Each and every week, I’ll be covering a handful of players that I believe will either exceed expectations or let your team down in a major way. Here’s who you should be looking at for Week 3.
Starts: Quarterbacks
Gardner Minshew, Jaguars vs. Dolphins
I’ve determined that Gardner Minshew is good at football. He completed 95% of his passes in Week 1, and he’s thrown for 3 TDs in back-to-back games. Now he’s up against a Dolphins defense that just allowed Josh Allen to throw for over 400 yards and 4 TDs. Roll out Minshew as a QB1 this week.
Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers vs. Texans
The Steelers were surprisingly pass-heavy against the Broncos in Week 2, and Big Ben played well, completing 70% of his passes and throwing for over 300 yards. This week, he’s got a favorable home matchup against the Texans. They’ve got an exploitable secondary and a competitive offense on the other side that should keep the game close.
Starts: Running Backs
Kenyan Drake, Cardinals vs. Lions
Drake hasn’t posted huge point totals early in the season, but don’t be discouraged. He’s averaging 20 touches per game in a highly potent offense–the big games will come. I’m confident that Drake’s high-volume role will yield more favorable results against the Lions, who allowed nearly 250 total yards to Aaron Jones last week on just 22 touches.
Joshua Kelley, Chargers vs. Panthers
Just two weeks into his rookie season, Joshua Kelley is commanding a massive opportunity share in the Chargers’ offense. He touched the ball 25 times against the Chiefs in a highly competitive matchup. While he wasn’t particularly efficient with his opportunities, you have to be encouraged by the volume and trust he’s earned so quickly. If Kelley continues to split the workload with Austin Ekeler, he could really break out against the Panthers’ porous defense.
Leonard Fournette, Buccaneers @ Broncos
Well, it didn’t take long for Leonard Fournette to leapfrog Ronald Jones on the depth chart. Against the Panthers in Week 2, Fournette recorded 12 rushes for 103 yards and 2 TDs and added 4 catches for 13 yards through the air. While the matchup was incredibly favorable, we should still recognize a clear changing of the guard in Tampa Bay. As the lead back in an explosive offense, Leonard Fournette deserves a spot in your starting lineup, even against a tougher Broncos’ defense.
Devin Singletary, Bills vs. Rams
Singletary hasn’t been particularly impressive to start the season, but he did command 59% of the RB opportunities in Week 2. He’s been more efficient than rookie Zack Moss, and he’s been the main pass-catching back. I think this week, in a competitive matchup against the Rams, we could see a bounce-back from Singletary. So far, the Rams have allowed opposing RBs to average 4.5 YPC, and a neutral or negative game script could lead to more looks in the passing game.
Starts: Wide Receivers
Michael Gallup, Cowboys vs. Seahawks
Two games played, two duds for Michael Gallup. But you can’t give up on the third-year receiver just yet. He’s playing over 90% of the snaps on a prolific offense and receiving targets down the field. I won’t be surprised at all if Gallup finally puts it all together and posts a huge game this week against the Seahawks’ struggling secondary in what should be a high-scoring affair.
Allen Robinson, Bears @ Falcons
Apparently, this article is just an apology tour for players who have underperformed. Through two games, Allen Robinson has not been the player you drafted him to be. However, he is easily Mitchell Trubisky’s top target, commanding a 28% target share in the Bears’ offense. Against the Falcons, who have already allowed four WRs to top 90 receiving yards this season, we could see Allen Robinson truly take over.
Tyler Boyd, Bengals @ Eagles
Tyler Boyd posted a solid stat line in Week 2 with 7 receptions for 72 yards and a TD. However, the totals are deceptive when you consider that Joe Burrow threw the ball 61 times. The truth is that Boyd hasn’t been terribly involved in the Bengals’ offense thus far. However, he could be a focal point in this week’s matchup against the Eagles, who just allowed a big performance to Cooper Kupp, another slot receiver. If Joe Mixon struggles to find running lanes, and A.J. Green continues to be inefficient, Burrow may turn to Boyd out of necessity.
DeSean Jackson, Eagles vs. Bengals
Through two weeks, DJax hasn’t demonstrated the same penchant for big plays that he’s been known for throughout his career. However, we could finally see a breakout game from Jackson this week against the Bengals. He was already averaging 8 targets per game and, with Jalen Reagor set to miss significant time, he’s only going to be more involved moving forward. Plus, the Bengals’ secondary has been exploited by downfield WR threats in back-to-back games–Mike Williams in Week 1 and Odell Beckham Jr. in Week 2.
Starts: Tight Ends
Logan Thomas, Washington @ Browns
With 15 targets in two games, Logan Thomas has cemented himself as the number two option in Washington’s offense, behind Terry McLaurin. Admittedly, Washington’s offense isn’t very good. But all of those opportunities will turn into fantasy points sooner or later, and the Browns are notoriously bad at guarding TEs. Fire up Thomas again in Week 3.
Jonnu Smith, Titans @ Vikings
Jonnu Smith appears to be a focal point in the Titans’ offense. He’s commanding nearly an 18% target share, and he’s accounted for 3 of Ryan Tannehill’s 6 TD passes thus far. With A.J. Brown trending toward another missed game, Jonnu is an easy start against the Vikings’ struggling defense.
Sits: Quarterbacks
Teddy Bridgewater, Panthers @ Chargers
The Carolina offense has been a little underwhelming thus far. Teddy Bridgewater followed up a quiet Week 1 (269 yards, 1 TD) with an erratic Week 2 performance. Teddy turned the ball over three times against the Buccaneers. He racked up 367 yards in a desperate comeback attempt, but didn’t throw any TDs. With Christian McCaffrey out, I can’t justify starting Teddy in a tough matchup against the Broncos.
Daniel Jones, Giants vs. 49ers
It’s been a rough start to the season for 2nd-year QB Daniel Jones. In his defense, he has been up against two of the NFL’s best defenses, the Steelers and Bears. But the schedule doesn’t get any easier in Week 3. While the 49ers will be without a few of their defensive stars, they’ve still got enough talent to shut down a Giants’ offense that will be without Saquon Barkley and Sterling Shepard. Look elsewhere this week.
Sits: Running Backs
Melvin Gordon, Broncos vs. Buccaneers
Putting Melvin Gordon on the bench won’t be easy. He’s seeing a lot of volume, and the offense may have to rely on him even more with Drew Lock, Courtland Sutton, and Phillip Lindsay out of the lineup. However, the Buccaneers have held Alvin Kamara to 1.3 YPC and Christian McCaffrey to 3.3 in consecutive weeks. If Gordon doesn’t get in the end zone, you are going to be disappointed.
Mike Davis, Panthers @ Chargers
If you were able to snag Mike Davis from the waiver wire, you’re likely eager to plug him directly into your starting lineup, but he’s not really in a position to succeed this week. The Chargers significantly limited Joe Mixon and Clyde Edwards-Helaire in Weeks 1 and 2, so they should have no trouble bottling up Mike Davis and shutting down the Panthers’ sputtering offense.
Devonta Freeman and Dion Lewis, Giants vs. 49ers
With the addition of Devonta Freeman, the backfield situation in New York is a total mess. We don’t know how the touches will shake out between Freeman, Dion Lewis, and Wayne Gallman, and the offense isn’t going to put up many points. Don’t play them against the 49ers’ ferocious defense.
Sits: Wide Receivers
Robby Anderson, Panthers @ Chargers
I’ll admit that Robby Anderson has been far better on his new team than I expected. But this week, with an incredibly tough matchup against the Chargers’ secondary, Anderson could disappoint fantasy owners. The offense as a whole took a massive blow when Christian McCaffrey suffered an ankle injury, and Teddy Bridgewater hasn’t played particularly well despite Anderson’s impressive back-to-back performances. I would look elsewhere this week.
Jerry Jeudy, Broncos vs. Buccaneers
Everyone is anxious to see what rookie Jerry Jeudy can do now that Courtland Sutton is done for the year with an unfortunate knee injury. Jeudy is an incredibly talented route runner, but when it comes to fantasy production, I’d rather wait and see. He’ll have to deal with Jeff Driskel at QB, and he’s up against a Buccaneers’ secondary that shut down the Saints’ WRs in Week 1 and severely limited the Panthers until they went into prevent mode in the 4th quarter.
Corey Davis, Titans @ Vikings
After such a strong start to the season, you might be surprised to see Davis’ name in the “Sit” column. Davis has a soft matchup against the Vikings, and A.J. Brown is likely to sit the contest out. So, what gives? Well, I was a little concerned by Davis’ involvement in the team’s Week 2 win over the Jaguars. He was bailed out by a TD, but he hauled in just 3 receptions for 36 yards. Last week, we saw a similarly built team in the Colts’ blow out of the Vikings. They ran the ball 36 times, and their leading receiver had just 37 yards. We could see a similar game-flow in this one.
Sits: Tight Ends
Austin Hooper, Browns vs. Washington
You likely weren’t planning to play Hooper after his first couple performances, but I’ll just go ahead and make the decision for you. Don’t start him. With just 4 receptions and 39 yards in two games, he’s not the player you drafted him to be. For context, I would gladly start Drew Sample or Dalton Schultz over him this week.
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