CARRIES | RUSH YDS | TDs | RECS | REC YDS | TDs | FPTS |
TE | Durham Smythe | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 15 | 0.2 | 3.59 |
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Quarterback
Buffalo: It was a rough outing for Josh Allen and the Bills passing game on Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Allen had a completion percentage below 60% and averaged only 5.3 Yards Per Attempt. Allen simply didn’t look like himself, and we’re hoping to see a different version of the star QB here in week two up against Miami. This will be an incredibly entertaining game to watch, and we could see Allen bounce back in a big way. In the two games Allen played against Miami last season, he threw for a combined 639 yards, seven touchdowns, and one interception. We shouldn’t have any hesitation plugging Allen back into our lineup as a top-5 option again in week two.
Miami: Last season, Tua was billed as a dink-and-dunk QB that most likely wouldn’t grow into the QB that fantasy managers had hoped he would become when he was drafted with a top-5 draft pick. However, the Chan Gailey offense certainly didn’t help Tua’s development, and his top receivers were in and out of the lineup with injuries all year. Tua had a tough matchup against New England in week one, but he showed a lot to be excited about from a fantasy perspective. Did you know that Tua had the 5th-highest ADOT in week one for QBs with a minimum of 20 pass attempts with 10.1 yards? He was looking to push the ball deep downfield, which is a huge improvement over what we saw from him in his rookie season. Tua will have his moments as a streaming QB this year if he continues to show this level of aggressiveness, but this matchup against Buffalo is one to avoid him in 1QB formats. Tua can be viewed as a low-end QB2.
Running Backs
Buffalo: Zack Moss was a surprisingly late inactive for the Bills, and it appears that Devin Singletary may have taken the full reigns of this starting job. With that being said, we need to temper our expectations for Singletary from a fantasy perspective. While he was great on the ground against Pittsburgh – 72 yards rushing and 6.5 YPC – there’s very little upside to starting him in your lineups. At his size, he’s unlikely to see 20+ carries in a game, and we know the offense doesn’t want to operate that way anyway, plus he’s going to lose out on goal-line opportunities to Allen. Singletary can be incredibly efficient and still fall outside of the top-24 RBs on the week because of his lack of volume and scoring upside. Up against Miami, it’s best to view Singletary as a high-end RB3 that has very little upside.
Miami: All the worry about Malcolm Brown taking over this backfield in the pre-season was for nothing! Gaskin came out here and proved that he’s the RB1 in this backfield against New England. While it was a tough matchup, the snap counts and usage are encouraging signs for Gaskin moving forward. He received 29 total snaps in week one compared to Brown’s 16 and Salvon Ahmed’s 11. Additionally, Gaskin received an 18.5% target share, which is where the majority of his fantasy value was going to come anyway. There are better days ahead for the young RB, and he should still see enough work this week to be viewed as a low-end RB2 in another tough matchup. Otherwise, none of the other Dolphins RBs should be considered for fantasy football.
Wide Receivers
Buffalo: With the Bills’ offense looking a little out of sorts on Sunday, Stefon Diggs wasn’t his usual productive self. He saw plenty of targets – 14 total in week one – but, his efficiency was well below what it usually is and it led to a 9-69-0 stat line. Diggs has a tough matchup here against the Miami secondary that should make life difficult for him yet again, but the volume Diggs is going to see is among the best in the NFL at the WR position. Start him with confidence as a low-end WR1. Gabriel Davis was able to find the end zone in week one against the Pittsburgh Steelers defense, but he was the clear WR4 on this roster from a target share perspective. Moving forward, Davis is most likely going to fall into the FLEX conversation that will present some boom potential from time to time, but until we see him take over Sanders or Beasley from a snap share perspective, he can’t be viewed as more than that. Emmanuel Sanders came into this offense this off-season and has cemented himself as the WR3. He had 52 Receiving Routes Run in week one compared to Davis’ 34 and ended up with a healthy eight targets. While he didn’t do anything spectacular from a fantasy perspective, he’s going to have enough opportunity in one of the league’s best offenses to be viewed as a FLEX option most weeks. Up against Miami, he can be viewed as such. Cole Beasley is not exactly a player that fantasy managers are out there clamoring to add to their lineups, but he’s going to produce whenever he’s healthy and on the field. Beasley ended up with a 25.5% target share right out of the gates and he was a solid FLEX play in Full PPR formats. He’s not the sexiest option for fantasy lineups, but if you’re looking for a safe option for your lineups, Beasley’s a solid play.
Miami: Devante Parker came out and received more of a target share in this offense than I anticipated in week one! Tua was looking his way frequently against New England and looking to push the ball downfield too. There had been mixed emotions about Parker from a fantasy perspective this entire off-season, but he came through for fantasy managers that took the shot on him. Parker should draw coverage from Tre White in this game, who just held Chase Claypool in check for the majority of last week, but the target totals could be enough to give him low-end FLEX appeal. Jaylen Waddle came out and reminded everyone why he was the 6th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. He found the end zone in his first NFL game and had every element of his skillset on display against the Patriots. He was being used creatively in this offense and was used consistently on pre-snap motions to create free releases, which are only going to help his stats as he gets more and more acclimated to the NFL. Moving forward, the sky is the limit for Waddle and what he can be for fantasy football. It’s a tough matchup against the Bills secondary, but Waddle’s going to have every opportunity to simply get the ball into his hands and let him create. He can be viewed as a WR3 this week. Will Fuller makes his return to the NFL stage after missing last week’s game due to suspension and he should only help open up this offense for everyone else with his game-changing speed. While we can’t trust Fuller in our starting lineups just yet because we don’t know exactly what his role is going to look like and how he’ll mesh with Tua, he’s worth watching closely in this game. If he puts together even a decent performance, he’ll be in the FLEX consideration for our lineups next week. Update: Fuller is out for this game due to personal reasons and Brian Flores declined to comment on whether or not Fuller would return to the team this season. This is a situation to monitor moving forward, but Fuller needs to be out of your starting lineups. This moves Waddle up to a high-end WR3 and Parker into the mid-tier FLEX conversation.
Tight Ends
Buffalo: Did you know that Dawson Knox ran more receiving routes than Logan Thomas this past week? He had 25 to Thomas’ 24 and he actually put up a respectable 4-41-0, which will work for fantasy football lineups. We can’t trust the athletic TE just yet, but he’s someone worth watching on your waiver wire in case he continues to be a key piece of this offense.
Miami: Mike Gesicki only played 21 total snaps last week, while Hunter Long played 18 and Durham Smythe played 38. At this point, Gesicki might be borderline droppable in your typical redraft leagues. If he’s not going to see the majority of the snaps at TE, he’s not worth holding onto while other players are starting to emerge at the position.
FantasyProjection Buster: What will we see from this offense with Fuller on the field? If Tua leans heavily on him, we could see the target share for everyone else dramatically alter.