Fantasy News & Analysis

Fantasy risers and fallers from Week 2 of the season

NASHVILLE, TN - JANUARY 01: Running back Derrick Henry #22 of the Tennessee Titans carries the ball during a NFL game against the Houston Texans at Nissan Stadium on January 1, 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Ronald C. Modra/Sports Imagery/ Getty Images)

The second week of the season is in the books and the injuries are starting to mount up around the league. There also some depth chart situations that are starting to clear up while other timeshares remain complex.

It’s still pretty early, so try not to panic too much. Just be sure to keep an honest assessment on what players’ current fantasy values are and act accordingly. Here’s a look at some players on the rise, some sliding down and a couple to keep on the radar.

Rising up

Chris Carson, RB, Seattle Seahawks

Eddie Lacy was a healthy Week 2 scratch and even though Thomas Rawls was healthy, Carson shouldered the load for the Seahawks against the 49ers. He was in the game on 35 more snaps and got 15 more carries than Rawls, who watched from the sidelines as Carson ran out of the clock in the fourth quarter lifting the team to victory. Carson netted 93 yards on 20 carries (4.7 YPC) and caught one of his two targets for seven yards. The situation isn’t great playing behind one of the league’s worst offensive lines, but the depth chart in Seattle has cleared up quickly after being pretty murky during the preseason.

Derrick Henry, RB, Tennessee Titans

With DeMarco Murray struggling through the first two weeks and still dealing with lingering hamstring issues from the preseason, Henry provided the Titans a big boost in the team’s win at Jacksonville. The second-year running back had 14 touches to Murray’s 10 on the day, including a 12:2 second-half ratio. Henry answered by rushing for a career-high 92 yards and a touchdown. His 99.5 elusive rating was the best of any running back in in Week 2 despite the fact Henry saw eight-plus defenders in the box on a league-high 71 percent of his snaps. Look for Henry to continue to see a steady of amount of opportunities in the Tennessee backfield.

Martavis Bryant, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers

The volume wasn’t great in Week 2 for Bryant, as he only had four targets in the Steelers’ matchup with the Vikings. However, as we’ve seen previously with the Pittsburgh playmaker, Bryant is capable of posting big numbers in just a few plays. He finished with three catches on four targets for 91 yards and a touchdown. That was a nice bounceback effort after he delivered a 2-14-0 stat line in the season opener. Bryant is going to be inconsistent, but when he’s on his game he offers top 15 WR upside. One thing is for sure, he appears to have shaken off the rust after missing the entire 2016 with a suspension. The Bears are on tap for Week 3, so another big game could be ahead.

Hunter Henry, TE, Los Angeles Chargers

After going without a single target in Week 1, many fantasy owners jumped shipped on Henry and released the young tight end. If you didn’t already do so and he’s still on the waiver wire in your league you should scoop him up. Henry rewarded the patient owners that didn’t panic in this week against the Dolphins as he pulled in all seven of his targets for 80 yards. The game flow helped matters and Miami’s linebackers were a very favorable matchup. Antonio Gates did vulture a touchdown, but the 37-year-old isn’t going to be much a factor elsewhere on the field. Henry is a low-end TE1, even with Gates still lingering.

Sliding down

Cam Newton, QB, Carolina Panthers

The start to the season has been disappointing for Newton. The Panthers might be 2-0, but it’s hard to imagine that there are many Newton-led fantasy teams that can say the same. Newton only managed 228 yards and no touchdowns on Sunday in a 9-3 win over Buffalo. Through two weeks he has only registered 399 yards and two touchdowns passing and has rushed for just 30 yards and no scores on 11 carries. He enters Week 3 20th in fantasy points at the position. The news that he will now be playing 6-8 weeks without Pro Bowl tight Greg Olsen (broken foot) will only lead to Newton’s stock dropping further. He’ll have a chance to pad his numbers in Week 3 though against the Saints, who have allowed six touchdowns 396.5 yards per game through the air over the last two weeks.

Jordan Howard, RB, Chicago Bears

Few players have seen their stock drop further to start the year without the benefit of a significant injury than Howard. He was out-touched again in Week 2 by Tarik Cohen, who continues to look more explosive with the ball in his hands. The Bears’ wide receiving corps is decimated by injuries and teams are going to be stacking the box heavily in the weeks ahead. Howard ran the ball nine times for just seven yards and tweaked his nagging shoulder in the team’s 29-7 blowout loss at Tampa Bay. A second-round pick this summer, Howard enters Week 3 as RB31 in PPR formats and should be viewed as a risky RB2 play at this point until further notice.

Bilal Powell, RB, New York Jets

Through two weeks of the season, Powell hasn’t been able to separate himself from the pack in the Jets’ backfield. He only played 18-of-56 snaps in Week 2 against the Raiders — nine fewer than Matt Forte — and rookie Elijah McGuire was also worked into the mix. The Jets’ offense doesn’t produce enough opportunities to support fantasy production for any running back in the current distribution of snaps. Powell only has 18 touches for 52 yards through two games, including just five catches for 17 yards. He cannot be trusted in fantasy lineups barring a Forte injury and can be considered as potential drop in shallower formats.

Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Arizona Cardinals

It was another week of disappointment for Fitzgerald owners as he finished with just three catches on six targets and 21 yards against the Colts. He’s tied for sixth in targets (19) through two weeks, but has only turned that into nine catches for 95 yards and no touchdowns on the season. The Cardinals are aging and ravaged by injuries already and Fitzgerald is losing his fantasy appeal. His struggles have gone on longer than just 2017 though as he’s now scored just one touchdown in his last 14 games and broke 80 yards receiving just once during that span. Fitzgerald is a mid-range WR3 at best right now with a very limited ceiling.

On the radar

Rashard Higgins, WR, Cleveland Browns

With Corey Coleman (broken hand) out for a while and Kenny Britt not much of a factor in the team’s passing attack, the Browns turned to Higgins on Sunday as their lead receiver. He pulled in seven of his 11 targets for 99 yards. He’s definitely worth a waiver wire grab for the short term, especially considering the Week 3 matchup on tap with the Colts.

Benjamin Watson, TE, Baltimore Ravens

Watson led Baltimore with eight Week 2 targets and made the most of them, catching eight balls for 91 yards. The Ravens have been hit hard by injuries at tight end, so Watson’s emergence here is of note as he clearly is in sync with Joe Flacco. He’s worth keeping an eye on as injuries start stacking up at the position. The veteran could become a useful fantasy asset sooner rather than later if this trend in targets continues.

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