Seahawks’ Lockett a prime target in Week 2, among the smart starts
Death. Taxes. Julio Jones avoiding the end zone. Although such doubtless assurances author predictably in a fantasy football owner’s life, never is the road to a championship well paved. Week 1 proved to be riddled with potholes. What the offseason does so aggravatingly well is construct believable narratives for owners to fall victim to.
Ankle-breaking traps are laid and even the most pensive prognosticators can leave the Week 1 field feeling like Delanie Walker.
Did you believe that Lev Bell would solve his contract negotiations in time for the season opener? That was not a safe path — that was a trap.
Amari Cooper will be a thriving component of Gruden’s new offence. That was a trap.
Randall Cobb will be an unused member of Aaron Rodgers’ receiving corp. That was a Bear trap.
Luckily, the time for conjecture is over — the stats are here. So are my truthful predictions.
SMART STARTS
Put the following players in your lineup for Week 2:
Tyler Lockett vs. Chicago Bears
Assuming that no more unknown tight ends explode on to the pitch like Doctor Dissly did last week, Lockett is set to be the surefire, primary target for Russell Wilson against Chicago. The combination of Doug Baldwin’s injury and Lockett’s unearthly pace will give Lockett The Rocket every opportunity he needs to finish as a healthy flex.
Jared Cook vs. Denver Broncos
The chef is back. On an otherwise grotesque palette of Derek Carr’s pass-catching options, Cook went out and put up 180 yards receiving. Despite Amari Cooper and Jordy Nelson making Oakland’s offence look like a lukewarm tupperware of undercooked mac and cheese, Cook is nothing short of an eloquent garnish of basil on such a dish. Five stars.
Tevin Coleman vs. Carolina Panthers
Finding a reliable running back to flex can feel as improbable as buying a winning lottery ticket — but not when you have Lucky Number Tevin on your squad. Coleman’s season-opening TD proves he has value regardless of Devonta Freeman’s presence. With his counterpart’s knee troubles, Coleman is primed to fly.
FIT TO SIT
Put the following players on your bench for Week 2:
Kelvin Benjamin vs. Los Angeles Chargers
Big Boy Benjamin may have hit the 250-pound mark in the offseason, but for opening week he couldn’t even hit 2.50 fantasy points. If Kelvin Bowlingball is being thrown passes by Nathan Peterman, he is next to useless. By that I mean, if you put useless and KB on a ladder together, useless would be adjacent to him, but still a rung up.
DeSeasn Jackson vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Wow. After the legitimacy of Fitzmagic was all but empirically proven, Jackson was thrust to the top of almost all waiver wires. Although adding him to your team is not a bad decision, expecting him to pop off another 20 points against a stout Philly D will not happen — even if his QB is Ryan Fitzdumbledore.
Kareem Hunt vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Pat Mahomes is physically incapable of throwing the ball short distances. The man has more arm power than John Gruden has unwarranted confidence. With Pittsburgh’s strength being their defensive line, Mahomes will be sending meteors downfield as opposed to dump-offs to Hunt.