Welcome back to my trust or bust series, brought back for 2022, here we look at the Week 3 matchups.
Holy Josh Allen, what a way to end Week 2! No disrespect to Jalen Hurts, he helped me (and several other people I’m sure) win a matchup with his Monday night performance. I wish I could say the same for Justin Jefferson, Derrick Henry (more on him later), and Kirk “always bad in primetime” Cousins. But, that’s neither here nor there. It’s a long season and it’s time to move on to Week 3.
For those of you who are reading this for the first time, thank you. Let me tell you what this series is about and what its intentions are. (I promise it will have your daughter home before curfew). Every week I select players inside the FantasyPros Consensus Top 12 that I think will finish outside the top 12 and players outside the top 12 that I like more. All rankings are used with full PPR scoring in mind. This is NOT a ‘start/sit’ article per se. This is more or less how I feel about a player, why I feel that way, suggesting what I would do, what to expect, and who I like more. Here is where I would normally share my accountability report from the week prior, but because I’m a coward I didn’t try to predict anything for Week 1.
Accountability Report
QB Matthew Stafford (LAR)
Week 2 Ranking 12th
Prediction- Bust
Week 2 Finish 10th
I should’ve known better than to bet against Stafford and McVay. In my defense, it was a bad week for quarterbacks as only ten of them scored more than twenty fantasy points and Stafford did throw two interceptions.
RB Derrick Henry (TEN)
Week 2 Ranking 9th
Prediction- Bust
Week 2 Finish 30th
Not only was it a bad week for quarterbacks, but it was also equally bad for running backs. Oddly enough, Henry found the end zone this week and only managed to score eight and a half fantasy points. That Buffalo defense is legit!
WR Mike Evans (TB)
Week 2 Ranking 10th
Prediction- Bust
Week 2 Finish 54th
Ok, alright, I know, Evans was well on his way to a WR1 finish. Unfortunately sticking up for your quarterback and getting ejected from the game does not score you fantasy points (new league format coming soon).
TE Dalton Schultz (DAL)
Week 2 Ranking 6th
Prediction- Bust
Week 2 Finish 45th
I will be the first to admit I did not expect anything from a Cooper Rush led Cowboys offense, but hey what do I know? (not very much according to my wife. Hi honey.) Even then Schultz was the forgotten piece and to make matters worse, he got injured.
Hey, three out of four, not bad for my first week. I doubt it gets any better than this, so I’ll take what I can get. Let’s run the numbers.
Week 2 Results- 3 for 4 75%
Correct
3
Wrong
1
Week 3 Inside/ Outside Picks
QB Tom Brady (TB)
v GB
Current Ranking 30th
AVG Points per Game 10.4
Week 3 ranking 12th
After two weeks, Ol’ Tom hasn’t looked the part of the fantasy stud we’ve been accustomed to. That’s bound to happen when you’re missing Chris Godwin, Mike Evans, and Julio Jones. Guess what? Chris Godwin, Mike Evans, and Julio Jones aren’t expected to play this week either.
Who I like More
QB Marcus Mariota (ATL)
@SEA
Week 3 ranking 17th
Look Mariota and the Falcons aren’t world beaters by any means and one of these days Kyle Pitts will do something, right, right? Anywho, so far this season quarterbacks have had success against the Seattle defense with back-to-back top fifteen weekly finishes. Oh, did I mention Mariota is third among quarterbacks in rushing yards? That sounds like a recipe for fantasy success.
RB Derrick Henry (DEN)
v SF
Current Ranking 14th
AVG Points per Game 14.7
Week 3 ranking 12th
The concern with Javonte this season was how much he would be sharing the load with Melvin Gordon. After two weeks it’s pretty clear Javonte is the lead back. However, what we didn’t predict is that Russell Wilson and the Broncos’ offense would have only scored two touchdowns in two games. Now the 49ers and their stout run defense are coming to town and they’ve allowed a total of one hundred and twenty-five yards and one touchdown to running backs this season.
Who I like More
RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire (KC)
@IND
Week 3 ranking 17th
Is it just me or has CEH looked pretty good this year? I mean did any of us predict he’d have a top five-week, let alone be the RB5 on the year? I know I didn’t and he’s done it on twenty-two total touches! With linebacker Shaq Leonard’s status in question, CEH and the Chiefs should take advantage of a defense that allowed James Robinson to finish as the RB8 in Week 2.
WR Deebo Samuel (SF)
@DEN
Current Ranking 25th
AVG Points per Game 13.7
Week 3 ranking 10th
Depending on who you talk to, Jimmy Garoppolo is good for Deebo Samuel. Last year that proved to be the case, Week 3 will be a completely different story. Similar to their offense, the Broncos’ defense is stingy when it comes to touchdowns, so stingy that not a single wide receiver has scored a touchdown this season.
Who I like More
WR Michael Thomas (NO)
@CAR
Week 3 ranking 17th
Two weeks into the season and Michael Thomas does not look like a guy who missed all of the 2021 season. As the WR9 on the season, I was surprised to see Thomas outside the ‘Top 12’ this week. The Carolina defense might look scary on paper, but when you realize they’ve played the Jacoby Brissett and Daniel Jones the last two weeks. Fantasy managers can breathe a sigh of relief when putting Thomas in their lineups.
TE Gerald Everett (LAC)
v JAX
Current Ranking 4th
AVG Points per Game 13.8
Week 3 ranking 10th
Gerald Everett’s production has to be one of the early season surprises. The talent has always been there, but not the opportunity. With Keenan Allen coming back, the opportunity is shrinking again and the Jaguars’ are a top 10 defense when it comes to tight ends allowing less than seventy total yards and six catches in two games will do that.
Who I like More
TE Tyler Conklin (NYJ)
v CIN
Week 3 ranking 15th
Like Gerald Everett, Tyler Conklin has been a nice fantasy surprise this season. Joe Flacco has shown he likes Conklin as well, that would explain why he’s fifth in targets, tied for fifth in receptions, and tied for first in touchdowns. Don’t look now but here comes the Cincinnati Bengals defense thathas allowed the seventh most receiving yards to tight ends.
That’s gonna do it for this week’s piece. I hope you found the info useful and actionable.
Thank you for reading. Just a reminder, my fantasy podcast: The ATB Fantasy Show records a new episode every Thursday. You can find the podcast on most major platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music. Here’s a link to the most recent episode.
If you use the hashtag #AskATB or send us a DM, we’ll be sure to answer any and all of your fantasy questions.
There you have it! Any questions, or want some more specific help for your league on who to drop, just reach out. Reach out on social media, you can find us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Or jump into our Discord server. And checkout out rankings for each Week.
Image Credit: Jim Brown – USA TODAY Sports
