Nailed a few of these in the difficult-to-judge first week of the NFL fantasy season. Not a bad start at all. As with last season, I’ll be using the standard projections and scoring found at espn.com for these ratings. Let’s see how I did!
20-50% owned tier
Pickup of the Week – QB Marcus Mariota – Projected: 16th among QB – Finished: 3rd – Grade: A++
Didn’t need many throws to put up monster numbers against the terrible Bucs D. Not completely sold on him yet since this came against Tampa and a lot of work was done after the catch for him. But there’s no doubt about his accuracy and his arm. He looks great and I get the feeling he will be able to play well against tougher match ups.
Honorable Mentions
WR Marvin Jones – Projected 72nd among WR – Finished: T64th – Grade: D
Close but not quite on him. He had a TD catch but the D made a great play and knocked it out of his hands. He still made good runs after the catch on his receptions and I’m a big believer in Jones. He’ll be on this list again almost assuredly.
TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins – Projected 22nd among TE – Finished: 2nd – Grade: A++
Wow! This guy looked legit. Granted, it came against one of the weaker defenses from last season but he still made some great plays in this one. Deserves to be owned on all leagues and should be on his way to a top 10 TE season.
Minnesota Vikings Defense – Projected: 12th among Def – Finished: 17th – Grade: F
Well, Carlos Hyde is an absurdly good football player and now the world knows it. Minnesota’s O did the D no favors but, when you can’t stop the run, you’re going to have a pretty bad fantasy game. They did come close to returning the blocked FG for a TD that would have saved their fantasy stats. But this team laid an egg and I would expect better things in the coming weeks.
20% or less tier
Pickup of the Week – WR Corey Brown – Projected 75th among WR – Finished: T64th – Grade: D
Never got the deep throw I expected. Did get one target around the end zone but was well covered and was overthrown. He’s going to hit some deep plays but it will be a gamble when it happens.
Honorable Mentions
RB Benny Cunningham – Projected: 18th among RB – Finished: 19th – Grade: B+
Surprised at the projection by ESPN considering the match up but Cunningham looked great all-around in this one. Was a really nice grab in PPR. Such a talented player and hard to believe he’s a third stringer when everyone is healthy.
RB Khiry Robinson – Projected: 52nd among RB – Finished: 26th – Grade: A
Continues to look great when he gets touches and is making a lot of people wonder where Spiller will fit in this offense once he returns. It will be a committee in New Orleans until someone else gets injured so enjoy these match ups when you get them.
WR Allen Hurns – Projected: 58th among WR – Finished: 41st – Grade: C+
Looked good even though the numbers weren’t great. Came about a foot away from a TD but couldn’t stay in bounds after the catch. If he gets that, he’d have been a top 20 play. Close does not count for much in fantasy football…
Last Minute Fantasy Football Pickup 