The Game Plan: Week 3 Edition (2021 Fantasy Football)

Cincinnati Bengals vs Pittsburgh Steelers

Date/Time: Sunday September 26, 1:00pm ET
BettingPros Consensus Spread: Steelers -4.5
BettingPros Consensus Over/Under: 44 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Steelers 24.25, Bengals 19.75

Cincinnati Bengals

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Pittsburgh Steelers

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Quarterback

Cincinnati: The Bears’ defense wreaked havoc on the Bengals’ offensive line in week two and Joe Burrow struggled because of it. At one point in the game, he threw three consecutive interceptions and the Bears seemed to be in route to a major victory. However, Burrow kept his cool and brought the Bengals back to keep the game tight at the end. Burrow being sacked four times is concerning though and it might not be much better in week three against the Steelers’ defense. While TJ Watt is unlikely to play in this matchup, Pittsburgh can still consistently generate pressure on the QB and Burrow might have a tough time getting much going this week. He can be viewed as a mid-range/low-end QB2.

Pittsburgh: At the time of writing, it’s unclear whether or not Big Ben is actually going to play in this upcoming matchup. He’s reportedly dealing with a pectoral issue and could be a game-time decision when it’s all said and done. Even if he does play, it’s unlikely that he’ll be operating at full strength. Even when he has been at 100% though, Ben has not looked like himself and this offense is struggling because of it. The offensive line is certainly partly to blame in this situation, but Ben needs to do more to keep this offense moving and it’s simply not happening. Until we see Ben start to turn things around, he shouldn’t be viewed as anything more than a low-end QB2. This is all assuming that he does play, of course, so check back here for updates as we progress throughout the week and get more clarity on the situation.

Running Backs

Cincinnati: Through two games, Mixon is averaging 24.5 carries, 98 rushing yards, and .5 rushing touchdowns. His workload is rivaling the top-tier fantasy assets and he’s been an absolute steal for fantasy managers through the first couple of weeks based on where they drafted him. He had a tough matchup on the ground in week two against the Bears’ defense, but he still provided a high floor based on his workload. He will now get to take on the Steelers defense that has yet to allow a rushing touchdown on the season and is only allowing an average of 84.5 rushing yards per game. The upside for Mixon might not be there this week, but we know he’s going to get one of the top carry shares across the entire league, which makes him a very reliable fantasy asset. He can be viewed as a low-end RB1 for week three.

Pittsburgh: Yes, Najee Harris has been a bit of a disappointment for fantasy managers that spent up on the talented rookie RB. However, this situation is not entirely his fault here. The offensive line for Pittsburgh has been a big problem throughout the first two weeks of the season and they’re struggling to move people off the ball in the run game. To illustrate this point, Harris has a total of 83 rushing yards on the season and only 44 of those yards have come before contact (1.7 YBCON/ATT). That means that he’s consistently being met behind at or near the line of scrimmage and is having to fight for additional yardage on his own. Now, Harris gets to take on the Cincinnati Bengals defensive front that has limited Dalvin Cook and David Montgomery to just 95 total rushing yards through two weeks. Harris should provide a safe floor this week – especially with his involvement in the receiving game – but there appears to be very little upside for him with the current state of this offense in this matchup. He can be viewed as a high-end/mid-range RB2.

Wide Receivers

Cincinnati: The Bengals’ offense sputtered for a good portion of Sunday’s contest, but Ja’Marr Chase was able to continue to provide solid fantasy value again in week two. Chase has been fantastic through his first two NFL games and he’s beginning to enter into the weekly WR2 conversation. He’s averaging 2.54 Yards Per Route Run, which is more than DeAndre Hopkins, Amari Cooper, DK Metcalf, and many others. He’s producing with his opportunity and there’s very little reason to be concerned about him moving forward. Pittsburgh has been shutting opponents down on the ground, but they’ve been allowing an average of 313.5 passing yards per game so far. There should be enough volume there for Chase to be viewed as a reliable low-end WR2. Tee Higgins just continues to produce, no matter what. He comes with one of the safest floors in all of fantasy football and he’s presenting plenty of upside lately too. Higgins has now seen a 26% team target share through two games and he’s found the end zone in each of those contests. Moving forward, there’s little reason to question the young wideout from a fantasy perspective. He belongs in your lineup every single week as a mid-range/low-end WR2 and you should feel extremely comfortable with that. Tyler Boyd had a nice bounce-back performance in week two after his disappointing outing in week one, but it still didn’t lead to anything outstanding for fantasy football. He took advantage of a favorable CB matchup in the Bears secondary and Burrow looked his way for nine targets last week. Boyd should continue to provide at least a safe floor each week for fantasy managers, but there’s very little upside with Burrow looking Chase and Higgins’ way in the red zone. Boyd can be viewed as a high-end FLEX play in Full PPR formats.

Pittsburgh: At the time of writing, it’s unclear whether or not Diontae Johnson is going to be able to play in this matchup. Please check back throughout the week as more information becomes available. Chase Claypool saw his target share increase in week two, but he was only able to reel in three of his eight targets. This offense looks completely dysfunctional this season and Big Ben is struggling as a passer. If Ben plays this week, Claypool can be viewed as a mid-range WR3 with upside. If Ben doesn’t play though, Claypool might be best left on your bench or viewed as a low-end FLEX option at best. JuJu Smith-Schuster was able to find the end zone on a creative run play near the goal-line in week two, but his usage has been purely mediocre outside of that. He’s seeing an ADOT of just 4.6 yards on the entire season and he’s certainly not the type of player that’s going to just rack up yards after the catch consistently. He’ll need to find the end zone to crack the top-36 WRs and that’s just not something I’m comfortable betting on in this matchup. Smith-Schuster is a high-end FLEX play in my rankings.

Tight Ends

Cincinnati: None of the Bengals TEs should be considered for fantasy football.

Pittsburgh: Now through two weeks, Pat Freiermuth has begun to take over this TE1 role in Pittsburgh. He’s logged 62 snaps to Eric Ebron‘s 51 and has 60 receiving yards to Ebron’s 19. With that being said, it’s still not enough production just yet to comfortably rely on Freiermuth in our starting lineups. He’s worth scooping up in deeper formats if he’s on your waiver wire due to where this situation is trending, but we can’t consider him a starting option yet.

FantasyProjection Buster: If Juju finds the end zone, he’ll finish higher than what I’ve projected him for here.

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Baltimore Ravens vs Detroit Lions

Date/Time: Sunday September 26, 1:00pm ET
BettingPros Consensus Spread: Ravens -9
BettingPros Consensus Over/Under: 49.5 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Ravens 29.25, Lions 20.25

Baltimore Ravens

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Detroit Lions

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Quarterback

Baltimore: Man, Lamar Jackson is fun to watch, isn’t he? Whatever your opinion is of him as a passer – and I think we can all agree that there’s room for improvement – he is dynamic and electric when the ball is in his hands. Very few players in the NFL, let alone at the QB position, have the ability to make my jaw drop with what they do on the field as a runner. While Jackson’s passing numbers so far this season leave a lot to be desired, he’s absolutely winning fantasy managers weeks with what he’s doing so far with his legs. Jackson is up to 193 rushing yards on the season already through two weeks. This is enough to put him third in the entire NFL in this category only behind players like Derrick Henry (240) and Joe Mixon (196), and ahead of Dalvin Cook (191). Even if Jackson’s passing touchdown efficiency doesn’t tick up in future weeks, which it does stand a very good chance of doing as more of his receiving corps get back healthy, he’s still providing fantasy managers with a ridiculous floor with his rushing ability. Against the Detroit Lions, Jackson has overall QB1 upside yet again this week.

Detroit: Don’t look now, but Jared Goff is currently the QB8 in fantasy football. Obviously, a lot of this production was aided by the massive comeback performance in week one against San Francisco, but Goff’s getting the job done for fantasy in this offense. With that being said, we’ve seen high highs for Goff before, only to see very low lows not far off after. His production will start to level out to where it should be as a low-end QB2, but he’s still going to have value in that role for Superflex rosters. However, this is not the week to see if he can finish where his current QB ranking is at. The Ravens defense should apply pressure to Goff all game long and this Lions offense might struggle to move the ball in this matchup. Goff can be viewed as a low-end QB2/high-end QB3 this week.

Running Backs

Baltimore: Can we all acknowledge that Ty’Son Williams looks great? It’s hard to watch Williams on tape and not wonder why he was fourth on this depth chart to begin the season. Through two weeks, Williams is averaging a ridiculous 6.5 YPC and is posting nearly identical numbers on the ground to Nick Chubb. While Chubb’s been able to find the end zone three times to Williams’ one, Williams has been absolutely superb with his opportunity and he’s becoming a reliable fantasy asset. Yes, we’d love to see him be used more around the goal-line instead of Murray, but he can be comfortably relied upon at this point as an RB2 for your fantasy lineups. Against the Detroit Lions defense that’s allowing the most fantasy points per game to the RB position with 32.9, Williams is a smash start as a high-end RB2. Latavius Murray has settled in nicely to his new home in Baltimore pretty quickly and he’s making an impact for this roster as a complimentary piece to Ty’Son. He has found the end zone in back-to-back weeks, but his efficiency metrics aren’t where they need to be yet with his typical volume for him to move into the FLEX conversation. In order for Murray to not hurt your starting lineup, he needs to find the end zone and that’s not something that I’m comfortable rolling with on my fantasy rosters. Murray’s still just a bench stash for me moving forward, although he could be pushed into the FLEX this week if you’re in a pinch simply because of the matchup. If there’s ever going to be a matchup that you feel comfortable with Murray being projected to find the end zone, it’s this one.

Detroit: D’Andre Swift came back down to earth a little bit in week two, but was still able to provide fantasy managers with a solid floor. He’s now leading the league in targets at the RB position with 16 and is ahead of players like CMC, James White, Mike Davis, etc. Even if the Lions aren’t going to be able to get much done on the ground each week, which is the most likely outcome in this matchup against Baltimore, Swift still brings a safe floor because of his work in the receiving game. Swift can be viewed as a low-end RB2 this week that does present some upside. Jamaal Williams looked like he was on his way to being a key part of the Lions’ offense after week one, but his usage fell off a cliff in week two. Williams only amassed 10 total touches against his former team and he failed to live up to the lofty expectations fantasy managers had going into that matchup. If Williams’ usage is going to be this unpredictable, he’s going to be a difficult fantasy asset to manage. We simply won’t know what weeks are times that he’s going to explode for a big performance or if he’s going to disappear. Moving forward, Williams needs to be viewed as a mid-range RB3 every single week where we can live with the potential range of outcomes.

Wide Receivers

Baltimore: Another game, another week where Marquise Brown found the end zone. Through two weeks, Brown is currently averaging 6-91-1 and he’s currently on pace for over 1,500 yards and 17  touchdowns! Despite the questionable tag going into Sunday night, Brown showed up big and provided Jackson with a reliable receiving option when he so desperately needed one. At this point, we have to buy into what Brown is doing on the field in Baltimore and put him in the FLEX conversation each week. Against a Detroit secondary that has lost Jeffrey Okudah and Ifeatu Melifonwu to significant injuries, Brown could be in line for another monstrous performance. Fire him up as a low-end WR3/high-end FLEX play. Sammy Watkins continues to do just enough in this Baltimore offense to keep him in the weekly redraft conversation, but we’ve played this game with him multiple times before. We know the risks that come with putting Watkins into our starting lineups at this point, which makes him an unappealing fantasy asset. If you do end up putting him into your FLEX spot in your starting lineup this week, there’s the potential that he explodes in a fantastic matchup. Or there’s also a very strong possibility that he disappears, which he’s done before in countless fantasy lineups. Buyer beware!

Detroit: Quintez Cephus exploded for a big performance in week two with Tyrell Williams out of the lineup and he very nearly came down with the catch of the year in week two, but it wasn’t meant to be. Cephus has always had the talent to make an impact for fantasy football, but he has had to fight his way back up the Lions’ depth chart after his NFL Draft stock took a hit from a poor 40-yard dash performance. There’s an opportunity for someone else in this Lions offense to take a step forward and be a weekly contributor for fantasy lineups. If Williams is back this week, it could mean that Cephus doesn’t see enough opportunity to return FLEX value. However, if Williams is out again for this matchup, Cephus is a sneaky FLEX play that does present some upside due to his talent and the potential target share.

Tight Ends

Baltimore: Fantasy managers haven’t exactly gotten what they hoped for when they drafted Mark Andrews early on in their drafts as he’s now the TE22 on the season through two weeks. With all the injuries Baltimore experienced during training camp, it was a foregone conclusion that Andrews was walking into a massive target share in this offense to start the season. However, Andrews has only seen an 18.2% target share through the first two games and he’s not exactly doing much with his opportunity. He’s only averaging four receptions, 38.5 receiving yards, and zero touchdowns per game and that’s not going to be enough to keep him in the top-tier of fantasy options. If Andrews doesn’t produce in this matchup against the Detroit Lions, we could be barreling towards fantasy managers around the globe panicking in the streets.

Detroit: Through the first two weeks of the season, TJ Hockenson has a whopping 21.5% team target share for the Lions. This trails only Darren Waller and Travis Kelce at the TE position and it’s translating to production on the field. Hockenson is additionally second in the NFL at the TE position in Air Yards with 82 and trails only Kelce in Yards After the Catch with 81. No matter what stat you look at, Hockenson is dominating at every level of the field and he’s proven me wrong this season. I was skeptical that he could find top-tier fantasy success in this offense, but he’s absolutely crushing it this season and is very close to working his way into the top-3 TE conversation and bumping out George Kittle. And he now gets a matchup against the team that is allowing the most fantasy points to opposing TEs this season. He can be viewed as a top-3 option this week.

FantasyProjection Buster: Will Jamaal Williams get back to being highly involved as a receiver? If so, he’ll reach what I’ve projected him for here. Otherwise, he’ll fall well short if he doesn’t see the target share that he should see in this offense.

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New York Jets vs Denver Broncos

Date/Time: Sunday September 26, 4:05pm ET
BettingPros Consensus Spread: Broncos -10.5
BettingPros Consensus Over/Under: 41.5 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Broncos 26, Jets 15.5

New York Jets

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Denver Broncos

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Quarterback

New York: In my write-up last week for Zach Wilson, I forecasted that it was going to be a rough outing for the rookie QB against Bill Belichick and the Patriots defense. However, I did not anticipate that abysmal of an outing. Wilson threw four interceptions on the day and ended the game with a Passer Rating of 37. For context, Davis Mills (who did not look great in relief of Tyrod) had a Passer Rating of 58.1. We knew Wilson was a bit of a project coming out of BYU and that it was going to take some time for him to acclimate to the speed of the NFL game, but he’s now completely off the redraft radar with his performances through two weeks. Until we see it start to turn around, Wilson’s a low-end QB3.

Denver: Teddy Bridgewater was squarely in the streaming QB conversation last week against Jacksonville and he’s right back there this week against the New York Jets. Bridgewater came through for fantasy managers in week two with a solid fantasy day of 328 passing yards and two touchdowns with zero interceptions. Those are exactly the type of stats that you’re looking for from a streaming option and he delivered in a plus matchup. Moving ahead to week three, Bridgewater has another favorable matchup against a Jets defense that is going to struggle to contain the receiving weapons that Denver has at their disposal. If you’re looking for a streaming option in week three at the QB position and Bridgewater is still available on your waiver wire, he’s towards the top of my list for viable fill-ins.

Running Backs

New York: It appears as though the Jets have moved on from Tevin Coleman already, which honestly doesn’t surprise me all that much. At this point of his career, we know that Coleman is simply not going to cut it as a starting RB and it’s the right move for the Jets to make. All throughout the off-season, I had talked about Michael Carter as being a perfect RB3 or RB4 on your roster because of his talent. I had to adjust that once Ty Johnson came into the picture, but the sentiment remained. Eventually, the Jets were going to bench Coleman (or he was going to get injured) and Carter would be able to come in and showcase his talent as both a runner and a receiver. This has happened sooner than I anticipated though and Carter stepped in in week two and made n impact for fantasy football. He carried the ball 11 times and averaged 5.4 YPC against a tough defense. Additionally, he also saw three targets and was able to reel in two of them for 29 yards. It’s not a dominant performance by any means, and he still has Johnson in this backfield to worry about stealing touches, but this is a very encouraging sign for fantasy managers that drafted Carter and held onto him on your bench. He’s showing that he has the talent to demand more of a workload and the Jets coaching staff might need to feature him more to take the pressure off of their young QB. If Carter is somehow still on your waiver wire, he deserves to be added and stashed on your bench. He’s not in the top-30 of my RB rankings just yet, but he’s well on his way.

Denver: This Denver Broncos offense could absolutely lead to a top-15 fantasy RB if one of them were to receive the majority of the carries. However, Javonte Williams and Gordon are entrenched in an absolute 50/50 time split. Williams saw 14 opportunities to Gordon’s 15 last week and he finished with 74 total yards as compared to Gordon’s 69 total yards. As of right now, there’s no way we can trust either one of these players in our starting lineups as reliable contributors for week three. While they might see enough work to return RB3 value, there’s no telling which option is going to find the end zone and push his way into the top-20. Williams can be viewed as a high-end RB3/FLEX play at best. Melvin Gordon is now averaging 5.5 YPC on the season, but that number is inflated by a 70-yard run that he had in week one. With Gordon being entrenched in a 50/50 split with Williams in this backfield, it’s unlikely that we can ever comfortably rely on Gordon as a starting option this season. He’ll have his games where he finishes as a top-15 RB option, but it’s going to be nearly impossible to predict when those are coming. For the time being, Gordon should be viewed as a mid-range RB3 that will need to find the end zone to push his way into the top-20.

Wide Receivers

New York: Corey Davis looked like he was well on his way to being a fantasy draft steal after week one’s performance and then the offense imploded in week two against New England. Davis hurt fantasy managers last week and it’s going to be hard to erase that sting he left after putting up two fantasy points in your starting lineup, but the offense should rebound enough this upcoming week to view Davis as a safe option. He has a tough matchup against the Denver Broncos secondary that’s allowing only 18.3 fantasy points per game to opposing WRs so far this season, but the Jets coaching staff should be intentional about getting the ball in Davis’ hands and helping him take pressure off of Wilson. He can be viewed as a mid-range/low-end WR3. Elijah Moore hasn’t produced exactly the way that fantasy managers were hoping for after they added him in the later rounds of drafts, but there’s a lot of encouraging signs for the rookie wideout and his potential fantasy value. For starters, Moore leads the Jets in snaps at the WR position. He appears to have locked up the starting outside role in this offense over Keelan Cole and he’s currently one spot behind Robby Anderson and tied with AJ Green for Receiving Routes Run this season. Additionally, we saw Moore see a 24.2% target share in week two against the Patriots. He’s not a trustworthy FLEX play just yet due to the matchup against the Broncos secondary this week, but we’re starting to trend in the right direction. If Moore’s available on your waiver wire, it’s worth adding him to see where this continues to go, but we shouldn’t be looking to start him just quite yet. Braxton Berrios is quietly putting together a very solid season so far and no one seems to be noticing. With Jamison Crowder out of the lineup, Berrios is commanding a 26.5% target share on the season and it was as high as 39.3% in week two against the Patriots. He’s averaging six receptions for 62 yards per game so far and this will certainly work as a FLEX option in Full PPR formats. It’s unclear as to whether or not he’ll maintain this role if Crowder is 100% healthy, but all signs indicated last week that Crowder was healthy and ready to go if called upon. Berrios might have just won this job outright and he could work his way into a reliable FLEX play if his target share in this offense continues to be as high as what it has been. It’s not worth starting Berrios in this matchup, but if you’re in a deeper league and you need some help at WR, Berrios is certainly available in your league. He’s worth picking up in that instance.

Denver: After putting up a dud of a fantasy performance in week one, Courtland Sutton broke back onto the scene with 159 receiving yards in week two on a whopping 12 targets. With Jerry Jeudy out of the lineup, Sutton was able to take advantage of the opportunity and he showcased his top-tier talent play after play. Sutton had an absurd 5.13 Yards Per Route Run in week two and saw a ridiculous 136 Air Yards to go with a 35.3% target share. While he might have done this on your bench due to the unknowns after his week one performance, Sutton belongs back in your starting lineup this week against the Jets. Sutton is expected to draw coverage from Brandin Echols this week, who is being targeted on 15% of his routes covered and is no match for someone of Sutton’s talent level. Sutton can be viewed as a low-end WR2 this week. Tim Patrick did what Tim Patrick does in week two. He came in, produced with his opportunity, and helped fantasy managers. While it wasn’t a high yardage output, he did find the end zone yet again as a receiver and he has an excellent chance of doing that again here this week. Bridgewater should have a solid game passing this week and Patrick is going to be the clear WR2 in this offense that should see plenty of opportunity. He’s still only rostered in 23% of Yahoo leagues, which simply does not make sense. Go pick him up and plug him into your starting lineups this week as a high-end FLEX option.

Tight Ends

New York: None of the Jets TEs are worth considering for fantasy football this week.

Denver: It wasn’t a high-yardage total kind of day for Fant in week two, but he was able to save his fantasy day by finding the end zone. With Jeudy out of the lineup, Fant is stepping up as a reliable receiving option over the middle of the field for Bridgewater and it’s translating to fantasy success. Against the Jets defense, Bridgewater should have a very solid performance and Fant’s going to be at the center of it. He can be viewed as a low-end TE1 again this week.

FantasyProjection Buster: The entire Jets offense has the potential to sputter again in this one.

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Miami Dolphins vs Las Vegas Raiders

Date/Time: Sunday September 26, 4:05pm ET
BettingPros Consensus Spread: Raiders -3.5
BettingPros Consensus Over/Under: 45.5 points
Implied Vegas point totals: Raiders 24.5, Dolphins 21

Miami Dolphins

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Las Vegas Raiders

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Quarterback

Miami: Jacoby Brissett is going to step in as the starting QB here in relief of Tua Tagovailoa. Brissett has had his moments of fantasy football relevancy in the past, but with the current state of the Dolphins offensive line, it’s probably best to view him as nothing more than a low-end QB2 in Superflex formats. For context, Brissett faced defensive pressure 28 times last week and he only had 40 total pass attempts. It’s probably best to look elsewhere if you can.

Las Vegas: Don’t look now, but Derek Carr has over 800 passing yards on the season through two games. If he keeps up his current pace, he’ll finish with 6,944 passing yards on the season. While we know that’s not going to happen, it illustrates that Carr’s performing incredibly well and he’s becoming a reliable fantasy asset. He’s looking for the deep shots downfield and is looking like a very different QB than what we have seen in previous years, which means that we need to adjust how we view him for fantasy purposes. Looking ahead to week three though, the Miami Dolphins have been able to keep Mac Jones and Josh Allen in check through the first two games, so we shouldn’t expect crazy things from Carr in this one. However, if the passing volume is going to be as high as it’s been through the first two weeks (46.5 pass attempts/game), he should provide a safe floor for fantasy managers. While he’s reportedly a little banged up, he can be viewed as a mid-range QB2 in week three.

Running Backs

Miami: Myles Gaskin certainly hasn’t been as productive as fantasy managers would like through two games, but he’s still providing a safe floor week after week with his receiving workload. He has run 40 Receiving Routes out of the backfield in the first two games, which is tied with David Montgomery and Joe Mixon for the 18th-most at the RB position. Until we see his workload on the ground increase, we’re probably not going to talk about Gaskin as a top-20 RB. However, he’s still in the low-end RB2 conversation due to his high floor.

Las Vegas: With Josh Jacobs listed as “very questionable” by Jon Gruden for this upcoming matchup, it seems like we’re going to see the duo of Kenyan Drake and Barber out there again for the Raiders. Drake certainly has not been efficient on the ground this year so far and that’s evidenced by his 1.5 YPC on 13 rush attempts. However, he’s at least providing a safe floor for fantasy managers with his involvement in the receiving game. He now has 10 receptions for 105 yards on the season and he has some value in Full PPR formats because of it. With that being said, he’s still not worth viewing as anything more than a mid-range RB3 in that format. There are other options you can turn to that carry more upside than Drake in this offense. Peyton Barber stepped into the Jacobs role in week two and proceeded to do what Barber does, which is average less than 3.0 YPC. Barber has been a touchdown-dependent fantasy asset throughout his entire NFL career and he comes with about as low of a floor as any “starter” in the league. Barber should see north of 12 carries again this week, but there’s very little upside to playing him. He can be viewed as a high-end RB4 this week.

Wide Receivers

Miami: Jaylen Waddle has gobbled up targets in this Dolphins’ offense, but he has a significant QB downgrade this week with Brissett taking over for Tua. While Waddle can take any pass to the house with his speed and playmaking ability, it’s hard to see how he has much opportunity to create in this one with the current state of the offense. Waddle moves down a tier into the FLEX conversation where you can live with the potential range of outcomes. Otherwise, DeVante Parker has seen plenty of targets in this offense through the first two weeks, but they have yet to turn into much from a fantasy football perspective. Parker can be viewed as a low-end FLEX play. Will Fuller appears to have returned to the team and is trending towards playing this week, but it’s best to leave him on your bench currently with the unknowns at QB.

Las Vegas: With Carr playing lights out through the first two weeks, we’re finally able to talk about the Vegas WRs as fantasy-relevant options. Bryan Edwards has shown that he’s worthy of a bigger role in an offense than what we saw out of him in his rookie season and he’s making an impact on the field. Edwards now has more Air Yards (92) this season than players like Adam Thielen, Mike Evans, Justin Jefferson, and Calvin Ridley just to name a few. Carr is looking to push the ball downfield and Edwards is coming up with some big plays as a result. While he could’ve had a much bigger performance in week one with a touchdown that got called back, he’s still providing a safe floor week after week. With that being said, this matchup up against the Miami Dolphins secondary isn’t a great one on paper. They’re only allowing 19.9 fantasy points per game to opposing WRs and Carr might not be 100% himself this week, which makes playing Edwards a risky move. He’s probably best left on your bench, but if you’re in a pinch he can be started as a low-end FLEX option. Henry Ruggs is finally starting to break out and showcase the playmaking ability that made him worthy of the No. 12 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Ruggs is averaging 22.6 YPR on the season and a healthy 2.45 Yards Per Route Run. For context, CeeDee Lamb is sitting at 2.47 YPRR and Terry McLaurin is at 2.22 YPRR. He’s making the most of his increased opportunity in this offense that’s suddenly very high-powered and Carr is leaning on him for his big-play ability. If Ruggs can keep up his absurd 8.0 Yards After Catch/Reception mark, he’s consistently going to be in the FLEX conversation due to his upside. In a matchup against the Dolphins, it’s probably best to downgrade Ruggs slightly, but he’s still a solid high-end FLEX play.

Tight Ends

Miami: Mike Gesicki was back to being involved again in the offense in week two as he ran 37 Receiving Routes compared to his 17 in week one. While he did see a 14.3% target share last week against Buffalo, it’s probably best to wait another week and see what happens before we trust Gesicki back in our starting lineups. He can be viewed as a mid-range TE2 this week.

Las Vegas: It’s hard to ask for more from Darren Waller than what we’ve gotten through the first two games. Waller has seen 112 Air Yards, he has a 28.6% target share, and he’s the TE4 in all of fantasy football right now. While Miami is only allowing 7.8 fantasy points per game to opposing TEs so far, they’ve faced the Jets and Bills who don’t have anyone close to Waller’s talent level on their respective rosters. Start Waller with full confidence again in week three.

FantasyProjection Buster: What is this offense going to look like under Brissett? It’s a bit of a mystery right now and there’s the potential that the Dolphins struggle to put points up on the board. If that’s the case, all these options are going to struggle to reach what I’ve projected them with here.