Fantasy Football Week 2: Major Lessons to Carry over from Week 1

There's an old saying that history will repeat itself if you don't pay attention to it—or something like that. I don't remember exactly. I'm sure it's not a big deal. But people like to say it over and over again, so let's apply it to fantasy football.

In Week 1, we learned some stuff. Important stuff. Eye-opening stuff. The kind of stuff that makes you stop and go, "Whoa, I didn't see that stuff coming." And it's the sort of stuff we shouldn't forget. (Isn't "stuff" such a great, descriptive word?)

So, in an effort to make sure the lessons from Week 1 carry over to this week in fantasy football, I've reviewed some of the more interesting things we learned, were reminded of or discovered in the past seven days. If history is going to repeat itself, well, you'll see it coming. 

It Always Pays to Have Players on Top Offenses

Peyton Manning, Julius Thomas, Emmanuel Sanders and Montee Ball all had nice weeks for the Denver Broncos.

After playing dreadfully for a half, Nick Foles led the Philadelphia Eagles to 34 unanswered points, helping LeSean McCoy, Darren Sproles, Zach Ertz and Jeremy Maclin to nice fantasy afternoons.

The Detroit Lions wrecked the New York Giants, and Matt Stafford, Calvin Johnson, Joique Bell and Golden Tate all benefitted. 

The New Orleans Saints may have lost, but Mark Ingram, Marques Colston, Brandin Cooks, Pierre Thomas and Khiry Robinson all had solid afternoons. Drew Brees and Jimmy Graham have had better days but still put up decent enough numbers.

One of the oldest strategies in fantasy football payed off again on Sunday: Target players from the league's top offenses. When in doubt, start the guy on the more explosive team.

Percy Harvin Is Gonna Shine...If He Can Stay Healthy

Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images

Against Green Bay, the Seattle Seahawks made one thing perfectly clear: Percy Harvin is going to be a huge part of their offense this year.

The flashy wideout caught seven passes (on seven targets) for 59 yards, leading the team in every receiving category. He also carried the ball four times for 41 yards. And you get the feeling that if the team wasn't pounding the rock with so much success—they finished with 207 rushing yards and two scores on the ground—he would have been even more involved.

In other words, Harvin's role should only grow, which is a scary thought for opposing defenses. Russell Wilson is certainly excited, per SportsCenter on Twitter:

Fantasy owners can consider him a WR1 this week and probably most weeks going forward. 

That Marshawn Lynch Is Still Pretty Good, Too

Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images

Some folks were down on Lynch a bit coming into this season. I bumped him to the bottom of my first round in fantasy drafts, too. After 20 rushes for 110 yards and two scores, we can all probably put those concerns to rest.

Trust Anyone on the Rams at Your Own Peril

Michael Thomas/Getty Images

The St. Louis Rams were pretty poor on offense last year after Sam Bradford went down to injury, but Zac Stacy still emerged as one of the most consistent fantasy backs in football.

But with Shaun Hill starting under center this year—Austin Davis was also forced into action when Hill was knocked out of the game—and little to no passing game to speak of, Stacy rushed just 11 times for 43 yards, while Benny Cunningham nicked five carries. 

For the time being, any players on the Rams should be enjoying a nice, cozy spot on your bench.

They Are Who We Thought They Were!

Ben Tate got hurt. Eli Manning threw two picks and played miserably, while Tony Romo threw three head-scratching picks of his own. Stafford, Andrew Luck and Manning were three of the top four quarterbacks last week. Lynch kept bowling over tacklers. Megatron can't be stopped. Neither can Orange Julius. Robert Griffin III continued to struggle in Washington's new offense.

Seattle's defense is still the best in the NFL and an absolute fantasy killer for quarterbacks and receivers. Meanwhile, the Chicago Bears still can't stop the run. Last year's worst run defense picked up where they left off, giving up 193 rushing yards to the Buffalo Bills in Week 1. If you have a running back facing the Bears, get ready to have a huge week. On Sunday, Frank Gore and the San Francisco 49ers should skewer Chicago on the ground.

Sometimes, folks live up or down to expectations. The above players matched up perfectly with theirs.

We Know Nothing

Sure, Allen Hurns flashed in the preseason. Sure, some people considered him a deep sleeper to watch. But nobody expected him to catch four passes for 110 yards and two touchdowns in his NFL debut.

We know nothing, folks.

The top defense in fantasy football this week was the Houston Texans after they forced two fumbles, allowed just six points and scored a touchdown on a blocked punt, all against a Washington offense that was expected to be explosive this year. It did move the ball around with some success, but not enough, apparently.

Sheesh, we really know nothing.

In standard-scoring leagues, Derek Anderson notched 18 fantasy points for the Carolina Panthers in place of the injured Cam Newton. He finished 24-of-34 with 230 passing yards and two touchdowns. I repeat, Derek Anderson did this.

Good lord, we know absolutely, positively nothing. 

Steve Smith Sr. (yeah, he's going by that now) had seven catches for 118 yards and a touchdown in his Baltimore Ravens debut. The most receiving yards he had in any week a season ago was 69, and he had just four touchdowns in total. 

Ohmigod, did we ever know anything at all in the first place? Because it's really, painfully clear that we know nothing at all right now. For all of the studying, research, educated guesses and best intentions, the NFL never ceases to amaze, surprise and enthrall us. 

And it never stops reminding us that we really, truly know nothing.

Hit me up on Twitter—I'll answer your fantasy questions and make some corny jokes, too. It's more fun than karate class with Antonio Brown.