Fantasy Football Player Notes
Week 1 Rankings
18.
Jahmyr Gibbs
RB - (at KC)
Gibbs takes over the "D'Andre Swift role" in the offense. In this role, Swift ranked sixth in target share and 19th in route participation among running backs last season. This occurred while also mentioning that Swift bounced between the injury report and the Detroit dog house last season. Gibbs could surpass both numbers in his rookie season while also seeing some work on early downs. He's an explosive receiver, ranking in the top ten yards per route run and receiving grade in each of his final three collegiate seasons (minimum 20 targets). Kansas City was putrid against receiving backs last season, allowed the most receptions to the position, the fourth-most receiving yards, and the seventh-most receiving touchdowns (tied). Gibbs is a strong RB2 this week with RB1 upside (especially in PPR formats).
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25.
Amon-Ra St. Brown
WR - (at KC)
St. Brown was a beast last season, finishing as the WR10 in fantasy points per game. He drew a 28.1% target share (11th-best) while leading all receivers in red zone targets after Week 9 last year. Last season, Kansas City was crushed by slot receivers, allowing the sixth-most receptions per game and the eighth-most fantasy points per game to slots. The Chiefs also permitted the 13th-highest missed tackles allowed per reception last year. St. Brown was tied for 21st in missed tackles forced among wide receivers in 2022. St. Brown is a WR1 who will run about 59% of his routes against Trent McDuffie, who gave up a 67.8% catch rate and 94.3 passer rating in slot coverage last season.
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27.
David Montgomery
RB - (at KC)
Montgomery takes over Detroit's early down hammer role this season for Jamaal Williams. Montgomery was an elite tackle-breaker last season, but sadly, it didn't do him much good. He was first in missed tackles forced per attempt but also finished with the lowest explosive run rate in the NFL (per Fantasy Points Data). Montgomery is a spinning top as he never goes down, but sadly, he never advances far upfield. Montgomery will have weeks where he finishes with RB1/2 stat lines, but this probably isn't one of them. It helps his cause that Chris Jones is likely out, and Carlos Dunlap is gone, though. Each player ranked inside the top 70 highest-graded run defenders in the NFL (among 264 qualifying players), with Jones finishing seventh and Dunlap coming in at 67th. Williams was utilized on gap runs with 57.3% of his carries last season. If Montgomery receives similar usage, he'll have uphill sledding. Last season, the Chiefs allowed the 12th-lowest yards after contact overall, the 12th-lowest success rate on gap runs, and the sixth-fewest rushing touchdowns. Montgomery is a volume-driven low-end RB2/high-end RB3.
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115.
Donovan Peoples-Jones
WR - (at KC)
DPJ had a career-best 61 catches for 839 yards and three touchdowns last season, but he wasn't an impactful fantasy asset. It's hard to see People-Jones becoming impactful now that the Browns have added Elijah Moore. For now, DPJ is merely a depth piece for fantasy managers.
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125.
Sam LaPorta
TE - (at KC)
Sammy Ballgame could have people deleting their "rookie tight ends never produce" tweets immediately in Week 1. Ballgame was a beast in college, ranking seventh in yards per route run and sixth in receiving grade in his final collegiate season. He lined up in the slot or out wide on 50.6% of his snaps, which makes him a perfect fit for T.J. Hockenson's old role. Last year with the Lions, Hockenson spent 54.5% of his snaps in the slot or as a perimeter wide receiver. Ballgame is a monster after the catch, ranking third in YAC and second in missed tackles forced last year among tight ends. Ballgame should have a field day against a defense with the 13th-highest missed tackles allowed rate last year while also giving up the tenth-highest yards per reception and MOST fantasy points in the NFL to slot tight ends. LaPorta is a TE2 that could post strong TE1 numbers in Week 1.
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154.
Josh Reynolds
WR - (at KC)
Even in the deepest of formats, Reynolds is barely even on the flex radar. He finished outside the top 80 receivers last season in target share (12.1%, 81st) and target per route run rate (16.4%, 84th). If you're touchdown hunting in those deep leagues, though, he isn't the worst target to plug in. In the eight games he played at least 70% of the snaps, Reynolds saw ten red zone targets from Goff. The Chiefs gave up the third-most receiving touchdowns to wide receivers last year. Reynolds will run about 63% of his routes against Jaylen Watson (65.9% catch rate, 93.4 passer rating allowed in 2022) and L'Jarius Sneed (70.5% catch rate, 91.6 passer rating allowed in 2022).
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219.
Kalif Raymond
WR - (at KC)
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222.
Zonovan Knight
RB - (at KC)
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255.
Brock Wright
TE - (at KC)
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301.
James Mitchell
TE - (at KC)
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311.
Jake Funk
RB - (at KC)
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314.
Craig Reynolds
RB - (at KC)
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331.
Antoine Green
WR - (at KC)
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414.
Daurice Fountain
WR - (at KC)
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426.
Shane Zylstra
TE - (at KC)
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431.
Maurice Alexander
WR - (at KC)
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