Week 1 NFL Recap & Week 2 Fantasy Football Prep

Alas. the NFL season is finally underway, and Week One had no shortage of excitement. There were some highly entertaining finishes (particularly in Pittsburgh and Atlanta), surprising stat lines, upsets, and unfortunately, injuries. It’s that last little tidbit that is the most concerning for fantasy owners, but let’s start somewhere a little more positive.

This piece was written before last night's Monday Night Football games, so it covers all the NFL games and action except Lions vs. Giants and Chargers vs. Cardinals.

Fantasy Football Impact Players: Week 1 NFL Recap

The biggest stars of the week were undoubtedly Marshawn Lynch, Matt Ryan and Julius Thomas. Lynch showed that despite his age and the fear of other running backs on the team diminishing his touches, he could still put up monster numbers. 28 doesn’t exactly make you a senior citizen, but in the NFL that’s up there for a running back. Lynch’s 110 yards and two touchdowns were a huge part of the Seahawks win over the Packers on Thursday’s season opener.

Despite the monster game, the concerns about Lynch’s role going forward should still carry some weight. Hyped-up sleeper Christine Michael had been the biggest presumed threat to Lynch’s touches, but he ended up missing the game with a hamstring injury. We’ll have a better understanding of how the Seahawks intend to use their running backs once Michael returns to the lineup, so for now Robert Turbin remains the sole potential vulture to Lynch’s touches.

Matt Ryan threw for 448 yards and three touchdowns in an overtime win over the New Orleans Saints, showing that the Atlanta offense is indeed poised for a huge bounceback season. It certainly helps that Ryan now has both of his main two weapons fully healthy in Julio Jones and Roddy White. Chances are if you have Matt Ryan on your roster, you were able to draft him at a great value, but don’t be afraid to roll with him as your starter for the year. Sure, it’s just one game, but it should prove to be a good omen for what’s to come in Atlanta.

Out of the top three performances, the one that has the smallest chance for repeatability is that of Julius Thomas. It’s an enormous feat to catch three touchdowns in one game, so don’t expect that to occur every week. That said, anyone in the Denver offense has a chance to blow up on any given week, especially considering the amount of total scoring they do. Thomas might not have another three-touchdown game, but going over 100 yards with a TD should be easy to come by. Thomas has had health issues in the past, however, which could flare up again.

Injuries stink. We’re all aware of this, and unfortunately there were a few on Sunday. Both Ben Tate and Jordan Cameron exited Cleveland’s almost-sorta-kinda-not-really comeback against the Steelers. Tate, who has been known to be fairly fragile during his time in Houston, left with an undisclosed knee injury, while Cameron aggravated an old shoulder injury.

The status and severity of both injuries is unknown at the moment, but should either guy miss any time, names like Terrance West, Andrew Hawkins and Miles Austin immediately become more relevant. West was a sneaky sleeper during the summer, but he was mostly regarded as insurance on Ben Tate’s health. As for Hawkins and Austin, both receivers will see their targets increase if Cameron’s injury lingers. After all, the Browns have to throw to someone, don’t they? Unless they put Johnny Football in at… no, no, we’re not even going to go there.

Fantasy Football Injury Updates: Week 1 NFL Recap

• Cam Newton was held out of Carolina’s game against the Buccaneers, but he should be good to go in Week Two. He might start the season slow, but he’ll ultimately end up being the Cam Newton we’ve grown accustomed to.
• Doug Martin appeared to be hobbled by a knee injury that resulted in him coming in and out of that very same Panthers/Bucs contest. It would appear the injury isn’t something he can’t play through, but he may be limited during games going forward until it fully heals.
• The Bears were cautious about Alshon Jeffery returning to the game after suffering a hamstring injury, but it doesn’t appear to be anything that would have him miss time. It’s unfortunate that fantasy owners were without Jeffery during the fourth quarter and overtime, but at least he managed to dodge a major injury.
• A pair of tight ends exited their respective games, with Jordan Reed of the Redskins exiting due to a hamstring injury and Tyler Eifert of the Bengals dislocating his elbow. Both players are expected to miss some time, although the length of each is currently unclear. In the case of Eifert, Jermaine Gresham immediately becomes a noteworthy add if you’re searching for a tight end. Logan Paulsen should step in for Jordan Reed, but that doesn’t exactly scream fantasy goodness.

As for the games themselves, for the most part fantasy superstars excelled with a few duds here and there. It’s Week One, so don’t panic too much just yet. There’s plenty of time for your studs to show up.

Packers @ Seahawks

Settle down Aaron Rodgers owners, it’s just one game. Also, it was against Seattle IN Seattle-- the toughest defense in the toughest building. He’ll be fine. Hopefully you didn’t panic on Randall Cobb and left him in your lineup. Jordy Nelson’s day will come; it’s just tough getting everyone involved against the Seahawks. Eddie Lacy left this game with a concussion and concussions are tricky. You never know how long they can linger, so hopefully the longer week gives him enough time to rest up.

Browns @ Steelers

Does your league let you put position players in your kicker slot? Do you happen to get points for when a player on your team karates someone’s head into Wednesday? Then hopefully you had Antonio Brown this week who nearly decapitated Cleveland punter Spencer Lanning in the kick heard around the world. It was a hilarious play that will probably result in a fine, but it had no impact on Antonio’s 115 yards and a touchdown. He’s a stud and lock to be a top 10 receiver on the year.

Saints @ Falcons

We already covered Matt Ryan’s big day, which meant nice showings from both Julio Jones and Roddy White. On the Saints side of things, Drew Brees had an “okay” game in terms of what we’ve come to expect out of him. Much like Aaron Rodgers, he’ll be totally fine long term, so don’t sweat it. The much-discussed breakout of Brandin Cooks began in Week One, which is good news for anyone who jumped on the bandwagon for him as a sleeper. Hopefully Cooks is the real deal and isn’t just one of those Saints receivers who pops week to week.

Vikings @ Rams

For whatever reason, the Rams were favored in this game, yet they ended up getting obliterated by the Vikings 34-6. The only true takeaway from this game was that the Vikings showed they are willing to get Cordarrelle Patterson the ball any way they can, as evidenced by his rushing touchdown. That’s a huge sign that this will the year he emerges as a legitimate fantasy wide receiver.

Jaguars @ Eagles

This game was just straight-up bizarre. Raise your hand if you started Allen Hurns. Better yet, raise your hand if he was even on your roster. Actually, just raise your hand if you’ve ever even HEARD of Allen Hurns. My guess is most people haven’t, which is exactly why his huge 110-yard performance was such a shock. Cecil Shorts was out, so many assumed that would elevate Marqise Lee, but it was Hurns who was the benefactor. Hurns is worth adding in deeper leagues, but don’t go crazy just yet.

Remember that big year Kevin Ogeltree had after torching the Giants in the opening game a few years back? Of course you don’t, because it didn't happen.  Nick Foles had three turnovers in what ended up being a comeback victory for Philadelphia. Foles managed to finish the day with 322 yards and two touchdowns, but the turnovers are troublesome for a guy who practically never threw a pick last year. Toby Gerhart left this game with an ankle injury, but managed to return so that shouldn’t be a problem going forward. Oh yea, and LeSean McCoy. He’s good.

Raiders @ Jets

In what could be regarded as the most fantasy-irrelevant game on Sunday, Jets running back Chris Ivory amassed 102 yards with a touchdown in a victory over Oakland. It's widely expected that Chris Johnson and Chris Ivory will split the workload for the Jets, so I’m sure there will be weeks their performances are swapped. I wouldn’t boost Ivory up too much more, but it’s nice to see he’ll be useful going forward.

Bengals @ Ravens

The news that Ray Rice had been cut and suspended indefinitely came out while I was writing this, so that’s convenient. Bernard Pierce looked pretty bad in the Ravens loss to the Bengals, so the team intends to start Justin Forsett going forward. It’s likely this will end up being a running back by committee and a name floating around out there has been Lorenzo Taliaferro.

In the words of a good friend of mine, “What’s a Lorenzo Taliaferro?” Just because you've never heard of him doesn’t mean he’s useless, folks. He’s probably not addable in a standard 10-team league the way Forsett automatically is, but he’s worth keeping an eye on for deeper leagues until there’s some more clarity on Baltimore’s running back situation.

Bills @ Bears

This was easily the most surprising outcome of the weekend, with the Bills upsetting the Bears in Chicago. It certainly doesn’t help when your quarterback throws two picks (I’m looking at you Jay Cutler) but luckily all the main fantasy players on the Bears performed well enough. Brandon Marshall, Alshon Jeffery, Martellus Bennett and Matt Forte all had solid enough days and the touchdowns will come at one point or another.

The Bills are kind of a fantasy mess. I’ve been yammering about my preference of Fred Jackson over C.J. Spiller for about three years now and that was proven right again yesterday. Jackson was the one who broke out a nice 38 yard run, bumping his yards-per-carry up to 8.7. Spiller, on the other hand, received more touches and did less with them for a much lower 3.5 YPC. This is going to continue to be a timeshare so get used to seeing stat lines like that.

Redskins @ Texans

There isn’t really much to be said about this game fantasy wise outside of the whopping 27 carries Arian Foster had. It’s nice to see that the Texans will still lean heavily on the oft-injured Foster, so make sure you have his handcuff in Alfred Blue. This was a low scoring affair that saw Pierre Garcon lead the Redskins in targets with 12, which shouldn’t come as shock. DeSean Jackson is a big-play guy who isn’t volume dependent. Garcon will get more looks from Robert Griffin III, whereas you’re just hoping for one big play out of Jackson. That’s totally fine, just be aware of who’s who in that offense.

Titans @ Chiefs

Somehow Andy Reid managed to not give the ball to Jamaal Charles in this game. Charles only rushed seven times, as the Chiefs were fairly pass-happy in this game. Don’t fret just yet; Charles will get his if Andy Reid wants to keep his job. For Tennessee, it looks as if Justin Hunter really will be a thing this season as he led the team in targets. He didn’t have a huge game or anything but it’s reassuring to see Jake Locker look for him on the field. Lastly, let’s pump the breaks on the Bishop Sankey love.

Say what you want about Shonn Greene’s talent but the man had 15 carries yesterday. He’s not going away. Sankey only managed to get six carries, third behind Greene and McCluster. Perhaps Sankey ends up winning this job to himself by outperforming the other two guys but until that happens it would appear Greene is actually the starter. I can’t imagine he’d be available in your league but if everyone was trigger happy on Sankey, snatch up Greene if he’s somehow still available.

Patriots @ Dolphins

In another upset, the Miami Dolphins took down the New England Patriots in Miami on the heels of a big performance from Knowshon Moreno. Moreno had 134 yards on a whopping 24 carries compared to Lamar Miller’s 11. Maybe not a running back by committee after all? Too early to tell but for now it would appear Moreno is the main guy. Rob Gronkowski did indeed play in this game and led the Patriots in targets with 11. Hopefully this is finally the year he’s able to stay on the field for all 16 games. Julian Edelman had a nice day here too with 95 yards on six receptions and as expected, the Patriots used both Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley interchangeably in the backfield.

Panthers @ Buccaneers

With Cam Newton out, backup Derek Anderson managed to lead the Panthers to victory over Tampa Bay. Despite Cam missing this game, not much changed in terms of the Carolina gameplan. Kelvin Benjamin was expected to be the number one receiver and he proved it with his 92 yard performance. Tight end Greg Olsen led the team in targets, however, and should be viewed as the Panthers’ primary passing option.

Not much to report on the Buccaneers other than Doug Martin being completely ineffective while he was in the game. I was never high on Martin myself and his astoundingly low nine yards on nine carries isn’t going to do him any favors. The Bucs struggled on offense throughout so it’ll be interesting to see how they bounce back next week when they host the St. Louis Rams.

49ers @ Cowboys

The Romocoaster rode on in Dallas as Tony Romo threw three interceptions in the Cowboys loss to San Francisco. DeMarco Murray managed to rack up 118 yards and a touchdown against a not nearly as potent 49er defense. With Michael Crabtree hobbled, Anquan Boldin stepped up to lead the team in targets while Frank Gore might be beginning to show his age. Rookie running back Carlos Hyde was much more effective while he was in the game so don’t be surprised if this becomes closer to a running back by committee. It wouldn’t shock me to see Hyde end up as a viable flex option as the year progresses.

Colts @ Broncos - Sunday Night Football

I think the Colts decided to give Trent Richardson a chance to get himself going and then immediately realized he’s still not very good. With just 20 yards on six attempts, Richardson still hasn’t found himself after his big rookie season. Ahmad Bradshaw becomes a must-own if he’s not owned already. It was nice to see Reggie Wayne back on the field after tearing his ACL last year, and he managed to just miss a 100 yard day with 98. He’s still the number one receiver on the team and T.Y. Hilton continues to be slightly overrated.

Montee Ball proved to be the workhouse many were expecting him to be in Denver with his 23 rushing attempts. The Broncos share the football extensively so there will be weeks where one guy goes off while the others are kind of just there. Such is the case with Julius Thomas versus Demaryius Thomas. Demaryius will be fine so don’t panic. The most important part of this game was the vote of confidence in Montee Ball being the full time starting running back.