NFL Week 2 Daily Fantasy Preview

Week One had some hits and misses but overall balancing out my top plays and sleepers I managed to have a good amount of successful lineups. The beginning of the year is always difficult with the amount of players that are on new teams (who haven’t figured out usage yet) and the amount of rookies in prime roles.

With that being said, Week 2 can often be a real brain teaser. You will see fantasy owners that jump the gun for the high performers of Week 1 (ex. Galladay, Hunt) but you will also see fantasy owners that go to the well one more time for common top performers that had a bad week 1 (ex. Brady, Bell). This opens up a lot of potential to bring down big GPP contests if you pick the correct combination of players. Hopefully this helps you land a nice score this weekend!

Quarterback

Tom Brady

Debatably the top QB of all time, coming off of a loss, and going up against the defense that Sam Bradford destroyed in Week 1. I do not think I need to get into the reasons why this is a good call. Stack Brady with Brandin Cooks (returning to play his old team), Chris Hogan (Could bring in numbers comparable to Adam Thielen last week) and Gronk (He is Gronk).

Jameis Winston

Extra time to prep because of the Hurricane delaying the start to their season will give Winston even more reason to be prepared for a week Chicago secondary. I expect Winston to hit Desean Jackson at least once downfield and to target Mike Evans 10+ times. I can see this game having many contrarian players that could help you climb up the leader board.

Deep Sleeper: Philip Rivers

Rivers is the forgotten man of the NFL. He consistently puts up big numbers and again had a 300+ yard/multi touchdown performance last week. Rivers may be my Number 1 play at QB this week and I will be stacking him with Keenan Allen in most formats. I expect him to again go over 300 yards with Allen and Gates each reaching the endzone.

Running Back

Lesean McCoy

Just like last week I am using McCoy as my top back. I expect Le’veon Bell to have high ownership as fantasy owners look to him for a rebound week after last week’s mediocre performance. McCoy will differentiate you from much of the pack. He will most likely have ownership that is half of what Bell brings but he could potentially produce the same. Pairing him with another back priced similarly and taking sleepers at WR or TE may be a smart strategy this week.

Ty Montgomery

Sunday Night Football will be a shootout between Atlanta and Green Bay. While most people will look at a Green Bay running back as a less than favorable play I am considering that Atlanta has been horrible against running backs that catch the ball out of the backfield in recent years. Montgomery is one of the best pass catchers at the position in the NFL and I expect him to produce in a semi-WR role during this game. Screen plays can be used just like runs to set up passes down field and if I am reading this game correctly I can see Montgomery being a huge part of Green Bay’s offense this week.

Deep Sleeper: Javorious Allen

He will be splitting carries with Terrance West for Baltimore but I would be willing to guess that Allen will get the carries close to the goal line. When selecting a deep sleeper as a RB2 you want someone that could possibly get into the end zone and I can see Allen doing that. Truthfully, if he plays well he may work his way into a more prominent role in the offense….it’s not inconceivable.

Wide Receiver

Mike Evans

Evans is one player that you can guarantee will get his looks each week. Winston loves going to Evans downfield and the addition of Desean Jackson will open up the middle of the field for Evans as well. He will lead the team (and maybe the NFL) in targets this week and he should be able to take advantage of a Chicago D that has the potential t give up big plays.

Tyreek Hill

Speaking of big plays…The Eagles are very weak at defensive back after the loss of Ronald Darby. They have nobody that can keep up with the speed of Hill and if last week showed us anything it is that KC is willing to take chances downfield in addition to the typical Andy Reid style West Coast slants and dump offs that the offense has shown in recent years. IF smith looks, Hill will be open. It is that simple.

Deep Sleeper: Cooper Kupp

I am still not 100% sold on Kupp but I can it appears that he has worked himself into a major role as a slot receiver for LA. This means one thing….receptions. I cannot guarantee a score from him this week but I do expect him to get his fair share of targets.  In all honesty Kupp is the type of player that you need to excel to win a big GPP like the Draftkings Milli-Maker.

Tight End

Zach Ertz

Ertz came on strong at the end of the season last year. He finished 2016 with 106 targets which is a large number for a tight end. Oddly enough, that number could increase this season since the Eagles traded away Jordan Matthews and Ertz is expected to take some snaps in the slot position. Historically, Ertz has done well against Washington so a big week can be expected.

Kyle Rudolph

Over the last 2 years Rudolph has had more red zone targets than any other player. He found the end zone again on Monday night and he appears to have built a great rapport with Sam Bradford over the last 2 seasons. If the Vikings are in the red zone look for him to be targeted but I don’t see his usage on offense being as big with the need to spread the ball around to rest of Minnesota’s offense. Still I see him getting in the end zone again.

Deep Sleeper:  Charles Clay

Clay had a decent week last week and managed to reach the end zone. He seems to be a key weapon for Tyrod to look at in the red zone so TDs look likely and if a sleeper TE can score for you than you are in real good shape building the rest of your squad.

Defense

Seattle

Facing the 49ers the offense that could not have played worst last week and coming off of a defeat. Add in the fact that this game is in Seattle and we all know how well the Seahawks play at home. Lock them in, throw away the key….this is a lock.

Raiders

The Raiders play a Jets team that could finish this year as the worst team and worst offense in the league. The Raiders aren’t exactly the best defense in the league but I have a gut feeling that is telling me that they will get turnovers this week and could possibly score. Everyone is keying in on Oakland offensive payers (Carr, Lynch, Cooper). I am going to go the other way and play the Raiders Defense.