Weekly Rankings: Rest of Season Rankings for Week 2

 

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Every Wednesday of the regular season, I will be updating my rest of season rankings for PPR leagues, in hopes of helping you with roster construction and trade negotiations. These are not Week 2 matchup rankings, which can be found here. These rankings are with the rest of the season in mind.

 

Player Notes

 

• I’m getting awfully close to moving Christian McCaffrey to number one overall. He was on the field for every play in Week 1, and consistently tops all running backs in touches. Saquon Barkley‘s pure athleticism keeps him at number one for another week.
• I was lower on Dalvin Cook than many coming into the season, and I have corrected that mistake after his explosive Week 1 performance. Cook took over entire drives as a part of the Vikings’ renewed commitment to the running game, and I’ve moved him up five spots to 16 overall. With his past injury concerns, however, rostering Alexander Mattison would be wise, as he looked good in the opener as well, and is the clear backup that could handle a full role in the event of an injury to Cook.
• Todd Gurley needs his red zone role back to maintain his spot at number 17 overall. Gurley looked healthy against the Panthers, but was barely used in the passing game and gave up red zone work to both Malcolm Brown and Darrel Henderson. Part of the deal for Gurley to remain an elite fantasy option on a reduced workload is his potential touchdown total. Without that part of his game, Gurley looks very mortal.
• I’ll generally give wide receivers a pass, as their games can be volatile in a one-week sample size. I remain confident in Mike Evans, Stefon Diggs, Brandin Cooks, and others despite disappointing stat lines last week.
• I’m in on Josh Jacobs after an impressive Monday Night opener against Denver where he saw 75% of Oakland’s snaps. His goalline role provided two touchdowns, and he should see a passing role develop in games where the Raiders trail. Not every week will be this smooth for the Raiders, but they seem to have survived the Antonio Brown debacle for now, and I’ve jumped Jacobs up 13 spots to make him the RB10 rest of season.
• Speaking of Antonio Brown, the rollercoaster continues as Brown was accused of rape and sexual assault on Tuesday night, shedding doubt onto his status going forward. I have him ranked 53 pending further developments, but I’ve given up trying to project Brown for the long term. If he plays, he likely should be in your lineup. But counting on him for more than a week or two at a time seems foolish at this point.
• Tyreek Hill drops 31 spots due to his broken collarbone that won’t require surgery. We don’t know the timetable yet – three to six weeks seems like a decent range – so finding the right spot in the rankings for him is hard. He’s so explosive, however, that I certainly wouldn’t sell low, and would stash him in an attempt to weather the storm while he is out.
• In the wake of the Hill injury, Sammy Watkins lit the Jaguars on fire to the tune of 9 receptions on 11 targets for 198 yards and three touchdowns. Mostly forgotten about in the offseason, Watkins jumps 34 spots in my rankings to number 50 overall. Normally I wouldn’t jump a receiver this high based on one big performance, but Watkins now inherits the number one wide receiver role while Hill misses time. In the leagues best offense, this is an ideal situation for Watkins. An interesting discussion can be had on who you would rather have rest of season; Watkins or Hill. Much will depend on the length of Hill’s absence.
• Deshaun Watson looks to be surrounded by weapons with the additions of Duke Johnson and Kenny Stills, and Laremy Tunsil solidifies the offensive line to a degree. Coupled with the lackluster start from the Packers offense, and I’ve moved Watson up to my number two quarterback behind Patrick Mahomes.
• Surprise, surprise, but Larry Fitzgerald looks to be the number one option in a high volume passing offense, and I like his role moving forward.
• Whether or not LeSean McCoy and Carlos Hyde are explosive at this stage of their careers, they both find themselves in potent offenses as the between the tackles option. I have more faith in McCoy finding the fountain of youth than Hyde, but both are playable options with room for growth as they learn their offenses.
• DeSean Jackson looked like a number one receiver for the Eagles in Week 1, and Michael Gallup blew up in an improved Cowboys offense. Both may have some boom/bust weeks, but their big-play potential is undeniable.
• There’s a whole group of disappointing receivers like Corey Davis, Geronimo Allison, Dante Pettis, and Anthony Miller that plummet in the rankings after one week. They should still be stashed in most leagues, but I wouldn’t trust any of them with a start in Week 2.
• Mark Andrews, T.J. Hockenson, and Darren Waller look legit, and I’ve moved them up my tight end ranks as a result. Suddenly the tight end position looks a lot deeper.

 

 

Featured Image by Justin Paradis (@freshmeatcomm on Twitter)