Fantasy Football Week Two: Start ’em, Sit ’em

After a crazy Week One of football full of upsets, injuries, and plenty of surprises, I’m back with my must-starts and must-sits for Week Two.

I’d say, we did pretty well with my picks for must-starts last week. Jaylen Waddle ended up reeling in four receptions for 69 yards and a touchdown, Javonte Williams ran seven times for 43 yards and caught 11 passes for 65, and Amon-Ra St. Brown did exactly what I said he’d do, catching eight passes for 64 yards and a score.

My only miss was with Elijah Mitchell, who ran six times for 41 yards before leaving the game with an MCL sprain.

Ian’s Record: 3-1

So without further ado, here are my fantasy picks going into what should be another entertaining week of football:

Start ’em

A.J. Dillon (RB, Packers) vs. Bears

One of the few gems in a surprisingly lacklustre showing for Green Bay in Week One, Dillon not only caught more passes than Aaron Jones, but also out-touched him 15-8. It’s only been a week, but Dillon saw plenty of work in the passing game as well as around the goal line against Minnesota.

With Aaron Rodgers’ lack of depth at the wide receiver position, I’d bet on Jones’ production being mostly reliant on catching passes out of the backfield. Bank on Dillon early before your league-mates realize he’s the traditional RB1 for the Packers.

Antonio Gibson (RB, Commanders) vs. Lions

After getting extra work in this preseason as a receiver to round out his skill set, Gibson saw a career high eight receptions for 72 yards in the Commanders win against the Jags, while also tacking on 58 rushing yards.

Look for Gibson to have another productive showing this week as Washington goes to Detroit, as the Lions have just given up 216 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns to the Eagles.

Mike Williams (WR, Chargers) vs. Chiefs

Williams’ season got off to a slow start, catching only two passes for 10 yards Sunday against the Raiders. However, it’s safe to assume his production will only go up now that Keenan Allen is officially sidelined for week 2.

Allen had brought in four catches for 66 yards this past Sunday before exiting early with a hamstring injury.

With Allen out of the mix for now, Williams is now set up for a good bounce back against the Chiefs in what should be a high scoring game. 

Zach Ertz (TE, Cardinals) vs. Raiders

While only limited to 4 targets in Week One, Ertz still emerged as a top 10 fantasy tight end. The slight concern with his status is a calf injury he’s been dealing with since preseason. He was a non-participant at Wednesday’s practice, but head coach Kliff Kingsbury said he believes Ertz will be able to participate fully on Thursday.

Traveling to Las Vegas for Week Two gives Ertz some serious TE1 upside, as the Raiders have given up the eighth-most points to tight ends in their last eight games. Pair that with DeAndre Hopkins still serving his suspension, and Ertz should have a full plate if he’s fully available.

Sit ’em

Rashaad Penny (RB, Seahawks) vs. 49ers

Penny looked decent in the Seahawks upset of the Broncos on MNF, running 12 times for 60 yards and catching two passes for seven yards. However, the Seahawks only ran the ball 13 times in total, and more PPR production would’ve been nice to see as well.

Their opponent for Week Two doesn’t help his case either. Even though they lost, the 49ers defense shut down David Montgomery for only 26 yards on 17 attempts. 

Pair that with Kenneth Walker potentially making his Seahawks debut, and you should anticipate a regression in Penny’s fantasy value this week.

Rashod Bateman (WR, Ravens) vs. Dolphins

After catching only two passes for 59 yards and a score against the Jets last week, Bateman now must line up across from Xavien Howard in Week Two.

When the Ravens hosted the Dolphins last year, Miami DC Josh Boyer didn’t hold back rushing QB Lamar Jackson and forcing him to either run or try to make a quick throw. In that game, Jackson finished completing only 60.5% of his passes while averaging a measly 5.5 yards per attempt.

Howard in Week One limited Devante Parker to one reception for nine yards. Paired with Jevon Holland in the secondary, I think it’s a safe bet to stick Bateman in your back pocket this week.

Ryan Tannehill (QB, Titans) vs. Bills

The Bills looked like a Super Bowl-caliber team in their rout of the Rams in Week One, which shouldn’t be much of a surprise since they were the favorites to hoist the Lombardi entering Week One.

On the other hand, the Titans are coming off an embarrassing loss to the Giants after New York went for two to put them up 21-20. Tannehill, however, looked solid, completing 20 of 33 passes for 266 yards and two touchdowns.

Buffalo should be a different story for him. They have just intercepted Matthew Stafford three times and sacked him seven times. So with a similar offensive line, if not worse compared to LA, Tannehill and the Titans may be looking at a rough 0-2 start following their AFC #1 seed season last year.

Eagles D/ST vs. Vikings

Following a very impressive win against the Packers, Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson looks to be in OPOY form already. Jefferson only needed nine receptions to rack up 184 yards and two touchdowns as he torched Jaire Alexander and the Packers’ secondary en route to a 23-7 victory.

Even though the Eagles came out of Week One with a win as well, they just allowed 35 points (3 rushing touchdowns, 2 passing touchdowns) to Jared Goff and the Lions. Expect Dalvin Cook to be given another hefty workload (20 carries in Week One) and Jefferson to put up similar numbers in what should also be a high scoring game.