Eliminator advice for Week 3 -- Is it as easy as 'team against the Browns'?

For the second week in a row, my eliminator pick won the game, but made it way too close for comfort. The Seahawks nearly lost to the Dolphins in Week 1, and the Ravens had to mount a huge comeback against the Browns to survive in Week 2, but they both pulled it off, so here we are entering Week 3, still alive.

We’ll once again use the projected box scores in our fantasy toolkit to help guide us through Week 3 eliminator picks.

Miami Dolphins over Cleveland Browns

We have Miami projected to win by more than three points, but that gap might get even wider now that news of Corey Coleman’s broken hand has emerged.

The Browns are somehow entering Week 3 without their starting quarterback, without their backup quarterback, without their star wide receiver, and without their other star wide receiver in Josh Gordon. The game will also be played in Miami for the Dolphins’ home opener. It’s a recipe for disaster for the Browns.

Arizona Cardinals over Buffalo Bills

The 1-1 Arizona Cardinals are going to beat the 0-2 Buffalo Bills. It’s going to happen. The Cardinals are fresh off a 40-7 stomping of the better-than-the-Bills Tampa Bay Buccaneers, while the Bills are reeling after giving up 37 points to the Jets. The Bills were able to score against the Jets by going deep and connecting on several long passes, but they won’t be able to rely on those types of plays against Patrick Peterson, Tyrann Mathieu and the Cardinals defense.

We have the Cardinals projected to win by more than five points. Also, if you’re worried about “saving” the Cardinals, consider that their next two games are against divisional rivals, followed by games against the underrated Jets, the Seahawks, the Panthers, another divisional tilt (the 49ers) and the surging Vikings. Week 3 offers up a far inferior out-of-conference opponent.

Green Bay Packers over Detroit Lions

The Packers offense was flat-out bad in Week 2 against the Minnesota Vikings, but the Lions’ defense isn’t anywhere near as good as the Vikings’. We have Green Bay projected to easily win (by over a touchdown). This will be Green Bay’s home opener, and there’s little doubt Aaron Rodgers and company won’t look better this week than they did on Sunday night.

Beware of … choosing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to beat the Los Angeles Rams. The Buccaneers are an inconsistent team (see their Weeks 1 and 2 games as an example), and while the Rams are far from good, they have an excellent defense. You have to have an excellent defense to be 1-1 without scoring a touchdown. Going with the Buccaneers might seem like a good way to “save” an eliminator pick, but our projections actually currently have the Rams eking out a win. Don’t get cute here.

My pick: Miami Dolphins. Betting against the Browns (barely) worked last week, but the Browns have somehow gotten worse between last week and now, and my logic is still the same. Also, removing Miami from my future pool choices won’t hurt.

Already selected: Seattle, Baltimore