Fantasy Football Week 2: Biggest Takeaways from Sunday

It was a weird, ugly Week 2 in the NFL, and Sunday was its lengthy microcosm.

There was plenty to talk about heading into the week thanks to profound off-field issues that marred the league, and Sunday's action was no reprieve. Injuries plagued games across the league, topsy-turvy results abounded and the referees really wanted that spotlight in San Francisco Sunday night.

Amidst it all, though, there was plenty to extract for fantasy football purposes. Here are the biggest takeaways from Sunday's action in Week 2 of the 2014 season.

The Injurypocalypse Is Upon Us

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The football gods were in a mood Sunday.

It was a rough week in the NFL, and it culminated with an awful Sunday of injuries. One by one the stars fell from the NFL sky, felling fantasy squads across the land in the process. It was a brutal day across the league, indeed.

Here is a list of major fantasy contributors knocked out of Sunday action due to injury:

• A.J. Green, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
• Robert Griffin III, QB, Washington
• Knowshon Moreno, RB, Miami Dolphins
• Vernon Davis, TE, San Francisco 49ers
• Jamaal Charles, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
• Eric Decker, WR, New York Jets
• Ryan Mathews, RB, San Diego Chargers
• Allen Hurns, WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
• DeSean Jackson, WR, Washington

These injuries were likely varying in degree—some of these guys should hopefully be back next week while others may be out for a while—so keep a close eye on them in the coming weeks. You can get more information on some of the day's injuries from Bleacher Report's Will Carroll.

The important takeaway here is to avoid panic. Don't trade away quality players to get a fill-in for an injured player. There are plenty of replacement-level guys on the waiver wire that are worth taking rather than losing a starter in a trade.

Speaking of the devil, get ready for a fight, as waiver wires will be burning up all over the fantasy football realm. Don't be shy about spending your free-agent auction budget (FAAB), but don't blow it all in one place.

Kirk Cousins Can Be Your Huckleberry

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The carnage had barely begun when Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III went down with what looks like a long-term ankle injury, per The Washington Post's Liz Clarke. Enter Kirk Cousins, the man some have steadfastly believed to be better than Griffin.

Bleacher Report's James Dudko believes Cousins could prove to be a better fit for Jay Gruden's offense than Griffin. 

Cousins certainly looked the part as Washington thrashed the Jacksonville Jaguars. The third-year quarterback completed nearly 67 percent of his passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns—narrowly missing out on a third—in a rout, reigniting debate about Griffin's status as the team's franchise quarterback.

That debate is best served elsewhere. For now, the question is whether Cousins is going to be a viable fantasy starter going forward, at least in these parts. Sunday's performance definitely signals good things to come from the Washington quarterback.

Of course, the Jaguars weren't exactly a stiff test at home. Fortunately for Cousins, though, his schedule is a bit soft.

Washington gets to play the New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles—none of which has a particularly good defense—twice each the rest of the way. Plus there is the very real possibility that what we are seeing is a genuine breakout.

The Hottest Waiver-Wire Addition This Week Will Be...

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Good luck picking just one after the bloodbath that was Week 2.

In truth, it depends on the severity of injury for some of the stars knocked out.

Knile Davis looked fantastic in relief of Jamaal Charles, amassing 105 total yards and two touchdowns after Kansas City's stud running back left early. Davis currently sits second on the fantasy leaderboard at running back for Week 2—not too shabby for an injury fill-in.

Should Charles miss more time, Davis should absolutely be at the top of your queue. Hopefully Charles' injury isn't major, however—he left the game with an ankle injury that seemed innocuous, and CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora tweeted that the injury is believed to be mild.

Unfortunately, Ryan Mathews may not be so lucky. The San Diego Chargers running back left his game with a knee injury, which may keep him out longer. The initial diagnosis was a sprained MCL that could keep him out anywhere between zero and eight weeks, per U-T San Diego's Michael Gehlken.

The Chargers have Donald Brown and Danny Woodhead, though, so they may not be inclined to rush Mathews back. Woodhead is likely owned in most leagues, but Brown should be available.

If Mathews is diagnosed with a more severe sprain, Brown is an excellent waiver-wire addition. He was already a big part of the Chargers rotation, and he was quietly effective for the Indianapolis Colts last year.

Were the Bears Sandbagging on the Injury Report?

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The Chicago Bears were supposed to go into San Francisco—well, Santa Clara—and lie down.

Not only were they on the road to face a perennial power, but they were set to do it down their top two receivers.

Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery were not only listed as questionable heading into the weekend, but Adam Schefter of ESPN reported their likelihood of playing was low. Lo and behold, both were active Sunday night, creating frustration for those who subbed them out of lineups to be safe.

To add insult to injury for fantasy owners, Marshall scored three touchdowns. Jeffery was noticeably limited, but he was able to catch three passes for 47 yards and create problems for the San Francisco defense.

Like a river card that would have won you a hand you had earlier folded in poker, however, don't get suckered into making a rash decision on an injured player in the future. Anyone who may have ventured to play Marshall got lucky—he could just as easily have been out or limited to ineffectiveness.

If a player is truly iffy heading into Sunday with an afternoon or evening game, have a solid substitution or backup plan. Never count on three touchdowns.

Here Comes Geno Smith

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The New York Jets soared to a 21-3 lead at Lambeau Field against the Green Bay Packers on the wings of Geno Smith's hot start. Unfortunately for them, it wasn't meant to be.

Smith was magnificent early in a hostile environment, signaling he may be making the leap some expected him to make this season. Having a bona fide No. 1 receiver in Eric Decker has certainly helped.

Unfortunately for Smith, a hamstring injury knocked Decker out of the game, and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg nearly topped the charts of Marty Mornhinweg gaffes by screaming for a timeout just before Smith threw a long touchdown pass that would've tied the game in the fourth quarter.

After the Jets' Week 1 win over the Raiders, head coach Rex Ryan spoke up about Smith's emergence (via the Green Bay Press-Gazette):

"

He came a million miles. It starts with his poise, his confidence, the fact that he really knows this offense, and he studies defensive coordinators, studies defenses, and he's confident. He can make all the throws. The young man's a very talented player.

"

That would have put Smith in the top five fantasy scorers for the week, something he is capable of doing when Decker is healthy. As it stands, Smith is the ninth-best quarterback out of Week 2 with one game to play.

If you are looking for a quarterback to replace Robert Griffin III or a solid bench guy, Smith is a good candidate.

Time to Sell High on Antonio Gates

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In the most shocking performance of the day, Antonio Gates shredded the Seattle Seahawks for 96 yards, three touchdowns and 27.6 total fantasy points.

This is the same Gates who many wrote off before the season began, an injury waiting to happen with youngster Ladarius Green nipping at his heels. So much for that.

Gates has been fantastic to start the year, but he cannot be expected to keep up this scoring pace. And while it certainly hasn't slowed him down this season, age could rear its ugly head in a hurry. Gates is 34, after all.

If you have Gates, you likely drafted him late. That makes him easier to trade, especially if you have a quality second tight end.

One Week Does Not Make a Trend

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There was plenty to glean from Week 1 action. Unfortunately, some of that may have led us astray for Week 2.

Take the Dallas Cowboys, for example. That travesty of a Week 1 performance led us to believe any offense could have great fantasy numbers against it. Jake Locker and the Tennessee Titans had the Cowboys lined up in their sights this week only to disappoint fantasy owners and prognosticators alike.

The Miami Dolphins looked like world-beaters after smacking down the New England Patriots to the tune of 23 unanswered points in the second half. A trip to Buffalo quickly knocked them back to earth, as they could only muster 10 points.

Fortunately, one more week means one more data set to help inform better decisions going forward. Things will normalize after the first couple of weeks as we are able to discern trends and predict what may come a bit more clearly.

We are already seeing some of that—the Cleveland Browns have allowed a ton of points to running backs in the first two weeks, for example. As the weeks roll on, the fantasy prognostication business normalizes.

Eddie Lacy Has Had an Awful Schedule

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If you are looking for a bargain on the trading block, look no further than Eddie Lacy.

The Green Bay Packers running back has had an awful start to his 2014 campaign, leaving his first matchup after a concussion and putting up a meager stat line this week.

There is good news on the horizon for Lacy and his fantasy owners, though—his schedule lightens up considerably going forward.

Lacy had the misfortune to draw the Seattle Seahawks on the road, backed by the 12th Man, followed up by the stout New York Jets front at home. The awful matchups and that Week 1 injury have conspired to sink Lacy's fantasy stock, as he has scored just 10.6 fantasy points in the first two games.

His schedule lightens considerably starting this week, when he faces the Detroit Lions, who have given up 15.6 fantasy points per game thus far. It gets much lighter immediately after that with the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings.

However, Lacy will start to get breathing room in the running game soon. The time to buy is now.

Matt Cassel Is Bad for Your Fantasy Team

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A week after trouncing the St. Louis Rams on the road, Matt Cassel and the Minnesota Vikings laid an egg at home against the New England Patriots.

This was the same Patriots team that the Miami Dolphins manhandled; New England gave up 33 points in its first Week 1 loss in a decade. Cassel and Co. looked like they were going to have a nice fantasy day Sunday, but the Patriots had other plans.

Minnesota could only muster seven points as Cassel served up four interceptions. It was a bad enough performance that head coach Mike Zimmer had to dodge questions about rookie Teddy Bridgewater starting.

Of course, it didn't help that one of the best running backs in the league was deactivated after his arrest last week. Adrian Peterson's saga may have put the Vikings on their collective heels.

Cordarrelle Patterson, Kyle Rudolph and Greg Jennings are all at the mercy of their quarterback, who could be in for a roller-coaster season. If Peterson misses an extended period of time, things might get rough for the pass-catchers in Minnesota.

Bobby Rainey Might Be the Man in Tampa Bay

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Doug Martin's Week 1 performance and subsequent injury were troubling enough for his fantasy owners. Now he has a legitimate challenge to his starting job in the form of Bobby Rainey.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back had a nice outing against the St. Louis Rams, totaling 25 touches for 174 yards in a loss. He was dynamic and reliable, something we haven't seen out of Martin since his rookie season.

Martin was questionable heading into Sunday's action with his knee injury, and his inability to play may have cost him his majority share in that Buccaneer backfield.

Rainey was pretty good when he got an opportunity last season, so this is nothing new. An injury cut his season short then, but he is back and looking better than ever. He may not have the job to himself as long as Martin is still around, but Rainey could well be the back to own in Tampa Bay.

All fantasy scoring courtesy of NFL.com.

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