Start/Sit/Grab/Drop - Week 2 (2021 Fantasy Football)
The decisions you need to make to win your Week 2 matchup
Welcome to Start/Sit/Grab/Drop for Week 2. This is a series I write every week of the fantasy football season, where I not only take a look at which players you should start or sit, but identify players to grab from waivers and disappointing players you can safely drop.
START
Quarterback (QB)
Baker Mayfield - CLE (vs HOU)
Once again, I am suggesting you start a QB against the Houston Texans. They actually surprised me with how well they played against Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars last week, but even with 3 INTs, Lawrence still threw 3 TDs and had a decent game for fantasy. With Houston now travelling to Cleveland, I expect Baker Mayfield to have a field day against this Texans defense, even if WR Odell Beckham Jr. is inactive again. Let’s face it, the Browns are a much better team than Houston so Mayfield is a must-start this week if you are streaming QBs.
Other QBs to start:
Jameis Winston - NO (@ CAR)
Ryan Tannehill - TEN (@ SEA)
Teddy Bridgewater - DEN (@ JAX)
Running Back (RB)
Melvin Gordon III/Javonte Williams - DEN (@ JAX)
While the Denver Broncos offense lost breakout candidate WR Jerry Jeudy for 4-6 weeks with a high-ankle sprain, that does not mean you should just fade the entire offense. This is still a surprisingly decent offense that goes up against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 2. Run defense is optional for the Jags, as they allowed the 3rd most fantasy point to RBs last week. Melvin Gordon and Javonte Williams will feast against the Jaguars’ porous run defense, making them an easy start.
Other RBs to start:
Elijah Mitchell/JaMycal Hasty - SF (@ PHI)
Chase Edmonds/James Conner - ARI (vs MIN)
Kareem Hunt - CLE (vs HOU)
Wide Receiver (WR)
Mike Williams - LAC (vs DAL)
The Dallas Cowboys only have one good cornerback in Trevon Diggs, who is likely to be covering Keenan Allen all game. This opens things up for Mike Williams to have a great game. In Week 1, the former 1st-round pick caught 8 passes for 82 yards and 1 TD. Those are the numbers you expect from Allen, not Williams. Look for Mike Williams to continue his hot start against Dallas, as the Cowboys allowed the 6th most fantasy points to the WR position last week after getting torched by Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the season opener.
Other WRs to start:
Diontae Johnson/Chase Claypool/JuJu Smith-Schuster - PIT (vs LV)
Courtland Sutton/Tim Patrick - DEN (@ JAX)
Jarvis Landry - CLE (vs HOU)
Tight End (TE)
Dallas Goedert - PHI (vs SF)
San Francisco was the best defense in fantasy football last season against TEs, but they did not have a good start this season after getting torched by T.J. Hockenson in Week 1. Is this a trend or just a one-off? Personally, I do not think the 49ers have a great secondary in 2021, especially with CB Jason Verrett likely done for the season with a torn ACL, and Goedert may be able to exploit that weakness once again. Expect Dallas Goedert to eat with Zach Ertz out with a hamstring strain.
Other TEs to start:
Noah Fant - DEN (@ JAX)
Jonnu Smith/Hunter Henry - NE (@ NYJ)
SIT
Quarterback (QB)
Kirk Cousins - MIN (@ ARI)
I liked Cousins last week against the Cincinnati Bengals and he performed admirably for fantasy, but after seeing what the Arizona Cardinals defense did to the Tennessee Titans, I think it is best to stay away from Cousins in Week 2. Chandler Jones and J.J. Watt have still got it. They were too difficult for the Titans’ offensive line to handle and were wreaking havoc all game. Cousins is not nearly as mobile as Tannehill, so I think he is really going to struggle this week. I would avoid starting him, if possible.
Other QBs to sit:
Matt Ryan - ATL (@ TB)
Trevor Lawrence - JAX (vs DEN)
Running Back (RB)
Mike Davis - ATL (@ TB)
Ezekiel Elliott got completely fazed out of the game last week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and he is a much better RB than Mike Davis so, if you have Mikey D on your team, I think you have no choice but to bench him this week. The Falcons will be throwing the ball a lot in this game, meaning Davis will likely fall by the wayside and not be remotely fantasy relevant in Week 2. The game script is not favorable to Davis in this one, but you might be forced to start him if you are not deep at RB.
Other RBs to sit:
Josh Jacobs/Kenyan Drake - LV (@ PIT)
Miles Sanders - PHI (vs SF)
Mark Ingram II/Phillip Lindsay/David Johnson - HOU (@ CLE)
Wide Receiver (WR)
Kenny Golladay - NYG (@ WAS)
Kenny G was not bad against the Denver Broncos last week, but he was not great either. The Washington Football Team has a pretty good defense with a stout front 7, meaning Daniel Jones will not have much time in the pocket. This reduces the effectiveness of all Giants WRs, especially Kenny Golladay who is a big play threat and tends to run long developing routes. Golladay is likely to struggle mightily in this matchup and should be left on your bench.
Other WRs to sit:
Tyler Boyd - CIN (@ CHI)
Marquez Callaway - NO (@ CAR)
Laviska Shenault Jr./Marvin Jones Jr./D.J. Chark Jr. - JAX (vs DEN)
Tight End (TE)
Logan Thomas - WAS (vs NYG)
Thomas scored a TD for the Washington Football Team in their season opener against the Los Angeles Chargers, but with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick likely to miss a significant amount of time, his stocks are way down. While Taylor Heinecke is not a bad QB, he can be erratic and hard to predict. Instead of playing the guessing game with the WFT pass catchers, just leave Thomas on your bench until we have a bit more information to work with. I feel sorry for Terry McLaurin owners the most.
Other TEs to sit:
Tyler Higbee - LAR (@ IND)
Robert Tonyan - GB (vs DET)
GRAB
Elijah Mitchell (RB - SF) @ PHI
Mitchell is the new big name that came out of nowhere in the San Francisco 49ers backfield this week. The RB handled 19 touches and turned them into 104 yards and 1 TD. We all expected Trey Sermon to be the rookie getting more of the touches, but he ended up being inactive and Mitchell got the lion’s share of the work. With Raheem Mostert out for 8 weeks, Mitchell is the priority add on waivers this week if your team is thin at RB. Just do not go crazy with the FAB bids on Week 1 because, for all we know, the 49ers will simply make Trey Sermon active in Week 2 and feed him the bulk of the carries.
Other players to grab from waivers:
Quarterback (QB)
Teddy Bridgewater - DEN (@ JAX)
Baker Mayfield - CLE (vs HOU)
Jameis Winston - NO (@ CAR)
Running Back (RB)
Kenneth Gainwell - PHI (vs SF)
Tony Jones Jr. - NO (@ CAR)
Latavius Murray - BAL (vs KC)
Wide Receiver (WR)
Christian Kirk - ARI (vs MIN)
Jalen Reagor - PHI (vs SF)
Tim Patrick - DEN (@ JAX)
Tight End (TE)
Juwan Johnson - NO (@ CAR)
Jared Cook - LAC (vs DAL)
Cole Kmet - CHI (vs CIN)
Defense/Special Teams (DST)
Cleveland Browns - vs HOU
Green Bay Packers - vs DET
Arizona Cardinals - vs MIN
DROP
Russell Gage (WR - ATL)
Gage was one my favorite late round sleepers, but after a 2 target game with 0 receptions, he can be safely dropped. Trust me, no one will be chomping at the bit to add a player who is barely involved in the passing game. Now, he is not going to give you a goose egg on most weeks, but the dream of him taking any of Julio Jones’ vacant targets seems to be over before it starts. Other than WR Calvin Ridley and TE Kyle Pitts, I would not trust any of the Atlanta Falcons pass catchers.
Other players to drop:
Tyrell Williams (WR - DET)
Le’Veon Bell (RB - BAL)