Fantasy fans will keep a close eye on today’s Packers-Vikings division rivalry game (1 p.m., FOX), yours truly included. I’m heavily invested, with Kirk Cousins, Davante Adams and Stefon Diggs all in my starting lineup. Aaron Rodgers will play after injuring his knee against the Bears, meaning I expect a closely contested game. You didn’t draft Rodgers to sit on your bench, so don’t even think about it.
Bank On
Running Back
Adrian Peterson, Washington: He should see heavy usage against the Colts, who gave up the 11th most points to running backs last season and just let Joe Mixon run for 95 yards and a touchdown. Peterson remains a volume-based play but seems pretty spry for a 33-year-old. He’ll again see 20-plus carries and a few targets.
Lamar Miller, Houston: Miller may not be exciting but dang it he’s consistent. He’s another back who is almost a lock for around 20 carries and is occasionally targeted in the passing game. The Titans were an effective run defense last season, but Kenyan Drake and Frank Gore combined for over 100 yards rushing against them in Week 1. There’s room for Miller to run.
Wide Receiver
Jarvis Landry, Cleveland: He gets an upgrade with news that the team is releasing Josh Gordon. Three Bucs receivers scored against the Saints in Week 1 and I expect that trend to continue here. Landry (7-106-0) saw a whopping 15 targets from quarterback Tyrod Taylor against Pittsburgh while the next most-targeted receiver (goodbye Gordon) had three. Can you say target hog? Landry will feast against the Saints, whose defense has yet to gel after being the most improved unit in 2017.
Emmanuel Sanders, Denver: He sure looked like new quarterback Case Keenum’s favorite target, torching the Seattle secondary to the tune of 10-135-1. Now he faces the Raiders, who couldn’t put any pressure on Jared Goff (233 pass yards, two TDs) after trading Khalil Mack to the Bears. Keenum will have time to throw and Sanders will benefit greatly.
Tight End
Jared Cook, Oakland: He’s the ultimate boom-or-bust tight end, but he sure boomed against the Rams (9-180-0). Cook is simply not going to score that amount of fantasy points on a consistent basis, but his draw of the Denver defense is a sweet one. The Broncos gave up the fourth-most points to tight ends last season, and Seattle rookie Will Dissly (3-105-1) led the team in receiving against them in Week 1.
Quarterback
Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco: While he suffered the first loss of his career as a starting QB against the Vikings, I fully expect Garoppolo to rebound against Detroit. The Lions were just carved up by Sam Darnold in his NFL debut, and the Niners will be hungry for a win in their first home game. If Jimmy G let you down in Week 1 fear not, you’ll be happy with his numbers this week.
D/ST
New York Jets: What the Jets did to Matthew Stafford and the Lions was brutal. They recorded five interceptions including one for a touchdown and seemed to anticipate the Lions every move. I don’t have much confidence in the Miami offense and expect another solid showing from the Jets defense, which is widely available on the waiver wire after finishing Week 1 as the top scoring fantasy D/ST.
Bench
Running Back
Jamal Williams, Green Bay: Is Aaron Jones back from suspension yet? Williams was just a guy against Chicago, rushing 15 times for 47 yards (3.1 yards per carry) and catching zero passes. Now he draws the Vikings, who boasted the least fantasy points allowed to opposing backs last season. No thank you.
Derrick Henry, Tennessee: If you drafted him as your RB2 he wrecked your team last week. In his defense Henry was game-scripted out of that one, but he averaged only 2.6 YPC and was outplayed in all aspects by counterpart Dion Lewis. The Titans will probably be playing catchup again, and with Houston’s tough run defense, I’m out on Henry.
Wide Receiver
Randall Cobb, Green Bay: Aaron Rodgers is far from 100 percent and Minnesota is coming to town. While Davante Adams will probably draw shadow coverage from star cornerback Xavier Rhodes, this still isn’t a game in which I like Cobb. In his last three games against the Vikings he’s averaged only 30 receiving yards.
Chris Hogan, New England: Featured as a Bank On play last week, Hogan deeply disappointed owners while managing only one catch for 11 yards on five targets. The current version of the Patriots offense seems more suited for Gronk and not Hogan. For a guy who’s supposed to be the team’s top receiver, five targets just doesn’t cut it. Travelling to Jacksonville to face the league’s best pass defense doesn’t help either. The last time these teams met in the AFC Championship game, Hogan tallied 20 yards on two receptions.
Tight End
David Njoku, Cleveland: The Saints held opposing tight ends to under 10 fantasy points last season, finishing second-best against the position while giving up six TDs. In Week 1, the Bucs’ O.J. Howard managed two catches for 54 yards, but counterpart Cameron Brate posted a bagel. It will be tough sledding for Njoku, who’ll unfortunately need a touchdown to be fantasy relevant.
Quarterback
Matt Ryan, Atlanta: The Falcons can’t get one of the NFL’s best receivers the ball in the red zone. That’s a huge problem. Whether that’s on Ryan or offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian matters not, but it was on full display in Week 1. Ryan threw as many TD passes as I did, added an interception and failed to top 10 fantasy points. He’s not going to fare much better against the Panthers, who stymied Dak Prescott last week.
D/ST
Seattle: The Seahawks defense and the Bears offense are trending in opposite directions, and I prefer Chicago’s upswing. Mitch Trubisky has an array of weapons and he displayed poise and good decision-making in Week 1. Emmanuel Sanders just cooked Seattle’s secondary, and I expect the Seahawks to have a tough time bottling up Chicago.
