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Sleeper Starts for Week 2 (Fantasy Football)

Sleeper Starts for Week 2 (Fantasy Football)
Crockett Gillmore

Crocket Gillmore could be in for a big day against a banged up Raiders secondary

Week 1 is in the books and for many, it may not have gone as expected (unless you played with a full lineup of tight ends). Yes, thirteen tight ends scored double-digit fantasy points in Week 1. It just goes to show that every week brings a sleeper into the picture.

On the flip side, owners of Odell Beckham, Dez Bryant and other big name players were disappointed with single-digit fantasy efforts. It’s time to move on from the past though and look towards the future. Week 2 will come with its share of studs and duds. With that in mind, we asked our featured experts to give us their picks for the players they expect to surprise us (good and bad) this weekend.

If you don’t see any of your players listed below, be sure to check out our Who Should I Start? tool. You can also import your team into My Playbook for instant suggestions specific to your players.

Q1. Name one “sleeper start” for Week 2 and tell us why the gamble to start him over one of the consensus top players could pay off.

Crockett Gillmore (TE – BAL)
Matchup: at OAK
“Baltimore tight end Crockett Gillmore could be looking at a sneaky day. The Raiders had no answers for Tyler Eifert on opening day, and now Oakland is playing without its two starting safeties. I’m also a fan of Donte Moncrief this week, with or without T.Y. Hilton, but I know I’m in good company there.”
Scott Pianowski (Yahoo)

Duke Johnson (RB – CLE)
Matchup: vs. TEN
“I would gamble with Cleveland Browns running back Duke Johnson. He has very good change of direction ability, burst, competitive toughness, and the ability to catch the football out of the backfield. Isaiah Crowell does not have a stranglehold on the starting job. Johnson has the potential to lead the RBBC behind one of the top offensive lines in the NFL.”
Eric Moody (FFLockerRoom)

Chris Johnson (RB – ARI)
Matchup: at CHI
“I like Chris Johnson as a sleeper play this week. Of course this hinges on Andre Ellington‘s availability, but I’m assuming at this point he won’t play. He has two things going in his favor here. One, he is facing a Bears defense that allowed the 21st most points against running backs last year. Two, Bruce Arians really dislikes giving a large workload to rookies, so he should get the majority of the carries over David Johnson.”
Joe Bond (Fantasy Six Pack)

Jordan Reed (TE – WAS)
Matchup: vs. STL
“Reed has always been talented, but suffered through a myriad of injuries that saw him lose his job to Niles Paul in the offseason. With Paul injured and DeSean Jackson sidelined this week, I expect Kirk Cousins to try and get rid of the ball early and often against the Rams with Reed seeing the bulk of the targets. I’m even moving Reed up to startable in the flex spot.”
Dennis Esser (Coach Esser)

Tevin Coleman (RB – ATL)
Matchup: at NYG
“I’m going with Tevin Coleman as a sleeper RB2 option in Week 2. He dominated the carries in Week 1 and will get to operate against a bad Giants defensive front while the opposition focuses on slowing down Julio Jones and Roddy White. I think the Falcons win this game and Coleman gets another 20-plus touches as a result.”
R.J. White (CBS Sports)

Q2. On the flip side, name the player you believe will be Week 2′s biggest disappointment.

Brandon Marshall (WR – NYJ)
Matchup: at IND
“I’m going to steer away from Brandon Marshall wherever I can. Vontae Davis had Sammy Watkins on lockdown for Sunday’s opener, and I expect Marshall to be the target on Monday night.”
Scott Pianowski (Yahoo)

“My week 2 disappointment is going to be Brandon Marshall of the New York Jets. Last week Marshall was the apple of Ryan Fitzpatrick’s eye with 9 targets in the passing game, but this week Marshall will be facing Vontae Davis of the Colts. Davis is as shutdown as they come and is one of the only CBs in the NFL that can physically match up with Marshall. I would instead look to your bench instead of forcing Marshall into your lineups.”
Dennis Esser (Coach Esser)

Alfred Morris (RB – WAS)
Matchup: vs. STL
“Alfred Morris is in for a long day Sunday. He’ll square off against probably the best defensive front in football, one that kept a player named Beast Mode in check in Week 1. He’ll also be hurt by the expected game flow, as the Redskins may find themselves passing to try and catch up for much of the game. There will be weeks to lean on Morris; this isn’t one of them.”
R.J. White (CBS Sports)

DeMarco Murray (RB – PHI)
Matchup: vs. DAL
“I’m worried about DeMarco Murray. I knew he would get a reduced workload coming into the season, but only eight carries and 12 total touches? Wow, this is going to be way more of a timeshare than even I thought. If it were not for the two touchdowns, Murray would have had a horrible Week 1 finishing with just 20 total yards.”
Joe Bond (Fantasy Six Pack)

LeSean McCoy (RB – BUF)
Matchup: vs. NE
“LeSean McCoy could be week 2’s biggest disappointment. He rushed 17 times for 41 yards agains the Colts last week. The offensive line play has always been a question mark in Buffalo. McCoy is simply not physically the same player he was three years ago. He no longer has the athletic ability to transcend bad offensive line play. Karlos Williams may eat more into his workload this week.”
Eric Moody (FFLockerRoom)

Amari Cooper (WR – OAK)
Matchup: vs. BAL
“Cooper remains a consensus start with a top-30 ranking heading into Week 2. With his difficult matchup against the Ravens and shaky QB play, he’s a tough guy to bank on for elite level production. Yes, the nine targets Amari saw in week one speaks to a player who will hold consistent PPR value throughout the season. Until the Oakland offense shows some signs of consistency though, the rook’s scoring upside will remain limited. Look elsewhere for your WR2.”
Wayne Bretsky (BretskyBall)

We’d like to thank the experts for sharing their sleepers for Week 2. For more advice, be sure to follow them on Twitter.

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