Three of the big-name wide receivers topped the week 1 charts for fantasy football.
Julio Jones, DeAndre Hopkins and Antonio Brown were the top scorers among wide receivers in week 1. Fantasy owners should depend on those three having monster seasons again this season.
The rest of the top-tier list included several under-the-radar names, such as James Jones, Travis Benjamin, Steve Johnson and John Brown.
Here’s our list of start ’em, sit ’em for week 2 of the NFL season.
Daily fantasy start of the week
Brandin Cooks vs. Tampa Bay
We saw what Tampa Bay’s defense did against a rookie quarterback. Now the Bucs will have to face Drew Brees.
Cooks didn’t have a great day in week 1, scoring only 5.3 points with 49 yards receiving. But that was against Arizona’s defense.
We like Cooks to be featured heavily in this game, with the Saints looking to bounce back from a week 1 loss. Cooks also is more inexpensive than other options, like Jones or Brown, so he’s lighter on the fantasy football wallet in the daily leagues.
Start
John Brown vs. Chicago Bears
The Arizona wide receiver was slated to have a breakout year, and in week 1, he was targeted seven times by quarterback Carson Palmer.
Fantasy football owners should expect more of that in the coming weeks. With Larry Fitzgerald aging, Brown should be a more reliable option.
And, the Bears defense hasn’t been known to stop the pass very well. While the Bears did only allow 189 yards passing last week, the Packers only attempted 23 passes, good enough for an 8.2 yard-per-pass average.
Expect the Cardinals to air it out more and start Brown.
Donte Moncrief vs. New York Jets
Darrelle Revis will be the main cornerback for the New York Jets, but if T.Y. Hilton plays, he will draw the matchup. Even if Hilton doesn’t play, it’s likely Andre Johnson may draw the assignment with Revis.
Either way, Moncrief should get several targets again against the Jets, making him a viable start this week. Moncrief hauled in six-of-11 targets against Buffalo in week 1.
Andrew Luck will likely look his way again in week 2. Pick him up on the waiver wire and start him this week.
Jarvis Landry vs. Jacksonville
We don’t like how many receiver possibilities there are on the Dolphins roster, but Landry was by far the focal point of Ryan Tannehill in week 1.
Landry collected 12 targets en route to 53 yards receiving and 14 yards rushing. The Dolphins seem set on the pass, which will likely be a quality move against Jacksonville.
The Jaguars did well against the run last week against Carolina, holding the Panthers to 3 yards per rush attempt. The Dolphins don’t want to run anyway, as they amassed 34 passing attempts against Washington last week.
The Dolphins will throw again against the Jaguars and Landry will be the biggest beneficiary.
Sit of the week for daily fantasy
Antonio Brown
Obviously if Brown is on your regular roster, there’s no reason to sit him this week.
However, in daily fantasy leagues, his price tag is too pricey to start him this week against the San Francisco 49ers.
The Vikings were horrendous on offense in the first game. We’re not sure if that was more about the Vikings or about the 49ers defense. We’re not taking that kind of risk this week.
Look for a receiver with a better matchup in for your daily fantasy lineup.
Sit
Kendall Wright
We know there will be overreaction to Marcus Mariota’s first start, and Kendall Wright will likely get plenty of looks this week.
Don’t take the bait. Cleveland can’t defend against the run, so the Titans will utilize their run game against the Browns. The Browns do have a solid secondary, so don’t look for Wright to be open much.
Mariota will likely struggle in this game, dropping Wright’s value in week 2.
Amari Cooper
Sorry Raiders fans, this week is going to be tough on your offense.
Baltimore’s defense allowed the least amount of passing yards in week 1, and only allowed a 4.4 yard-per-pass play against Peyton Manning.
That will be more of the same against the Raiders, especially with question marks surrounding Derek Carr’s health. Cooper will struggle to get open against the Ravens, so look for other options on your team before blindly starting Cooper.
Steve Johnson
Let’s not overreact about Johnson’s week 1 performance.
The San Diego wide receiver hauled in six catches for 82 yards against Detroit, which if that defense can’t get pressure, they don’t have the secondary to stop passing offenses.
Cincinnati is a different defense and Johnson won’t get near as many targets this game.
The Chargers have too many people who could be options for plenty of targets. Stay away from Johnson this week.
