Preseason Roundup: Week Two, Part Two
Week two of the NFL preseason continues and it’s time to start getting a closer look at some of the starters and camp battles as they heat up. The action will be hot and heavy as players on deep draft sheets will start getting more time on the field. Fantasy owners will get an extended look at who can be dynasty relevant and at players who just don’t pass the eye test. The big highlight from Saturday came in the form of Sam Bradford returning to game action, this time as the quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles.
The week two preseason will be broken down into three parts. Within each article I will be discussing the players who have surprised, excelled and those who may be emerging. Make sure you check out part one here.
Miami Dolphins at Carolina Panthers
Quarterbacks
This game clearly showed how much trouble the Panthers offense is in without Kelvin Benjamin. Cam Newton can tell you – he ended his day with just four completions in ten attempts, good for just 42 passing yards. He threw a lazy interception to Jamar Taylor, who returned the ball to the one. It’s not all on Newton (players dropped some passes), but the team cannot rely on Greg Olsen every week.
Ryan Tannehill was impressive in his second start of the preseason. He did not go deep down the field much and stuck to the short passing game. He loves Jarvis Landry and PPR owners should get excited about both players as Tannehill also offers additional talent to the running game. He finished the game with 12 completions on 15 attempts for 102 yards and a touchdown. He did struggle in his downfield game, though, as he sailed one pass over Kenny Stills’ head and threw a bad interception to Luke Kuechly.
Running Backs
The running game was not much better. Jonathan Stewart only rushed for two yards on two carries. Cameron Artis-Payne showed some skill as he rushed for 33 yards on five carries, but his 29-yard run minimized his overall rushing average as he had four rushes for four yards with his other attempts. The way it stands now, opposing defenses are not going to take this offense seriously enough to be concerned about who is running the ball and perhaps Cam Newton is the best running back on the team.
The running game was the weak point for the Dolphins as well. Damien Williams scored two touchdowns and almost had a third when he fumbled out of the end zone giving the ball back to Carolina on a touchback. However, Williams finished with just 14 yards on four carries. Lamar Miller may as well have taken the day off. He had five yards on just three attempts.
As it stands right now, I wouldn’t put too much faith in either the Carolina or Miami running games.
Receivers
Olsen was productive catching three passes for 27 yards. The one receiver who did emerge was the ex-Packer, Jarrett Boykin. He was targeted 12 times, and finished with six receptions for 53 yards. Hopefully Devin Funchess can make his return to the lineup as it would be good to see if he has anything to offer early and alleviate the pressures of the passing game.
Landry continues to get love from Tannehill. He was targeted six times in the contest and twice in the end zone. He finished the game with four receptions for 20 yards, and would have probably caught a touchdown if he wasn’t being held by Carolina’s defense. Other than Landry, Matt Hazel had four receptions for 47 yards and a touchdown.
Baltimore at Philadelphia
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Quarterbacks
Joe Flacco was just plain awful in this matchup against the Eagles. In seven pass attempts, he only completed three for 23 yards and also tossed two interceptions to complete the hot mess. The first pick was an underthrown deep ball to Kamar Aiken. The second sailed over Marlon Brown’s head. Flacco made several passing errors with a clean pocket and was inaccurate all over the field, missing Maxx Williams on a target as well. Flacco should put up good numbers in a Marc Trestman offense, but keep an eye on him and see how he plays in the next two weeks.
Sam Bradford and Mark Sanchez double-dipped on the Ravens defense. Bradford saw his first game action and was 3-for-5 for 35 yards in limited action. He also took two hits – one to his knee (it didn’t break, so that’s a very positive sign there). Sanchez was 14-for-20 with 118 yards passing. Neither quarterback threw a touchdown
Running Backs
Justin Forsett is trying to convince everyone last season’s numbers were not a fluke. I trust him much more in PPR leagues, but he still ran well. He had a 14-yard rush and his four other carries went for 15 yards. He only caught one pass, but I am not worried about it, he will get plenty of targets. Lorenzo Taliaferro looks to be handling the short yardage carries. On a third and 1 at the 40, he was short on his first carry but came through on fourth down on the very next attempt, finishing with eight yards on four attempts.
DeMarco Murray made his first preseason start and continues to run well. He had a seven-yard run on his first attempt and went for another six yards on his second carry of the game. He finished with 17 yards on five carries including a touchdown. Murray may not offer much receiving value, as it appears that will continue to be Darren Sproles’ role, as he frequently substituted for him on third downs. Ryan Mathews also ran well. He picked up 19 yards and a touchdown on three carries and even rookie Raheem Mostert enjoyed running over the Ravens primary defense – he tallied 54 yards on ten attempts. The Ravens defense looks shameful.
Receivers
Rookies Maxx Williams and DeAndre Carter were the leaders for Baltimore in the receiving department. Carter finished the game with three receptions for 34 yards and Williams finished with 25 yards on three receptions. I am anticipating how well Breshad Perriman will fit in this offense as he has been missing in action up to this point.
Nelson Agholor continues to shine. He caught four passes for 49 yards, but he also made some rookie mistakes. He dropped one pass falling out of bounds and a defender took another away from him, but a penalty saved that play.
New England at New Orleans
Quarterbacks
Jimmy Garoppolo took over for an ineffective Tom Brady (no, we’re not worried) and played well minus a few errors here and there. He finished the game connecting on 28-of-35 passes for 269 yards and one touchdown and one interception. Some of his incompletions were due to bad decisions and poor throws, as was his interception, as he was trying to make something happen in double coverage. Overall, I was very impressed by his play. He had ten straight completions and his touchdown was pretty as he broke the grasp of the defense, spun around and threw a touchdown to Chris Harper.
Drew Brees was looking himself once again. He was eight of ten passing for 159 yards and two touchdowns. Brandin Cooks was the primary benefactor, as both receiver and quarterback look like they will have a nice season feeding off each other
Running Backs
LeGarrette Blount posted an ugly stat line, mustering just 15 yards on 13 carries. His performance is likely due to how good the New Orleans Saints’ defensive front controlled the line of scrimmage rather than Blount having a bad day. Jonas Gray couldn’t get much going, either. Gray finished with seven carries for 22 yards. Kevin Williams, who signed a one-year contract with New Orleans, looks as though he will make a positive difference in the Saints defense.
Something changed for Mark Ingram and he was poised to show it last season. This preseason he continues to be on the cusp of greatness. He rushed for 18 yards on six attempts, but he also was out catching the ball. In fact, he finished the game with three receptions for 45 yards. If he continues down this path, CJ Spiller may not have the impact some are hoping for.
Receivers
Jimmy Garoppolo seems to like Chris Harper. He targeted Harper eight times and five passes were caught for 69 yards and a touchdown. Brandon Gibson had eight receptions for 68 yards while Jonathan Krause had six catches for 55 yards. The Patriots were without Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman, so take all this with a grain of salt.
This was the Brandin Cooks show for New Orleans. He finished with four receptions for 117 yards and one touchdown, with a long of 45 yards. Cooks is going to slide down his ADP, so keep an eye on where owners begin to draft him. Josh Hill did not do much and looked as though he may split time with Ben Watson. This is not what fantasy owners want, but it sure looks like the future to me. Hill finished with two receptions for 14 yards and one touchdown. Watson caught two passes for 12 yards and a touchdown of his own.
Chicago at Indianapolis
Quarterbacks
Jay Cutler moved the Bears down the field in all three of his drives, but he just couldn’t get them in the end zone. He finished the game nearly perfect (8-of 9 for 69 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions). Jimmy Clausen also did a nice job filling in for Cutler once again. He finished 6-of-9 passing with 54 yards and two touchdowns
Andrew Luck threw just nine passes, but was good on five of them for 71 yards. He did run for a touchdown as he took off from five yards out as well. In the two games played, Luck is 10-or-15 with 114 passing yards and no touchdowns. It also seems the offensive line did not improve over the off-season as Luck continued to fight off defenders to get the Colts downfield.
Both Matt Forte and Ka’Deem Carey were not very productive in the running game last night – they combined for just 37 yards on 13 carries. Even though Forte and Carey stumbled, Jeremy Langford looked really good as he rushed for 80 yards on nine carries and even had a touchdown with a long of 46 yards. Langford finished as the fastest running back at the combine this year and can break away many long runs, especially if he hits the corner. At this point, it looks like he is the front runner for the backup job behind Forte.
Running Backs
Frank Gore ran well as he had two five yard runs on two carries, but rookie Josh Robinson is opening many eyes. He finished with 61 yards on 13 carrie to add to his total from last week (ten carries for 44 yards and another touchdown). Gore is the starting running back, but Robinson surely looks solid as the sixth round draft rookie prospect.
The Bears did not do much on offense in the receiving department. Martellus Bennett finished with just three receptions for 22-yards.
Receivers
Phillip Dorsett led the Colts in receiving this week as he had three receptions for 21 yards. It will be difficult for Indianapolis to get him more involved with the offense considering the weapons they have. With T.Y. Hilton, Indianapolis is expecting a great deal, especially after signing him to a long-term contract. Hilton finished with two receptions for 22 yards. I would not be too worried about the Colts right now, even though they had two blowout losses. They normally don’t do well in the preseason.
Jacksonville at New York
Quarterbacks
Eli Manning had another rough outing as he was just 4-for-14 with 46 yards passing. Even though he did not perform well, the receivers did not help out too much, either. Odell Beckham Jr. simply couldn’t connect versus the Jaguars even though he led the team in targets with five. Beckham dropped an easy touchdown, but Manning also airmailed one over OBJ’s head in the end zone. It looks as though the extra time left in the preseason will be needed to get these two in sync again.
Blake Bortles had an up-and-down game as he finished with completing just 50 percent of his passes going 8-for 16 with 98 yards passing. He did not throw a touchdown pass, but did led three drives for three field goals. He was more solid last week going 11-of-15 for 118 yards. Bortles still hasn’t thrown a touchdown and this offense looks like it will struggle once again.
Running Backs
The Giants running game didn’t look much different than it did last week. Rashad Jennings only carried the ball once for four yards, because New York passed on every play during the initial possession. This focus could be worry about Jennings’ health and not wanting to risk him in the preseason. Andre Williams carried the ball three times for 13 yards. Vereen looks to be the third down option that comes to no big surprise.
With T.J. Yeldon out, the Jaguars were led by Denard Robinson in the backfield 0 he only gained 19 yards on six carries. He was targeted in the end zone, but Bortles could not connect with him. Toby Gerhart got some short-yardage work in, rushing for 15 yards on five carries.
Receivers
James Jones came alive for the Giants in the passing game. He caught five passes for 83 yards and may have kept himself from the cut list for at least one more week. Tight end Larry Donnell contributed with three catches for 29 yards.
The Jaguars needed to get Allen Robinson involved to be successful and they did just that. Robinson was targeted seven times and he caught three of those passes for 64 yards. He also had a touchdown in his grasp, but dropped the ball. Look for him to lead the Jaguars in receiving and be an important piece to their growing offense. They also tried to get rookie Rashad Greene involved with three targets, but they could not connect on any of them.
Oakland at Minnesota
Quarterbacks
Derek Carr had a solid week against the St. Louis Rams last week as he was 6-for-9 with 43 yards passing. This week, his numbers dropped off. He finished the game with just four completions on eight attempts for a total of 78 yards passing. One pass accumulated 40 yards, which was a beautiful throw to Amari Cooper over his shoulder on a fade route. His other attempts were not as crisp as he overthrew both Cooper and Marcel Reece. He made another talented throw down the sidelines as he attempted to hook up with receiver Seth Roberts, but Roberts dropped the pass.
Teddy Bridgewater continues to impress me every week. He was 10-for-14 last night for 89 yards and one touchdown. He has an instant connection with Charles Johnson as he targeted him five times. I think these two are going to make a great tandem together, especially in PPR leagues.
Running Backs
The Raiders have one talented back in Latavius Murray. He rushed for 20 yards on four carries and scored one touchdown. Staying healthy is going to be primary for him and if he can play 16 games, he should have a solid year and could finish as a high RB2 or even a low-end RB1 if everything really came together. Marcel Reece looks to be the third down back for the Raiders as he led the backs in targets. Both Michael Dyer and Geno Atkinson III will be the primaries fighting for the backup job. Dyer rushed for 45 yards on 12 attempts while Atkinson had 14-yards on two carries.
The Vikings didn’t have Adrian Peterson in the game last night as he was probably off shooting baskets and calling himself “King James” somewhere. Jerrick McKinnon took over the rushing duties and didn’t do much of anything – he carried the ball 12 times for 25 yards, but he did catch three passes for 27 yards.
Receivers
Amari Cooper is the real deal and it’s going to rest on the arm of Derek Carr to make it happen for him. Unfortunately, that might be a problem. Last night we saw Carr make a beautiful toss to Cooper on the fade for 40 yards, but we also saw him sail one over his head. These kind of performances are going to restrict his value this season unless Carr really progresses quickly. Cooper finished the game with just the one reception for 40 yards.
Charles Johnson is going to be priority number one for the Vikings. I think he is a golden piece for PPR, leagues especially in terms of value. Johnson was targeted five times and he caught four and gained 40 yards and a touchdown. I think Johnson could be a high WR3 or low WR2Â in most fantasy drafts.
We’ll bring you the rest of the games in our third edition later this week, but make sure you take a look at our instant analysis of Jordy Nelson’s injury that occurred on Sunday.
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- FanDuel Bargains: Week Three - October 1, 2017
- FanDuel Bargains: Week Three - September 24, 2017
- FanDuel Bargains: Week Two - September 17, 2017
