The NFL season officially kicked off on Thursday night, but there were a few players that simply didn’t show up for the opener between the Rams and Bills.
While the likes of Josh Allen, Cooper Kupp, Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis all had some good-to-great showings for their managers, the same can’t be said for a couple of highly drafted Rams.
Cam Akers and Allen Robinson II combined for 12 total yards — and that’s including Akers’ big, fat donut.
With an average draft position at the end of the third round, Akers was expected to be handling the bulk of responsibility in the Rams’ backfield — despite numerous assertions that he and Darrell Henderson Jr. were the co-RB1s on the team. Instead, Henderson played 82% of snaps with 13 carries and five targets for 73 total yards. Akers played 18% of snaps and had just three carries for no yards — also while looking pretty slow when he was on the field.
Robinson played 65 snaps against the Bills and ran 48 routes, but the former Bears WR had just two targets for one catch and 12 yards. This is especially poor considering third WR Ben Skowronek had four receptions on six targets in the game.
While the Bills defence certainly looked formidable, we’d still be hesitant to start Akers or Robinson going forward until they’ve proven there’s more opportunity ahead of them. Of course, with the Falcons on tap next week, that might be the matchup needed to get their seasons going.
The one sore spot for the Bills is rookie RB James Cook. The younger brother of Dalvin was stapled to the bench after fumbling away his first career carry. With many touting Cook as a sleeper and potentially capable for taking over Devin Singletary, this was an awful first step. He’ll be behind Zack Moss also, it seems.
SKITTLE ME KITTLE
There’s no worse feeling at the beginning of a fantasy season than having drafted your “perfect” squad only to have a player suffer an injury between draft day and the first game of the season. And it’s even worse when it’s a player like George Kittle, whom you likely drafted so that you wouldn’t have to worry about looking for TE streamers every week.
Kittle suffered a groin injury this week that is reportedly serious enough to keep him out this week and maybe longer. Tyler Kroft would start in his place but isn’t a great fantasy option.
This is good news for managers who drafted Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk, who have thrived in games that Kittle missed over the past two seasons.
A STEELER RESOLVE
Diontae Johnson has made a career out of playing through injuries and it looks like he’ll be doing it again on Sunday. The Steelers top target suffered a shoulder injury during practice earlier this week but proclaimed himself “good to go,” after being a full participant on Friday.
With his injury reportedly being more of a pain-tolerance issue, he should be out there against the Bengals. If that status changes, it would be a huge boost to Chase Claypool and George Pickens with a lot of target share opening up.
If you have Johnson, start him, but just remember there’s a bigger risk than usual that he gets knocked out of the game.
OH MY, GODWIN
The last thing that you ever want to see is that your player with the Sunday night kickoff is a game-time decision. That’s the case for Chris Godwin of the Bucs this week.
While the star WR practised this week without a brace after tearing his ACL late last season, he also missed a session so the time could judge how it responded.
This is obviously a tough spot for fantasy managers given that Godwin is a solid WR2 if he plays, but would have very limited options if he doesn’t — unless they also have Russell Gage or Julio Jones rostered.
So, gambling on Godwin playing will be an early season test for his many managers.
SIT/START
Start Jameis Winston, QB, NO at ATL
The Falcons pass defence was among the league’s worst last season and didn’t improve much in the off-season.
Sit Justin Fields, QB, CHI vs. SF
Expect a much different outcome than their 2021 meeting, when Fields finished as QB5 for the week.
Start Dameon Pierce, RB, HOU vs. IND
Hotshot rookie has officially been named the team’s starter and should get plenty of touches.
Sit Breece Hall, RB, NYJ vs. BAL
The Ravens gave up the fewest rushing yards in the league last season and Hall will likely split carries.
Start Sammy Watkins, WR, GB at MIN
An absolute Week 1 stud, Watkins has three games with 75+ yards over the past three years and all have come in Week 1s.
Sit Amari Cooper, WR, CLE at CAR
The Panthers gave up the sixth-fewest points to opposing WRs last year and Cooper is known to disappear against good DEFs.
Start Michael Thomas, WR, NO at ATL
Though he has missed some practice, every indication is that he’ll be ready to play in his first game since 2020.
STAT CORNER
Steelers RB Najee Harris played 929 snaps in 2021, which was 168 more than Dallas RB Ezekiel Elliott, who finished second among RBs with 761.
ADD OF THE WEEK
Isaiah Likely, TE, BAL
Early reports are the pre-season stud is the de facto No. 3 receiving option in Baltimore and the fourth-round rookie could be in for a breakout season.
DROP OF THE WEEK
Mike Gesicki, TE, MIA
With rumours that the Dolphins were shopping him before final cuts were made, that doesn’t bode well for his potential workload this coming season.
WAIVER WIRE DEFENCE
Tennessee Titans DEF
When we last saw the Titans, they were busy sacking Joe Burrow nine times in a playoff game. With the Giants on tap, this D should bring the heat again.
To get the latest fantasy updates throughout the season, be sure to sign up for our newsletter at https://torontosun.com/newsletters. You’ll even get a bonus ’10 Commandments of Fantasy Football’ as a bonus!
Post a Comment