With another week in the books most teams have had time to develop to show what players will feature this year with large carry or target loads and even a few injuries have developed that can reshape your team for the rest of the year so let’s get into it.

Players to watch

Here I have listed a few players who I think will have very productive fantasy seasons this year, based on the information we have picked up from the past weeks/years.

Gerald Everett

Most of the time teams with very high scoring offenses only have one or two players that they like to get the ball to, but in the high-powered Chargers offense, they have managed to spread the ball around where the defense can’t rely on one or two defenders to lock down the best players and needs to spread out. Everett has averaged 13.8 points per game, ranking 4th among all tight ends. He is averaging seven targets a game, so if he continues with these numbers — or even close to these numbers — he can be a strong TE-1 or a TE-2 that you might play as your starter with a good matchup.

Evan Engram

The tight end, formerly a New York Giant and now with Jacksonville, has made an immediate impact, catching 11 out of 12 total targets, one of the best catch rates in the league in an offense that has put up more than 20 points every week so far. He ranks 12th overall for tight ends in points per week and he’s had this type of production without scoring a touchdown. If they start targeting him more in the redzone, you could see a sudden uptick in points for Engram.

Christian Kirk

Many people thought that the Jacksonville Jaguars overpaid significantly for Christian Kirk, but through the first two games, he has proved people wrong. Averaging nine targets and 21.8 fantasy points per game and ranking 7th in the league, he looks to keep up the streak against the LA Chargers this week.

Waiver Wonders

After week one, there may be some players emerging from the waiver wire thanks to their strong starts. Here are a few who I think could be meaningful throughout the season, especially with the new injuries and stories developing throughout the league.

Jared Goff

This is the time of year where injuries come in as very important For those of us who have Dak Prescott or Trey Lance, you might be looking for some QB replacements. Jared Goff has averaged three TD passes per game on an offense who has scored 35+ points in the last two games, Goff is averaging 20.8 points per game and is ranked 9th among QB’s. With offensive weapons like Amon-ra St. Brown, D’Andre Swift and TJ Hockenson, you can expect him to continue to be solid throughout the season as a replacement.

Darrel Williams/Eno Benjamin

This is a big “maybe.” I think either of these guys could be good FLEX plays, posting 14.2 and 8.1 points respectively. This is if James Connor is out, because they would likely split the workload and most importantly, the amount of targets. Last week in three quarters, the RBs both had three targets and at least two catches along with 8 carries each, but a TD and more yards went to Williams who ended up with 14.2 last week.

Corey Davis

The Jets have impressed so far this year with their week 2 comeback of the Browns and so far, one wide receiver has stepped forward as the consistent leader. Corey Davis is averaging seven targets per game as well as averaging 80 yards receiving per game, as well as a TD so far. He ranks 20th among WR’s with 15.0 points per game going into this week’s matchup against the Bengals.

Love/Hate

This list features three players I would love to have on my team this week and a few players who I think won’t do so well this week based on prior weeks and current matchups.

Love: Miles Sanders

Through the first two weeks, Sanders has averaged 15 carries and three carries in an offense who also has a top-3 scoring fantasy QB. He has averaged 88 rushing yards per game and 0.5 touchdowns per gam,e and with a good matchup against the Washington Commanders, all signs look good for him to continue his dominance.

Love: Rashod Bateman

A lot of people were worried about Lamar Jackson’s wide receivers after they traded away Marquise Brown, but Rashod Bateman has definitely filled the deep threat void that was “lost” when Brown left. With a 55-yard touchdown in week one and a 75-yard touchdown in week 2, it look like he is already a favorite for Lamar to look to. He currently ranks 16th among receivers averaging 17.4 points per game and has a good matchup with the Patriots who lost lead cornerback JC Jackson in the offseason.

Love: Pat Freirmuth

There have not been too many bright spots for the Pittsburgh Steelers on offense so far this season, with Najee Harris dealing with an ankle injury and Mitchell Trubisky still acclimating to the team. One of those few bright spots has been Pat Freirmuth, who has averaged 8.5 targets per game as well as almost 50 receiving yards in those games. Scoring between 12 and 12.5 points in both games, it looks like he is going to be a consistently good tight end and hopes to keep racking up good numbers this week against the Browns on Thursday night football.

Hate: Allen Lazard

I originally thought that Lazard would immediately have seven or eight targets and a touchdown or so against a poor Bears defense last Sunday, but it looked like Aaron Rodgers and the Packers wanted to spread the ball around and give targets to everyone. So even though he ended up with a touchdown, Lazard only had two catches and has an unfavorable matchup this week against the Buccaneers, who have allowed a total of 13 points and one touchdown through two weeks.

Hate: Travis Etienne

The hype for Etienne was high heading into his sophomore year after missing year 1 with a torn achilles. He was supposed to be the starter but has been outplayed by James Robinson, who has gotten a majority of touches. He now needs to go against the Washington Commanders, who have arguably one of the best defensive lines in the league with stars like Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen. 

Hate: Kyle Pitts

In many drafts, Pitts was one of the first tight ends taken this year — sometimes as early as the 3rd or 4th round. But so far, he has disappointed. Through two weeks he has averaged 3.9 points, recording only 10 targets and placing him 35th among tight ends this season. I’m not going to expect any massive change in his role that would magically change him into a star again immediately, so I am predicting a poor week for Pitts.

Q and A

Questions from others about any of their fantasy needs.

Q: Should I play Jeff Wilson, AJ Dillon, or Allen Lazard this week?

A: I think Jeff Wilson is your best option because both AJ Dillon and Allen Lazard have bad matchups against the Buccaneers and in the one game that Elijah Mitchell was out Wilson had 18 carries and with a new quarterback and a strong offensive line I would think he would be given the ball a decent amount this week.

Brady M. 

Q: Is it a good strategy to keep a backup QB on your bench all season vs. just adding one for bye week or in case of injury?

A: I know that I normally like to take 2 QBs in most drafts, and if I am going to not take two of a position, it would be a kicker or D/ST because they are really easy to find on the waivers for a bye week. As an example, in one league I only got Dak Prescott and now that he is hurt I don’t have many options that I feel great about, but in another league I drafted Joe Burrow late in the 7th round and Trey Lance in the 10th, which gave me options to choose from each week. And now that Lance is hurt, I don’t need to worry as much about taking a chance on a worse quarterback even if they have a good matchup.

M Gorby

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