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Who Should I Start for Week 2? Fantasy Football outlooks for Deebo Samuel Sr., Chuba Hubbard, Chris Godwin Jr., Kyle Monangai, MarShawn Lloyd, Josh Downs, DK Metcalf, DeVonta Smith, Garrett Wilson.
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 2 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Deebo Samuel Sr., Chuba Hubbard, Chris Godwin Jr., Kyle Monangai, MarShawn Lloyd, Josh Downs, DK Metcalf, DeVonta Smith, and Garrett Wilson. However, don't worry, we are here to help you make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 2. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 2 of the 2026 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
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Week 2 Fantasy Football Outlooks
Below are some fantasy football outlooks written by our NFL team here at RotoBaller, bringing you their fantasy football analysis and advice on which players to consider starting in Week 2:
DeVonta Smith, Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith was still on the field for almost everything in Week 1, but the fantasy return wasn't there. He caught three of six targets for 53 yards against Washington while playing 52 of 55 offensive snaps. Six targets led the team. That part is fine. The concern is how crowded things can get when Philadelphia doesn't throw much. Jalen Hurts attempted only 25 passes, and Dallas Goedert turned five targets into 77 yards and two touchdowns.
Dontayvion Wicks had four targets and finished with 73 yards and a score. Smith isn't losing his job or suddenly getting squeezed off the field, so this is a mild drop rather than a major warning sign. Still, a near-every-down role only goes so far if the Eagles keep the passing volume down and Goedert and Wicks are taking meaningful chunks of it. Smith comes out of Week 1 with his usage intact, but a little less margin for error than fantasy managers hoped.
Despite the slow start, Smith remains a must-start WR2 entering Week 2.
MarShawn Lloyd, Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur told the media on Thursday that running back MarShawn Lloyd has "shown a lot of confidence" that he can handle the team's primary backfield duties. Lloyd had a quiet game in Green Bay's Week 1 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, recording 13 carries for 37 yards.
However, Lloyd led the Packers backfield in touches and could have an extended run as Green Bay's RB1 while star Packers back Josh Jacobs remains on the NFL's Commissioner's Exempt List due to an offseason arrest. Fellow Packers running back Chris Brooks out-snapped Lloyd against Minnesota and could be the team's preferred passing-downs back, which limits Lloyd's fantasy upside to some degree.
Still, Lloyd profiles as a flex option for fantasy managers heading into Green Bay's Week 2 matchup against the New York Jets.
Deebo Samuel Sr., San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers veteran wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. rejoined the Niners during training camp after it was announced that Ricky Pearsall (knee) would miss the entire 2026 season. The 30-year-old had a one-year stint with the Washington Commanders last season and finished with 72 catches on 99 targets for 727 yards and five touchdowns in 16 games played.
He got off to a great start in the Week 1 season-opening victory over the division-rival Los Angeles Rams last Thursday in Australia, catching six of his seven targets for 48 yards and his first touchdown of the year. Rookie second-round receiver De'Zhaun Stribling suffered a serious ankle injury in that game that is expected to sideline him for the next 10 weeks.
Samuel is no longer in the prime of his career, but Stribling's injury will increase the veteran's target share going forward as he works across from future Hall of Famer Mike Evans. Going into a plus-plus Week 2 matchup against the visiting Miami Dolphins this Sunday, Samuel's stock is on the rise as a WR3/flex for fantasy managers.
DK Metcalf, Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver DK Metcalf only caught four of the 10 passes that quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw his way for 40 yards in the team's Week 1 season-opening win over the Atlanta Falcons, but that is not going to stop Rodgers from feeding Metcalf, according to Mike DeFabo of The Athletic. In addition to the dropped passes, Metcalf was flagged twice for offensive pass interference.
"I'm not worried about DK at all, man," Rodgers said. "I love DK. He's one of my closest friends on the team, and I'm going to keep feeding him." DeFabo points out that the Metcalf-Rodgers connection is "one of the most important relationships" on the team. The duo must improve upon their weak season-opening performance on Sunday if they want to make any noise in 2026.
Going into the Week 2 matchup in New England against the Patriots, Metcalf should be viewed as a low-end WR2/high-end WR3/flex with a potentially bigger target share if Michael Pittman Jr. (foot) is limited or out. Pittman was limited in practice on Wednesday and was held out on Thursday.
Chuba Hubbard, Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers running back Chuba Hubbard proved that he was the primary option out of the backfield during the team's Week 1 loss against the Chicago Bears. Hubbard played 71% of the offensive snaps with 49 rushing yards, 38 receiving yards, and two touchdowns. For comparison, teammate Jonathon Brooks played just 19% of the snaps, had five touches, and averaged 3.5 yards per carry.
All offseason long, there was plenty of chatter that Brooks might overtake Hubbard in the backfield. That could still happen at some point late this season or next season, but the comparison of their volume and production from Week 1 shows that the Panthers should still have confidence in Hubbard as their primary running back.
He is expected to have another solid showing in Week 2 against the Atlanta Falcons, who just surrendered 46 rushing yards and 27 receiving yards to Jaylen Warren. He is a must-start RB2 in all formats.
Who Should I Start Tool
You can also see the Who Should I Start tool here.
Week 2 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Deebo Samuel Sr., Chuba Hubbard, Chris Godwin Jr., Kyle Monangai, MarShawn Lloyd, Josh Downs, DK Metcalf, DeVonta Smith, Garrett Wilson. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 2.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed that our 'Who Should I Start?' tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, players news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do, is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circle), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 2 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 2 (2026)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 2 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 2 for Deebo Samuel Sr., Chuba Hubbard, Chris Godwin Jr., Kyle Monangai, MarShawn Lloyd, Josh Downs, DK Metcalf, DeVonta Smith, Garrett Wilson:
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