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Welcome to Week 2 RotoBallers! After some players sent fantasy managers into an early panic after disappointing performances in Week 1 (Najee Harris and Aaron Jones), we need to realize that it is still early and these poor performances aren't as meaningful as one may think.
Heading into the second week of action, it is still early for fantasy managers to get a real grasp on how good or bad their team is for the 2022 campaign.
Here are some players I think will be in for a tough game in Week 2 and could disappoint their fantasy managers.
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Should I Start Ryan Tannehill In Week 2?
Tannehill gets a nightmare matchup on the road against the Bills on Monday Night Football this week. In 2021, the Bills allowed the fewest passing yards and fewest passing touchdowns in the NFL. They followed this up in Week 1 by picking off Matt Stafford three times and allowing just one touchdown pass on 240 passing yards.
Given that the Tennessee offense could rely heavily on the run in this one, Tannehill is an easy fade in fantasy lineups for Week 1. In last year’s meeting with Buffalo, Tannehill had a miserable game for fantasy managers as he completed 18-of-29 passes for 216 yards with no touchdowns and an interception.
Not to mention, that was with A.J. Brown and Julio Jones as his wide receivers. Treylon Burks and Kyle Phillips are talented players, but it doesn't seem like a good enough supporting cast that uplifts the fantasy value of Tannehill.
Even in two-QB or Superflex formats, there are likely better options than Tannehill this week. Some players I prefer are Justin Fields, Matt Ryan, and Carson Wentz. Despite a solid Week 1 performance, the former Miami Dolphin should find himself on the bench of fantasy rosters in Week 2.
Should I Start James Robinson In Week 2?
Robinson came out of the gates flying in his return from an Achilles tear against the Commanders in Week 1. The third-year stud carried the ball 11 times for 66 yards and a touchdown and added another score through the air to cap off an extremely productive game.
Now, he’ll face a stout Colts run defense that allowed just 73 rushing yards to the Houston Texans duo on 25 attempts in Week 1. Going back to the 2021 season, the Colts were a top-10 unit against the run in terms of total yardage.
Despite a pretty neutral game script in Week 1, Robinson only got 12 touches but out-touched Travis Etienne Jr. by double (12-6). The potential negative game script for the Jaguars in this one could be detrimental to Robinson, as we could see Etienne be relied on more because of his stellar pass-catching ability out of the backfield.
James Robinson, 8.5 removed from an Achilles tear, was the #Jaguars base back Week 1:
* James Robinson 34 snaps, 17 routes, 11 carries, 2 targets
* Travis Etienne 36 snaps, 24 routes, 4 carries, 4 targets— Adam Levitan (@adamlevitan) September 12, 2022
If Robinson is in the range of 12 touches once again against a solid Colts run defense, fantasy managers could be in for a disappointing performance. The fact that he's returning from such a serious injury could also factor into his workload to start the season, meaning fantasy managers should be cautious with him this week.
The 24-year-old is a FLEX option at best in Week 2.
Should I Start Dameon Pierce In Week 2?
There was a lot of hype surrounding the rookie out of Florida when Marlon Mack was released, but in Week 1 fantasy managers were disappointed when Rex Burkhead had a more prominent role. He out-touched Pierce 19-to-12, much to the surprise of a lot of people.
Texans head coach Lovie Smith made it known that they need to get Pierce the ball more moving forward, but a tough matchup on the road in Denver could limit his production once again.
Rashaad Penny rushed 12 times for 60 yards on the Broncos in Week 1 as their defense didn't look all that impressive. However, that was in a positive game script for Penny and the Seahawks, which doesn't seem likely to happen for the Texans in Week 2.
Pierce averaged just 3.0 yards per carry in his debut, so any sort of limited volume is going to be detrimental to his fantasy outlook. It is safe to say the Texans will be playing from behind in this one, as Russell Wilson and company should be on their A-game after a poor performance to start the season.
Pierce can be valued as a low-end FLEX option with a limited ceiling this week.
People who drafted Dameon Pierce and Robert Woods trying to hype up their fantasy teams in Week 2: pic.twitter.com/A6lqePxnaC
— Ahaan Rungta (@AhaanRungta) September 13, 2022
Should I Start Brandin Cooks In Week 2
Cooks should be seeing a lot of Patrick Surtain II in this one, who just limited D.K. Metcalf to 36 yards on seven targets in Week 1. The speedster was able to command a lot of targets with Davis Mills under center in 2021, and he did just that in the season opener. Cooks caught seven of 12 targets for 82 yards in the 20-20 tie against the Colts.
He will likely need a ton of volume once again to be productive in this one, but throwing at Surtain a whole bunch doesn't seem like a good game plan for the Texans to have success.
Projected Week 2 WR/CB shadow matchups ?
Michael Thomas vs. Carlton Davis
Mike Evans vs. Marshon Lattimore
Brandin Cooks vs. Patrick Surtain II
CeeDee Lamb vs. Chidobe Awuzie
Ja'Marr Chase vs. Trevon Diggs
Rashod Bateman vs. Xavien Howard
A-Rob vs. A.J. Terrell(continued)
— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) September 14, 2022
Even if Cooks doesn't see Surtain on certain plays, the Broncos' secondary unit as a whole is impressive. They allowed the eighth-fewest passing yards and the fifth-fewest passing touchdowns in 2021.
The good news for fantasy managers is Cooks almost always produces strong fantasy numbers with a lot of targets, but in the games that he faced tough matchups last year (BUF, NE) he wasn't targeted much and posted some lackluster production for fantasy managers.
On seven targets against the Bills, he posted five catches for 47 yards, and on five targets against the Patriots, he posted three catches for 23 yards. In a tough matchup this week, there is reason to believe we could get a dud from Cooks.
He isn't a much-sit option, but fantasy managers should lower their expectations.
Should I Start Robert Woods In Week 2?
With Tannehill listed as one of my busts this week, this has a domino effect on Woods. Coming back from a torn ACL last season, Woods looked to be eased into action in Week 1. He caught just one pass on two targets for 13 yards, as both Kyle Phillips and Treylon Burks outproduced the veteran wide receiver.
Despite his workload potentially being ramped up, the Bills pose a nightmare matchup for quarterbacks and wide receivers, as they were the No. 1 pass defense last season and limited the Rams' passing attack to open up the 2022 campaign.
The Titans could rely heavily on Derrick Henry in this one, so the combination of low passing volume, competition for targets, and a bad matchup does nothing good for the outlook of Woods.
He should find himself on the bench in fantasy lineups this week.
Should I Start Pat Freiermuth In Week 2?
Freiermuth had a good performance to open the season as he caught five of 10 targets for 75 yards in Week 1. However, his longest play went for 31 yards which means he had four catches for 44 yards on the other nine targets he got.
I wouldn't rely too much on big plays like this from the 6-foot-5, 238-pounder, but that being said, his usage was very encouraging. However, the matchup with the Patriots in Week 2 is very worrisome for his fantasy outlook.
That tough Patriots defense allowed the second-fewest fantasy points to tight ends in 2021 and limited the Miami Dolphins tight end room to just two catches for 15 yards in Week 1.
If he is going to get the sort of volume we saw last Week once again, then fantasy managers don't need to be worried and he would become a must-start option every week.
However, Freiermuth didn't see 10+ targets in a single game last season, so his Week 1 performance could be somewhat of an outlier.
Concerning pass blocking numbers:
?Mo Alie-Cox - 22.2%
?Dawson Knox - 21.9%
?David Njoku - 21.1%
?Kyle Pitts - 20% ?
?Mike Gesicki - 15.8%
?TJ Hockenson - 15.8%
?Pat Freiermuth - 15.4%Need that number under 15%
(4/5)
— Andrew Cooper (@CoopAFiasco) September 13, 2022
With Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool, and George Pickens in the mix for targets, fantasy managers shouldn't have their expectations too high for the 23-year-old moving forward. The 23-year-old isn't a must-sit option but he is at best a mid-to-low-end TE1 option this week.
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