Skip to main content

Fantasy Football Studs & Duds: Week 1

Fantasy Football Studs & Duds: Week 1

The first NFL Sunday is in the books, so let’s take a moment to reflect on the good (Lamar Jackson), bad (Jameis Winston), and ugly (Miami Dolphins) from a fantasy football point of view. Take note that fantasy scores are listed in terms of half PPR scoring, and you can see the complete player results over at the nifty FantasyPros sortable results page.

Dominate your NFL football pools with TeamRankings (FREE TRIAL) »

STUDS

The Ravens Offense
We’ll start by giving proper acknowledgment to each of the individual players involved in Baltimore’s shellacking of Miami. Lamar Jackson finished with 33.6 FP to lead all quarterbacks on Sunday. His favorite target was rookie Marquise Brown, who came through as the fourth-best receiver with 28.4 FP. Mark Andrews ended up with 20.8 FP to check in near the top of the tight end standings, and there was enough room for Mark Ingram to get in on the action with 22.7 FP that translated to the sixth-best running back performance. Yes, the Ravens annihilated the Dolphins in Miami. 

Sammy Watkins (WR – KC): 42.3 FP
Patrick Mahomes was on fire, and Tyreek Hill ended up leaving the game, which boosted Sammy Watkins to the best fantasy performance of any player on Sunday. Who saw that coming, especially against a solid Jacksonville defense? This promotes the notion that Mahomes is matchup-proof, while Watkins will maintain fantasy viability (and then some) as long as he’s attached to the reigning MVP. 

Christian McCaffrey (RB – CAR): 37.9 FP
Christian McCaffrey was taken as the first-overall fantasy pick in several leagues, and he paid immediate dividends by registering the best fantasy showing of any running back, second overall to Watkins. Carolina quarterback Cam Newton was admittedly rusty (see ‘disappointments’ section), so McCaffrey had to prop up the entire offense with 128 rushing yards (two touchdowns) and 10 receptions for 81 yards receiving. 

Austin Ekeler (RB – LAC): 36.4 FP
Austin Ekeler was supposed to be in a 50/50 timeshare with Justin Jackson, but the former saw 18 total touches compared to seven for the latter. Ekeler was highly efficient with those opportunities, going 12-58 on the ground (one touchdown) while snagging six receptions for 96 yards and a pair of scores through the air. His profile is becoming more and more reminiscent of McCaffrey. 

DeSean Jackson (WR – PHI): 31.4
The 32-year-old turned back the clock in his first game since rejoining the Eagles. It was an all-around impressive performance, especially considering he roasted Washington CB Josh Norman for one of his two touchdowns. Needless to say, going back to Philadelphia was an excellent landing spot for D-Jax, and this could be a huge bounce-back season for the veteran (health permitting). 

OUT OF NOWHERE

John Ross (WR – CIN): 27.8 FP
D.J. Chark (WR – JAC): 22.6 FP
T.J. Hockenson (TE – DET): 22.1 FP
Terry McLaurin (WR – WAS): 21.0 FP

Of this group, I’m willing to believe that T.J. Hockenson has the most staying power. You don’t draft a tight end with the eighth-overall selection and ignore him in your gameplan. Hockenson snagged six of nine targets for 131 yards and a score in his NFL debut. Let’s keep in mind that Arizona’s secondary is a mess at the moment, but Hockenson offers substantial value based on his unique skillset. 

You should probably head over to the waiver wire and make a claim for Terry McLaurin. The rookie has a DeSean Jackson profile with 4.35 speed that stretches the field. Washington will be trailing a lot this season, potentially giving McLaurin more opportunities to produce stat-lines akin to his 5-125-1 performance on Sunday. 

DUDS

Nick Chubb (RB – CLE): 10.0 FP
James Conner (RB – PIT): 8.5 FP
Jameis Winston (QB – TB): 7.1 FP
Baker Mayfield (QB – CLE): 9.4 FP
Cam Newton (QB – CAR): 5.4 FP
Mike Evans (WR – TB): 3.8 FP 

Let’s just say that Cleveland had problems on offense in Week 1. Baker Mayfield, Nick Chubb, and Odell Beckham Jr. (10.6 FP) were all relative duds compared to their expectations. The most frustrating part came when Dontrell Hilliard scored a four-yard touchdown instead of Chubb getting a crack at it. The Browns’ trio should be fine moving forward, but they didn’t do much to help fantasy backers on Sunday. 

All of my Jameis Winston and Mike Evans DFS stacks went down the drain. The Tampa signal-caller looked shaky, and that may be an understatement. Winston threw three interceptions while going 20-for-36 for 194 yards. Evans fell into the background of this game, as he was battling an illness that seemed to impact his performance.

Analyze any potential deal with our Trade Analyzer partner-arrow

 


Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | TuneIn | RSS

Spencer Limbach is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Spencer, check out his archive and follow him @spencer_jl.

More Articles

18 Dynasty Players to Buy Low & Sell High (2024 Fantasy Football)

18 Dynasty Players to Buy Low & Sell High (2024 Fantasy Football)

fp-headshot by FantasyPros Staff | 7 min read
Dynasty Rookie Mock Draft: PPR (Fantasy Football 2024)

Dynasty Rookie Mock Draft: PPR (Fantasy Football 2024)

fp-headshot by Tom Strachan | 6 min read
Players I’m Already Sold on for 2024 (Fantasy Football)

Players I’m Already Sold on for 2024 (Fantasy Football)

fp-headshot by Tera Roberts | 2 min read
Best Ball Ideal Roster Construction & Strategy (2024 Fantasy Football)

Best Ball Ideal Roster Construction & Strategy (2024 Fantasy Football)

fp-headshot by Tom Strachan | 3 min read

About Author

Hide

Current Article

2 min read

18 Dynasty Players to Buy Low & Sell High (2024 Fantasy Football)

Next Up - 18 Dynasty Players to Buy Low & Sell High (2024 Fantasy Football)

Next Article