The most important thing we learned this week is that football is finally back! Congratulate yourselves for making it through seven torturous months. Hopefully, everyone got off to a good start in fantasy but I know there are people, like myself, that are already wanting to trade away their team. We have a long season ahead of us so let’s not make any rash decisions yet. It was a great Week 1 of action so let’s discuss the aftermath that will hopefully put your minds at ease – for others it might increase your panic levels.
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Sammy Watkins (WR – KC) has league-winning upside.
Sammy Watkins was penciled in as the third or fourth passing option on the Chiefs by most fantasy experts but he was clearly Mahomes’ go-to guy on Sunday. Watkins caught nine passes for 198 yards and scored a Week 1 high of 46.8 PPR points. Tyreek Hill left the game with a shoulder injury which helped Watkins’ high production and could lead to more big games in the next couple of weeks. Hill’s injury was said to sideline the wide receiver for two to three weeks which could push Sammy Watkins higher in weekly rankings. Having one of the best quarterbacks throwing him the ball also helps make the case for Watkins being a potential league-winning fantasy player.
Believe the hype on Lamar Jackson (QB – BAL).
Lamar Jackson went off against the Dolphins by scoring 40.7 PPR fantasy points in just three quarters! Yes, Jackson was playing against one of the worst teams in the league but throwing for 371 yards and six touchdowns is still impressive! In his seven starts last year, Jackson only threw for five touchdowns — just proving how unbelievable his performance was on Sunday. Jackson was being drafted as the 13th quarterback in fantasy but showed everyone that he can be that late-round quarterback that can help lead your fantasy team to a championship.
The Rams’ running back situation is going to be frustrating.
Todd Gurley rushed for 97 yards on 14 carries while his counterpart Malcolm Brown finished with 53 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries. Gurley didn’t have a bad game but it has to be a little unsettling if Brown is getting a similar workload and red-zone touches each week. We knew going into this season there were some questions regarding how the Rams would utilize their running backs. If their Week 1 script is any indication of their game plan moving forward, Gurley owners could be pulling their hair out each week.
Le’Veon Bell (RB – NYJ) is the running back the Jets paid for.
In his New York Jets debut, Le’Veon Bell did a little bit of everything on offense. Bell finished with 92 total yards, rushed 17 times for 60 yards, and had six passes for 32 yards. He did this while also playing every snap (67). Bell, who took last season off from football, picked up where he left off in Pittsburgh as the workhorse running back. If you had worries of how his head coach, Adam Gase, was going to use Bell, I think you can put your mind at ease moving forward.
Joe Mixon (RB – CIN) owners should start to worry.
It wasn’t a good start to the season for Joe Mixon on Sunday. Before leaving the game with an ankle injury, Mixon rushed six times for a total of ten yards. Hopefully, the injury isn’t serious, but owners of Mixon should be a little worried due to the running backs lackluster performance before exiting the game. If he can’t go next week, be sure to search the waiver wire and add his replacement, Giovani Bernard. Bernard didn’t do much following Mixon’s ankle injury but if he gets the start, Bernard will still offer value as a starting running back.
John Ross (WR – CIN) had a big Week 1 but don’t count on many more.
There is always one fantasy performance that sticks out like a sore thumb from Week 1. Last season we saw Randall Cobb have 29.2 PPR points with 143 receiving yards — Cobb didn’t go over 45 yards in any other game he played last season. In 2017, Jesse James had 22.1 PPR points with two touchdowns – James scored only one more touchdown the rest of the year. My nominee for this year is going to John Ross. Ross had 210 yards in his career before posting 158 yards and two touchdowns in Week 1. With no A.J. Green for the first few weeks, Ross could get more work but I can’t see Ross staying healthy for a full season to be worthy of a pickup.
Browns’ offense wasn’t worth the hype-yet.
There was no team that was getting more hype this offseason than the Cleveland Browns. The pairing of Odell Beckham Jr with Baker Mayfield gave promise to a fan base that hasn’t seen the playoffs since 2002. Hopes were so high that Brown’s fans were getting tattoos of Super Bowl LIV Champs.
On Sunday, the Tennessee Titans might have deflated some of those high aspirations for the Browns this season. Baker Mayfield wasn’t sharp in throwing three interceptions — he was being drafted as QB5 in drafts this season. If he is going to live up to his high ADP, Mayfield and the Browns will need to turn it around. His number one target, Odell Beckham, had seven receptions for 75 yards. With no rhythm on offense, Beckham, Mayfield, and any other offensive player on the Browns were held in check.
This team is still too talented to post mediocre fantasy numbers each week from their start offensive players. I am going to chalk up the Brown’s Week 1 blowout to first-game jitters. They should get back on track next week at the Jets.
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Kevin O’Connor is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Kevin, check out his archive and follow him on Twitter @22kconnor.
