Five Things to Know for Week 2

The NFL season marches forward into Week 2, and fantasy footballers everywhere sit on the edge of their seats with an equal balance of excitement and trepidation. Those who won their Week 1 matchups look to continue a march toward fantasy glory. Those on the other side of the coin know real panic awaits with an 0-2 start. There’s no debate: what happens in Week 2 will shape the trajectory of your team’s journey to a title. 

In this article, I delve into five essential things you need to know before you set those lineups. From standout performances to key injuries, strategic maneuvers, and emerging storylines, I’m here to prepare you for action. So, fasten your seatbelts, folks, because Week 2 promises to deliver another dose of fantasy football action like no other.

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Let’s get right to it:

1. In Week 1, the Titans Defense gave up 78% of fantasy points to Wideouts and only 22% to Slot Receivers. I hear you out there. It’s only been one week, so we can’t make definitive statements yet. Yes, you’re right. However, I counter with the fact that this trend is generally similar to the Titans Defense throughout 2022 – 61% to Wideouts and 39% to Slot Receivers. Making matters worse for the Titans, they lost safety Amani Hooker (concussion) and cornerback Kristian Fulton (hamstring) in Week 1. So, what does all this mean for the Titans’ opponent in Week 2?    

The Titans host the Chargers and their four-headed WR corps of Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Joshua Palmer and Quentin Johnston. It’s fair to think all should find room to operate in the Titans’ secondary, which must also keep one eye on the Chargers explosive backfield. Allen and Williams should be automatic starts in all formats already. In PPR formats especially, Palmer should be considered a solid Flex option after out-snapping rookie Quentin Johnston 51:22. 

• Start: Keenan Allen & Mike Williams
• Flex Consideration: Joshua Palmer
• Continue to stash: Quentin Johnston       

 

2. The Falcons RB duo of Tyler Allgeier and Bijan Robinson ran all over the Panthers last week. Allgeier led the way for fantasy scoring with 75 rushing yards and a pair of scores, adding three receptions for 19 yards. Robinson was no slouch either, rushing for 56 yards and catching all of his six targets for 27 yards and a TD. In PPR scoring, those added up to 24.4 and 20.3 points, respectively. 

The Panthers host the Saints in Week 2. With Alvin Kamara still away for another week, the Saints’ ground game will continue to rely on Jamaal Williams. Williams logged a healthy 84% of RB snaps against a strong Titans run defense, gaining a modest 45 yards on the ground and each of his two targets. If you’re concerned that the polish is off Williams, who you may recall scampered for over 1000 yards and 17 TDs last season, I’m here to tell you not to be.

The Falcons exposed a big deficiency in the young Panthers defense. Certainly, the Panthers coaches did their best to stitch this wound. However, if the Saints don’t rip through that band-aid with a heavy ground attack by Williams, they all need to receive pink slips on Monday morning. I’m wagering they are not that inept. Run with Williams with confidence. 

• Strong Start:  Jamaal Williams   

 

3. If you listened to our Razzball “Overreactions” show on Monday night (Listen Here), you heard me tell Bobby and Gladys that I’m a big fan of Sam LaPorta. After a week where Sam caught all five of his targets for just 39 yards, he may still be flying under the radar this week. That’s about to change in a hurry.

The Seahawks come to the Motor City still licking their wounds after the Rams’ 30-13 thumping. The Seattle defense was torched by the likes of Puka Nacua and Tutu Atwell while “holding” Tyler Higbee to 49 yards on three receptions. Let’s not forget this is the same Seahawk defense that gave up the 3rd most fantasy points per game to TEs in 2022. Perhaps they’ve made strides in this area during the offseason. Or, more likely, their defensive game plan put less emphasis on the Rams’ “unknown” WR corps. They won’t make that mistake against the Lions.          

Jared Goff is historically a monster at home and has much more formidable WR weapons at his disposal than the Rams do. Amon-Ra St. Brown and Josh Reynolds will be licking their chops to face this Seattle defense. Certainly, the Hawks will counter with a scheme to plug the cracks exposed by the Rams WRs. Add to that the optimism of safety Jamal Adams returning to the lineup after rehabbing a torn quadricep suffered early last season. While he may play, he will undoubtedly be less than 100%. What does all this mean to me? Sam LaPorta is about to introduce himself in a big way to the fantasy world.

• Strong Start:  Sam LaPorta

 

4. After a Week 1 that resulted in Joe Burrow completing 14 passes for 82 yards and a Ravens Defense that held the Texans without a TD, you may think I’m crazy to promote the Bengals passing attack in Week 2. Who amongst us objectively thinks the Bengals Offense is as bad as we saw last week? Do you hear the crickets? So do I. No, the Bengals Offense will be just fine in time. You may be skeptical that it’ll take longer than a week, but I’m here to tell you there’s opportunity here. 

The Ravens’ Defense lost safety Marcus Williams to a torn pectoral. The void will need to be filled by Brandon Stephens, a third-year pro mostly known as a special teamer, and their Week 1 slot corner, Geno Stone. This also puts added responsibility on a relatively unproven Ar’Darius Washington as their slot cornerback versus the Bengals. Needless to say, the Bengals WRs have a solid opportunity to get healthy in a hurry. 

The Baltimore Defense allowed a majority of the fantasy points to wideouts last week, 56% (wideouts) to 44% (slots). For the above reasons, I see this ration flipping versus the Bengals. 

The Bengals essentially ran only with Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd versus the Browns last week. These three veterans tallied over 93% of the snaps in Week 1, so there’s really no one else to pilfer targets. Chase and Higgins are automatic starts unless you’re in a very shallow league. For those in 12-teamers or larger, Higgins may be one you’re worried about. If that’s you, don’t. He’s a strong start. Despite only being targeted three times last week, don’t discount Boyd’s value this week as well. Boyd primarily works out of the slot (> 91% in Week 1) and is primed to take advantage of the Ravens’ depleted secondary.       

• Automatic: Ja’Marr Chase
• Strong Starts: Tee Higgins & Tyler Boyd

 

5. Despite appearances, Josh Allen is far from the rumbling, bumbling, stumbling version we saw on Monday Night Football. A little home cooking in much better weather conditions should help Bills fans forget all about that trip to New Jersey. Additionally, the weapons at his disposal, between James Cook in the backfield and Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis out wide, will likely test the Raiders’ defense.         

On the flip side, the Raiders come to Western New York with a road victory in their pocket but several question marks in hand. I suspect the road will look a lot bumpier this week in Buffalo. Sure, Jimmy Garoppolo looked, well, like Jimmy Garoppolo last week in Denver. Finishing an efficient 20-26 for 200 yards and two TDs (plus one INT), Jimmy G did enough to allow the Raiders to eke out a victory on the road. After missing essentially all the preseason, Josh Jacobs got a heavy load, rushing 19 times for 48 yards. He continued to run into the Denver defensive front that probably felt more like a brick wall. Jakobi Meyers impressed after pulling in nine of 10 targets for 81 yards and two TDs.  Davante Adams was no slouch either after six receptions for a 66-yard game. However, Meyers remains in concussion protocol (at the time of this writing) and is looking more and more doubtful. No other Raider WR received more than a dozen snaps. To add to the misery, the TE duo of Austin Hooper & Michael Mayer received a whopping one target. Certainly, we’ll see things spread out more, but plain and simple, I’m here to tell you to temper your expectations of all your Raiders players. 

• Automatic: Josh Allen, Stefon Diggs & Davante Adams
• Strong Starts: James Cook & Gabe Davis
• Slow Your Roll:  All Raiders not named Davante Adams

 

There you have it, folks, my five things to know for Week 2. Good luck in all your season-long and DFS action this weekend.    

Don’t forget to subscribe and tune into the one-and-only @RazzballNFL Start/Sit show on Sunday mornings. Right up to game time, @BobbyLamarco, @SkyGuasco, @Stiles08, and I will be answering all your fantasy football questions as you prepare for the start of your Championship season. Don’t miss it.   

Look for my articles right here each week, and be sure to follow me on Twitter/X @Derek_Favret. 

Until next time, my friends.