Week 1 fantasy wrap: Ty Montgomery's rising value and more
The Seahawks/Packers game projected as a shootout, with the over/under at 50, so naturally the score was 3-0 at halftime (and that required a field goal as time expired in the second quarter). Seattle was ultimately held out of the end zone, with Russell Wilson getting 5.9 YPA against a Green Bay defense that allowed an NFL-high 8.1 last season. The Seahawks’ offensive line remains a major problem, but there’s no reason not to treat Wilson as a borderline top-five fantasy QB still…Eddie Lacy, meanwhile, can safely be dropped in all leagues, whereas Chris Carson needs to be owned in all…Look for Seattle’s offense to bounce back in a big way at home against San Francisco in Week 2.
Jimmy Graham was invisible, highlighting an odd theme this week, as he, Rob Gronkowski, Jordan Reed, Greg Olsen and Travis Kelce averaged 3.4 catches and 27.0 yards with zero touchdowns (while the outlaw Jesse James scored twice)…Forget the 2.8 YPC in a tough matchup, Ty Montgomery getting a career-high 23 touches (including goal-line work) was eye-opening. It might be tough for him to hold up with that type of workload, but in that offense, anything close to that moving forward would make him an easy top-10 fantasy running back (he finished No. 3 in Juke Rate and No. 1 in yards after contact per touch last season).
Among those not injured, no player saw a bigger hit to their fantasy value in Week 1 than Jordan Howard, as Tarik Cohen couldn’t have impressed more. Howard is a good running back who should remain the favorite at the goal line, but he’s a terrible receiver, and Cohen simply looks too good for this not to become a committee, something never ideal let alone on a team projected to win around five games…I’m beginning to think Kevin White is injury prone…It’s not often a tight end can turn two targets into 128 yards like Austin Hooper did, including this sick 88-yard touchdown.
LeSean McCoy owners shouldn’t be too mad he lost a goal-line score to Mike Tolbert, as he exited the game then with what looked like a potential serious injury. He was back soon, ripping off 159 total yards and getting 5.0 YPC against a Jets defense that was No. 1 in DVOA last season…Any New York player should only be considered using in extremely deep leagues, and that includes Bilal Powell.
I wouldn’t start any Bengals running back until further notice. What an ugly game by Andy Dalton and the Bengals that I didn’t see coming…The Ravens won by 20 points on the road as underdogs while getting 4.4 yards per play.
DeShone Kizer took too many sacks, but he looked plenty competent during his debut, and I’d much prefer Corey Coleman than Kenny Britt moving forward…I can’t say I expected Le’Veon Bell and Martavis Bryant to combine for 51 yards against the Browns…Antonio Brown secured all 11 of his targets for 182 yards. I’d say 16.6 YPT is prettay, prettay good.
The Lions were scoreless with five minutes to go in the first half yet finished with 35 points against a solid Arizona defense despite getting 3.0 YPC…After a lot of talk about Carson Palmer’s arm feeling better than it has in years, he was pretty terrible, finishing with a Passer Rating of 53.2 against a Detroit secondary that allowed an NFL-high 106.5 last season (which was higher than Aaron Rodgers’)…David Johnson owners just have to hold their breath for now. The lack of any obvious in-house replacement would make his loss even more devastating.
The Raiders have now won seven straight games in which they’ve had to travel and play a 10 a.m. body clock game (proving me wrong in the process Sunday)…This effort by Amari Cooper was flat-out sick. He then proceeded to be targeted three straight times inside the five-yard line during the next drive, so after not scoring a single red-zone TD last year, it appears he’s going to be utilized there far more in 2017…Marshawn Lynch looked really good, while Corey Davis looked like a future star…The Titans opened the game with an onside kick and somehow had just three possessions during the first half…I’d grade Tony Romo’s broadcast debut as “mixed.”
Whether it be the new WR corps or the loss of Sean McVay, Kirk Cousins and the Washington offense remain way out of sync (a strong Eagles defense didn’t help). They’ll get much better…Carson Wentz played extremely well and provided one of the best highlights of the day.
After going down as one of the biggest fantasy busts last year, Allen Robinson suffered a season-ending torn ACL during his first catch of the season, as he continues to burn his owners. Marqise Lee somehow didn’t record a catch, but his value gets a boost moving forward. The Jags won’t be playing with a big lead like Sunday that often…Deshaun Watson’s first drive totaled more yards than Houston had during the entire first half, but it was ugly after that (he finished with 4.4 YPA). Still, there’s little reason the team shouldn’t turn to him moving forward…Leonard Fournette saw 29 touches during his debut and looked like the real deal. He’d be worth a top-15 overall pick if a draft were held today.
Scott Tolzien threw two pick-sixes (including one on his first attempt of the season) and nearly a third. Other than T.Y. Hilton (who needs to be downgraded to WR2/3 status), I wouldn’t use any Colts until Andrew Luck returns (which doesn’t sound like it will be anytime soon)…Chuck Pagano was very upset with his team’s performance against the 49ers on Sunday…Todd Gurley totaled 96 yards and fought hard on his TD run, but he managed a paltry 2.1 YPC at home against a Colts defense that allowed 4.7 (third highest in the NFL) last season in a game in which the Rams scored 46 points. I’d be worried if I were a Gurley owner.
Cam Newton was rusty, but it didn’t take more than the Panthers’ “C” game to win by 20 in San Francisco…Carlos Hyde had 40 yards on his first four carries yet finished with 45 on nine (although he caught all six of his targets for 32 receiving yards as well). His owners have to hope Brian Hoyer plays a lot better moving forward…The lone 49ers highlight came on this nice one-handed interception.
Eli Manning was a total mess without Odell Beckham, getting 5.8 YPA with the Giants scoring just three points against a mediocre Dallas defense. Brandon Marshall didn’t catch his first ball until there were less than 30 seconds left in the game…Facing arguably the best front four in the NFL, the Cowboys’ offensive line allowed just one sack and managed 4.2 YPC (which would’ve been higher if not for obvious run situations nursing a late lead)…This Cole Beasley catch was ridiculous…Football is back!
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