RADIO
Craig Rondinone looks at some fantasy football booms and busts for Week 2 lineups. These NFL players could be high-upside flex plays, or options to avoid.
One week down, 16 more to go!
I am currently basking in the glow of my under-the-radar boom picks of New England’s Phillip Dorsett and Buffalo’s John Brown from last week’s column, while trying to forget that I also told the world that New York Jets receiver/ghost Quincy Enunwa would go bonkers against the Bills. As long as I get more right than I get wrong I think I will be safe throughout the season – from both fantasy players and RotoBaller editors.
Here are my under-the-radar booms and busts for Week 2 of the NFL season! Good luck, RotoBallers!
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Week 2 Under-the-Radar Booms
Donte Moncrief (PIT, WR) vs. SEA
The good news coming out of Week1 for Moncrief was that he was targeted a team-high 10 times by “Big” Ben Roethlisberger. The bad news is that they only successfully connected three times for a paltry seven yards. Moncrief should be targeted a lot again this week against a Seattle secondary that is no second coming of The Legion of Boom, though, especially if top target JuJu Smith-Schuster is sidelined or limited because of a toe injury. Look for Moncrief not to give his fantasy owners grief for a second week in a row. Pencil him in for 100 yards and a TD.
LeSean McCoy (KC, RB) vs. OAK
McCoy had no difficulty acclimating to Kansas City’s offense in Week 1 since his beloved former coach Andy Reid orchestrates it. It only took 10 carries for “Shady” to scamper for 81 yards. This week he faces a revamped Oakland defense that has lost two of its starting secondary members to injury and should be totally overmatched against the best offense in the NFL, even though the Chiefs will not have Tyreek Hill on the field. Damien Williams will still split the carries with McCoy, but the shifty and “Shady” veteran will be the one who has the big fantasy day on Sunday since he will have another week learning the KC system under his belt. 100 combined yards and a score is highly likely.
Will Fuller (HOU, WR) vs. JAX
Fuller showed no signs of lost speed in Week 1 after returning from a torn ACL. His 54-yard SportsCenter-caliber catch this past Monday night was amazing to witness. Fuller did not do much in the game otherwise (one other catch for 15 yards), so coupled with the fact he is facing Jacksonville’s somewhat-staunch defense, his price tag in one-day contests will be lower than it should be. Fuller has never scored a touchdown against the Jaguars during his career, but he will this weekend, especially with Jalen Ramsey and the Jags secondary ganging up on DeAndre Hopkins. Fuller is healthy, as fast as ever, and should hit a home run or two in this one!
Week 2 Under-the-Radar Busts
C.J. Uzomah (CIN, TE) vs. SF
I know Uzomah caught four passes for 66 yards during the opening week. I also know he is not to be confused with Shannon Sharpe, and I also know that Tyler Eifert has not suffered his annual season-ending injury yet, so he should be the better Bengals tight end for fantasy purposes. San Francisco’s improved defense is not going to allow Cincy’s second-best pass-catching tight end to do much in Week 2.
Raheem Mostert (SF, RB) at CIN
It appears to be impossible to be a San Francisco running back. Every tailback the 49ers trot out tears an ACL, strains a hamstring or suffers from dehydration. Mostert seems to be the only running back on the roster who can stay healthy, so he should be in line for touches at Cincinnati, but do not get too excited. The Bengals run defense was impressive at Seattle in Week 1, holding Chris Carson and company to just 72 yards on the ground. The sledding should not be much easier for Mostert.
A.J. Brown (TEN, WR) vs. IND
The rookie receiver had a spectacular coming-out party in his first pro game, hauling in three passes for 100 yards in an upset win over the Cleveland Browns. It is too early to trust a rookie receiver like Brown, though, and it is also hard to trust QB Marcus Mariota to have two above-average outings in a row. Mariota’s recent history against Indy has not been the best --- 575 passing yards, two touchdown tosses, four interceptions in last three games versus the Colts --- so banking on another 100-yard game from Brown is risky. Stay away from using the talented game breaker for a week. You know more passes are certainly headed Corey Davis’ way after he saw just three targets and went without a catch in Week 1.
Paul Richardson (WAS, WR) vs. DAL
It is very telling that in a game where Case Keenum threw 44 times for 380 yards that Richardson could only muster four grabs for 36 yards. Keenum preferred throwing to 700-year-old Vernon Davis and young wideouts whose names fantasy players did not even know until they began burning by Eagles cornerbacks. Richardson is shaping up to be another Redskins receiver flop just like Josh Doctson, Ryan Grant and Terrelle Pryor. You should not fathom putting him in a fantasy lineup until he has a good week or two, that’s for sure.
