Week 2 Fantasy Football Projections: Stats Predictions for Top Players

People look at fantasy football weekly, but like the NFL, it really comes down to the season as a whole. The most important thing to do right now is to refrain from overreacting after an exciting first week of the season.

There were a few breakout performances, a few disappointing stat lines and a whole lot of in between, but only a couple instances where a player's value changed dramatically.

Here is a look at the fantasy rankings, along with stat projections, for the top players at every position for Week 2.

Quarterback

	Player, Team	Opp.	Comp.	Pass Yds.	Pass TDs	INTs	Rush Yds.
1.	Aaron Rodgers, GB	WAS	26	355	3	0	20
2.	Peyton Manning, DEN	NYG	30	350	3	1	0
3.	Drew Brees, NO	TB	25	328	4	1	0
4.	Mike Vick, PHI	SD	23	302	3	0	45
5.	Matt Ryan, ATL	STL	28	310	4	1	0
6.	Tom Brady, NE	NYJ	27	307	3	0	5
7.	Colin Kaepernick, SF	SEA	26	324	2	2	15
8.	Cam Newton, CAR	BUF	22	274	2	0	39
9.	Russell Wilson, SEA	SF	24	280	2	1	12
10.	Andrew Luck, IND	MIA	23	258	3	2	7
11.	Terrelle Pryor, OAK	JAX	18	202	1	1	66
12.	Robert Griffin III, WAS	GB	20	230	2	1	15
13.	Matthew Stafford, DET	ARI	26	262	2	1	0
14.	Joe Flacco, BAL	CLE	25	240	2	0	4
15.	Tony Romo, DAL	KC	22	255	3	1	0

Peyton Manning had a record-setting 2013 debut against the Ravens, and although he won't repeat those numbers, there is no reason to think he won't light up the Giants secondary this week.

Mike Vick looked electric in Chip Kelly's offense on Monday night, and although the Redskins were caught off guard, San Diego does not have the firepower to counter Vick and the rest of the Eagles offense.

Colin Kaepernick was dominating against the Packers, but he comes up against a whole different beast this week. Putting up big numbers in Seattle would be quite a feat.

Terrelle Pryor had a phenomenal debut, but is it sustainable? Collecting 112 rushing yards is a reason to be excited, but he has to prove himself further before he can move into the top 10. 

Running Back

	Player, Team	Opp.	Rush Yds.	Rush TDs	Rec.	Rec. Yds.	Rec. TDs
1.	Adrian Peterson, MIN	CHI	118	2	3	25	0
2.	LeSean McCoy, PHI	SD	100	1	5	33	1
3.	Arian Foster, HOU	TEN	103	1	3	20	0
4.	Doug Martin, TB	NO	92	1	4	22	0
5.	Maurice Jones-Drew, JAX	OAK	82	1	2	14	0
6.	C.J. Spiller, BUF	CAR	66	0	5	30	1
7.	Matt Forte, CHI	MIN	54	1	4	45	0
8.	Reggie Bush, DET	ARI	46	0	6	51	1
9.	Stevan Ridley, NE	NYJ	68	2	0	0	0
10.	Jamaal Charles, KC	DAL	59	1	2	20	0
11.	Alfred Morris, WAS	GB	70	0	0	0	0
12.	Trent Richardson, CLE	BAL	66	0	4	18	0
13.	Ray Rice, BAL	CLE	44	1	3	17	0
14.	DeMarco Murray, DAL	KC	65	1	3	20	0
15.	Marshawn Lynch, SEA	SF	60	1	0	0	0
16.	Steven Jackson, ATL	STL	48	1	1	6	0
17.	Darren McFadden, OAK	JAX	51	0	2	10	0
18.	Eddie Lacy, GB	WAS	50	1	0	0	0
19.	Chris Johnson, TEN	HOU	63	0	2	18	0
20.	Ryan Matthews, SD	PHI	40	1	3	22	0
21.	DeAngelo Williams, CAR	BUF	41	0	3	25	0
22.	Frank Gore, SF	SEA	58	0	1	4	0
23.	Daryl Richardson, STL	ATL	37	1	2	9	0
24.	Darren Sproles, NO	TB	15	0	7	61	0
25.	Rashard Mendenhall, ARI	DET	58	0	2	17	0
26.	Knowshon Moreno, DEN	NYG	33	1	0	0	0
27.	Bryce Brown, PHI	SD	49	0	0	0	0
28.	David Wilson, NYG	DEN	35	0	2	20	0
29.	Fred Jackson, BUF	CAR	45	0	0	0	0
30.	BenJarvus Green-Ellis, CIN	PIT	30	1	0	0	0

LeSean McCoy and Bryce Brown should have a ton of opportunity to run in Chip Kelly's uptempo offense. McCoy was on fire Monday night, which kept Brown on the sidelines, but there should be a little more sharing in the future.

Stevan Ridley was benched on Sunday and had a dud of a game, while Shane Vereen took off as the primary back. Unfortunately, Vereen needs surgery on his wrist, per Jay Glazer of Fox Sports.

Eddie Lacy established his role as the primary back in Green Bay's offense, and he looked good against San Francisco. Expect him to get more room to run again Washington's suspect defense.

Darren Sproles was his usual self in Week 1, catching six passes for 88 yards. His value skyrockets in PPR leagues, but even in non-PPR, he is a low-end RB2 or great flex play.

David Wilson was a train wreck on Sunday night. He fumbled twice and was benched, but with backup Andre Brown being injured, there is not enough talent behind him to drop his value that much.

Wide Receiver

	Player, Team	Opp.	Receptions	Receiving Yds.	Rec. TDs
1.	A.J. Green, CIN	PIT	11	135	2
2.	Calvin Johnson, DET	ARI	10	118	2
3.	Demaryius Thomas, DEN	NYG	11	112	1
4.	Julio Jones, ATL	STL	6	132	1
5.	Randall Cobb, GB	WAS	8	104	1
6.	Brandon Marshall, CHI	MIN	9	110	0
7.	Vincent Jackson, TB	NO	7	104	1
8.	Jordy Nelson, GB	WAS	8	99	0
9.	Larry Fitzgerald, AR	DET	6	101	1
10.	Wes Welker, DEN	NYG	9	75	1
11.	Andre Johnson, HOU	TEN	6	100	0
12.	*Danny Amendola, NE	NYJ	7	76	1
13.	Victor Cruz, NYG	DEN	5	98	1
14.	Dwayne Bowe, KC	DAL	6	80	1
15.	Steve Smith, CAR	BUF	4	65	1
16.	Torrey Smith, BAL	CLE	7	84	0
17.	Hakeem Nicks, NYG	DEN	5	79	0
18.	DeSean Jackson, PHI	SD	4	70	1
19.	Eric Decker, DEN	NYG	4	80	0
20.	Cecil Shorts, JAX	OAK	5	73	0
21.	Antonio Brown, PIT	CIN	5	76	1
22.	Marques Colston, NO	TB	6	78	0
23.	Reggie Wayne, IND	MIA	6	77	0
24.	Golden Tate, SEA	SF	4	57	1
25.	James Jones, GB	WAS	5	45	0
26.	Pierre Garcon, WAS	GB	6	51	0
27.	Anquan Boldin, SF	SEA	6	60	0
28.	Mike Williams, TB	NO	5	58	0
29.	Chris Givens, STL	ATL	4	61	0
30.	Brian Hartline, MIA	IND	5	55	0

Green showed how dominating he can be in Week 1, catching nine passes for 162 yards and two scores. There is no reason to think he'll be slowed by Pittsburgh.

Jordy Nelson vaults up the rankings after proving his knees are fine. He made some spectacular catches against San Francisco, and there are few more dangerous receivers than Nelson at full strength.

Danny Amendola was pulled out of the middle of the game after aggravating a groin injury, but when he re-entered in the second half, he was Tom Brady's go-to guy, which is good news for fantasy owners.

Torrey Smith racked up eight targets and 92 yards in the season opener, but he will be facing Joe Haden this week, which keeps him out of the top 15.

Eric Decker had an abysmal first game while the rest of the Broncos offense flourished. While Decker's woes keep his value at bay, the fact that Denver looked so sharp can only mean good things for the offense as a whole moving forward.

Golden Tate will benefit more than any other receiver from Percy Harvin being out. He had seven targets in Week 1, and I anticipate that number climbing next week and beyond.

Chris Givens was blanketed by Patrick Peterson in Week 1, and the Rams will be the type of offense that should get better each game as they get comfortable with each other. Expect a better game from Givens this Sunday.

Brian Hartline took advantage of Mike Wallace's presence in Week 1, pulling in nine passes for 114 yards and a touchdown. As crazy as it may sound, Hartline has more value than Wallace right now.

*Update on Sept. 10, 5:31 P.M.: Danny Amendola unlikely to play per ESPN. This vaults Julian Edelman in the 15-18 range of these rankings.

*Update on Sept. 12, 11:10 A.M.: Dez Bryant is likely to play per ESPN, and should be ranked seventh, between Brandon Marshall and Vincent Jackson.

Tight End

	Player, Team	Opp.	Receptions	Receiving Yds.	Receiving TDs
1.	Jimmy Graham, NO	TB	7	98	1
2.	Jason Witten, DAL	KC	10	104	0
3.	Vernon Davis, SF	SEA	6	85	1
4.	Jermichael Finley, GB	WAS	6	79	1
5.	Tony Gonzalez, ATL	STL	5	76	1
6.	Jared Cook, STL	ATL	5	75	1
7.	Jordan Cameron, CLE	BAL	7	63	1
8.	Julius Thomas, DEN	NYG	5	80	0
9.	Greg Olsen, CAR	BUF	4	50	1
10.	Owen Daniels, HOU	TEN	6	61	0
11.	Brandon Myers, NYG	DEN	5	49	0
12.	Fred Davis, WAS	GB	4	45	0
13.	Antonio Gates, SD	PHI	5	42	0
14.	Kyle Rudolph, CHI	MIN	4	40	0
15.	Dwayne Allen, IND	MIA	4	40	0

Jermichael Finley finally looks like he could have the type of season everyone has expected of him for a while now. He and Aaron Rodgers have been clicking all summer and were on in Week 1, which is great news for Finley owners.

Jared Cook had a breakout game in Week 1, with seven catches for 141 yards and two touchdowns. He also just missed a third touchdown and is a surefire No. 1 tight end now.

Jordan Cameron also broke out in a big way, turning nine catches into 108 yards and a touchdown. With limited options in Cleveland, Cameron looks like a reliable starter at this point.

Julius Thomas came out of nowhere for Denver to snag five passes for 110 yards and two scores. If Peyton Manning continues to trust Thomas, he may be the surprise star of 2013.

Kicker

	Player, Team	Opp.	Makes	40+	50+	XP
1.	Stephen Gostkowski, NE	NYJ	3	2	0	5
2.	Greg Zuerlein, STL	ATL	3	2	0	2
3.	Dan Bailey, DAL	KC	3	1	1	3
4.	Blair Walsh, MIN	MIN	3	1	1	2
5.	Caleb Sturgis, MIA	IND	3	2	0	3
6.	Matt Bryant, ATL	STL	2	1	0	4
7.	Steven Hauschka, SEA	SF	2	1	0	3
8.	Sebastian Janikowski, OAK	JAX	2	0	1	2
9.	Justin Tucker, BAL	CLE	2	0	0	4
10.	Kai Forbath, WAS	GB	2	0	0	3

Stephen Gostkowski is hooked to Tom Brady, which is a good thing for the veteran kicker. New England's offense struggled a little in the opener against Buffalo, but expect Brady to resurrect things.

Caleb Sturgis, a rookie kicker for Miami, had a heck of a preseason and great debut in Week 1. He should be looked at as a reliable starter from here on out.

Team Defense

	Team	Opp.	Points Allowed	Sacks	INTs	Fumbles
1.	New England	NYJ	10	3	2	0
2.	Houston	TEN	17	4	1	0
3.	Cincinnati	PIT	16	2	0	0
4.	Miami	IND	24	3	2	0
5.	Seattle	SF	21	4	2	0
6.	San Francisco	SEA	20	4	1	0
7.	Chicago	MIN	23	2	1	0
8.	Arizona	DET	31	1	1	1
9.	Baltimore	CLE	28	2	0	1
10.	Oakland	JAX	17	2	0	0
11.	Detroit	ARI	20	1	0	1
12.	Atlanta	STL	21	1	1	0
13.	Minnesota	CHI	26	2	1	0
14.	Green Bay	WAS	24	3	0	0
15.	Denver	NYG	24	1	1	1

New England will be preparing like crazy to shut down the Jets and crush any momentum gained from a Week 1 win. It will be looking to make Geno Smith's life very difficult and should succeed.

Miami showed it can get to the quarterback and force turnovers, which makes for a solid combination in fantasy terms. Count on it to take advantage of Andrew Luck's propensity to make errant throws.

Oakland does not have a good defense by any means, but whoever is playing Jacksonville's woeful offense has to be considered for fantasy purposes.

Green Bay can create havoc for an offense, and Washington looked really out of sync on Monday night. Unless Robert Griffin III and Alfred Morris really turn things around, Green Bay will dominate the game.