The highlight of every Week 2 of the NFL season is watching fantasy football owners and their dramatic overreaction of the week prior. Yes, its true the highlight of my tuesday mournings in early September is hearing the huff and puff of friends and coworkers tell me about how Aaron Rodgers is toast thanks to a poor offensive line, and how they spent too much on Jamaal Charles so now he’s on the trade block. While some things they say may be true to a certain degree, its always comical watching the Oscar worthy performances of despair, and just how quickly people are to give up on their preseason “sure things” and “sleepers”.
By now the lightbulb and chuckle should have already gone off in your head as you’ve connected which nut job plays that role in your own personal league, and if not then its likely you.
Another likely sign your the hormonal maniac, that brags and bitches about your team like a cheap thrill roller coaster, is if you just spent 91 of your 100 free agent dollars on Justin Forsett.
No rub on Forsett (and the his shared workload), but “C’mon Man!”
So, I won’t waste your time like that guy telling you Calvin Johnson and Peyton Manning are good starts on Sunday, but instead here are the best of the rest, after the top tier of players in Week 2.
Frank Gore and Carlos Hyde, Running Backs, San Francisco 49ers
Many are high on the Colin Kaepernick train this week (and for good reasoning), but I for one don’t see them needing his arm much while the running game continues to move the chains. Last week the two averaged a 5.5 yards per rush average with a touchdown, and this week they play a Bears defense that allowed 193 yards on the ground to the likes of Fred Jackson and Anthony Dixon.
Many thought the Bears defense would be improved this year with the additions of key free agents and draftees however, they played as if though they downgraded in multiple departments. Look for a huge chunk of yards and twice the touchdowns from this tandem with the 49ers running game exploiting the Bears defense without breaking a sweat.
Knowshon Moreno, Running Back, Miami Dolphins
Il be the first to admit when I’m wrong, like when I was sure this guy was just the product of a system led by Peyton Manning that put up 50 points a game. Nevermore, Nevermore. Moreno looked like he was on cruise control against the Patriots after he rushed for 134 yards and a touchdown. The Dolphins committed to fixing and improving their offensive line and clearly did so with the likes of Ju’ Wan James and Billy Turner paving the way. Nobody has taken advantaged of that talent more than Moreno and now faces the Buffalo Bills.
The Bills allowed 11 running backs to reach double-digit fantasy points last year, and started out 2014 by watching Matt Forte rack up 173 total yards. Look for Moreno and the Dolphins to rely heavily on the running game in what will be a smash mouth battle for first place in the AFC East (is that real?)
Kelvin Benjamin, Wide Receiver, Carolina Panthers
I put all my eggs in the Benjamin basket of love during my preseason rankings and he did not disappoint last Sunday. The 6’5” rookie from Florida State was the bright highlight in an otherwise boring Panthers offense. Benjamin took advantage of his eight targets catching six passes for 92 yards and a touchdown, did I mentioned that was with that guy from down the street Derek Anderson. The monster target is clearly the one and only option in the passing game and will garner 8-10 targets every Sunday by default alone. This week he gets Cam Newton back and lines up against a Detroit Lions defense that hasn’t had a playmaker in their secondary since Dre Bly.
Justin Hunter, Wide Receiver, Tennessee Titans
Ever since Ken Whisenhunt has stepped into town, the Titans have had a whole new offense. Whisenhunt has turned a player in Jake Locker, who was on the brink of being labeled an official bust by Wikipedia and other credible sources, to a quarterback who runs his team with confidence, while looking like a legitimate starting NFL quarterback. Hunter was a big play machine in college and a deep-threat monster, and was Locker’s first read in the majority of pass plays ran.
Hunter only caught three balls for 63 yards, but his eight targets led the team, and his 21-yard average tells you his big game bubble is about to pop. The Cowboys only gave up 12 catches last week, but that was because they got behind so big so early, their opponent turned to the running game the rest of the way. Hunter will convert the same amount of targets into some long plays and hopefully find the end zone this week against one of the worst defenses in the entire league.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Defense/ Special Teams
A defense loaded with talent gets to line up at home against something called Austin Davis. Rub-a-dub-dub, thanks for the grub. Lets eat!