Start Em Sit Em: Fantasy Football Week 2 Boom, Busts, and Sleepers
Week two of the NFL season is upon us, and chances are if you had Ryan Grant, Frank Gore, or Michael Turner in your line-up week one, you're already beginning to question your choices on the draft board.
Arian Foster, Matt Forte, and Austin Collie may have helped you coast to an easy victory in week one, but plugging them into your starting line-up may be a recipe for disaster in week two.
Think that stud quarterback you burned a first round pick on is a must start this week?
Think again.
Picked up a waiver wire gem that you think is a must-start in week two?
I wouldn't be so sure.
Check out my boom, bust, and sleeper players before clicking the "set line-up" button tomorrow.
Quarterback Boom: Michael Vick
1 of 12
Okay, this is an easy one.
Against a Lions defense that allowed only 50 rushing yards to running back Matt Forte, but 35 rushing yards to quarterback Jay Cutler, Vick is likely to explode.
He looked great in Week 1 against the Packers, a defense considerably more competent than the Lions, who allowed Cutler 372 yards through the air.
Vick is a must start this week, unless you also have Peyton Manning or Drew Brees.
Projection: Look for Vick to throw for around 200 yards with two scores and an interception, as well as 10-15 rushing attempts for over 80 yards and a score on the ground.
Quarterback Bust: Tom Brady
2 of 12
If you drafted Tom Brady, chances are you're not going to sit him.
But if there's any week this season where you're going to lower your expectations on his output, it's week two versus the New York Jets.
The monstrosity known as the Jets defense is enough to induce fear into any fantasy owner. In week one they were a stud killer, shutting out Joe Flacco through the air while containing consensus top five back Ray Rice, who rushed for only 43 yards.
Projection: Brady's worst game last season came in a 16-9 loss to the Jets, where he was held to 216 yards and no touchdowns. He fared better in the teams second meeting, a 31-14 win, but was held to only one touchdown in that game.
Expect Brady to fare a little better than he did in the 16-9 loss, but have moderate expectations. 200-220 passing yards with two scores and two interceptions are my projections for week two.
Quarterback Sleeper: Jason Campbell
3 of 12
Desperate for a quarterback?
Maybe you picked Kevin "corn on the" Kolb and someone beat you to Vick, or you expected big things from Matthew Stafford and aren't insane enough to pick up and start Shaun Hill.
Well, look no further than Jason Campbell.
If he's available in your league, he's the best desperation start of the week.
Campbell is an average quarter back who's usually good for a few high production games a season, and one of those games is likely to come in week two, when the garbage Rams visit Oakland. The Rams defense was surprisingly competent in run stopping, holding Tim Hightower to only 54 yards and a score.
However, the wildly inaccurate Derek Anderson threw for 297 yards and wasn't intercepted, surprising considering he only connected with receiver Larry Fitzgerald on three of the 15 times he targeted him.
Projection: 240 yards passing with two scores, as well as 30 yards rushing.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Running Back Boom: Michael Turner
4 of 12
If you used a top eight pick on Turner, you're obviously going to start him every week, but chances are his putrid performance in week one (42 yards on 19 carries) combined with a shaky 2009 campaign has Turner owners feeling the heat.
Week two Turner takes on a morbid Cardinals defense and is likely to have his first 100 yard game.
Yes, the Cardinals defense held Steven Jackson to only 81 yards in week one, but that was a product of the Rams playing from behind—and being forced to throw 55 times. In this match-up, the Cards are going to be the ones trying to throw themselves back into the game, while Turner wears down the clock late in the game.
Projection: 20 rushes for 110 yards and a score, along with two catches for 15 yards.
Running Back Bust: Pierre Thomas
5 of 12
Look for the PT Cruiser to have a down week after a solid 71 yard touchdown performance last week against the Vikings.
The San Francisco 49ers sport on the leagues best run defenses, and while the Seahawks exploited them through the air in week one, they held the three headed "monster" of Justin Forsett, Leon Washington, and Julius Jones to a combined 73 yards rushing.
Projection: Thomas might run a touchdown in when Brees gets them in the red zone, but don't expect much more than 50 yards rushing and a catch or two.
Running Back Sleeper: Darren Sproles
6 of 12
Sproles is always a boom-or-bust player; he'll either get you something decent, or nothing at all.
If you're desperate in week two (hello, Ryan Grant owners) and you have Sproles firmly planted on your bench after a horrid five total yards against the Chiefs week one, this may be the week to gamble on him.
The Chargers face a very suspect Jacksonville Jaguars defense which allowed Kyle Orton to throw 295 yards on them in week one, so there's at least a reasonable chance that Sproles can break off a big one.
Projection: 20 yards rushing along with five catches for 60 yards and a receiving touchdown will be my bold prediction for Sproles in week two. He has a great history in week two over the past two seasons, going for over 120 totals yards and a receiving score each time.
Just keep in mind Sproles is the desperation of desperation options. Don't bench someone decent for him (like Jahvid Best, for example), but if you're hard up for a running back, I think you can do a lot worse than Sproles.
Wide Receiver Boom: Santana Moss
7 of 12
Moss looked good against a stout Cowboys defense in week one. While he didn't score, he was McNabb's favorite target, recording six catches for 77 yards.
Up against a porous Texans secondary that allowed 433 yards through the air to Peyton Manning, with possibly the best quarterback of his career throwing to him in a game the Redskins will likely be playing catch-up in, expect Moss to have a huge week.
If you have him, he's a must-start.
Projection: Six catches, 90 yards and a touchdown.
Wide Receiver Bust: Austin Collie
8 of 12
Don't be blinded by his insane 11 reception, 163 yard game against the Texans.
Austin Collie is not a number one, or even number two fantasy receiver. Flex play? Sure. But anything more than that and you're setting yourself up for disappointment.
Projection: In the Colts offense, for now Collie is the slot receiver, and every week is going to have to fight for receptions with Wayne, Clark, Garcon, and even Addai surrounding him. Week two, look for Collie to have four grabs for 50 yards without a touchdown.
Wide Receiver Sleeper: Jacoby Jones
9 of 12
Arian Foster's impression of Barry Sanders will come to an end week two. He'll have a good game, but the Texans are a team built around their air game.
If you're looking for a sneaky play at receiver, Jacoby Jones may be your man.
In the preseason he appeared to supplant Kevin Walter as Shaub's number two target, and I expect that to hold true once the Texans get back to the passing game week two against Washington. Six touchdowns on only 27 receptions a year ago, look for Jones to find pay dirt in Week 2.
Projection: 5 catches, 60 yards, and a touchdown.
Tight End Boom: Brent Celek
10 of 12
The Detroit Lions are notorious for being unable to cover tight ends—or anybody for that matter—so if you were thinking about sitting Celek after his mediocre two catch performance week one, think again.
You drafted Celek as a top five tight end, and tomorrow he'll prove why.
Michael Vick isn't the most accurate passer in the world, so look for him to feed it to Celek early and often tomorrow, and I fully expect Celek to be a top-three fantasy play at tight end this week.
Projection: Eight catches, 70 yards, and a score.
Tight End Bust: Marcedes Lewis
11 of 12
For the sake of your fantasy team, I hope the only piece of the Jacksonville offense you're consistently starting is Maurice Jones-Drew.
Marcedes Lewis is your typical over hyped week one player.
He had two touchdowns, so people pick him up and start him with wild expectations. Last year, Ben Watson has two touchdowns week one, people picked him up, and he rewarded them three touchdowns the rest of the season.
The most concerning part about Lewis is not that he had a big game, but that he was only targeted twice. David Garrard is a very inconsistent passer, and there are probably going to be weeks where Lewis doesn't record a single catch.
It's possible Lewis will be the Visanthe Shiancoe of this year; that is, a touchdown collector who only catches a handful of passes.
Either way, he's at best a spot start, and chances are he's not going to score two weeks in a row, especially when he's already tied his single season career high in touchdowns after only one week.
Projection: 3 catches for 30 yards without a touchdown.
Tight End Sleeper: Jermaine Gresham
12 of 12
I like Gresham against a tough Ravens defense.
The rookie—who may soon be a must add—had a solid first career game against the Patriots, catching 6 passes for 25 yards and a touchdown. More importantly, Carson Palmer targeted him 10 times, including two red zone targets.
Against a defense that will likely give Palmer all kinds of trouble, as well as Cedric Benson in short yardage situations, Gresham is a good sleeper play. Expect him to score for the second consecutive week.
Projections: 5 catches, 40 yards, and a touchdown.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
.jpg?w=600 "Post-June 1 Trade Candidates ☎️")
.JPG?w=600 "TO Talks Cowboys Relationship")
.jpg?w=600 "Taylor Heinicke Retiring")
.jpg?w=600 "49ers OC Hypes Mike Evans 🤩")