Below, check out my fantasy-centered recaps of key players from this week’s contests. For instance, did a player come back to earth after an aberrant breakout, or were they simply affected by something like game flow?
Chiefs 40, Jaguars 26
Tyreek Hill injured his clavicle early in in Week 1 and will miss time. At this moment, the Chiefs are trying to figure out how much time he will miss, but there is a real possibility that he might end up on injured reserve, which would keep him out eight weeks. Mecole Hardman saw the snaps Hill would have had, so he’s next up in line even though he didn’t get much work against Jacksonville. That should change moving forward while Hill is out.
Damien Williams led the Chiefs’ backfield in snaps with 45 to LeSean McCoy’s 20, but McCoy did see 10 rushing attempts and converted them into 81 rushing yards while Williams had 13 for 21 yards and a goal-line touchdown. But Williams did catch all six of his targets for 39 yards while McCoy had one target that he caught for 12 yards. McCoy did look like the better runner, but it look like Andy Reid trusts Williams more as a blocker who knows the team’s offense. That may not last though, and McCoy is a good pass catcher, so as soon as he picks up the blocking schemes, I believe he’ll start getting more and more work.
Sammy Watkins went OFF with Tyreek Hill out, but he was doing damage early on with Hill on the field as well. And then, after Hill left, Watkins saw more of stud corner Jalen Ramsey, but he still ended the day 9-of-11 for 198 yards and three touchdowns. Hill is now going to be out for at least a little while, and that should push Watkins’ fantasy value sky high. Travis Kelce will see more work moving forward, which will keep Watkins from blowing up every game, but he’s in a great spot.
Patrick Mahomes had a much better game this season against the Jaguars than he did last year, as he completed 24-of-32 passes for 378 yards and three touchdowns. The Jaguars lost a couple key defensive players, but they should still be a solid defense, yet Mahomes went into their house and whupped their tails. There is no need to ever question starting him as long as he’s healthy.
Darwin Thompson is an easy drop at this point, as he caught one pass for three yards on his one snap.
Nick Foles broke his collarbone after making a gorgeous touchdown pass to D.J. Chark while getting crunched. That brought in Gardner Mishnew. Mishnew, who didn’t look like much in preseason, ended up playing very well, completing 22-of-25 passes for 275 yards and two touchdowns. He looked good enough to add him quickly in 2QB leagues, especially if you lost Foles, who was put on injured reserve and will miss eight weeks at least.
The Jaguars put up good numbers through the air, as they played from behind, which helped D.J. Chark – 4-of-4 for 146 yards and a touchdown -, Chris Conley – 6-of-7 for 97 yards and a touchdown -, and Dede Westbrook – 5-of-6 for 30 yards and a touchdown. Conley led the team with those seven targets, so no one player really took over as a No. 1, but Conley and Westbrook should be the safest of the two moving forward while Chark remains a boom-or-bust deep threat.
Leonard Fournette didn’t have a great game due mostly to not getting into the end zone. He rushed 13 times for 66 and caught 4-of-6 targets for 28 yards. Those receptions and 94 total yards kept him from being a bad play in PPR leagues and gives us some hope for his usage moving forward, especially in games where the opposition isn’t Patrick Mahomes.
Bills 17, Jets 16
John Brown lived up to his offseason hype with seven receptions on a team-high 10 targets for 123 yards and a touchdown. He is easily the No. 1 target and No. 1 talent of the receivers, as Cole Beasley had the second-most targets with nine, catching five for 40 yards, while Zay Jones worked as the No. 3 receiver. Brown somehow is only rostered in 50 percent of Yahoo leagues.
Devin Singletary showed well in limited work, rushing four times for 70 yards and catching 5-of-6 targets for 28 yards. Those four rushing attempts seem incredibly low, especially when you compare them to Frank Gore’s 11 carries for 20 yards. The good news is that Singletary did most of his damage late and he dominated snaps with 47 to Gore’s 17 and T.J. Yeldon’s two. With this performance, Singletary should start getting more looks earlier in the game.
Josh Allen was often bad against the Jets, fumbling twice and throwing two interceptions, but he did engineer a game-winning drive ending with a touchdown pass to go along with a rushing touchdown to keep him from a big dud. Allen’s legs and the addition of Brown should keep his floor up.
Sam Darnold was harassed by the Bills’ front seven for much of the game, as he was sacked four times and forced to throw short early and often, as he completed 28-of-41 passes for 175 yards and one touchdown. He finished at 4.3 yards per attempt, which is super not good.
Le’Veon Bell rushed 17 times for 60 yards and caught 6-of-9 passes for 32 yards and a touchdown and stayed on the field 100 percent of the time. Since Darnold needed to throw quickly, Bell’s nine targets could be somewhat inflated, but that’s probably in his range of expectation for most games. The best news is that he played all game and saw a full workload with 23 touches despite not playing this preseason or all of last year.
Jamison Crowder was Darnold’s binkie against this tough Buffalo defense, as he targeted him 17 times of which he caught 14 for 99 yards. In standard leagues, that’s not much without a touchdown, but in PPR, he was a stud. Crowder was touted as a standout in camp, and there’s no doubt that he and Darnold have good chemistry. Crowder’s upside isn’t huge, but in PPR, he could end up continuing the season with a high floor.
Ty Montgomery looked like he would be a factor in this game due to Bell’s long rest and the hype around him in training camp, but after getting just 5-of-72 snap, he’s strictly a backup to Bell.
Ravens 59, Dolphins 10
Lamar Jackson smashed expectations by completing 17-of-20 passes for 324 yards and five touchdowns and only rushing three times for six yards. When he does face an NFL-caliber team, he will likely need to run much more, but he had his way with these rejects through the air. I don’t think we can expect big passing touchdown numbers each week, but he’s set up to do well in almost any game script.
Rookie Marquise Brown ripped through the Dolphins’ pass defense like a gazelle through a tortoise ranch. His speed coupled with Jackson’s ability to extend plays behind the line of scrimmage will make it tough on good defenses as well. Brown caught 4-of-5 targets for 147 yards and two touchdowns, of the 47- and 83-yard variety. He amazingly only saw 14 snaps, but made the best of them. He might not be consistent in tougher matchups, but he also isn’t going to see just 14 snaps moving forward. His injury slowed his learning curve a bit, but he aced his first test and will get plenty more opportunities, especially with Seth Roberts, Willie Snead and Chris Moore as the snap leaders for the Ravens’ wide receivers.
The blowout caused the Ravens to rest their starters, so the running back snaps ended up being pretty even across the board with Gus Edwards at 29, Mark Ingram 25 and Justice Hill 23. Edwards was the closer with the second team, rushing 17 times for 56 yards, while Ingram started and had a decent workload, especially with the starters getting rest. Ingram rushed 14 times for 102 yards and two touchdowns, while Justice Hill had seven carries for 27 yards.
Kenyan Drake had 27 snaps to Kalen Ballage’s 20 and “outplayed” him when he touched the ball, rushing four times for 12 yards and catching 2-of-3 targets for 15 yards, while Ballage rushed five times for negative one yard and caught his one target for 13 yards. Neither is good, and on this team, as long as they are splitting work, their upsides are slug-like.
DeVante Parker led the receivers in snaps, targets and yards as he caught 3-of-7 passes for 75 yards. Against Baltimore, we couldn’t ask for much more from Parker, and if he can somehow keep the No. 1 job and see enough targets, he could have value this season.
Albert Wilson left the game with a calf injury. His calf is what limited him in practice, so there’s a decent chance he won’t play next week. If you took a flyer on him, it’s probably safe to drop him for someone on the wire.
Eagles 32, Redskins 27
The Eagles went with a three-headed backfield as usual, which was ugly for fantasy. Miles Sanders led the team with 36 snaps, then Darren Sproles with 23 and then Jordan Howard had 17. Sanders ended the day with 12 touches for 27 yards, Sproles had 12 touches for 63 yards, and Howard put up 55 yards on eight touches. Sanders’ snap count keeps me on him as the back to roster, but I don’t see him having much consistency anytime soon.
Alshon Jeffery, Nelson Agholor and DeSean Jackson were the no-doubt top three receivers, while Zach Ertz out-snapped Dallas Goedert 62-41 and was second on the team with seven targets. So Ertz is still a top target on the team, but predictions of his targets getting squeezed appear to be on the right track. DeSean Jackson was the target leader with 10, and he went off for eight receptions for 184 yards and two touchdowns. Alshon Jeffery was third on the target list with six, but in reality, we should give him seven because one pass, which he scored a touchdown on, was technically a run. He ended up totaling 51 yards and two touchdowns. It’s safe to say that Jackson, Jeffery and Ertz are the main targets and each will have good upside in this offense.
Carson Wentz started off incredibly slowly, but turned it on, completing 28-of-39 passes for 313 yards and three touchdowns. There’s no reason to waffle on his fantasy value, as this team is stocked to the brim with receiving talent and Wentz is healthy.
Derrius Guice rushed 10 times for 18 yards, but he injured his meniscus at some point and will be out for a few weeks. He didn’t look good at any point in the game and now he’s injured the “other” knee. His prospects aren’t promising moving forward. Adrian Peterson should take over for him, but Chris Thompson will also be a factor in the backfield.
Chris Thompson led the Redskins with 10 targets, catching seven for 68 yards, adding 10 yards on three carries. With Guice out for a while, Thompson should see all of the running back targets and looks like he could be a consistent PPR fantasy play.
Paul Richardson and Terry McLaurin tied for the lead in wide receiver targets with seven each, but McLaurin was the star, catching five for 125 yards and a touchdown. He looked good and is obviously the best receiver on the team, so he’s very much worth rostering, but I still expect Washington’s offense to be too inconsistent to keep Scary Terry as an every-week stud.
Vikings 28, Falcons 12
Kirk Cousins managed to keep his fantasy results from being a complete disaster due to a rushing touchdown, but on the day, he threw a total of 10 passes. He didn’t have a bad game, but he didn’t really do much of anything as his team ran the ball 38 times to his 10 attempts. He’ll need his team to get behind, forcing him to throw more to help his upside, along with Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs’.
Dalvin Cook looked great as his speed and power were on display on his 21 carries for 111 yards and a touchdown. He had two targets which he caught for just two yards. A closer game would have actually helped him see more work as a receiver and probably upped his total points.
Devonta Freeman and Ito Smith split snaps exactly 50/50 on the day, with Freeman seeing 12 touches for 31 yards and Smith getting seven for 40 yards. The Minnesota defensive line is the real deal, but this isn’t want you wanted to see from Freeman in Week 1. He’ll remain the lead back, but Atlanta’s offensive line will need to get its business in line.
Matt Ryan had little time to do much of anything with the Vikings’ front line mauling his offensive line. He managed some garbage-time success, completing 33-of-46 passes for 304 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Opponents will get easier, and the Falcons should be able to compensate for and improve their offensive line play, so I’m not overly worried about Ryan.
Rams 30, Panthers 27
Jared Goff completed 23-of-39 passes for 186 yards, one touchdown and one interception in a lackluster display. But he has also had trouble on the road compared to playing in L.A. more often than not.
Todd Gurley had 54 snaps to Malcolm Brown’s 21, while Darrell Henderson saw just two. Gurley ended up with 15 touches for 103 total yards, but that is far below his norm before his knee injury last season and Brown also vultured two short touchdowns. Brown rushed 11 times for 53 yards and those two touchdowns, and his success should keep him heavily involved as the Rams continue to limit Gurley’s usage.
Robert Woods led the Rams in targets, receptions and yards, catching 8-of-13 balls for 70 yards, but this is still an extremely close receiver group and this game didn’t change that.
Christian McCaffrey rushed 19 times for 128 yards and two touchdowns, adding 10 receptions for 81 receiving yards while the rest of the Carolina offense totaled 158 yards. Any talk of McCaffrey getting some relief from his workload is out the window.
D.J. Moore led Carolina’s receivers with 10 targets, catching seven for 76 yards and a fumble, while Curtis Samuel saw just four targets, catching three for 32 yards. It was a poor start for the star of training camp.
Cam Newton completed 25-of-38 passes for 239 yards and one interception and rushed for negative yards. He was inaccurate and just plain bad. He’ll face a Tampa Bay defense next week that he should be able to put numbers up against, and if he doesn’t, we should start to worry.
Titans 43, Browns 13
Derrick Henry ran for 84 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries while catching a 75-yard touchdown on two targets. A big lead helped give Henry a healthy workload, but there’s no doubt that he is a beast who can break off big runs at any time. There will be down games when the Titans trail due to his lack of work as a receiver, but we keep seeing his upside games, which are spectacular.
A.J. Brown looked like the best Titans receiver, as Corey Davis saw just three targets and caught none of them. Brown had just four targets, but that was enough for second on the team and he caught three for 100 yards and looked dominant on those targets. Unfortunately, we can’t expect him to put up these kinds of games on just four targets, so he will be inconsistent if the Titans are in run mode, which they will be as often as they can.
Delanie Walker led the team with six targets and caught five for 55 yards and two touchdowns. Walker will continue to be Marcus Mariota’s go-to in the red zone, as he seems most comfortable with the veteran, but we could still see low volume and we can’t always count on a touchdown. Walker is a strong tight end in fantasy though due to the trust Mariota has with him.
Marcus Mariota completed 14-of-24 passes for 248 yards and three touchdowns while adding 24 yards on three carries. He got a lot of help from Henry on his 75-yard touchdown pass, so Mariota’s fantasy line likely hit his ceiling this week, as he didn’t look great in the first half. But he did show up in the second half and he still was able to tack a few rushing yards onto his stats, which was a concern coming into the season.
Baker Mayfield was sacked five times and threw three interceptions, including a pick-six. He did get x-rays on his hand after the game that turned out negative, so maybe that was hindering him somewhat. He completed 25-of-38 passes for 285 yards with one touchdown to go with his interception trifecta. The Titans’ defense was just too much for him,and hopefully, this is a learning experience for the young quarterback rather than a portent of things to come.
Nick Chubb dominated snaps despite trailing the whole game. He had 51 to Dontrell Hilliard’s 13 and D’Ernest Johnson’s nine. Hilliard had to leave the game with a possible concussion, so it looks like Johnson is Hilliard’s backup. Chubb rushed 17 times for 75 yards and caught 3-of-4 targets for 10 yards. Despite the meh fantasy day, it was a good sign for Chubb’s usage moving forward.
Seahawks 21, Bengals 20
Russell Wilson completed 14-of-20 passes for 196 yards and two touchdowns, which looks a lot like one of his games from last season. The Seahawks will continue to run the ball as much as they possibly can, hurting Wilson’s upside in the process.
Rookie wide receiver D.K. Metcalf led the Seahawks with six targets, catching four for 89 yards. This is a good start for sure, but Tyler Lockett, who saw just two targets, won’t be entrenched as the No. 2 receiver all season. These two receivers will need teams to put up points and force Seattle to throw if they want to see any consistency.
Chris Carson continues to be the main fantasy beneficiary from Seattle’s old-timey rushing ways, as he rushed 15 times for 46 yards and one touchdown and caught 6-of-7 targets for 35 yards and one touchdown. Even Carson didn’t see as much work as we’d hope due to Seattle running a lean 53 plays, tied with the Vikings in slowness this week. Carson ended up with 22 looks on those 53 plays, which is a great 41.5% of all offensive snaps. But the targets are probably the biggest thing to get excited about. Seven targets beats every game Carson played last season, and that’s with a pitiful 53 plays run, while Rashaad Penny saw no targets and just six rushing attempts for 18 yards. Penny is looking more like a handcuff than a standalone asset, but he could have more value in games where Seattle gets behind.
Will Dissly injured his knee in this game, the same one that he had surgery on this offseason. There hasn’t been any news that he’ll be out long term, but his outlook is likely poor for Week 2. Nick Vannett would get the bulk of the tight end snaps, but he would only be worth considering in deep 2TE leagues.
Chargers 30, Colts 24
Philip Rivers completed 25-of-34 passes for 333 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. This game had a good script for Rivers to get close to his upside, as it was close and the Colts aren’t molasses slow in pace. Rivers can be a top fantasy quarterback with situations like this, but with a lead and playing a slower-paced team like Detroit next week, he’s not going to go out of his way to put up points for your fake teams.
Austin Ekeler went off with 12 rushing attempts for 58 yards and one touchdown, adding 96 yards and two touchdowns on six catches from seven targets. He saw 48 snaps to Justin Jackson’s 16. Jackson played well, but just didn’t get enough work to feel great about him finding consistency. I do think he will see his best usage in games with more established leads, as he could see more work between the tackles, especially late in games.
Rivers only threw the ball more than 35 times in six games last season in losses or extremely close games. So this game is in the upper echelon of pass attempts for the Chargers. That output gave Keenan Allen the biggest fantasy game, as he caught 8-of-10 targets for 123 yards and a touchdown. Second in targets was Ekeler and then Hunter Henry and then Mike Williams with just three. Williams did leave the game in the fourth quarter with a knee injury, but he hadn’t done much before that. His injury coupled with his usage isn’t promising.
Jacoby Brissett completed 21-of-27 passes for 190 yards and two touchdowns and played well enough to win, but Adam Vinatieri missed two field goals and an extra point. Brissett only rushed three times for nine yards, but he does have upside in that department. We can’t expect huge numbers from Brissett, but this was a good start against a tough defense.
Marlon Mack and T.Y. Hilton were the main go-tos in this game, with both putting up big numbers, and after that we saw touches widely spread out. If this game is any indication of how Brissett will distribute work, Hilton and Mack will likely be the only consistent options. The fact that they look like they can be consistent is great after losing Andrew Luck.
Devin Funchess suffered a broken collarbone and will be out at least until Week 10. Chester Rogers and Parris Campbell should see an increase in work, but there’s nobody we can point to as someone who will gain a big workload yet.
Lions 27, Cardinals 27
Matthew Stafford completed 27-of-45 passes for 385 yards and three touchdowns through five quarters of play in a close game against a bad defense and the fastest-paced team in the league. That’s not to say Stafford is going to throw 10 passes a game the rest of the way, but he’ll need good game script to come close to these numbers again.
The wide receiver targets are going to see a steep decline next week against the Chargers, as both teams tend to slow games down. But it broke down like this, Danny Amendola – 13, T.J. Hockenson – 9, Kenny Golladay – 9, and Marvin Jones – 4. Amendola was a big surprise, catching seven passes for 104 yards and a touchdown, while Hockenson led the way with six receptions for 131 yards and a touchdown. Kenny Golladay caught four for 42 yards and a touchdown, and Jones caught all four of his targets for 56 yards. Hockenson looked great and should be picked up, but we need to keep in mind that his workload won’t be this high each week. Amendola isn’t going to get many 40-plus-yard touchdowns against competent defenses, so he’s still very much a fringe PPR play most weeks.
Kerryon Johnson rushed 16 times for 49 yards and caught both his targets for 13 yards. It’s not the result we were hoping for in this game. I was hoping for more usage in the passing game, but it didn’t come. He should still get good rushing attempts even in slower-paced games, so I don’t think this was a spike in his usage like it was for the rest of the team.
Cowboys 35, Giants 17
The Giants are bad, but the Cowboys are also good. Is that enough? No, okay, play your passing game pieces against the Giants until further notice after Dak Prescott had the best game of his career, completing 25-of-32 passes for 405 yards and four touchdowns. He finished with a perfect passer rating and made all of his receivers strong fantasy plays, with Amari Cooper and Randall Cobb all finding the end zone, and Michael Gallup getting big play after big play with 158 yards receiving. The Dallas offense looked great under new offensive coordinator Kellen Moore.
Ezekiel Elliott rushed 13 times for 53 yards and a touchdown and caught 1-of-2 targets for 10 yards. He ended up playing more than reports even though he sat much of the fourth quarter due to the blowout. This was a good game to get him eased back into the offense, and he should be all systems go moving forward.
Saquon Barkley rushed 11 times for 120 yards and caught 4-of-6 targets for 19 yards. His usage was odd, but hopefully it was just an anomaly and part of the blowout. He looked good as ever and should be able to pile up stats, but he’ll need to do a lot on his own due to a poor quarterback.
Eli Manning completed 30-of-44 passes for 306 yards, one touchdown and a fumble. Manning continues to dink and dunk, which should at least keep his receivers in PPR numbers, but touchdowns won’t be plentiful.
Evan Engram caught 11-of-14 targets for 116 yards and a touchdown and looks like he’s in line to be the No. 1 target for Manning. His ability after the catch along with good targets should keep him consistent.
Sterling Shepard is in the concussion protocol. If he can’t go this week, Cody Latimer would likely see the biggest boost while Engram would be an extreme target hog.
49ers 31, Buccaneers 17
George Kittle had two touchdowns called by penalties and ended up catching 8-of-10 targets for 54 yards. That’s a kick in the goodies. The good news for those with Kittle is that his 10 targets were by far the most on the team, as the second-most targets was a tie with three.
Jimmy Garoppolo completed 18-of-27 passes for 166 yards, one touchdown and one interception that was returned for a touchdown. It was not a good showing. Kyle Shanahan’s offense is one that can elevate quarterbacks, so there is hope, but the 49ers will need to get moving and the Bengals next week should give them some chances.
Tevin Coleman suffered a high ankle sprain and will miss some time. He was replaced by Matt Breida, who saw a big workload with 15 carries, but he only managed 37 yards and had just one target, which he didn’t catch. Raheem Mostert will take over as the backup/committee member in the backfield, as he rushed nine times for 40 yards when called upon. He has ability and can be rostered in deeper leagues.
Dante Pettis had only two snaps all game and caught his lone target for seven yards. Shanahan said, “hopefully, he continues to earn more time out there.” He also said that a calf injury also slowed Pettis down. It’s hard to get a read on the situation, but I’d hold onto Pettis for now.
Jameis Winston completed 20-of-36 passes for 194 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions, two of which were returned for a touchdown. Unbelievably, awful wouldn’t do his game justice. Winston’s just not very good, but he is better than this. I’m worried, but I also have hope that he’ll be able to turn things around in fantasy.
Peyton Barber, Ronald Jones and Dare Ogunbowale split snaps fairly evenly, but Jones looked the best, rushing 13 times for 75 yards and catching his only target for 18 more. Ogunbowale did see five targets and caught four for 32 yards, so there is a sliver of hope that he’ll become relevant in PPR, but it looks like Barber will remain the lead back going into Thursday night’s game against the Panthers. None of the three are useful unless they win more of the usage pie.
Much like Kittle, Cameron Brate had two touchdowns called back by penalties. This was an ugly game all around. O.J. Howard saw 79 percent of the snaps and was second on the team with five targets, so he’s the starter without a doubt, but he also had a poor game. There just isn’t much good to garner from this game. Hopefully, the Bucs can turn things around quickly.
Patriots 33, Steelers 3
Damien Harris was inactive, but Rex Burkhead played a big role and helped mold the running backs into yet another three-headed monster. The biggest disappointment was Sony Michel, who rushed 15 times for 14 yards while Burkhead had eight carries for 44 yards and caught 5-of-8 targets for 41 yards. Some of that could have been due to the blowout, but Michel’s lack of targets after some offseason hype that he’d be more involved in the passing game was also a let-down. We can’t get too bent out of shape with one game and Michel is going to continue to lead this group, but Bill Belichick will always give us fantasy footballers something to choke on.
Tom Brady completed 24-of-36 passes for 341 yards and three touchdowns as the Patriots didn’t attack the weakest part of the Steelers’ defense and dominated their own Washington Generals.
Phillip Dorsett led the New England receivers in fantasy points with two touchdowns and 95 yards as he caught all four of his targets, and Josh Gordon caught Brady’s other touchdown pass to go along with 73 yards and 3-of-4 receptions. The target leaders were Julian Edelman, Rex Burkhead then James White with 11, eight and seven. Dorsett’s big game is likely his last due to Antonio Brown’s arrival but even if Brown swims off into the ocean never to be seen again, Dorsett would consistently cede work to Edelman and Gordon.
Ben Roethlisberger completed 27-of-47 passes for 276 yards and an interception and looked fairly useless most of the game. The Patriots beat the Steelers in every aspect, so I expect their offense to play better, but without Antonio Brown, they’ll need to re-find their mojo, which isn’t a given.
James Conner had 10 carries for 21 yards and caught four passes for 44 yards. It was a poor game for every Pittsburgh skill player, so I’m not going to give up on any of them just yet.
Saints 30, Texans 28
Drew Brees completed 32-of-43 passes for 370 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He put on a clinic against the Texans’ weak pass defense, picking them apart with short to intermediate passes. He still has some downside in games where the Saints get out to an early lead and run the ball more than throw it, but he’s still a technician who can do little wrong at times.
Alvin Kamara rushed 13 times for 97 yards and caught 7-of-8 targets for 72 yards. It would have been a usual blowup game for Kamara if he’d found the end zone, but it wasn’t meant to be. He remains an elite fantasy back who should help carry your fake team to victory.
Latavius Murray rushed six times for 43 yards and one touchdown and caught 2-of-3 passes for four yards. His 30-yard touchdown run kept him from a dud on just the eight touches. His usage will likely be higher when the Saints have leads, but Sean Payton called Kamara’s number when playing from behind for much of the game. Murray is likely going to have bigger workloads moving forward.
Deshaun Watson completed 20-of-30 passes for 268 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, adding a rushing touchdown and 40 yards on four attempts. Watson played great, but was hurting after a big hit on his touchdown run and getting sacked six times. It’s fair to wonder if he can last 16 games, but as long as he’s on the field, he is a top-five fantasy QB.
DeAndre Hopkins did his usual all-world things, catching 8-of-13 targets for 111 yards and two touchdowns. Just revel in his awesomeness.
Duke Johnson saw 63 percent of the snaps to Carlos Hyde’s 37 percent, but Hyde did put up 83 yards on 10 rushing attempts. Johnson rushed nine times for 57 yards and caught 4-of-5 targets for 33 yards. It looks like Hyde will be the early-down and goal-line back while Johnson is the passing-down back. It isn’t a great situation, although I expect Johnson to have more upside.
Keke Coutee was out, and Kenny Stills and Will Fuller saw three and two targets each. They made the most of those targets, as Stills caught a touchdown and Fuller hit 69 receiving yards. Coach O’Brien did say he expects Stills’ role to grow. Coutee should also return next week, which will make for some tough calls in fantasy after Hopkins.
Raiders 24, Broncos 16
Derek Carr completed 22-of-26 passes 259 yards and a touchdown. It wasn’t a big fantasy game for Carr, as Josh Jacobs found the end zone twice on the ground, but it was a strong performance against what should be a good defense and give some hope for Oakland’s top skill players.
Tyrell Williams caught 6-of-7 targets for 105 yards and a touchdown. This was a great start for Williams, but we knew he could play. The good news is that Carr was able to get him the ball. If Carr can stay consistent, Williams would follow suit.
Darren Waller led the team in targets and receptions, catching 7-of-8 for 70 yards. His usage will likely be one of the more stable on the team and in turn, that should keep him as a consistent tight end option in fantasy.
Josh Jacobs saw a big workload with 23 carries for 85 yards and two touchdowns and also caught his one target for 28 yards. Jon Gruden said he hopes to keep Jacobs at a similar workload each game, which would be just fine with his fantasy backers.
