5 Start, 5 Sit for Week 2 of the 2024 NFL Season
Week 1 of the 2024 season brought with it a lot of disappointment from the league’s biggest stars and shocking breakouts from some dark horse players. Heading into week 2, it’s still a little unclear who can be trusted to be playable week in and week out. What I have for you this week is my list of 5 players that I think are safe to start and five players that could be traps.
Start:
Baker Mayfield vs DET – Start
I have been happy to acquire Baker Mayfield in all of my dynasty leagues this offseason, and his performance last week against the Commanders validated those feelings. In what you could almost call a blowout win, Baker went 24/30 for 289 yards, four touchdowns, and no turnovers, beating Washington 37-20. What I think is most impressive is that all three of his starting wide receivers caught touchdowns. The Bucs’ offense isn’t entirely reliant on one big playmaker and can score points with pretty much anyone. Against the Lions, I think that fact is going to be important.
The Lions held Matthew Stafford to only one touchdown last week but did give up over 300 passing yards. I think with the glut of playmakers that the Bucs have, Baker should again outperform his expectations. After a week of questionably low quarterback numbers, Baker is one of the safer plays in week 2.
Brian Robinson vs NYG – Start
Brian Robinson was still able to out-snap and out-touch Austin Ekeler, even with a horribly negative game script. The Commanders catch a break this week, however, getting to play the Giants at home. Last week, the Giants allowed Aaron Jones to rack up over 100 scrimmage yards from only 16 touches. Brian Robinson got the same number of touches in week one against a far superior opponent and was able to almost match Jones’ production.
I think Robinson is a little slept on because of Jayden Daniels‘ proclivity to scramble and Ekeler’s alleged pasing game usage (they both had the same number of targets). Only 7 of Daniels’ 16 rush attempts were “designed” runs (4 were readoption plays), meaning that Robinson’s run play count isn’t truly being infringed upon. Robinson is the only real power back on a team that will be doing a lot of running this weekend.
Zay Flowers vs LV – Start
Several times during the NFL opener against the Chiefs, Zay Flowers was on the precipice of a huge performance. Every time an opportunity came up, something went wrong. The high target number is what compels me to keep him on my start list. In a game that was down to the wire, Lamar Jackson pretty much only looked at Flowers or tight end Isaiah Likely.
I don’t expect the Ravens to have nearly as much trouble against the Raiders in week 2, so expect a few of those missed opportunities to hit this time. Flowers has been consistently involved in the offense since his first game last year. Don’t let Liekly’s massive game make you think that Flowers isn’t worth a start.
Brock Bowers vs BAL – Start
Tight-end play across the league was pretty abysmal in week 1. Among the standouts was Rookie Brock Bowers. Bowers led his team in targets against the Chargers (yes, ahead of Devante Adams) and ended the day as the second-highest-scoring Raider. His high involvement this early on makes me believe that he’ll still be able to score points even when the team is in losing situations.
This is good because I’m expecting a losing situation against the Ravens. It’s unlikely (see what I did there) that Bowers has 200 yards and two touchdowns, but he will be outproducing most other tight ends.
Joe Mixon vs CHI – Start
You’re going to have to wait all the way until Sunday night for this one, but it will be worth it. Watching back the Texans vs Colts game, I was seriously impressed with how well Joe Mixon was running. Putting up a stat line like his (30 carries, 159 yards, 1 td) is hard to do in a game that you only win by 2. Clearly, Mixon is thriving in his workhorse role so I don’t see any reason to shy off of starting him. I wouldn’t be scared of a regression that is too big either.
The Bears’ saving grace last week was their special teams/Will Levis‘ mistake, the defense wasn’t really all too impressive. They gave up 140 rush yards to the Titans, who didn’t look as good as the Texans. With that in mind, I’m expecting Mixon to still reach top 5 RB status this week.
Sit:
Joe Burrow vs KC – Sit
The Bengals have generally started slow the past couple of years, and Joe Burrow is no exception. Burrow hasn’t scored above 20 points in the first two weeks of the season since his rookie year…against the Browns. This year, he has to face the reigning SuperBowl champion Chiefs in Arrowhead. Burrow wasn’t able to get anything going against the Patriots, who many thought could be the worst team in the league this year. He is also likely to be without Tee Higgins for another week.
I know that Joe Burrow has been touted as the bane of Patrick Mahomes, but there are just too many things going against him this week. It would have been a tough matchup even without the poor week 1 performance, but now I think you definitely need to wait for the rust to shake off.
Tyjae Spears vs NYJ – Sit
The fantasy community at large was unsure how this backfield was going to shake out pre-season. After just one week, things seem fairly clear. Tony Pollard out-snapped Spears 61% to 45%, out-touched him 20 to 8, and out-scored him 18.4-7.2. Regardless of the game script, Pollard seems to be the definitive leadback. If you were intending to use Spears as a starter this year, expecting him to truly split 50/50, it might be time to give up that dream. Especially into a Jets defense that is stout (regardless of what the 49ers did to them), I think Spears is best served warming your bench.
Alec Pierce vs GB – Sit
For a few of my start recommendations, I mentioned that high targets gave me the confidence to continue starting the player. I’m using the same logic here. Pierce only had three targets (and catches) against Houston, and two of them were 50+ yard go routes. Now, I can’t fault him for doing what he does best. Pierce has been a deep-ball-merchant since he entered the league. However, that style of play is not consistent enough to rely on week to week if you want to win games.
Couple that with the potential return of Josh Downs and you end up with a pretty low expectation from Pierce. He most likely exploded on your bench last week, but don’t get caught with a goose egg in your starting lineup this week because you wanted to get cheeky.
Foster Moreau/Juwan Johnson vs DAL- Sit
The Saints had a ton of fun beating up on a Junior Varsity team in week 1, but now they have to play a real NFL team. This pair of tight ends were both recipients of touchdown passes in a blowout game against the Panthers. If not for the touchdowns, both of their days’ would have been severely lackluster (combined six catches for 69 yards). I think we can assume that going forward, the Saints won’t be doing blowing out until at least week 9.
Even if the Saints continue to do well, I think the larger contributors to that success will be named Olave, Kamara, Hill, and Shaheed. I see both of these guys as waiver wire traps this week, so don’t get caught!
Kirk Cousins vs PHI – Sit
I’ve been seeing film breakdowns all week about how uncomfortable Cousins looked in the pocket against the Steelers. And TJ Watt wasn’t even mentioned! Cousins looks like he still has a bit of recovery to do before he’s truly back to his former self. He was basically a statue in the pocket, wasn’t accurate at throwing the ball downfield, and had hardly any power to get it past 15 yards. This combination of inability is not what you want in a quarterback about to play the Eagles in prime time.
You can expect the Falcons to be playing from behind for most of the game if Kirk continues to struggle. Should that be the case, 16/24 for 155 yards and 1 touchdown is not going to do anyone any favors.
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